(Photo by iT@c)

The frustrating truth is that doing the right things doesn’t guarantee success. The right things are vital, but luck is huge. All the various marketing books and articles showcase people who’ve “made it”, and tell you what they did to succeed. The implicit part of the story is, “do as I do and you’ll make it just like me.” But it just ain’t so.

I’d love to see a book written examining a group of people starting new businesses (perhaps all that went to the same b-school). Then, see what everyone does. Then, see how everyone does. The “nice” person may lose. The “idiot” may win.

Our culture’s focus on “the winner” creates an underlying “I’m-not-good-enough” mentality, which keeps people constantly looking for “the next trick” to win customers.

That’s why your marketing laboratory is your existing client base. These people have somehow shown up and keep showing up. They haven’t left. They keep paying their bills. You want to clone them. That’s why interviewing them (either directly or subtlety) is vital.

Sometimes the obvious thing to do to improve your marketing is staring right at you.