The Story of the Product - Part 2
“The Story of the Product,” a simple tool I wrote about a couple of weeks ago, can be easily altered to help understand and support the issues around a product’s Archetype. Recall the Star, the Hero, and the Genius - your product can be one but can’t be all of them. So use Stories customized to the Archetypes to help you and your team decide what your product ought to be.
For example, the Star’s story:
The product is a _____________.
It does ______________ better than
the competition, _____________, and better than
these substitute solutions: _____________.
For some products and services, that may be the entire value statement. “New SPLEEN makes your whites whiter than regular bleach or water alone.” That’s it. But for many products, it’s not enough.
The Hero’s story:
The product is a _____________.
It stands for _____________ which helps
the consumer feel _____________.
The competition and substitutes, _____________,
take this less compelling stand: _____________.
For example, “SKOOTZ is the laundry detergent that stands for free expression and fun. Other detergents are about water temperature and color-fastness, but that makes laundry boring.” There’s nothing in there about performance; it’s less important to a Hero product.
Finally, the Genius’s story:
The product is a _____________. It has a new
approach to the problem of _____________;
instead of _____________ like the competition,
it _____________.
So, “SMORCH is the laundry detergent that brightens your clothes in the dryer. As opposed to old-fashioned detergents that require hot water, SMORCH uses the heat from your dryer to whiten as it evaporates away. Wash everything in cold water!” Genius products must convince the consumer to abandon old ways and try something really new.
Try your product with each of these forms. Does the form that works best match your marketing message?
Question for you: Is your product’s story in line with how you talk about it to consumers?
