As I was watching the Broncos (barely) win yet again, I was struck by a Dodge Journey ad. Positioning the car as "the search engine for the real world," the campaign (Wieden + Kennedy) makes the point that people can't experience life online. The campaign was launched several months ago with the added ploy of hiding three Journeys in different parts of the country and making a contest of finding them. And ironically, you needed to go online to get clues.

Interestingly, there is no mention- zero, zip, nada- of any car-related features or benefits. It's all about experiencing life.

Three powerful marketing lessons:

1) Your competitive advantage may have nothing to do with the features of your product.

2) The campaign is strategically sticking to its theme - Journey, by virtue of the storyline in the ads, the design of the contest, and of course, the name of the car.

3) By highlighting that experiencing something online (aka "like" being there) is not the same as really being there (the copy goes "no one makes list of websites they want to visit" while driving by beautiful sites that people do want to visit in person), the campaign touches a pain point most of us know deep down is true, yet may not articulate. 

And Dodge is providing the solution: Buy the Journey, and really live.

I predict that lots of products and services will join the growing ranks of campaigns that contrast "real life" with what they portray as a much more shallow online or "virtual" life. Again, the message is you buy the product, and you really live!

P.S. Check out AdWeek's story here.

I was talking today with a very smart colleague who runs a large health department. He is one of the best leaders I know. As he was bemoaning the impending budget cuts here in California, he also exerted optimism. He knows that great leadership shines in tough times. That means be honest, but not hopeless. Even with furloughs and layoffs, in a well-led organization, there is still reason for optimism. This reminds me of one of my favorite sayings: It is what it is.

In light of a worldwide recession and a worldwide pandemic and in an industry (in this case public health) repeatedly hammered by budget cuts, there may only be room right now for incremental gains. However, these gains need not be anywhere there is a foothold. They can and should be tied to your fundamental purpose. As Jim Collins says, "preserve the core." And at the same time stimulate progress. 

So whether the gains are about protection or growth, and even if they are very small, they should be both strategically planned and celebrated. So whenever you have a good small win, remember you're practicing the art of strategic incrementalism.