… the person who sold ‘crappy paper umbrellas’ as a sophisticated addition to drinks WAS a genius.
He/she literally invented a market that served no purpose at all – yet still made millions.
And I don’t believe it was just a case of ‘luck’ . .. more likely they identified a deep-rooted human need that they figured a paper umbrella in a glass, could fill.
Maybe it’s the same person who decided every drink needed a slice of lime or lemon on the rim – even though it adds absolutely nothing to the taste of the beverage.
Then again, maybe it was a lemon and lime farmer who wanted to sell a shedload of product, and thought this would encourage far greater sales than the typical eating or drinking usage.
A bit like the folks at Y&R Malaysia who got LG mobile to create a phone specifically for the Muslim market in Indonesia.
Rather than having tons of fancy features like cameras, blogs or bluetooth … they got them to simply add a digital compass that pointed to Mecca – enabling Muslims to know which direction to face when praying.
Their idea … based around cultural and lifestyle insights, not product or category at all … not only differentiated LG phones from the competition, but went on to sell an additional 4 millions units. FOUR MILLION! Now that’s a real creative idea!
So why am I going on about this?
Because ultimately, I think this is the sort of ingenuity Bali needs if they’re going to truly transform their fortunes again.
You see it’s not just the bombs that are keeping people away … it’s other things like increased competition from Malaysia and Thailand, the lack of a national airline and an Indonesian Government who don’t invest enough in tourism because they feel Bali acts too independent from their rule.
Of course I don’t know what that magic ‘idea’ is [yet] – but it’s going to be interesting and something really worth while for once.
Any ideas gratefully received.