What do a single line of code, a checkbox, a zip-tie and traffic cone all have in common? Well, when used incorrectly they will fairly mess up your day and likely cost your company a lot of money.
Small things matter. Fact. In this post, we will examine a number of instances where poor execution of minor details had a significant impact on the effectiveness of a campaign. marketing spend and brand reputation. By the end of this article, we will have highlighted the importance of getting the small details right in your Digital Strategy and offline marketing.
At the start of July 2019, a single line of code took down nearly 40% of the internet for approximately 30 mins. Pause for a second and re-read that… a single line of code broke a significant portion of the internet – globally – for half an hour. Surely in 2019, this is not possible? Well, what one company that plays a massive part in the infrastructure of the internet learnt that day it most definitely can.
There is a saying, “A small leak will sink a great ship” and there’s a lot of truth to it. Poor execution of even the smallest components of a project or product can invalidate all the useful value that people have contributed.
Take the banner in our picture, snapped whilst driving through Glasgow one day. (Don’t worry, I wasn’t driving at the time, I was in a traffic jam that hadn’t moved for ages but that’s another story). It’s hard to make out what the banner’s all about – let alone glean any meaningful detail from it and yet someone clearly wanted it to have a big impact.
It’s a large and probably costly banner which has clearly had some good design work put into it. It’s obviously advertising something the owner really wants lots of people to know about since it’s been put up in a very visible, public location.
Who knew a few zip ties could sink the ship?
I find it really quite sad that it’s not going to have the impact it should, all because of one tiny fail. Who knew a few zip ties could sink the ship? All the time, effort and money that has gone into the planning, designing and producing of this banner have been negated by poor installation and execution. Just a few more zip ties to hold it in place properly would have given it the clear and striking impact the owner intended. Instead, it’s just an ineffectual and untidy looking mess.
And in a round-about way that takes me back to how I happened upon this sunken ship. A traffic jam of epic proportions caused by another small component of a project that was poorly executed.
We all accept that occasionally sections of road need to be closed for repairs to the surface or underlying utilities or even for improvements. That inevitably means traffic cones and on this occasion, they became the hole in the ship. Just 4 poorly placed cones caused huge disruption… caused an accident and then inevitably, gridlock across the city centre.
Whether it was the planning or execution of the cone placement that led to this project causing such chaos we can’t be sure but either way it’s a tiny element having a huge knock-on effect and it highlights the need for attention to detail in every component of a project, no matter the size. In order to make a project effective and efficient, we must make sure every element is the best it can be.
***How does this relate to you? Well if you are undertaking any form of marketing then you must look at how the smaller details relate to your Digital Strategy.
Your digital strategy is no different and at Kahu we are passionate about the power of small and attention to detail. Get in touch to discuss how we can make your digital channels more effective and efficient.
