Start With Why

We’re currently doing a redesign of our website and we’re working hard to nail down the copy first. We want to clearly define what we are going to say before starting work on the design. The visual design is how we present our ideas, and we want to start with the foundation of a strong message.

Luckily, I recently found a TEDx talk that’s helped us in this process. It’s an old talk, in internet years, by Simon Sinek called, “How Great Leaders Inspire Action.” This 18-minute video is totally worth your time.

How the Best Leaders and Brands Communicate

Sinek explains that the best leaders and organizations in the world tell their story by starting with why. Not, what they do, not how, but why:

Every single organization on the planet knows what they do. 100%. Some know how they do it. Whether you call it your differentiating value proposition, or your proprietary process, or your USP. But very, very few people or organizations know why they do what they do. And by why, I don’t mean ‘to make a profit.’ That’s a result. It’s always a result. By why I mean, what’s your purpose, what’s your cause, what’s your belief? Why does your organization exist? Why do you get out of bed in the morning? And why should anyone care?

He goes on to sum it up nicely with this example from Apple:

Let me give you an example. I use Apple because they’re easy to understand and everybody gets it. If Apple were like everyone else, a marketing message from them might sound like this: “We make great computers. They’re beautifully designed, simple to use, and user-friendly. Wanna buy one?”

Meh.

And that’s how most of us communicate. That’s how most marketing is done, that’s how most sales is done, and how most of us communicate interpersonally. We say what we do, we say how we’re different or how we’re better, and we expect some sort of behavior — a purchase, a vote, something like that. Here’s our new law firm. We have the best lawyers with the biggest clients. We always perform for our clients. Do business with us. Here’s our new car. It gets great gas mileage. It has leather seats. Buy our car.

But it’s uninspiring. Here’s how Apple actually communicates:

“In everything we do we believe in challenging the status quo. We believe in thinking differently. The way we challenge the status quo is by making our products beautifully-designed, simple to use, and user-friendly. We just happen to make great computers. Wanna buy one?”

Totally different right? You’re ready to buy a computer from me. All I did was reverse the order of the information.

Simon Sinek’s Golden Circle

So, after seeing this I started to think about why company, Original Fuzz, exists. Why did we start this company? Why do we deserve to survive in the marketplace? Why should customers care? Does what we make and how we work align with our values? What are our values?

I also thought about some of the greatest brands of all time. How do they answer these questions and tell their story? I noticed that every great brand communicates their answers to these questions cohesively, starting with why.

A Simple Framework for Finding Your Why

Here’s a set of five simple questions that will help you develop a cohesive message:

1. Market Opportunity — What problem are you solving and for whom?

A business shouldn’t exist unless it’s solving a problem, meeting a need for a specific set of people. This is your business thesis. Your elevator pitch you would use with investors.

So, what problem are you solving? What hole in the market have you discovered? What have you created that you believe needs to exist in the world? Wanting to be rich, or to start a company, or be your own boss is not an answer. But be honest with yourself.

2. Mission — How can you clearly and concisely state your why, how, and what?

As Simon Sinek explains, the best organizations start with why and work outwards. Think of this as your mission statement and core values. Why do you exist? How do you share your reason for being with the world? What products or services do you provide as a way to express these values? You can basically use the mission statement that Sinek wrote for Apple as a template.

3. Tagline — How can you sum up your entire mission in as few words as possible?

The best brands of all time have some of the most iconic taglines. Just Do It. Think Different. It’s the Real Thing. Always Low Prices.

4. Hash Tag — Summarize your mission in an actionable hashtag.

If it’s possible to make your tagline and hashtag the same, even better! For instance, Nike’s tagline “Just Do It” also happens to work as an actionable, shareable, concise hashtag—#justdoit. Since they created their iconic tagline in a world before social media, it just goes to show the effectiveness of the original tagline. It was sturdy enough to work fluidly with technology and media that hadn’t been invented yet. Be sure to use this hashtag intentionally in social media and on packaging and marketing materials. It gives your customers an anchor for talking about your brand in public.

5. Jobs to be done — Why do people hire your products or services?

You should be able to list your products and services and clearly explain the job that each one is hired to do. These jobs should meet the needs or solve problems for the people you are seeking to serve.

Once you know your why, the question of what products and services to build becomes much easier to answer. I’ll explain jobs-to-be-done theory in more detail in a future post, but you can start here if you’re curious.

The process of getting this right is messy and takes a lot of work, but your answers should be clear and concise. I recommend letting your answers to these questions evolve naturally over time. Spend time talking about this with your team. Spend intentional time thinking and writing about your answers every day for a few weeks. Let it simmer, edit, edit again, then let it simmer some more, and edit again. You get the point. It takes effort to get to the core of your organization and communicate your story effectively.

Pablo Picasso from Apple’s 1997 “Think Different”

Let’s Use Apple as an Example

Let’s learn from the best and use Apple, one of the most valuable brands of all time, as our example.

