On October 15th, Elon Musk pulled off one hell of a product launch. He sent a Tesla Roadster up a curved ramp until it was hanging UPSIDE DOWN, triggered a set of SpaceX thrusters, launched it off the end, flipped it in midair and stuck the landing. For an encore, it jumped a row of cars AND a semi-truck.
His review of his own product launch? “Well…it worked.” LOL
Of course, the haters are already calling it smoke and mirrors, saying it’s not “real flight” but “hopping,” pointing out that the car isn’t safe, not ready for mass production and won’t be available to consumers for years.
Doesn’t matter. The haters fuel the hype as much as the fans, possibly MORE. Just look at the press he racked up in about 48 hours…
CNN, CBS News, NBC News, CNBC, Fox Business, Newsweek, TechCrunch, Euronews, the Austin American-Statesman and Yahoo Autos, after Axios had already covered the teaser months earlier. The clip pulled 26 million views within hours. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, Congresswoman Elise Stefanik and reality star Spencer Pratt were cheering it on X. That is EARNED media, the kind you can’t buy.
Now here’s the most unbelievable part: the WAIT LIST.
Tesla reopened Roadster reservations in September. It’s $5,000 on a credit card, then a $45,000 wire within 10 days, for a car you can’t drive until 2028. Want the “Thrust” version with the SpaceX thrusters? That’s a $250,000 deposit. And the top-of-the-line “Rocket” version? Invite only. You can’t even BUY your way onto that list.
Read that again: He is charging people $50,000 for the privilege of standing in line, while the folks who paid in 2017 are STILL standing in line. That is what happens when you give people something exciting to anticipate instead of something boring to buy.
I spent some time reading Barnum’s books and biography for a Boot Camp session I did on “The Art Of Money-Getting, P.T. Barnum Style.” Barnum called his method “humbug,” using “glittering appearances and novel expedients” to draw a crowd.
He knew people don’t line up for the ordinary. They line up for the NEW, the exciting and the unbelievable. And contrary to the quote everyone wrongly pins on him, he didn’t believe there was a sucker born every minute (he never said that). He believed there was a CUSTOMER born every minute and it was his job to intrigue and delight them.
Elon has been running Barnum’s playbook on this car for NINE YEARS.
He first unveiled the new Roadster in 2017. He took $50,000 deposits, plus $250,000 paid in full for the “Founders Series,” and promised deliveries in 2020. Since then, the car has been delayed at least eight times. Not one has been delivered. Even this event slipped from October 1st to October 15th.
You or I would be drowning in refund demands and one-star reviews. Instead of apologizing, Elon kept feeding the crowd something new. Last November, he told Joe Rogan the demo would be “unforgettable” and “better than any James Bond car.” Before the event, he promised, “Success is not guaranteed, but excitement is.”
Excitement delivered, for sure.
My mentor Dan Kennedy drilled into my head that the #1 sin of marketing is being BORING.
Your prospects aren’t ignoring you because they hate you. They’re ignoring you because you’re BORING. Same old “we focus on IT so you can focus on your business” tagline. Same “Is your network protected?” email, same old LinkedIn post about changing passwords and cybersecurity. All valid advice, BUT nothing new, salacious or particularly exciting to see here.
When I ran TMT, we were constantly launching something NEW. It was a critical key to not only new client acquisition, but RETENTION.
New products, new events, new campaigns, new templates, new features, new shows. Boot Camp was far from an “ordinary” industry event. We gave away cars, had outrageous themes, funny opening videos and major celebrities. We launched a magazine that was radically different than all the others in format, style and content. We launched the Titans, the first red-carpet, black-tie affair in the industry, hosting it at the same location as the Golden Globe awards with A-list celebrities like Magic Johnson and Mike Rowe.
A lot of our marketing was so “outrageous” that I was routinely made fun of. “Oh look, another dollar from the redhead. Guess I’ll just keep pocketing these with zero intention of buying.” Well, genius, if you got $10 from me, I hope you invested it well…because that campaign put MILLIONS of dollars in my pocket when I ran the company and tens of millions in my pocket when I sold. Guess who had the last laugh?
So ask yourself this: If your marketing disappeared tomorrow, would anyone notice?
“But Robin, I sell IT! There’s nothing exciting about that!”
Think you can’t come up with SOMETHING interesting? Then check out Pringles’ new “Once You Drop” campaign. They’re giving away a custom burial urn shaped like their famous can, along with a 200-year supply of chips you can bequeath to your loved ones. NOT BORING.
Also NOT BORING: Morgan & Morgan, one of America’s largest personal injury law firms, ran a commercial featuring the original 1928 Mickey Mouse character from Steamboat Willie.
The animated commercial showed Mickey crashing his steamboat into a car driven by Minnie Mouse. Naturally, Minnie pulls out her cellphone and calls Morgan & Morgan. This commercial turned into a HUGE ruckus online, and Morgan & Morgan ended up suing Disney for the right to keep running it, creating an even bigger stir.
Years ago, Sir Richard Branson, appearing to be naked, hung in the middle of Times Square to launch Virgin Mobile in the US, making the point that, unlike other carriers, he had “nothing to hide” in his contracts. As the crowd watched, the billionaire stripped off his clothes to reveal a flesh-colored bodysuit with a strategically positioned cell phone covering his manhood. Confetti rained down, dancers performed and reporters gobbled it up. Sales surged.
I could go on. There are hundreds of examples of advertisers and companies doing funny, outrageous stunts to get people talking and drive sales.
You don’t need a SpaceX test site. You just need to stop being so damned boring in your promotions. Maybe it’s time you pull off a stunt or start running some outrageous ads. Get the vendors to pitch in some money. GO BIG.
Timidity is not a virtue in marketing.