Afavourite quote I read recently was from challenger-agency-of-the-moment Mischief USA’s CCO, Greg Hahn: “The least interesting Super Bowl work is mostly the result of people trying to do something that everyone is going to like. The goal is to do something that enough people love.” I love everything about this. Not just because Greg is a total creative legend, but because the same thinking applies to how challenger brands need to operate in order to grow – or even be noticed in the first place. You don’t need everyone. Just enough.
Great challenger brands know this, and that’s why I love working with them. They don’t want to please everyone, so can behave energy and impatience over reticence and inertia. They’ve come this far through sheer audacity and drive, and don’t need to protect the 15 brand pillars, international brand codes or manage a pile of embedded, suspicious stakeholders. They find reasons to say yes. That doesn’t mean they should be reckless, but be open to an element of risk – which is crucial.
