Leaders, like scientists, need to brand their vital initiatives.
Posted by Chris Holland on Fri, Oct 28, 2011 @ 12:14 PM
(response to a terrific blog post "Why Science Depends On Good Branding" by John Pavlus whose writting has appeared in Wired, New York, Scientific American, Technology Review http://bit.ly/swTcds )
John's premise is that people need enticing names for important scientific investments in order to understand them and to advocate for government funding. Even though the technical experts think it's all smoke and mirrors, they, most of all need the results of widespread understanding and support.
I would add, we all need good branding for the things leadership wants us to invest our time and engergy in.
A leader who can do that while genuinely laying out organization's competitive options is a good catch for any organization.
My response:
Great point John. Even the Patagonian Tooth Fish needed a new name more acceptable to the public, Chilean Sea Bass. Aren't we all more comfortable ordering an Orange Roughy rather than the ole Slime Head?
Let the scientists do science and the marketers do marketing.
I kinda like "The God Particle," (still can't write the word without caps, but the caps might make the scientific research even MORE "user friendly and interest more constituencies?)
That said, I'd like to push the marketing one step further and get to the ole "Value Proposition." How about a marketing slogan that lets us know what we might get from the research and the ultimate answer. How about "The God Blog" or "The Eternity Door" or "God's Well of Unlimited Inexpensive Energy" or "The Existential Angst Removal Formula."
Will the scientific discovery give us "Night Baseball" even in the arctic circle? Will the research lead to a more eco-friendly paint removal solvent? Will we be able to get a job with the "God Project?"
I do think if the project "only" solves the puzzle of how the universe began many would vote to delay it a few more years.
What we need is a leader who understands the value proposition of the investment and can compare it with the value proposition of investing in alternative energy, highways and bridges, natural gas, and healthcare.
Now that leader would be a "whore's egg*" worth catching!
* http://bit.ly/rRXNR3