Rethinking How We Show and Sell

// October 26th, 2009 // Presentation, Showcasing, Web 2.0, usability

It’s about your audience baby!

I stated the day relaxing and catching up with my my Facebook contacts. The video below caught my attention. Next was my email and found a link that lead my over active imagination astray!

I couldn’t have said it better my self

“When are you going to learn? It’s now about you. It never was”

Which in turn led to The The Audience Conference and a quote on their site attributed to Marlon Brando…

“If you want something from an audience, you give blood to their fantasies. It’s the ultimate hustle.” -

This simple quote took overand sent my creative juices flowing but more on that later… back to The Audience Conference?

simply put: this conference is not about “us”, but rather “them” and by “them”, I’m referring to our consumers, customer, viewers, listeners and readers or put differently, the reason why we’re even in business in the first place.

As I see it It… success in business is about understanding what makes others respond. what do they need, and what do they want!

My mom once said to me that women’s shopping, had little to do with the need for clothing but rather the need to fill something that is missing. She summarized that we really only “NEED” two sets of clothing one to wear while the other is being cleaned, anything else was simply filling some private desire or perception of need!

So one of the questions we ask in each aspect of our program… what need are you fulfilling, what triggers will you rely on to motivate them to respond.

Who is your customer?

Why will they buy?
What will make them come?
What will make them stop?
What triggers their reactions?

Few are able to answer…

I’ve been paying close attention lately to what myself and others respond to! Take a look at the video that explores triggers that create change!

The stairs did not change… the consumer experience was enhanced.

The fun Theory Piano Stairs

So how does this apply to the projects we’re testing to life and your business?

As I see It; technology can help create the environment for a better user experience at an unbelievable more affordable cost! Some argue that much of what makes the the user experience cannot easily be recreated online.. or can it?

We’ve been looking at the Fashion Trade Presentation… namely the Fashion Week runway format and the trade show format! They are tedious and expensive, I simply refuse to do them! However to sell fashion we need to have trade platforms!

Or do we?

What does the Audience in this case the Buyer need or want?

Do they really get the best experience in a one day walk through of over 5000 booths or a half an hr under heavy light 20 feet away from the model! I started going to these as a consumer and realized that by the end of the first aisle all products started blurring into each other! My 10yr old alter ego usually kicks in

“are we there yet!’

On the other hand much of how we currently do things are little more influenced by common (often untested) perceptions and the comfort of habit! When we sit and add up the numbers we see huge gaping holes in the logic and theories but still we go right back and repeat the action.

So what is your audience’s fantasy!