Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Selling iceboxes to Eskimos

When marketing genius Ron Popiel started Ronco, it was based on the premise of “need creation” where customer have the epiphany “I need one of these”.



Remember the Veg-o-matic “it slices, it dices”?



Sony does the same thing, but “need creation” is not a new concept.

Back in the early 1900’s they said that a good marketer could sell refrigerators to Eskimos. Well, it’s true. Here is a picture I snapped in an Inuit village in Greenland, refrigerators and freezers sold in a store sitting on top of the permafrost!


Iceboxes for sale to Eskimos

I was recently in Denmark where I found this product that Americans don’t know they need.

Incidentally, Denmark has one of the strongest currencies in the world, and compared with the weak dollar, American services are a huge bargain in a land where a big Mac costs over $10 (see my notes on the Big Mac Index and the PPP):


Denmark - Home of the $10 Big Mac

I was in Copenhagen recently because of new demand which is created because of exchange rate inequities. Database management was invented in the USA and since it's an American specialty, and the Danish are thrilled to be able to get All-American remote database support for less than half the cost of local talent, a win-win for all!

Anyway, Ron Popeil missed this gem. In a Danish store I came across this beauty, a “Nasal horn”!


I've always wanted to squirt water from my nostrils

Doesn’t the lady in the picture look lovely, with water squirting from her nose?