In Search of Ignorance
Tuesday, March 25, 2003
The Sock Puppet Did Not Die in Vain -- He was killed by a combination of ignorance and its ready ally arrogance. The two go hand-in-hand in many failed decisions. Ask almost anyone alive in the last five years, and they will know and remember the sock puppet -- brilliant branding for the Web sale/delivery of products (pet supplies) simply not suited for the medium. It was a hopelessly arrogant attempt at changing human behavior.
Don Quixote was not the first or last man to tilt at windmills. There were legions of marketers who tried during the dot com era to do effectively the same thing, and the Sock Puppet was the casualty of one such scheme. He is a symbol, the poster boy (or poster puppet) for bad marketing decisions. Thankfully he was but a cotton mascot, however, every shred of his stuffing represented dollars that could have been better spent or at least yielding greater value to the shareholder and/or to mankind.
Your ideas, dreams and stories of courage are welcome.
Years ago, when the Peters and Waterman book "In Search of Excellence" was on the bestseller lists, I had thought of writing a parody version using the title of this blog, with the subtitle "Tales From America's Worst-Run Companies." Today, many of the companies profiled in the original book have fallen from grace, and others that flew so high (Enron, WorldCom, etc.) have crashed to earth. And unemployment, particularly in the manufacturing and professional ranks continues to remain fairly constant.
Given the current business climate, and the upward trending of cynicism (Dilbert readership, emergence of sites like Despair.com), I do not think that the world needs another business parody. Enough of those exist without any creative effort.
What is needed today is hope...the belief that individuals can still make a difference in the workplace. This blog is dedicated to those who would go out "in search of ignorance," discover the reasons behind its strength and staying power, and yet have the courage to bring enlightenment to the unaware and unwilling.
