“Bring The Guy With The Pony Tail” - My Fifth Lesson In Product Marketing
Back in the dot-com era, I was a founder in a funded technology start-up.
Like any start-up, we were racing to stand up our product/service while also hunting for our first “real” customer.
One day, I received a call from a member of our Board of Directors. He told me about a high-level relationship he had with a Fortune 100 company and asked if I would join him at a meeting outside Philadelphia to demo our product.
It was a big ask, as our demo was quite clunky and not yet ready for a road show, but I could not say no. We discussed the dates and details. Everything was set.
Before hanging up, the Board member added, “One more thing, bring the guy with the pony tail.”
Making Sense of the Request
His request did not immediately make sense to me. The guy with the pony tail, we will call him Daniel, did not have the right skills to speak to our product or bring substantive value to the discussion. He was recently hired to work in our Network Operations Center, which was still under construction.
Regardless, I did not question the request and bought Daniel along. He proved quite helpful in the logistics of flying to Philadelphia with our assortment of computers, monitors, networking, and audio/video gear.
On the morning of the demo, we went to the lobby to have breakfast with our Board member. When he saw us dressed in suits and ties, he looked at Daniel and said, “Go back upstairs and put on some jeans and sandals.” Confused, Daniel complied.
The Demo
We arrived at the corporate headquarters and we spent 90 minutes setting everything up. Show Time!
The executive came in with two of his team members. Our Board member presented a company overview and I followed with a product/technology overview. We then moved into the demonstration. Everything went surprisingly well.
Our Board member wrapped things up with an invitation for them to travel to Atlanta and see our operation. He then said, “Our office is very exciting. People hustling in every direction. You’ll definitely see Daniel and bunch of other techies in their sandals and pony tails making the magic happen.”
The prospects nodded in violent agreement, with one of them adding “I’m jealous. It must be so exciting to work at a new technology company.”
Suddenly, it all made sense.
The Lesson
This experience taught me a valuable in marketing: Create Desire.
Our Board member understood that - at that time - the leaders of “traditional” business were captivated by the allure of the rising dot-com technology companies, and their incredible valuations.
Daniel was a prop. A shiny object that our Board member could dangle to create desire in these men.
It worked. We signed this prospect and their logo helped validate us in the marketplace.
Sadly, the dot-com bubble soon burst and our start-up was absorbed into another company.
As a founder, I moved on to my next adventure with a bucket full of lessons - and a special appreciation for hoodies, sandals, and pony tails.