I thought Thierry Henry was a brilliant footballer, but he didn't inspire me. Al Pacino is a great actor, but he also fails to inspire me. I haven't been inspired by any mainstream celebrity in a long time. Today's celebrities have so little influence on me I wonder why they still endorse products way out of their sector?
So who does inspire me? Great business thinkers.
Great business thinkers are more visible than ever. We can relate to people in the business world more than any movie star. Traditionally, these great business thinkers would be reduced to a new book every few years and a handful of speaking engagements. Today, they have a daily influence on my work. If John Jantsch, Seth Godin or Tim Ferriss says the new Nokia phone will make me better at what I want to do, odds are i'll buy it.
Which begs the question; why not sponsor these guys? Make it as niche as possible too maybe? Top UK PR bloggers to endorse "PR phones" for the UK PR industry.
As great minds naturally rise to the top in social media, why not sponsor them? Why not create niche adverts with these guys in it. Imagine niche adverts for niche audiences like us. These adverts will never been seen on television, nor heard on the radio. They really will be just for the people they're trying to reach. 100% relevance. Most importantly, they're dead cheap to make and much more measurable.
Richard - I think that's a brilliant idea - tell Nokia to call me!
Thanks for the nod too.
Posted by: John Jantsch | Saturday, 09 August 2008 at 15:54