There’s been a clip of an interview with Apple Co-Founder Steve Jobs circulating in my feeds lately that has him saying that his successor at Apple (after Jobs was famously pushed out), suffered from an all-too-common disease:
“It’s the disease,” says Jobs, “of thinking that a really great idea is 90% of the work, and if you just tell your, all these other people ‘here's this great idea,’ then, of course, they can go off and make it happen.”
Jobs goes on to talk about the importance of the process of executing a great idea and adapting to and learning from the process of executing it to make it come to fruition. He also states emphatically that “it never comes out how it starts.”
How does this apply to school meal marketing?
Well, in that process, as with any other, thoughtful execution is 90% of the work. The creative part - coming up with fun ideas, branding concepts, and clear and compelling messages - is merely the first 10% of the journey of transforming your marketing into something that drives your ultimate goal of getting more great food to kids.
Staying consistent over time (clarity & repetition) and finding ways to adapt your message to feedback and responses from your audience is the real measure of the success or failure of a marketing practice. Note that I said practice and not a campaign. Campaigns start and end, but a practice is something you develop and maintain. It may change, but it’s never over.
Remember: Starbucks, McDonald’s, Chik-Fil-A, and the rest of these companies are not stopping their work of pushing sugar- and fat-packed foods and beverages at our children. We cannot stop offering our meals that are designed to drive health and wellness.
Two Examples Of Execution
Let me give you two tangible examples of this.
The Hall of Fame QB: Several years ago Drew Brees (a future Hall of Fame NFL quarterback) was asked how he felt going into a season with a team jam-packed with talent. The reporter said that Brees, a generally congenial person, sort of snapped back with words to the effect of, “I’m tired of hearing about talent. This is the National Football League. Every single team is packed with talented players. The thing that sets teams apart is whether they can execute their talent to the best of their ability with the most consistency.”
A great idea (or a great amount of talent) is just 10% of the equation.
Bands On The Cusp of a Record Deal: I used to work in the music business, mostly at record labels. At one label our founder, a former recording artist, had a practice of trying to talk prospective new artists out of signing with our company. I asked him why he did that and he said, “because all of the hard work and struggle that these bands have done so far - practicing, playing tiny shows for nobody, learning to record in bits and pieces - is really just the start. And before we invest in someone and form a partnership that means a lot to everyone, I want to know that they understand the work it will take.”
I had the privilege of working with amazing artists. Some had more commercial success than others, but the drive to execute the work and not just sit back and wait for their great idea (compelling music) to reach people has inspired me to this day.
Need Help Executing Your Ideas?
If you’re looking for help developing and executing your great ideas, that’s why we exist. An idea, a vision, or even a roadmap to where you want to take your school meal marketing program is one thing. But putting that idea or vision into action is another thing.
Let us help you execute that great idea so that your story is an active, living, breathing thing that pulls people in and turns passive customers into active fans and advocates.
Schedule a consultation with us now and let’s see how we can put your ideas into action.
Take Control of Your Story
If marketing your school meal program keeps slipping away from you, now is the time to take control of your story, and we can help!
Put our 10+ years of school meal marketing to work for your program and build participation, engagement, and awareness for the amazing things you’re doing.
Here’s the one that reached the greatest commercial success. Enjoy this trip to the late ‘90s!