For those of you who have read my previous blogs you will know that this is a reference to the "Me-Too Product" I wrote a while ago. I received a lot of good comments about that blog so I decided to write more about our distraught little dusty product sitting on the supermarket shelf. Let's call him "Dusty Product". Why won't anyone buy Dusty? Surely Dusty's contents are just as good as his competitive shelf-mates who always seem to get picked up by a joyful shopper. Surely his packaging communicates that he too would satisfy the shopper's needs.
But alone he sits day after day. Getting dustier and dustier. And he notices that the other dusty products on the shelf share his fate. Oh how they gather much dust upon their dull and unattractive packaging. And they sit day after day after day; communicating the same old message. Dusty notices that the packages that are picked up by shoppers are very eye-catching and unique in design. He even notices that one manufacturer offers various colors of packaging to further attract and communicate the products' content to shoppers. But Dusty's manufacturer never bothers to "upgrade" him or make him attractive. No, Dusty's manufacturer mass-produced him by the hundreds - if not thousands!
Dusty also notices that the products that are not sold are soon discarded by the Supermarket. The Supermarket has no need for unsold product to clog its valuable shelf space. Better to fill it with high quality products from smart manufacturers who have done their consumer research on what shoppers want to buy. The Supermarket takes great measures to ensure that products like Dusty get minimum shelf space and visibility. The Supermarket creates more stringent requirements from the manufacturers before they will accept their products. So the smart manufacturers adapt...but old Dusty's manufacturer just keeps sending the same old product. And in doing so, he just keeps getting the same old result - dumped into the waste bin.
And WHO is Dusty Product?? Dusty Product is the job seeker who does not adapt to the "purchasing" habits of companies. Dusty Product is the job seeker who thinks it's the companies' duty to find him in the crowded marketplace. Dusty Product is the job seeker who thinks it is a waste of time to understand a company's business and how he can fit its needs. Dusty Product is the job seeker who sits idly by while the more adaptive job seekers update their strategies and tactics to land jobs. Dusty Product is the job seeker who does not clearly understand his skills and how to apply them to multiple business needs. Dusty Product is the job seeker who wants the company to figure out how he could be a good employee. Dusty Product is the job seeker who thinks he knows it all and will not listen to advice from others.
Are there any positives for Dusty Product??? I mean, surely Dusty Product is not all bad - just misguided. Surely Dusty Product is good at something, right? Well, actually he is. Dusty Product is in fact an excellent communicator. Dusty Product is the job seeker who superbly communicates each day to prospective employers that they should NOT buy his product! He is excellent at the art of "employment prevention techniques". Even the most desperate Employer would be hard pressed to purchase Dusty Product. If there were awards given to products who did not sell, then Dusty Product would be King!!
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