Be at-home good

You know what it feels like. You go to a store. You're comparing a few different

products, and you're sold on the one that sounds like it's the best deal. It's got the

most features. It looks the coolest. The packaging looks hot. There's sensational

copy on the box. Everything seems great.

But then you get it home, and it doesn't deliver. It's not as easy to use as you

thought it'd be. It has too many features you don't need. You end up feeling that

you've been taken. You didn't really get what you needed and you realize you

spent too much.

You just bought an in-store-good product. That's a product you're more

excited about in the store than you are after you've actually used it.

Smart companies make the opposite: something that's at-home good. When

you get the product home, you're actually more impressed with it than you were

at the store. You live with it and grow to like it more and more. And you tell

your friends, too.

When you create an at-home-good product, you may have to sacrifice a bit of

in-store sizzle. A product that executes on the basics beautifully may not seem as

sexy as competitors loaded with bells and whistles. Being great at a few things

often doesn't look all that flashy from afar. That's OK. You're aiming for a longterm relationship, not a one-night stand.

This is as true for advertising as it is for in-store packaging or displays. We've

all seen a TV ad for some "revolutionary" gadget that will change your life. But

when the actual product arrives in the mail, it turns out to be a disappointment.

In-media good isn't nearly as important as at-home good. You can't paint over a

bad experience with good advertising or marketing.