Understanding the Ego
Seth Godin and Aaron Wall -- two people I really like, and hence include in my recommended links list -- are both talking about egos, and the importance of marketing to the ego.
Generally speaking, the ego is most motivated to seek adulation. Put another way: how can you make your customers more popular? Should you take Apple's route, and give them an mp3 player that makes them more fashionable? Or maybe Mercedes-Benz's approach, by giving them a symbol that communicates to others the elevated status of the owner? Perhaps the Victoria's Secret approach, which makes females sexier?
Godin makes the point that everyone's ego is motivated by different things. This simple concept is immensely important to remember, and all companies -- especially online companies -- should thus be looking to build customizable business models to address the varying needs of their customers. For more on building a customizable business model, check out Mass Customization: the New Frontier in Business Competition. Or, check out this article (and note the spam at the bottom -- that's an example of what NOT to do).
Generally speaking, the ego is most motivated to seek adulation. Put another way: how can you make your customers more popular? Should you take Apple's route, and give them an mp3 player that makes them more fashionable? Or maybe Mercedes-Benz's approach, by giving them a symbol that communicates to others the elevated status of the owner? Perhaps the Victoria's Secret approach, which makes females sexier?
Godin makes the point that everyone's ego is motivated by different things. This simple concept is immensely important to remember, and all companies -- especially online companies -- should thus be looking to build customizable business models to address the varying needs of their customers. For more on building a customizable business model, check out Mass Customization: the New Frontier in Business Competition. Or, check out this article (and note the spam at the bottom -- that's an example of what NOT to do).
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