This January I took a week off to do a musical theatre improvisation course. Yes, you read that right, I was making up musicals on the spot for a whole week. Improv is an amazing discipline and those that do it professionally – think Who’s Line Is It Anyway? or Second City – are truly talented performers. It relies on all the participants adhering to a set of core principles, not unlike great marketing. Whilst it was great fun, it was also a learning experience.
Here are 3 key learnings that I believe can be applied to how we grow brands:
Listening
Improvisers have to listen super-intently to each other to pick up on all the cues. Not just what their fellow performers say or sing, but their tone, facial expressions and body language
Lesson for Marketers– Stay close to your consumers and really listen to them, not just what they say but how they behave. Don’t rely on research debriefs alone to get your insight, immerse yourself in your consumers’ world and keep doing it regularly. That way you can pick up on what’s really going on, how they feel and be better prepared to meet their evolving needs.
Acceptance
Improvisation requires you to instantly accept your fellow performers’ ideas, however weird or wacky, that’s the only way it works. Even if they have a great idea of where a scene or song should go, if someone else goes another way they go with it immediately.
Lesson for Marketers – Stay open to change. Even the best strategies can be improved on. This is especially relevant for activations and all kinds of marketing comms. Set a clear intention and then trust your team and agency to get you there, even if that means taking paths you were not expecting.
Commitment
Improvisers have to go ‘all in’ on the idea in front of them. There are no half measures. This is the toughest of the principles but the most powerful, for when you see improvisers fully embrace an idea as a team, it looks like it was planned.
Lesson for Marketers – Once you have done the strategic thinking & analysis and choose a brand and/or creative idea, you need to commit to it wholeheartedly. Don’t waste further time and resources questioning the strategy, go all out. To execute it. Of course, you need to be flexible with your tactics but growth comes with commitment – not just in spend but creative direction.
If you have never seen an entire musical improvised before your eyes, then I urge you to do so – it’s an amazing experience. And one where you can see strategy, creativity and execution happening all at once. Check out the improvisation professionals in London: Showstopper and New York, Chicago, Toronto: Secondcity
See this previous post on the Showstopper The Musical.