When my Dad tried to install a bird feeder in our back yard, he got more than he bargained for. His battle building a "squirrel-proof" bird feeder turned into an Old Rule of Business we all need to remember.
There's No Such Thing As A Squirrel Proof Bird Feeder
Posted by steveamiller under MarketingFrom http://www.twohatmarketing.com 4813 days ago
Made Hot by: Ruth Stone on August 6, 2011 6:52 pm
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4792 days ago
4805 days ago
4811 days ago
Additionally, since I finished reading this fine article:
_My good cholesterol is up
_My bad cholesterol is down
_My wife tells me she loves me more
_My Fiat's engine has stopped knocking and pinging
_Wrinkles on my forehead seem to be disappearing
Thanks Steve!
4810 days ago
4811 days ago
Brilliant! you gave me a chuckle. Although we don't have squirrels to content with, we have a similar issues with possums.
Loved the analogy
4810 days ago
4813 days ago
The some really good points you brought up about customer perceptions and value. As I was reading your post, I immediately thought about Apple, Starbucks, heck, even my daughter suddenly sprouted a fuzzy tail when I thought about her infatuation with Sillybandz...
A successful entrepreneur once said to me that small business owners should first and foremost try to target their own age group because they will automatically be able to "get them" and "speak their language."
It's true, but even so, there's still the problem you brought up of seeing the world through your own perceptions, attitudes, and experiences. It's why it's *so* important that business owners speak to their customers either literally or figuratively via market research.
Adam
PS And, yeah, our dads do seem to have a lot in common- in more ways than one.
4813 days ago
4813 days ago
4813 days ago
4813 days ago
Very nice job and very well told. I really enjoyed reading it.
Rivkah
4813 days ago
Steve
4813 days ago
Probably the most interesting and entertaining post I have read in a long time. I love posts and posters that include life-lessons and a bit of their history into an article. It brings things to life and humanizes the author. I also get to live vicariously through cool dads...mine was a bit of a jerk.
Your Dad, eccentric and inventive sounds a lot like Adam Gottlieb's Dad (Adam is also a BizSugar contributor) who invented a laundry rack to clamp to the trunk of a moving car in order to dry wet laundry.
Hope it's not too cliched Steve Miller, but "Fly like an Eagle!"
4813 days ago
4814 days ago
Two of my favorite PBS shows were about squirrels raiding bird feeders. Some of the home owners made Rube Goldberg contraptions and/or obstacle courses - nothing stopped those cute, furry little buggers. (I'm rooting for the squirrels.)
Duncan
4813 days ago