Parenting like a product manager
In a discussion with a friend/coworker this week on our way to lunch, we were chatting about the annual review process and merit increases at our company. He had made the comment that his parents jokingly compare his salary to his sister’s salary (who evidently makes considerably more than him). I then went off on a tangent and wondered what it would be like if parents treated their kids like product managers treated their products? It made for an amusing conversation and poked fun at the day-to-day marketing world we live in:
ROI of parenting (evaluating “performance” of a son/daughter)
Like product managers, parents could look at the time they were investing in their children and begin measuring their return on investment (ROI). If their daughter was outperforming their son in grades, relationships, etc., like a product manager, the parents would focus additional efforts in their son in an effort to boost performance. At some point however, the son does risk being cast aside as a “laggard.” The daughter also risks attention and her performance could suffer due to the extra attention being paid to their son. It’s a constant balance of determining where time is maximized on your products (children)!
Correlating performance to self esteem (like correlating product sales to consumer confidence)
With the economy heading south like it has been, we begin to see more product managers correlate consumer confidence to purchases of their products to help explain a downturn in top-line sales.
What if parents measured their son or daughter’s self esteem and correlated it with their performance?
If self esteem has a direct correlation to performance, then how can you “move the needle” like a product manager “moves the needle” in a down economy? A trip to Disney World, of course (sort of like a discount or rebate on a product)! Take a look:
Other market conditions may be influencing performance
Some parents may be quick to jump to conclusions like many product managers, however. One may look at this and say “If we take more trips to Disney World, I can create consistent lift in performance regardless of self esteem conditions.” This would be the equivalent to always offering a discount on your product — the risk is the behavior of the consumer becomes one of not purchasing unless a discount is offered.
The last thing a parent wants to do is have their son or daughter get in the mindset of only performing well shortly after a Disney World vacation. Product marketing and parenting is a tricky balance of priorities and market conditions.
Sometimes we just have to sit back and laugh at ourselves and the marketing world we live in.
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