No Fear – Experiment Your Way To Success

Innovation is a big topic in companies today.  The speed of business has almost required companies to reinvent and re-envision their products and services to find new ways to create value for their current – and maybe more importantly – their future customers.

I my opinion two things are necessary for true innovation.  

First is an employee base that understands what your company really does for a living.  And second... there must be no fear.

No fear of failure.  No fear of reprisals.  No fear of being different.  

Saying that and doing it are two different things.  Most companies can talk about innovation.  Many companies have brainstorming sessions on what they can do different.  During those sessions, they will say there are no bad ideas.  Unfortunately, many of the ideas generated go nowhere.  So either they were bad ideas – or there was a concern or fear associated with implementing them.

I thought it would be interesting to see what fearless looks like, and to do that, we need look no further than Jon Evans (@bigjonevans on twitter.)  

 

Jon Evans – Fearless

Jon Evans – entrepreneur, local celebrity and fearless marketer.  He is known in our city of Greenville, SC as Big Jon Evans.  Some attribute that to his size – I attribute it to his ideas.  Jon initially got some local notoriety by selling ad space on a scooter to offset the cost of the scooter.  That went over well and within a few days had sold enough space to pay for the scooter.  (More info here on the experiment.)

Jon is also working on a book for small business marketing and continually adds value to the small business community here in Greenville by experimenting with new ideas.  He’s put together book clubs for small business owners and provides social media support and consulting as well.  But his most recent endeavor is the most fearless yet. 

Jon runs an advertising service called 4Head4Rent – and because yesterday was my birthday, I decided to splurge and contracted for Jon’s services.  I bought space on Jon’s forehead for I2I.

 

Jon lip syncing "Take This Job and Shove It!" - Homage to all those employees who will be looking for new careers in 2011 (at least according to research.)  i2i-Align.com SHOVE IT! from Jon Evans on Vimeo.

Short video intro to I2I with Jon

This is the 40 minute live video stream (recorded obviously - but we were live at the time!

4Head4Rent

In the local market you can’t miss Jon and that makes for a perfect place to have your advertising.  Jon will rent his forehead to your company for a day.  One company each day for 365 days.  Yeah... he doesn’t get a day off.  He’ll introduce himself all over town as your brand and will create lip sync videos, interviews with you and host a live video show where you can discuss whatever you want.  This new venture was featured on local TV and the response from local businesses has been great.

As I mentioned – I did this yesterday for I2I.  I’ve included the videos Jon and I put together.  Other small businesses in Greenville have been using his services and you can also see their videos on Jon’s web site.

Do I think this is the future of adverting?  Probably not.  Do I think it is interesting and different?  Absolutely.  Do I think it is fearless?  100%.  Will something else come from Jon being fearless?  You betcha.  

Let Your Fearless Out

What ideas do your employees have in the back of their minds?  What fearless idea that may sound stupid, wrong, etc. that you should try once?  Do you have a culture that allows for that?

How many people can be like Jon and launch an idea without fear?  How many people like Jon do you wish were in your company?

So Jon – thanks for taking the time to play on my birthday and good luck and please... keep the ideas flowing and keep being fearless.  You show us all what is possible.  

That may be more important than showing us what is probable.  

 

Comments

[meng]

Totally agree. Sometimes just fear inside prevent us from trying and improvement.

[Sera Shioda]

Most recently, I have strongly been considering the manner in which I would advertise for pet businesses in the future. Furthermore, I have always prided myself in my ability to bring a fresh, unique and creative perspective to the table. However, Jon Evans has exceeded the level of originality most can imagine and entered his own wacky world or universe.

Besides being fearless, I believe there is another important factor of his success: originality and humor. In business, many are well-educated, have the tools, skills and credentials to compete with, but lack the personality and originality that cannot be created or learned. As he has proven through his unique brand, is an innovation quality necessary to stand out apart from lack luster at best, majority business entrepreneurs.

Successful business necessitates an ability to attract, bring a form of professionalism as well as satisfying the consumer with the products offered.

Jon Evans' method in advertising specifically brings laughter and joy to his clients, which only enables greater success both for mutual parties. My goal is to attract my target market by having fun, and providing above-satisfactory products and services and making them happy.

His unique appearance and humor is what Jon Evans represents, and is a lesson to all although not fully trainable. Fortunately, although I am not a bold male with a large forehead, I can emulate the spirit that he is representing. Additionally I can enhance it through constantly craving innovation/creativity, and not settling for mediocre advertising in the business I create.

With that being said, I would like to thank you, I2I, for tuning me into the "fearless marketer and entrepreneur", and Jon Evans for inspiring me.

[Mongo]

Nicely put Miss Shioda. In order to compete in the modern internet driven market place it is necessary to bring forth a fresh and bold mentality.

[Paul Hebert]

Thanks for engaging her Sera. Knowing Jon personally it is easy to say that he is unique and different. However, what Jon really did is find what that was and figured out a way to leverage it for a business. I firmly believe each of us has gifts and talents that can be leveraged. The trick is to find those talents and put them to work. Each employee, each person has something no one else has and engagement in an organization comes about when people are using those unique elements (IMHO).

You mention the idea of working to advertise for pet businesses. I'm sure you have a unique set of talents - not Jon's talents - but your own that can be leveraged in a way that would help those businesses. Can you write? Maybe a blog that has multiple pet store sponsors. Can you help develop a newsletter for pet stores that can be distributed via email?

Are you good at networking and entertaining? Maybe a Pet Store Owner networking event at a local restaurant? Good at teaching - maybe a class on social media and marketing.

What I find interesting is that each employee has a talent - but most managers find ways to eliminate that talent so that it is easier to do reviews, easier to manage that person - they try to create similarity between employees because that makes it easier. What good management is (again IMHO) is leveraging the diversity. Sure it is harder on the manager - but better fore the employee and the employer!

Again - thanks and good luck with the pet store ideas!