I’ve got a car to sell you
Let’s take a look at the specs:
0–60mph: 30 seconds
Top Speed: 55mph
Seats: 4
MPG: A glorious 20
Not impressed yet? Fair enough. Let’s continue.
This car is complete with a custom body kit. By “body kit,” I mean a collection of old tires tied to ropes and hung around the car, tugboat-style.
Still not rushing to sign the check?
Alright, let’s pop inside.
Radio? None.
Sat nav? Forget it.
Electronics? Only one: a local cell-phone jammer ensuring no calls or texts can be made inside.
Windows? Permanently closed.
Ok, I'll be straight with you. I have a 1995 Ford Crown Victoria to sell you.
Sounds dreadful, right? Who on earth would want this?
Well, that depends on the buyer persona.
The Right Buyer
No self-respecting adult would want to drive this beast. But if you’re the parent of a freshly licensed 16-year-old, suddenly this monstrosity looks pretty appealing. To be clear, not to your 16 year old, but to you, the concerned parent.
Glacial acceleration = No racing off into trouble.
Surrounded by tires = Parking-lot mishaps and low-speed bumps handled with ease.
No radio, no cell service = Zero distractions.
Big, heavy, and safe = Built-in crash resistance, limited top speed.
No working windows = No teenage “hey baby” antics at stoplights.
Unstressed mechanicals = Reliability for days.
All this for $3,000 + tires.
Suddenly, this looks like the perfect first car.
Thanks, I Hate It
When my older kids started driving, we did something similar. Not quite a Crown Vic, but definitely not a shiny new Jeep either—no massive car payments, no rollover risk, no constant repairs.
And that’s the point: sometimes you don’t have the best product to sell. Sometimes you’ve got the equivalent of a Crown Victoria with a busted radio.
So what do you do?
The Bigger Lesson
You find the right audience. Stop clinging to the idea that you need the “best” product to succeed. Best is subjective.
A BMW M5 is the best car… for one type of buyer.
A thirty-year-old Crown Vic wrapped in tires is the best… for another.
Same goes for your business.
If you want help figuring out who your “Crown Vic or BMW M5 audience” is, we should talk. simon@excessionevents.com
And I’d love to hear from you: what product in your career was your version of the Crown Vic?
For me, it was the Polycom ShowStation—a product so bizarre that during one demo, a friend was electrocuted by one, and fell to the floor unconscious during a demo. and most people thought that was a lucky escape. Seriously that is a true story.
About the Author
Simon Dudley is a chump. A man who believes in paying taxes, waiting his turn, the rule of law, being a decent human being. He writes a lot about strategy, technology, society, education, business, Excession Events and science.
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