Alienation and grief is the result of being separated from what or whom we love. And joy and inspiration is the result of being one with what or whom we love. This is a mantra for life. But it is also a mantra that marketers could usefully embrace.
For years, classical symphony orchestras have languished, sliding in and out of bankruptcy, being bailed out by municipalities or rich donors and fund raising campaigns. Many of them have become hopelessly irrelevant and separated from most people, except a small group of wealthy, tuxedo-garbed elite.
Enter Bramwell Tovey, Music Director of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra. He engages the audience in pre-concert banter, has invited them to notice the sound of an air-raid siren in Shostakovich’s Leningrad, has introduced children’s concerts and even a Tiny Tots program for children up to five-years-of-age. He has introduced jumbo screens that show close-ups of his sweat-covered brow, or the intricate fingerwork of violinists. Pictures of glamorous symphony members grace the programs.
Tovey is ending the separateness between audiences and the symphony by removing the orchestra’s elite and obscure image and making sure that the music is no longer complicated to understand or appreciate – a practice of so many concert masters in the past. He is doing what brings joy and happiness to us all—creating oneness—making the orchestra and the audience ONE. As a result, ticket sales have taken off, fans are appearing, and a financial recovery is taking place.
Simple, isn’t it? Now let’s talk about software companies, airlines, mobile phone services, video manufacturers (does your clock read 12:00 too?), unions, religions and political parties. We could create passionate fans all over the world!
What touched me most about this story is my noticing how increasing my ability to connect with others (and even myself) in oneness through all of my senses (sound, sight, touch, taste) is much more powerful connecting with the vehicle of only one sense.
Think of these two stories.
1. A man cut a lemon and tasted it and noticed it was sour.
Vs.
2. Imagine yourself walking into your kitchen and opening the fridge door and in one of the compartments seeing a bright and shiny lemon. Pick up the lemon and notice the shape and the bumpy texture as you hold it in your hand. Carry the lemon over to your cutting board and pick up a sharp knife. Cut the lemon lengthwise down the middle, and notice how one half falls away from the blade and then rocks little. Now cut that ?Ω lemon in half so you are left with a ?? lemon. Slowly lift the lemon up to your nose and smell the lemon. Notice the strong scent. Now bite into the lemon. (Did you pucker? I did.)
Great marketers I think are great story tellers. They connect folks with their emotions and their senses in a way that is present and vivid. Creating an oneness of experience.
I believe that Bramwell Tovey in this sense is a great story teller and marketer who is recognized that holism/oneness is possible (and even preferred) in the context of a symphony.
Thank you for your message today. It???s a great reminder that I too have an opportunity to connect with folks through all senses.
Namaste