Whatever product you’re shilling, the world doesn’t need another one

Writing a book is not news, my publicist used to tell me.

Every time we did a campaign together, he reminded me that over one million books are published each year.

Which meant that statistically, my latest release wasn’t going to make headlines. It couldn’t. Nobody’s does. The market is too saturated. Intriguing as any book may be, there is very little chance it’s going steal the spotlight and capture the media cycle.

Unless it’s some bestselling author boosted by a powerful publishing machine working every angle, most books are ignored.

Now, this cold reality might sound a bit cynical and discouraging, but it’s actually a useful constraint.

Because it forces authors to find the bigger story. To elevate the message beyond the book itself. You have step back and figure out what larger initiative this new book is merely the artifact for.

Contextualizing current events within a historical and societal framework, you need to demonstrate a continuum on which your product sits. Otherwise it’s not news.

Sure enough, this narrative filter is a useful exercise for any kind of business, not only publishing.

A brand starts from the baseline of, every time we create anything, we compete with everything, so what it is about our product that tells a bigger story?

During my stint as a strategist at an innovation studio, I helped develop a process called thinkmapping to execute this very task. Our clients, both large legacy brands and small scrappy startups, typically hired us for a variety of projects. Their creative brief was always something simple, like redesigning a website, promoting a new product or acquiring new customers.

But our standing order was to always come back to the client with a bigger idea. Something they didn’t realize they needed. Something memorable and scary and challenging that made them squirm in their seats.

As if to say, wait a minute guys, we thought we were hiring you to redo our website. What’s all this other stuff you’re talking about doing?

Innovation comes from finding the bigger story, we would say. Otherwise it’s just another website that nobody is going to care about.

As you might guess, uncovering such innovative ideas was the difficult part. That’s where our agency really earned our fee.

What’s your process for elevating your message? How will you help your team step back and figure out what the larger initiative your new product is merely the artifact for?

It’s equal parts research, strategy and brainstorming. There’s no one right way to do it.

But it always starts with a sense of humility. You have to accept that whatever product you’re shilling, the world doesn’t need another one, and that when you create anything, you compete with everything.

It’s not news, so you better find the bigger story.

How will you demonstrate a continuum on which your product sits?