Things I like, part 1

[by Sunni] I'm a huge believer in the power of consumer evangelism. I mean, not that anyone disbelieves in it, but I don't think there's a lot of understanding of how it works. It's too theoretical -- not concrete and easy to categorize like a :30 spot or a radio buy. There's a tendency to believe (or hope) that consumer evangelism is something that happens after a really funny radio spot or because of a really shocking magazine ad. Who here has passed a shocking print ad on to their friends? In the last 5 years?

But who here has encourage their friend or neighbor to visit or purchase a really fantastic new restaurant, microbrew or snack? Passion for advertising doesn't always lead somewhere (reference my Burger King smackdown), whereas passion for a product tends to lead to evangelism. As consumers, we get that our favorite products disappear if no one buys them. Or, we just like the thrill of the find -- being the first of our circle to know about something and share that knowledge. 

The level of passion is almost always inversely proportional to the size of the company (Apple excluded). We love those underdogs. So small companies, take heart -- you can advertise in ways huge companies can't, won't or don't. Big companies, take notice -- you can advertise in new ways by taking cues from the small companies.

For starters, let's be inspirational instead of traditional. The blog Creating Passionate Users is one of my favorite industry-related reads (even though it's technically the software industry). My biggest fear is that Kathy Sierra will be outed as the next Malcolm Gladwell, and everyone will walk around quoting her all the time, and I will no longer appear well-read or insightful. (See the catch-22 of being the Maven?) Please take the time to memorize her chart on the differences of inspirational and traditional marketing. It's genius.

Which brings me to my ultimate point: I love discovering new things. New types of food, new music, new writers, new magazines. I don't always share my new finds -- music, for example, I tend to hoard for fear of hearing a new favorite song repeated to death in TV commercials. But when it comes to food and beverages, I always share.

My new favorite find: Three Thieves Bandit boxed wine. Yes, you read that right: Boxed wine. I've only had the Pinot Grigio so far, and it's delicious (and real wine critics think so, too). The containers are essentially the same thing as old-school juice boxes, and you can even buy them in four-packs. At 250 mL each, the small boxes are a super-smart way to conserve the flavor of wine -- never again will I have to worry about my wine going bad before I finish the bottle. (Ok, I never had to worry about that.) Plus, the pack of four is the equivalent of a liter of wine, and sells for $10. As a product, it's very nearly perfect...

There's one, small, minor disappointment for me (I like this product so much I don't want to label this a "complaint"): The Three Thieves website. As a passionate consumer, I'm left unfulfilled -- I want to know more about the people behind this product, and how and why they came up with the concept. I want a blog, people! Give me some way to learn more and -- gasp! -- interact. Don't give me the "not in the budget" spiel, Blogger is free. Shoot, I'll even volunteer Todd to help you get it started...

Comments

[Giant Beverage]

Here's a link to the thieves profile on their website. http://threethieves.com/about.html

and as far as how they came up with the idea, maybe thats just their little secret. They do need to keep themselves protected somehow as they are thieves.