Death has a way of providing clarity for the living.
Perhaps you’ve been to a funeral and, while pondering the brevity of life, thought, “My priorities aren’t straight.” And then, maybe you acted on that moment of clarity, changing your life for the better.
A much lighter, but marketing-oriented example, involves the reported death of Cap’n Crunch a few weeks back. When news broke that Quaker Oats was going to bury the cereal brand at sea (as inaccurate as that news was), fans of the Cap’n came out of their galleys to shout their displeasure from the highest crows' nests.
As a result, the folks at Quaker Oats may have had their own moment of clarity. They got the unique opportunity to see how the Cap’n had affected people over the years, and what he still meant to them.
If your company or brand or product were to “die”, would your customers realize - and miss - what they had lost? Especially if you provide a service, are you doing a good enough job of reminding clients of your value? Do your customers understand how important you are to them, or how much easier you make their lives? (You are making their lives easier or better in some other way, right?)
On the flip side, what would you say to or do for those great customers if you knew you had only six months to live as a brand? Because maybe those are the things you should be saying and doing now - as if you were going away for good - to avoid going away for good.
