I was running the Strong Propositions course at the Institute of Direct Marketing today for I think the 12th time - I keep on thinking they're going to wind it up but the students keep on coming. Just before lunchtime I got wildly distracted when I looked out of the window and saw .. this - a fox standing on top of a car worrying the rubber trim around the windshield. Taking urban foxdom to new levels of cheek. He was cunningenough to keep an eye out for us and with the whole room gathered by the window looking at him looked over his shoulder at us as if to say So what are you going to do about it? Then jumped to the next car and started all over again.
The conclusion to the story is the comment from an IDM staffer who asked if they could borow the film. What for I asked - to substantiate an unlikely insurance claim for vandalism committed by a fox? No came the reply. It would be useful to remind students not to use the car park. Which is nothing if not direct.
At the end of the day we run a Dragon's Den exercise and I usually borrow a senior member of the IDM staff to act as Dragon. This time we got lucky - Steve Harrison* was in the building so came in very graciously - listened to the students presentations, commented on the propositions they had presented and gave us a brief masterclass in how to write them. Pick a single target audience - don't get distracted - summarise the benefit to them and tell them what to do next. I also saw a great quotation on the day - propositions are becoming more important than products. Its not what you're selling that makes the difference - its what you say about it that counts.
*for those who don't know him Steve Harrison is something of a legend - he has won more Cannes Direct Lions than anybody else on the planet and has headed the Cannes direct jury. He also won the first Cannes Direct Grand Prix.
