Pitching "The Pitchman"

My book club is currently reading What The Dog Saw by Malcom Gladwell. I finished reading the chapter titled “The Pitchman” a couple of weeks ago but still haven’t been able to shake the idea of it from my head.

For those of you who have not read this book yet, this chapter is about Ron Popeil a man who has come up with some of the most effective infomercials. The difference between him and Billy Mays? He’s also the creator of the products he’s selling. Popeil would take an idea and run with it. He would make sure that his products were not only helpful but also convenient. He knew people preferred to know how things worked as opposed to just what it did so he made sure that he spent his time explaining everything when making a sale. He knew that people liked to learn knew things (knowledge = power) and people always want power.

In the book they use the example of a VCR and the blinking “12:00”. The idea of the VCR itself is not what frustrated most people – the frustration that came with the VCR was due to people having a hard time figuring out how to use it properly. As Gladwell says, if Popeil had been the person who had invented the VCR, and presented it like his other products,

The tape wouldn’t be inserted behind a hidden door – it would be out in plain sight…so that if it was recording, you could see the spools turn. The controls wouldn’t be discreet buttons; they would make a reassuring click as they were pushed up and down, and each step of the taping process would be identified with a big, obvious numeral so that you could set it and forget it. (Gladwell, What the Dog Saw, 24)

While selling his items Popeil would also get feedback from his customers. He would then be sure to focus on the features people seemed to prefer the most during his next sale. He always listened to the customers and what they wanted - a step that is sometimes too easily forgotten..

Ron Popeil was a great business man. He was an innovator, an inventor, and a wonderful salesman. He believed in what he was doing and never gave up.

‘Other people in our business take the spaghetti approach,’ says founder Ron Popeil, ‘they throw a lot of stuff against the wall and hope something sticks...I don't operate that way. If I believe in a product idea, I'll put my time, money, and marketing skills behind it. It might take two-and-a-half years of my life to create a product and sell. But, I enjoy every minute of it!’ (http://www.ronco.com/rco_aboutus.aspx)