TED Talk Tuesday: How to Get Your Ideas to Spread

There’s a harsh reality marketers have to understand about modern consumers: they don’t care about you.

Unlike generations of yesteryear, people nowadays have too many options and too little time to care about what’s being peddled, because quite frankly, they’ve seen it before. And according to Seth Godin, in a world with too many options, the obvious thing to do is ignore the information overload.

An author, entrepreneur and marketer, Godin compares this indifference to seeing a cow on the side of the road.

“Cows are invisible. Cows are boring. Who's going to stop and pull over and say, ‘Oh, look, a cow.’ Nobody,” he said. “If the cow was purple, you'd notice it for a while. I mean, if all cows were purple you'd get bored with those, too.”

The question all businesses should ask themselves is what makes the product remarkable?

For decades, marketers used to make products for average people—they appealed to the masses. However, Godin suggests that approach no longer works and the target audience is to target the early adapters because they are the ones who care.

“It's really simple: you sell to the people who are listening, and just maybe, those people tell their friends,” Godin said. “So when Steve Jobs talks to 50,000 people at his keynote, who are all tuned in from 130 countries watching his two-hour commercial—that’s the only thing keeping his company in business—it’s that those 50,000 people care desperately enough to watch a two-hour commercial, and then tell their friends.”

In the pursuit of attracting consumers, Godin suggests there are three simple rules to follow.

First, understand that design is free when you get to scale. Those who come up with remarkable concepts typically figure out how to get the design to work in their favor.

Second, the riskiest thing you can do is be safe.

Third, avoid being very good because very good is average and nobody notices average.

To watch the full video, visit TED.com.

Nick Powills, CFE, founded No Limit Agency in 2008 and serves as Chief Brand Strategist for the Chicago-based firm. No Limit is a full-service communications agency that establishes and elevates brands by bridging Public Relations, Social Media, Marketing, Advertising, Digital, and a lot of creativity, to best strategize well-rounded and successful campaigns for 50+ global franchise brands. By presenting visionary ideas and building real relationships, No Limit is able to create effective media branding strategies to help companies grow. Nick currently leads a staff of writers, media strategists, designers, social media experts and digital producers in an office think-tank where brands are humanized for strong, compelling media stories. Prior to starting No Limit at the age of 27, Nick spent four years working at a franchise PR agency where he mastered the art of building rapport with media outlets and creating newsworthy pitches for earned media placements. He holds a Bachelor of Journalism from Drake University in Iowa.

TED Talk Tuesday: How to Get Your Ideas to Spread

Don’t Miss the Next Big Franchise Story

Nick Powills

More Articles Like This