1. Market Opportunity — What problem are you solving and for whom?

Apple sits at the intersection of the liberal arts and technology. There’s tremendous opportunity in making the power of computers easy for the average person to use. Apple seeks to serve normal people by making computers personal, approachable, and mobile.

2. Mission — How can you clearly and concisely state your why, how, and what?

Simon Sinek did a great job answering this question on behalf of Apple. You can use his example with Apple as a template for your own answer. Again, here’s how Sinek put it:

In everything we do we believe in challenging the status quo. We believe in thinking differently. The way we challenge the status quo is by making our products beautifully-designed, simple to use, and user-friendly. We just happen to make great computers. Wanna buy one?

The way Apple actually communicates this, brilliantly, is encoded in their 1997 “Think Different” ad:

Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules, and they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. While some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.

This ad communicates the same ideas as Sinek, but it inspires you at the same time.

3. Tagline — How can you sum up your entire mission in as few words as possible?

Think Different.

This tagline is up there with Nike’s “Just Do It” as one of the greatest taglines of all time. They intentionally chose to break the rules of grammar. That says it all. If it were grammatically correct, they would use “Think Differently.” They even use the word “differently” earlier in their TV spot, but switch to “Think Different” at the very end when they drop the Apple logo. Iconic.

4. Hash Tag — Summarize your mission in an actionable hashtag.

In 1997 when apple unveiled its “Think Different” campaign hashtags didn’t exist. But, #thinkdifferent would have worked well on Instagram.

A more recent example is their current campaign, “Shot with iPhone.” That makes a strong hashtag too— #shotwithiphone. And to use the hashtag you have to use the product feature that Apple is promoting. It’s a call to action and immediately shareable.

5. Jobs to be done — Why do people hire your products or services?

Let’s use the iPhone as an example. When Steve Jobs unveiled it in 2007 he said that it’s three things, “a widescreen iPod with touch controls, a revolutionary mobile phone, and a breakthrough Internet communications device.” He explicitly listed the three main reasons they expect you to hire the product—its jobs-to-be-done. When you hear the phrase that “marketing starts with product design” this is what that means.

How We Use This Framework

We’re still in the process of working on these questions as a team, but here’s my first draft for our company, Original Fuzz:

1. Market Opportunity — What problem are you solving and for whom?

Patagonia for artists. As technology rapidly takes over our lives, creativity has become one of our most valuable, and human, assets. Young people recognize this shift and are responding in their career and lifestyle choices. But, there’s no brand focused on supplying these artists & makers with the gear and apparel they need on their creative journey.

Whereas brands like Patagonia began by making gear for surfers and rock climbers, there’s no outfitter for artists, musicians, novelists, entrepreneurs, chefs, photographers, woodworkers, graphic designers, and other creative pioneers. Until now…enter Original Fuzz, the creativity outfitters.

2. Mission — How can you clearly and concisely state your why, how, and what?

We believe creativity is a by-product of consistently doing the work that only you can do. The tools you use matter, and how you get there is just as important as arriving. That’s why we’re constantly improving the gear you rely on when inspiration strikes. Our guitar straps & camera straps are just the beginning.

3. Tagline — How can you sum up your entire mission in as few words as possible?

Trusted gear for creativity.

4. Hash Tag — Summarize your mission in an actionable hashtag.

#makeityou

5. Jobs to be done — Why do people hire your products or services?

• Guitar strap, camera strap, banjo strap. It’s hard to find a strap that uses cool global and vintage textiles, and looks as stylish as the other apparel products that I’m accustomed to buying.
• Artist series t-shirts featuring musicians. I like wearing graphic tees, but I want a more unique and artistic way to align myself with my heroes than what’s for sale at Urban Outfitters.
• “Build your own strap” tool for our website. I want to design my own strap with an easy-to-use online tool so that I can express myself and have a strap that no one else has. Aligns perfectly with our hashtag #makeityou. The build-your-own tool combined with the hashtag is perfect for a social media marketing campaign.
• Guitar player’s gear bag. I don’t want to have to use a pedal board, but I’d like a way to carry my pedals and cables around without having to use the messy solution of a gym bag or backpack.
• All-purpose strap. I have a nice travel bag or messenger bag, but I’d like a cool way to personalize it and make it different than anyone else that has the same bag as me.

Your True North

I hope this framework can help you think about your “why” as a leader or organization. Once you have this nailed it can serve as a map for everything you do—from talking to investors, to designing your website, to developing your product roadmap, and more.

Once you’ve found your why, you’ve found true north. Use it as a guide and continue to spend time questioning or changing it as you learn more.

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Original Fuzz /// Trusted gear for creativity.

We believe that creativity is a by-product of consistently doing the work that only you can do. The tools you use matter, and how you get there is just as important as arriving. That’s why we’re constantly improving the gear you rely on when inspiration strikes. Our guitar straps & camera straps are just the beginning.

#makeityou