What’s Common Between Nike’s Co-Founder and an 18th-Century Potter?
Is there something called outdated marketing strategies?
I guess not. Because whatever we’re doing in marketing today might have been done by someone in the past, differing in tactics and execution.
Need an example? You’ll see it towards the end while discussing Apple and its products. But first, let me share the stories of two of the greatest minds in business.
Phil Knight’s beginning
When Nike’s co-founder, Phil Knight, first started importing shoes from Japan to the US, he couldn’t get a contract from any sporting goods stores to sell his track shoes.
“Kid, what this world does not need is another track shoe!” they told 25-year-old Phil.
Unfazed by the rejection, he drove to various track meets and engaged with coaches, runners, and fans gathering there. He showed them the shoes, let them feel and try them on. And the result?
“I couldn’t write orders fast enough,” Phil says in his memoir. Because he had damn good shoes, cheaper than what was available in the market at that time.
The (forgotten) father of modern marketing
Now, onto the potter mentioned in the beginning. His name was Josiah Wedgwood, and he’s known as the (forgotten) father of modern marketing.
He made beautiful wares, and the way he marketed them is rather interesting. Because the strategy and tactics he used were revolutionary and way ahead of his time.
Josiah sent the best of his products as freebies, exclusively to the Royal Houses of Europe, for the nobility to use. Once they used his products, he was sure that other men from different classes would follow suit because they all visited Royal Houses.
In his quest to pursue the upper class, he finally got the title of “Her Majesty’s Potter” from the Queen herself. He shipped “Queen’s Ware” to Germany, Russia, Ireland, and many other countries. And his business empire in the 18th century was worth more than $100M today.
Relics of the past or gems of wisdom
Now, what’s common between Josiah Wedgwood and Phil Knight?
They both knew how to sell or market their product very well.
Some may say Phil had a great go-to-market (GTM), or Josiah knew luxury brand marketing better. That’s what marketing gurus do, right? Making things look complex so that nobody understands them. But that’s not the point.
If you look closely, you’ll see that the strategy Josiah Wedgwood used has worked for Apple products (knowingly or unknowingly). Apple products are very costly outside the US, which made them affordable only for the wealthy class. It created an air of exclusivity, and soon enough, the rest of the world — regardless of their financial background — craved them. (Not to mention that both Josiah’s wares and Apple products are good. Like very good.)
And that’s the underlining idea: a variety of sales and marketing strategies were there from the very beginning, and they’re not relics of the past. There’s much to learn from these gems of wisdom.
By reading about the history of marketing and top marketing geniuses from the past, you’ll get insights into how some great minds approached a problem and the thought process which led them to achieve enormous success.
