The TV show has been off the air for 18 years. Fred died in 2003. So why Fred? Why now?
Because I believe that Fred's passion for connection and community isn't just a hyper-relevant model for marketers... it's critical for us all.
And an Event-as-Neighborhood is the perfect place to explore how to translate that passion into brilliant work.
So, on this Sunday morning, here are my thoughts on B2B Marketing, and why it needs Fred now more than ever.
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1. Great work needs play 🎉
Fred's Neighborhood of Make Believe existed outside of ordinary life. It was a safe place where—if you were a kid watching the show—you could ask the hard questions and get answers and explore ideas without fear of judgment.
It was a place to learn about empathy. To get you out of your own head and circumstances and see that not everyone is exactly like you are.
And it was also a place where ideas and concepts were made real: Fred brought things out of the theoretical and into practical reality. And it was a place to PLAY.
Last week in our B2B Marketing Neighborhood, we did those very same things.
Emotional intelligence and empathy are critical building blocks of the very best people... and the very best marketing. The problem is that concept like "emotional intelligence" and "empathy" feel like high-minded, lofty ideals.
But let's get real: You hone both more in play that you do in sitting around a conference table brainstorming "Customer Empathy" on a whiteboard.
2. The best marketers are 'Rogers Rebels' 😎
Gentle, humble, soft-spoken Fred Rogers is the best kind of rebel: the kind of rebel who calls everyone around him or her to a higher place. Fred believed we could all be better creators and communicators.
As Kara Swisher said, "I don't think marketing should be loud. It should be quiet."
A #RogersRebel is the perfect counterpoint to noisy, look-at-me marketing.
3. Slow down to understand what you're solving for 🐢
With his slow, deliberate speech, Fred Rogers literally embodies a slower, more thoughtful approach. We need that in Marketing, where so many of us hope that some new technology will quickly solve all our problems.
But it won't... unless we do something important first: slow down to calibrate our marketing for repeatable, scalable, extendable growth.
"Pipeline' is not a software problem to solve; it's an audience alignment to understand." 👈 Honestly I don't know who said this; I overheard it in the hallway. But it's real good.
4. Treating others with care and dignity is a differentiator ❤️
Let's take a minute to acknowledge just how nuts that line is: "dignity" and "care" are so lacking in modern life that it's a bullet item in this list here...?
Yet, it's true: We live in an era of "empathy deficit," as keynote speaker Jay Baer said.
Empathy is a muscle. Flex by staying open to others' perspectives. Ask how their experiences may have shaped their point of view. And "pay attention with your eyes," as keynote speaker Neen James said, quoting a 5-year-old friend of hers.
5. 'The space between the viewer and the television set is sacred ground' 📺
Cliff and Scott spoke this line from the main stage, in their closing keynote talk. Swap "viewer" with "reader" (or "prospect" or "customer"). Swap "television" with "email" or "podcast" or "whitepaper" or "this newsletter right here"... and it's obvious how it relates to us marketers, writers, creators.
And, finally...
6. We are lucky 🌎
B2B marketers are lucky: We get to do the exciting work of marketing without compromising our integrity.
We don't sell JUULs to toddlers. Our marketing is about how our products make the work-world better, and how we help make a customer more successful.
Cliff and Scott said it best:
In B2B, we get to be honest. So try asking yourself: How can I make the most of my honesty? How can I be more truthful with my customer? How can I be more candid with my coworker? How can I use transparency like a superpower? Take the advice of our patron saint and remember that "the greatest gift you ever give is your honest self."
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