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Monday: MicroBusiness and Marketing Marvels
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FROM THE DESK OF MILES EVERSON:
“Mad Men” is an American TV series that ran on the cable network AMC from 2007 to 2015, lasting for 7 seasons and 92 episodes.
And what was one of the most memorable parts of the show?
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It’s Don Draper, the fictional main character, and the endless lessons businessmen, marketers, and independents can learn from his exceptional expertise!
Keep reading to know more about the insights you can gain from Draper’s professional life experiences.
CEO, MBO Partners
Chairman of the Advisory Board, The I Institute
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The business lessons you’ll learn from Mad Men’s fictional main character will make you go mad… in a positive way!
Don Draper: The Fictional Main Character in the American TV Series, “Mad Men”
Donald “Don” Draper is a fictional creative director who tries to maintain a balance between his exceptional professional life and wavering personal life in the 1960s.
As the main character in “Mad Men,” Draper is unique not only because of his business savvy, but also because of his personal experiences and how the time period shaped the person he came to be.
While his personal life oftentimes affected his professional life, Draper’s knowledge about a lot of people proved to be one of his competitive advantages in the business industry.
This helped him remain at the top of the fictional company, Sterling Cooper & Partners, for 7 years.
As different as the business world may seem today due to advanced technology and the Internet, Mad Men’s Don Draper offers classic lessons that you can still benefit from.
- Appeal to your clients’ emotions.
Draper’s success lies on putting customers first and thinking about their happiness above all else.
One of the best examples of this was in Season 1, when Draper pitched an idea to Kodak. In his presentation, he demonstrated his points using his own family to bring in a real-life situation to the pitch. His idea went well and even left a few business executives silent and in tears.
Key takeaway: More than trying to sell a product or service to your clients or customers, think about a deeper need that they are looking for and then show how your business can meet that need.
If you take a look at the TV series, you will see that all of Draper’s campaigns appeal to people’s emotions to make a sale.
- In-person interactions go a long way.
This is connected to the first point, which is appealing to emotions and interacting with customers and clients.
There is no better way to make a connection with people than in person.
Even in Mad Men, Draper and his team’s in-person presentations seemed to always make a sale.
While doing so is not easy today due to the COVID-19 pandemic, making in-person interactions a part of your goals and priorities will do wonders for your brand or business.
By applying this point, you’ll soon realize that a lot of customers and clients are coming to you and you’ll have an even bigger opportunity to form a relationship with them.
- Long-time and loyal customers are VALUABLE.
Draper knows the importance of valuing relationships with loyal customers and not dismissing them in exchange for bigger brands with more money.
At one point in the show, Sterling Cooper & Partners wanted to acquire American Airlines as clients, which would mean that Draper would no longer need to work with Mohawk Airlines, a long-time and loyal client.
Draper’s presentation to the American Airlines ended up falling flat, but he was able to make his point that loyal customers matter.
NO. MATTER. WHAT.
This can be quite a tough line because it’s tempting to grow your business by focusing on high-profile brands, but always remember that your loyal customers are what made your business what it is today.
These people deserve all the kind treatment and that’s what you should always remind yourself to do.
- Thinking on your feet is an important skill.
An advertising pitch goes wrong?
Leave it up to Draper to be your source of inspiration!
Draper is a master at thinking on his feet and always having a Plan B ready.
The partners at Sterling Cooper & Partners seemed to constantly make mistakes or be on the verge of losing a client after a pitch, but Draper was always ready to save them by having something else to say.
This goes back to understanding your customers or clients and being able to identify a deeper need, as opposed to simply trying to make a sale.
Another thing: While it is good to always think positive, you also have to assume that your client will say “no” to your pitch. That way, you’ll be motivated to prepare a back-up plan in case things go haywire.
- Company culture is as important as talent.
There’s no doubt that you have to hire the best people for your business, but you have to make sure that company culture is always an important thought in your mind.
Why?
Think about it. No matter how talented your staff or employees are, if they don’t mesh well with one another or there’s an overly boring or stressful work environment, you’ll see yourself spending much more on finding and training new employees every time than you would need to otherwise.
- Make room for Peggy!
Peggy is the fictional character who started off as Draper’s secretary and later on got promoted to copywriter and eventually, a founding member of the Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce Agency.
We don’t mean you literally have to hire people with the name, “Peggy.” What we mean is you have to value your young and talented employees.
It’s important to always keep your eyes open for talent and offer opportunities.
It may be quite hard to break into the business world sometimes, so giving a young and talented employee an opportunity to showcase his or her skills may be one of your best moves in the long run.
- Choose your partners wisely.
In the Mad Men series, accountant Lane felt like he didn’t have anyone he could trust and help him through a tough time, so he paid the ultimate price.
On the other hand, Draper had partners who trusted and respected him, and that’s because of his attitude towards them. He had done a lot of businesses with the partners for years and their mutual respect and understanding for one another helped the company go further in the industry.
The moral lesson?
No matter how small or big your business is, your partners are the people you will lean on to make good decisions about your brand. That’s why you have to choose your partners wisely.
- Make the right PR moves in times of crises.
This is one of the most valuable things a business owner should master.
Even if you have a PR department to help you address problems or crises, it goes back to the executives to make a statement.
That being said, you have to know how the press works and how your audience thinks so you can diffuse a bad situation as quickly as possible.
Being an independent doesn’t mean these lessons won’t apply to your career.
Whatever industry you’re in, be it engineering, communications, advertising, consulting, and more, there’s always something you can highlight and learn from each episode of Mad Men―especially in Don Draper’s life.
Take note of these insights and apply them in your own strategies to enhance your business’ image and branding!
Hope you’ve found this week’s insights interesting and helpful.
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Stay tuned for next Monday’s MicroBusiness Marvels!
(first line of next draft of the same day)
Learn more about Leo Burnett on next week’s MicroBusiness and Marketing Marvels!
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