What do you do?

I was at the dentist this morning (which I think is possibly the worst human experience in existence today - no offense to dentists) and the lovely woman cleaning my teeth asked me the million dollar question: "What do you do?" 

Side rant: Can we just all agree that asking someone a question when they have two adult hands and several sharp torture devices in their mouth is maybe not a great idea? Ok, I'll focus.

I replied (mumbled) "Marketing," which sounded more like “Hwarkething.” Now typically this response is followed by, "so you do like Facebook posts?" Ok, sure, yeah we do those sometimes, if it makes sense. I began to explain in more detail what marketing strategy is, and why it matters, when during a brief pause, we both heard the DJ on the radio pipe in. He was talking about Burt's Bees and how they just released 4 new limited flavors that included ranch, buffalo sauce, and a few others. "That's disgusting," she said. "Why would they do that?"

"When's the last time you thought about Burt's Bees?" I asked her.

"Oh, I don’t know, probably not for a while," she said. "I usually just use whatever is in my purse."

"But we're both sitting here talking about them. Right now." I said. "And you might even tell some friends or family about it later, right?"

She nodded.

"This. This is what I do."

“Huh. That’s cool,” she said, and went back to pressure washing my molars.

She's right. It is cool. So many people think of marketing as purely tactical. Ads, newsletters, influencers - but it's so much more. Its precise and intentional interruptions in our daily lives that help us make decisions about what we put on our lips, or who we hire to do our taxes. There is data tucked in our brains that we can reference. Data that is tied to an emotion. 

Don't get me wrong, the tactical stuff is fun, especially so when there is a central idea that serves as a measuring stick for what makes sense and what doesn’t. But I love a big picture. The “what” and “how” manifest through the old “paid, earned, owned and shared” channels, but strategy makes sure there is always a “why”. It gives a brand freedom to play without going too far off the reservation. It surprises. It delights. It even gets people to talk about you in a dentist's office. 

Bonus tip: If you really want to have some fun today, browse through the Reddit threads about this. It’s gold, Jerry.