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The Problem of the Bandwagon

5/29/2017 | Bill Petrie, Petrie's Perspective

I find the entire concept of jumping on and off a bandwagon perplexing. For example, I’m a fan of the Dallas Cowboys. I grew up in Dallas and have been a fan since Roger Staubach was playing in Super Bowls so I have both the legal and moral right to root for them.

 During my time as a follower of my favorite NFL team, they have certainly had their ups (three World Championships in four years in the early 1990s) and their downs (the Quincy Carter/Chad Hutchinson era comes to mind). Through it all, I have remained faithful and that devotion was rewarded a bit last year as the Cowboys made a modest run in the NFL playoffs thanks to newcomers Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliot.

It was interesting to me to see so many people “suddenly” become fans of the Cowboys simply because they were doing well. In many cases, these same people had treated the team with complete contempt or, even worse, indifference. As soon as it was mildly cool to like the Cowboys, they couldn’t jump on the bandwagon fast enough. Should the Cowboys falter this year, I know many of them will hop off until such time as it becomes fashionable to like the team again. That’s the nature of the bandwagon.

This little parable isn’t about loyalty, although that does play a part. It’s about staying true to oneself and the lesson is just as applicable in the business world. It’s certainly easier to follow a popular trend, market, or group simply because that’s where the masses are, but doing so will only ensure that you blend in with the competition.

Put yourself in the shoes of your prospects and clients – would you want yet another promotional products salesperson showing you a fidget spinner because it’s the hot product of the moment? Unless the salesperson took the time to understand the event, the target audience, and the goals of the organization, the answer is no.

Stay off the “hot product of the moment” bandwagon. Instead, work collaboratively with your prospects and clients to provide merchandise solutions that enhance their objectives – not yours. By doing so, you differentiate yourself from the bandwagoners who will remain content on hawking fidget spinners without adding specific and tangible value.

Bill is president of PromoCorner, the leading digital marketing service provider to the promotional products industry, and has over 17 years working in executive leadership positions at leading promotional products distributorships. In 2014, he launched brandivate – the first executive outsourcing company solely focused on helping small and medium sized-promotional products enterprises responsibly grow their business. A featured speaker at numerous industry events, a serial creator of content marketing, president of the Promotional Products Association of the Mid-South (PPAMS), and PromoKitchen chef, Bill has extensive experience coaching sales teams, creating successful marketing campaigns, developing operational policies and procedures, creating and developing winning RFP responses, and presenting winning promotional products solutions to Fortune 500 clients. He can be reached at bill@PromoCorner.com.

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