1. Think that ideas have value.
2. Worry that someone will steal their ideas.
3. Should spend more time pondering why no one steals their “implementation.”

Going forward, let’s call any person that fits this description Bill Jr.

I frequently hear from Bill Jr. He wants to talk about his latest start-up idea – after I sign his non-disclosure agreement, of course.  Why the NDA? Because he thinks that his idea is worth millions.

And that’s the problem – the idea isn’t worth anything. An idea has no value until someone executes on that idea.

So Bill Jr., forgive me for laughing hysterically when you protect your ideas like a mother bear protects her cubs. I just can’t help it.

Every company has one. The problem: some can’t resist the temptation to tell stories that don’t match reality. In other words, they lie to customers.

To prove this point, let’s take a look at the stories told by Apple and Pets.com. One story is true, the other is a lie. Not surprisingly, one company has flourished, and the other is out of business.

Pets.com: Pets Can’t Drive campaign (1999 – 2000)

The Story: pet food, supplies and toys for consumers focused on price and convenience.

Truth or Lie? Lie. While Pets.com initially delivered on price, this wasn’t sustainable (the company lost money on most items sold because they undercharged shipping costs to attract customers). But the real lie was about convenience. When customers placed an order, they had to wait several days to receive the items. And when you need kitty litter, you need it now. Trust me on this one.

Apple: Think Different campaign (1997 – 2002)

The Story: people with passion can change the world for the better.

Truth or Lie? Truth. The story asserted that Apple nurtured creativity by behaving as unconventionally as the accomplished thinkers and doers who were praised as “the round pegs in the square holes.” The company lived this story in every way: it’s packaging, product design, online computer store, and retail outlets. The campaign didn’t work because it was creative; it worked because Apple was fully dedicated to the story it told.

The challenge you face is clear: you need to tell a story. To make it authentic, you need to live and breathe this story every day, from how you answer the phone to the way you deliver your product.

Start by asking yourself two questions:

1. What is my company’s story?
2. Is it true?

“That will never work.”

“It’s never been done before.”

“Don’t bother – we already tried that once.”

“Nice idea, but can you prove that it will work?”

“We can’t sell that to senior management.”

We aren’t taught to question things that are familiar to us. Which reminds me of an experiment that can be done with five monkeys.

Start with a cage containing five monkeys.  Inside the cage, hang a banana on a string and place a set of stairs under it.  Before long, a monkey will go to the stairs and start to climb towards the banana.  As soon as he touches the stairs, spray the other four monkeys with cold water.  After a while, another monkey makes an attempt with the same result – the other monkeys are sprayed with cold water.

Soon enough, any monkey that tries to climb the stairs will be stopped by the others.

Now, turn off the cold water.  Remove one monkey from the cage and replace it with a new one.  The newcomer will see the banana and try to climb the stairs. To his surprise, all of the other monkeys attack him.  After another attempt and attack, he knows that if he tries to climb the stairs he will be assaulted.

Next, remove another of the original monkeys and replace it with a new one.  The newcomer goes to the stairs and is attacked.  And the previous newcomer takes part in the punishment with enthusiasm.

Continue the process – replace the third monkey with a new one, then the fourth, then fifth. Every time the newest monkey takes to the stairs, he is attacked. But most of the monkeys that are beating him have no idea why they were not permitted to climb the stairs – or why they are participating in the beating of the newest monkey. After replacing all the original monkeys, none of the remaining monkeys have ever been sprayed with cold water. Regardless, no monkey ever again approaches the stairs to try for the banana. Why not? Because as far as they know, that’s the way it’s always been done around here.

Companies all over the world repeat this experiment every day with their own people. What about yours? Or do you promote a culture that is eternally curious about why they do what they do?

Of course not. But we will need to make changes if we expect this year to be better than the last.

Start by ignoring the negative news. Research after the economic downturn of the 1990′s found that those exposed to excessive negative news reports had lower levels of motivation and engagement than those who ignored the news entirely.* Remember, sometimes media folks will overreact to something in order to make a point.

Second, redirect your energy on new ideas. Fortunately, Seth Godin compiled a (free) ebook that will help you get started. “What Matters Now” was written by more than seventy big thinkers – contributors include Guy Kawasaki, Gary Vaynerchuk, Hugh MacLeod, Dave Ramsey – the list goes on.

To download, click on the ebook cover above. Or simply go here.

Some of the ideas will apply to you; others will not. But each one will get you to think, and hopefully lead to even bigger ideas when you discuss what you’ve read with others.

