Got a Big Marketing Idea? Discover 5 Ways to Tell if it's Valid

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Thank goodness for the trailblazers! When you really sit back and think about it, where would we truly be without them? As a lifelong Golden State Warriors fan, you’d better believe that statement isn’t in reference to that NBA team located in Portland, Oregon. 

The people I’m talking about are those who helped pave the way to allow us all to freely do what we love today. From a professional standpoint, we certainly owe those who opened the doors for us a great debt of gratitude. 

For those of us working in the marketing industry, one of the main trailblazers we all owe a huge thank you to is the late David Ogilvy AKA “The Father of Advertising.” 

In his classic marketing book, Ogilvy on Advertising, the British advertising tycoon shares a myriad of valuable lessons to help marketing and business professionals navigate the perilous journey of satisfying and retaining customers. 

Also detailed in the book, Ogilvy outlines methods to recognize a big marketing idea. Which consists of asking yourself the following five questions. 

1. Did it make me gasp when I first saw it? 

If you were to ever ask a professional boxer which punches they received hurt them the most, they’ll tell you that it was the punches that they never saw coming; the punches that were so unexpected—they didn’t even have a chance to brace themselves in anticipation because the punch seemed to come out of nowhere.

Similar to an unexpected punch to the gut, big marketing ideas often make you gasp when you first see them. Whether it’s in your mind’s eye or you see it in first-person, big marketing ideas hit you so hard on first impact—they’ll make you gasp. 

2. Do I wish I thought of it myself?

Even if you’re considered to be amongst the greats of your craft, there will always be people within your area of expertise who will come up with ideas that’ll make you wish you had thought of them yourself. 

Take the hip-hop superstar Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson for example. From the outside looking in, you could easily assume that having the highest-selling debut album in hip-hop history, along with multiple albums that have gone diamond—50 wouldn’t have “idea envy” for any artist when it came to the art of songwriting. 

Nevertheless, in multiple interviews 50 has stated that he wishes he wrote the hit song, Whoa! Which was written and recorded by a hip-hop artist by the name of Black Rob (which was his only solo single to reach Billboard’s Hot 100 chart). 

Despite having a music career that most artists would trade theirs for in a second, Whoa! was such a momentous song in the culture—that even with all of his accomplishments, 50 still laments over the fact that he didn’t think of the idea for the song himself. 

Even if you’re a prolific creative like 50 Cent, it’ll always be marketing ideas that you’ll come across that’ll make you wish that you had thought of them yourself. Those are the ideas which will often be the biggest.

3. Is it unique?

This question is about as straightforward as it gets. Think of how many great marketing ideas you’ve come across that were exactly like another marketing idea that you’ve seen or heard about before…exactly my point!

When it comes to marketing ideas, a certain element of uniqueness and distinctiveness must be attached to it in order for it to truly be considered a big marketing idea. 

4. Does it fit the strategy to perfection?

Congruence isn’t just a prerequisite for a successful marketing campaign, it’s also a requirement for any big marketing idea. Not only does a marketing strategy need to meet certain checkpoints to determine its success, each tactic within it must also align with the overall objective of the strategy—to perfection. 

The biggest advertising and marketing ideas achieve this feat in an impressive manner. 

Take the launch of a device that you may be holding in your hands at the moment for example. From the product’s introductory press conference held by Steve Jobs on January 9, 2007; to its first television ad campaign titled, Hello, which aired a month later featuring over 50 celebs in scenes from films and television shows saying, “Hello.”

And finally, to the release of the product on June 9, 2007 (exactly 5 months to the day of its introductory press conference), each marketing action taken within Apple’s launch of the first iPhone was in perfect harmony with the company’s overall brand strategy. 

Which needless to say, helped lead to the iPhone becoming one of the most popular products of all-time. 

5. Could it be used for 30 years?

Ronald McDonald. Toucan Sam. Tony the Tiger. Before most of us ever took our first steps as infants, each one of those fictional characters were already household names around the world—generating millions of dollars for their respective brands. 

Talk about an unfair brand advantage; there's a reason why McDonalds, Kellogg’s Froot Loops, and Frosted Flakes have all been extremely successful for decades now—those who created their fictional brand characters had a very big marketing idea.

To tell whether or not a marketing idea is truly big, ask yourself, could this idea be used for the next 30 years? 

While the actors who portray the fictional characters may change throughout the years, for at least the next three decades, Allstate’s Mayhem, State Farm’s Jake From State Farm, and Progressive’s Flo the Insurance Lady fictional brand characters will all be very effective links that’ll help consumers build bonds with their respective brands. 

If a marketing idea isn’t capable of doing that for the next 30 years (regardless of technological advances), according to the “Father of Advertising” himself–the idea isn’t quite big enough.

Closing thoughts

Every marketing idea doesn’t have to be big in order to be successful. Think about it, for all of the millions of albums he sold, even the late, great King of Pop himself—Michael Jackson released songs that didn’t necessarily set the world on fire. Yet his overall body of work speaks for itself. 

The truth of the matter is that it only takes one big marketing idea to take a brand through the stratosphere. 

If you’ve got a great marketing idea for your startup and would like help bringing it to life, send us an email today and let’s discuss how together—we could actualize it and take your startup to the next level!