Why Buying a Pool Table Doesn't Make Your Company Progressive

A few months ago I toured an agency that claimed to be a fast-paced and progressive. Offering an old service but reinvented online, it was growing fast and on the hunt for new talent. From the job description it seemed promising with values of forward-thinking and innovation. The company was full of young professionals I knew personally to be passionate about everything they did. When I arrived I was surprised to find a warehouse in a suburban cornfield. Inside, I was greeted coldly by a woman in an immense lobby with a ceiling fifteen meters tall. During the interview I discovered the position paid about the same as bank position I had held while at college, but the hours longer and the work even more monotonous. And to finish his card-carrying soliloquy, my interviewer dropped this cherry on top.

"And we have a pool table."

Upon further digging I realized all "original" content created by the agency was really regurgitated from the same sites in a list format, simply capitalizing on keyword SEO to rake in web hits. There was little to no voice in any of the articles and all followed the same rigid formatting.

Needless to say I didn't pursue the position.

While these shortsighted SEO tactics aren't unusual (read The Death of SEO) for any ad copy position, the massive gap in perception between how the company saw themselves and what they actually were baffled me. As marketers we're supposed to understand cognitive dissonance, not submit ourselves to it. I imagine the CEO scanning the front cover of the Harvard Business Review, seeing a photo of Google's office slides and thinking, "That's the ticket! Let's buy a pool table."

Being forward-thinking, creative or progressive has nothing to do with what toy you incorporate into your workplace. It acts as a statement sure, but at end of the day it's about process. Is your work environment open, passionate and encouraging of new ideas--not a manufacturing line of quota?

Numbers are important, anyone who has worked in retail knows that, but what separates a great marketer or business is the value put on innovation and eccentricity. By playing just by the numbers you play someone else's game, by incorporating creativity there are no limits to the number of ways you can win.

But enough of the bashing. Here are a few companies progressive enough for their names.

Uber
In two years this San Fran taxi startup has swept across the United States and into western Europe. Streamlining the industry with a smartphone application, this business prides itself on superb customer service and possessing more personality than a clown car. When confronted with conflicting laws in Washington D.C., Uber launched a social media campaign so successful that it resulted in their service being exempted from current taxi laws regarding minimum fares. Also during National Ice Cream Month they launched a campaign in seven major cities where users could summon an ice cream truck on demand. Talk about Uber delicious.

Haberman Modern Storytellers
Don't let my previous agency bashing confuse you, there are many small agencies doing amazing things. One of them is Haberman in Minneapolis, MN. Started by Fred Haberman and Sarah Bell (whose story will win you over if this small post doesn't), this agency promotes an emphasis on passion over reason. While that may not convince the bean-counters, it did convince enough Firefox users to donate the money for a full-page ad in the The New York Times for the free, open source browser in just 17 hours. Hundreds of millions of media impressions and 18 months later, Firefox is up 10 percent market share.

Red Bull
They may be large with annual sales of over four billion cans sold in more than 160 countries a year, but it's not without good reason. Red Bull's fun persona and eternal slogan has spurred the loyalty of key markets in the United States, Germany, Turkey, Japan, France and Scandinavia. Some events include Red Bull Crashed Ice, Red Bull Flugtag, Red Bull X-Fighters, Red Bull Road Rage and winning both the constructors' and drivers' Formula 1 championships.

Also in 2004, Red Bull founder Dietrich Mateschitz helped start a charity to help fun spinal cord named Wings for Life. Oh, and if you're looking for their version of a pool table the London office incorporates ping pong meeting rooms, floating staircases, modern bar/cafe and a giant carbon slide (pictured at left).

Google
Alright, so no surprise here, but if we're talking progressive workplaces we have to at least talk about it. Setting aside the brilliant people passionate about a product changing the face of the world, Google invests in its work environment that goes being making a statement.

Decompression capsules, slides, private cabin areas, professional masseurs, a library and drawing boards that cover entire walls has made Google a legend in workplace environments. Reinventing their webpage logo everyday to remain fun and relevant their attitude and innovation has kept them above the curve in just about every market they enter.

All this led up to a paramount decision in 2010 when Google shocked the world by choosing not to censure its search results in China--the undoubtedly biggest potential money-market. Citing their reasons as not wanting to become an accessory to repression they took an immense risk which so far, has only empowered their following.

Think of other companies worth mentioning? I'd love to hear comments.