It is easy to spend time talking about the 22 Immutable Laws Of Marketing but a little tougher to look at your own company through those filters. Does your business measure up when looking at it through those 22 different lenses? I won’t cover all 22 but let me see if our new bedding brand Spink and Edgar stands up to the test.

Law Of Leadership says be first in a category and if you can’t, then create your own category and be first in it.  We certainly are not the first mattress or even the first hybrid. We are however, going to be the first “”farm to bedroom” product out there so I guess you could say we did in fact create our own category.

Law Of The Mind says be the first in the mind of the consumer when they think about your category and Spink and Edgar will certainly be that. Because we have created our own category we have an advantage, but we will go further than just “farm to bedroom” and work on being first in the “natural” category as well. I have been in the industry a long time and the only company that really stood out there is now gone so I like our chances.

Law Of Opposites says that you shouldn’t try to just be better, be different. I am guessing that 98% of the mattresses sold in the market today have foam in them. Some are hybrid and use springs and some are simply all foam, but VERY FEW have all natural materials. If a consumer is in a store and they want to spend some money on a great sleep system, Spink and Edgar will be a terrific option at the top end. Today, Tempur-Pedic does a nice job of selling big ticket mattresses but there is great news coming for the rsa that likes those big commissions that come along with selling big tickets. They will now have a product that can actually take the consumer UP market from Tempur-Pedic thanks to the comfort and story of Spink andEdgar. There is no need to sell against Tempur-Pedic because we are going to be the exact opposite from them, giving the rsa another option on the high end.

The Law Of Unpredictability says that unless you write your competitors business plan you can’t predict the future. It also says that you need to be able to react to things when they happen. The good news for us is we have four people making decisions on behalf of Spink and Edgar and the most complex problem we have had so far took us no time to figure out. The benefit many new companies have is that they are small and agile. Speed is a very good thing when you are up against much larger companies with lots of overhead, middle managers and processes that slow things down. Sound familiar anyone?

 The Law Of Success says that large egos cause even larger problems. The Ellman’s have been very successful in the mattress industry and the Quinn brothers have also done pretty well along the way. Spink and Edgar is a new venture for us all and we know that we have a lot of work to do and that no past success can ensure future success.  We understand that we need to work hard and earn our way in with every retail buyer, retail sales associate and consumer. We fully respect the fact that it will require 110% to make this venture work and we are committed to doing what it takes. We will not take our customers for granted as so many brands do today, and we will value every relationship.

The Law Of Hype says that many situations are the opposite of how they are actually presented. The great thing about Spink and Edgar is that there will be no hype, only truth. I think one of the big problems in this industry is that companies allow themselves to go over the top in how they market their products to compensate for their own lack of creativity. If you don’t have anything relevant then beat the drum louder and maybe somebody will notice. Can you think of a few product features out there that are just marketing BS with no real consumer benefit or testing behind the claims that are being made?

That is a quick review of where Spink and Edgar is when compared to the laws I have been talking about. It was fun for me to read this book as there are many things in it that we need to be paying attention to in this industry. I was also able to check myself a few times as a result of the book to make sure we are on the right track. I think we are and I hope you do also once you see our products!