The next book in my “Book Notes” series is The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing by Al Ries and Jack Trout. The authors claim the twenty-two laws have always existed, but corporations have been reluctant to acknowledge them. While many businesses believe that with enough effort and money, a marketing campaign will succeed, Ries and Trout warn not adhering to the laws can be costly. As before, I am sharing some of the main points as I make my way through the book.
Chapter One – The Law of Leadership
The law: “It’s better to be first than it is to be better.”
The authors assert that customers will remember the first company to bring a product or service to market over a second company, even if the second company’s product or service is better. They use the example of Charles Lindburgh being the first person to fly solo across the Atlantic. Then they pose the question to the reader of who was second. Bert Hinkler was second, but the authors contend that most people have never heard of him.
Related quotes:
- It’s much easier to get into the mind first than to try to convince someone you have a better product than the one that did get there first.
- Marketing is a battle of perceptions, not products.
Chapter Two – The Law of the Category
The law: “If you can’t be first in a category, set up a new category you can be first in.”
This chapter continues with the example of transatlantic flight. The authors suggest it might be highly unlikely to know the third person to fly transatlantic not knowing the second. However, the third person was Amelia Earhart (the first woman to complete the flight). People remember this because she was the first in a new category. In business, the authors state customers are not interested in brand, they are interested in what is new.
Quote from the chapter:
- If you didn’t get into the prospect’s mind first, don’t give up hope. Find a new category you can be first in.
Chapter Three – The Law of the Mind
The law: “It’s better to be first in the mind than it is to be first in the marketplace.”
The authors say being first in the marketplace (the Law of Leadership) is only as useful as getting a product or service first in the mind. Being first in mind, according to the authors, is important because it is hard to change a mind once it is made up. Therefore, they say a company has to “blast” its way into the mind, not “worm” its way in. Compared to “Commodore Pet,” “IMSAI 8080,” and “LIMSAI 8080,” names of computers in the 70’s, Apple’s simple name helped it get into the minds of its customers.
A couple of related quotes:
- If marketing is a battle of perception, not product, then the mind takes precedence over the marketplace.
- The reason you blast instead of worm is that people don’t like to change their minds. Once they perceive you one way, that’s it. They kind of file you away in their minds as a certain kind of person.
Andrew T. Daniel 