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Some takeaways:
- When a product succeeds, we often forget the crucial role marketing played in its adoption. Rory even claimed that “Steve Jobs was not a technologist; he was a pitchman.” Many innovative products, from electricity to the internet, faced significant initial skepticism until marketing won consumers over.
- Create space for unorthodox ideas. Remember: the opposite of a good idea can be another good idea. For example, both high-touch and no-touch hotel check-ins can be excellent experiences. We often act on the assumption that the world is linear, but it is often more complex than that. One helpful habit is to share logical ideas first and then create space for silly and crazy ones.
- In certain contexts, behaving irrationally can be advantageous because it makes your actions less predictable and thus harder for others to exploit. This unpredictability can be a form of protection or strategic advantage.
- When innovating, aim for “most advanced, yet acceptable” (MAYA). People generally prefer evolution over complete reinvention. However, maintaining some idiosyncrasies, or “the right amount of weird,” can create distinctiveness and interest. For example, Jaguar has a unique and memorable light switch and Veuve Clicquot has a defining yellow label.
- Chase fame—it makes everything easier. Fame can be the difference between needing to do outreach versus leads coming to you, chasing people to take calls versus people always agreeing to chat, needing to pitch hires versus hires pitching you.
Here are the key takeaways from Rory Sutherland's episode on Lenny’s Podcast, “What most people miss about marketing”:
- Good Products Don’t Always Win—And Bad Ones Don’t Always Fail
- Product success isn’t just about quality or features. The most well-made solution can lose in the market if psychological factors, timing, or user perception are off.
- Example: He points to products like Meta Portal TV and Google Glass—great in function, but hampered by user skepticism, timing, or awkward early marketing.
- Fame, Consistency, and Distinctiveness Are Crucial for Branding
- Rory’s main advice for founders: “Be consistent, be distinctive, and be famous.”
- Fame turns the tables: Once your brand attains a certain level of recognition, customers seek you out—your growth compounds and you play “capitalism on easy mode.”
- Consistency and distinctiveness make your brand memorable. Small idiosyncrasies and quirks can help, as long as they aren’t too weird, following the MAYA principle ("Most Advanced Yet Acceptable”).
- Psychological, Not Just Logical, Thinking
- Human decisions are rarely linear or “logical.” People use shortcuts, habits, and social copying more than rational cost-benefit analysis.
- Sometimes, less functionality is more valuable to users. The Walkman succeeded because it was not overloaded with features.
- Marketing and Timing Are Often More Important Than the Product
- Historical perspective: Major technological shifts like the internet, electricity, mobile phones, etc., required massive marketing and generational attitude shifts—not just invention.
- Timing is critical—many ideas fail only because the world isn’t ready yet.
- Survivorship Bias Hides the Role of Marketing
- Society remembers only the products that succeeded—often attributing success to the product, ignoring the decisive role of marketing (e.g., iPhone, Model T, electricity in homes). “We forget how important marketing was to those successes.”
- Metrics Can Demotivate and Distort
- Strict metric-driven workplaces often produce demotivated staff and stunt creativity.
- Companies that foster small, tight teams with autonomy (e.g., Octopus Energy, Shopify, Zappos) often get better real-world results and happier employees.
- Use Parallel (“Psycho-logical, Technological, Economic”) Thinking
- The best ideas balance psychological appeal, technological feasibility, and economic viability—these need to be developed in parallel, not sequentially.
- Innovation is rarely linear, and success often comes from pivoting and parallel problem-solving, not rigid processes.
- Social Proof and Habits Drive Adoption
- New behaviors often spread because of what others are doing, not just because of rational incentives. People are more likely to get solar panels or heat pumps if several neighbors have them—not just because of the financial benefit.
- Most people are driven by a desire to fit in rather than to stand out.
- “Less is More” Principle
- Products that do one thing very well (e.g., the original Walkman) are often more successful than those that try to do everything.
- Brand Trust and Clarity
- A good brand acts as a promise. Fame and consistent delivery increase trust—the more reputable you are, the more likely people will give you the benefit of the doubt.
If you want actionable advice from the episode:
- Focus on building fame, not just awareness.
- Embrace traits that make your brand distinctive—even quirks—while remaining accessible.
- Think about your solutions through psychological, not just rational, lenses.
- Allow for parallel experimentation and creative autonomy in teams. Don’t let metrics kill human judgment.
- Remember: The stories of “overnight successes” almost always hide years of marketing, behavioral hurdles, and psychological nudges behind the scenes.