Here’s to a great 2010!

* I made this up. See what I mean about making a point?

Sooner or later, you’ll need to persuade someone to take action they may not have taken before. To hire someone with an unusual background, buy a product they’ve never used, or embrace a new idea.

One approach is to play it safe. Outline features and benefits. Put together a PowerPoint with fancy charts and bullet points. Maybe even use a scare tactic or two.

The safe approach assumes that people make decisions logically. Here’s the problem – decisions are made emotionally and justified logically. So if you want someone to do something they haven’t done before, you need to persuade them in a way that hasn’t been done before either.

The video below was the sales pitch used to sell The Muppet Show. Note: this was done in the early 1970′s, long before the existence of the easy-to-use editing programs we have today. Which means that this 2 1/2 minute video took a lot of time and creativity to make. I doubt that it felt like the safe way to persuade CBS to pick up the show.

But I’ll bet you it surprised them. And surprise is a great lubricant to “yes.”

[Update: the video was recently removed from You Tube. Regardless, hopefully the point is clear - sometimes the safe approach is riskiest one to take.]

The second problem is that they solve the wrong problems.

More often than not, companies focus their energy on improving the current situation. This is a natural response. And if things seem to get better as a result of their actions, they feel as though something has been accomplished.

Unfortunately, doing what you’ve done before – only better – doesn’t necessarily solve the problem. At best, it keeps you on par with your competition. But it certainly won’t do anything to help you grow.

A better route is to solve a different problem. ING Direct solves a different problem than Wells Fargo. Freshbooks solves a different problem than QuickBooks, Word, or Excel. Zipcar solves a different problem than Hertz.

Solving a different problem often leads to an industry revolution. What problem are you solving?

The bad news is that greater access doesn’t translate into better design.

When I was in graduate school, I was the first person in my class to incorporate graphics from the Internet into PowerPoint (insert laughter here). At the time, that was a big deal. I stood out from the crowd (for a few days, anyway) not because I did something great, but because I was first. Once everyone realized they had the tools necessary to raise their game, that’s exactly what they did.

You need to do the same thing with your website.

Remember – the purpose of your site is to:

• Sell (visitor buys; relevant only to ecommerce companies)
• Interact (visitor provides you with an email address or requests additional information)
• Promote (your site tells story, which helps the visitor envision how you could solve a problem important to them)

With that in mind, the following rules are unbreakable:

1. Keep it simple. Don’t use the site as an information dumping ground. Minimize copy; don’t create fifteen pages when five will do. If you can put your site onto single page, do it.
2. Make it clean. Don’t clutter; maximize white space.
3. Have an even tone. Don’t swing from one voice to another. Know your story and stick with it.
4. Sexy is nice, but unnecessary. The availability of design tools makes it easy for folks to get carried away with cleverness (flash, etc). If clever interferes with your story, you’ll send visitors elsewhere to find solutions to their problems.
5. Have a vision. Don’t even think about making decisions by committee. Doing so guarantees you’ll end up with something watered down and useless. Leave that to the large companies.

Need inspiration? My favorite source for design is Smashing Magazine. There you’ll find showcases, how-tos, and tons of freebies. And five minutes on their site is all it takes for you to realize how high the bar has been raised.

Don’t fall too far behind.

Silverback (software)
Luke Larsen (web design)
Visualbox (art direction, motion graphics, and screening)

Want to guess what these sites have in common?

“Bill! Look at this – it’s Blue Banana’s* new brochure!”

“Really? What does it say?”

“Well, let’s see…wow! Are you ready? They’ve been in business for fifty years!” He looked at Bill. “Maybe we should talk to them about our next project. Do you have time now?”

“Wait,” said Bill. “Let me call me wife to tell her about this brochure first.”

Come on. No one really cares. You don’t think people talk about standard marketing collateral, do you?

On the other hand, more than 7 million people watched Blendtec’s video below – and that was just on YouTube. Do you think you could get that many people to look at your brochure?

The lesson is simple: if you want people to spend time on something, make it worth their while.

*not a real company

Advertisement 1
Media: TV Commercial (2007)
Company: Shell Oil (with Ferrari Formula 1 Cars)
Cost to produce: $3.9 million

Advertisement 2
Media: Signage
Company: A-1 American Chimney and Roofing
Cost to produce: $500 – $1,000 (estimate)

It’s obvious which one is more memorable.

Creative advertising has little to do with how much cash you throw at the project. Inexpensive, smart and funny will win every time.