I happened to catch a glimpse of the Rat Pack the other day...one of the famous shots of the fellows standing outside the Sands Hotel in Las Vegas...
And I was immediately envious. I wanted to be a part of it. To have my own rat pack...a merry band of souls boldly moving forward...fearless...undaunted by the fast balls life throws every day.
Oh, they contributed to culture all right. Purposefully - by entertaining and performing their art for all of us, sharing their immense talent with the world.
But they did it for themselves too...for their own entertainment, their own joy, their own experimentation on how far they could push the envelope.
And quite honestly, we lived vicariously through them. We wanted to be them. We wanted to act like them. We certainly wanted to experience them. But I believe this commitment to pushing the envelope is what made them memorable. If it was just a few fellows singing and dancing, I wouldn't be writing a blog post about them a generation or two later...
But then I asked myself, can we go-to-market this way?
I am always telling my Dreamland Interactive business partners I have three goals for our business: one, serve our clients well. Two, build a sustainable, growing business. And three, have a hell of a lot of fun doing it.
Number three is the most important to me...
Is that wrong? I am not suggesting that we should have fun in place of doing good work. But I believe doing good work is the result of enjoying your work. And honestly, I think the "experience" of working with us can be good marketing, in that the word will spread. When there were no hotel rooms available, people would sleep in cars when the Rat Pack played Vegas.
I define Rat Pack Marketing as containing the following seven elements:
1. Fun - There is nothing wrong with having fun. The Rat Pack certainly did. Why go to work in the morning if it isn't fun?
2. Creative - Each member of the Rat Pack was their own man, a star in their own right. But as a pack the creative output is what we most remember...
3. Entertaining - They were certainly entertaining. You can be too. And sometimes, people listen and learn more when they are being entertained, then when they are not. This also makes you memorable, and that's important too.
4. Good Storytelling - My favorite part of the Rat Pack, the non-singing storytelling they all did. And you know that good storytelling is the ESSENCE of good marketing.
5. A Bit Edgy - If there is one thing the Rat Pack didn't do was be boring. In this age of non-stop media output, you have to be edgy to be seen AND talked about.
6. Marketing By Camaraderie - The team aspect of the Rat Pack is why we still talk about them today. For you, partnering with creative teams to make great work is a effective way to serve customers and stir the creative juices that otherwise would not see the light of day as a solo act.
7. Willingness To Break The Rules - The Rat Pack broke rules. Period. And you are well aware that the successful leaders in our world (politics, art, religion and business) all forged their own path to greatness.
Gather your merry band of soulmates today, and you too can begin to impact and change the world.
Be Intrepid.