In 1961 President Kennedy proclaimed an audacious goal; the United States will put a man on the moon and bring them safely back to Earth. Stating the goal wasn’t enough. First, NASA had to sell the allure of space and literally market the moon.
When Kennedy announced that man would land on the moon, NASA was in its infancy. Few Americans had ever considered space travel outside of science fiction, but by 1970, over 4% of the country’s national budget and 2% of the country’s workforce were working to land 12 people on the surface of the moon.
Before this massive investment could be made, the government had to build excitement for space. In essence, they had to Market the Moon. David Meerman Scott’s latest book of the same name tracks the effort to market the Apollo program over 60 years ago and teaches 6 important lessons we should use to inspire action.
1. Set an Audacious Goal
Minor improvements are ignored while massive goals inspire action. President Kennedy recognized this as did Marc Winn in our latest podcast.
Kennedy campaigned in 1960 on a pledge of scientific superiority over the U.S.S.R., specifically in the areas of rocket and space science. When Kennedy came into office however, he was unsure if the government should make the massive financial commitment to land a man on the moon.
When a Soviet cosmonaut became the first person to fly in space in 1961, Kennedy and the U.S. felt the need to reassess their superiority. To mobilize resources and creativity, Kennedy created the audacious goal of landing on the moon. The goal was so extreme that many in NASA didn’t think it could be done and a joint U.S.-U.S.S.R. program was even considered.
A massive goal is the best way for us to inspire action in others. In Guernsey, 30+ projects have started thanks to an audacious goal. At 9 Clouds, we wrote a book thanks to an audacious goal. Set the north star. You will discover that the resources and creativity you need will materialize.
2. Choose a Date
When Kennedy announced the goal, he didn’t just say we will reach the moon. He put a deadline on it. By the end of the decade he said man would land on the moon. In 1969, six months before the deadline, Apollo 11 landed on the moon.
This short time frame mobilized the largest commitment of resources (USD$24 billion) ever made by any nation in peacetime. At its peak, the Apollo program employed 400,000 people and required the support of over 20,000 industrial firms and universities
If there had not been a deadline to the vision, there would have been no urgency. In our own projects and with our own goals, pick a date and announce it. Then the project begins to take shape in order to hit the deadline. Guernsey aims to be the best community by 2020. What’s your deadline?
3. Build a Diverse Core
Landing a man on the moon, or undertaking any radical project, requires creativity and skill. The Apollo program not only attracted top scientists but also creative minds like Walt Disney to help sell space.
A lead scientist for NASA was actually a Nazi. Wernher von Braun, dubbed the “Father of Rocket Science,” designed the German V2 rockets that bombed London during World War II. After the war, the U.S. quietly granted him citizenship and rebranded him as the chief rocket engineer for NASA, where he employed many of his former Nazi scientists.
Braun and Disney teamed up in the late 1950’s to sell the idea of space travel as a possibility. With stories in magazines and television features, a lunar landing was painted as a magical quest for all Americans. Interestingly, this collaboration between von Braun and Disney was the inspiration for Tomorrowland at all five of the worldwide Disney theme parks.
We can learn from the Apollo program that combining talents across disciplines helps achieve major goals. Even thinking about competitors (like Germans post WWII) as potential collaborators could help you achieve your quest.
What talent can you attract to your mission? Who outside of your discipline could add insight? Disney was no scientist, but he was essential for helping man land on the moon.
4. Attract Supporters with Open Participation
The Apollo program emerged from the military, which is accustomed to extreme secrecy. In the early 1960’s, some members of the Apollo program pushed for an “open program.” They argued everything should be honest and transparent with live television from mission control, the spacecraft and even from the surface of the moon.
Engineers were opposed to the idea because that meant more weight and more technical challenges. The astronauts themselves were opposed as well. They wanted to focus on being astronauts not television stars.
Fortunately, NASA ultimately decided to open the program up, unlike the Soviets whose program was undertaken in secrecy. This decision built momentum and excitement for the program as Americans were sucked into the grand scale of the project and the personalities involved.
By opening the program, the goal was humanized and even those sitting in their living rooms felt involved with the process.
Businesses and organizations are faced with the same challenge. Should we use tools like social media to openly share what is going on internally and engage with customers or should we try to keep everything secret?
The lesson from Apollo teaches us that transparency has the benefit of building support.
5. Enable Prophets
The contractors of the Apollo program were ecstatic to be a part of the national quest, and NASA wisely enabled these companies.
Consumer brands like Velcro, Omega watches, Tang and Hasselblad cameras were all taken to space, and they made sure to market their products as cutting-edge since they were chosen for space flight.
Large business-to-business companies also took advantage of the press. Household names like Boeing, Raytheon, IBM and Grumman were all building parts for the Apollo program. These same companies were involved in making weapons of war at the same time so Apollo presented an opportunity for positive press.
NASA wisely enabled the thousands of marketers from the contractor companies. NASA updated the contractor companies on what the program was doing and how the contractor’s products were helping. Likewise, the contractors created media kits to educate the press on how space works (thanks to their products).
By helping their contractors, NASA did not have to do all of the marketing work. Instead, well-funded companies involved in the quest helped promote it in every marketing channel imaginable. Soon space was the future and everyone wanted to be a part of it.
In addition, all of the photographs from space flight were in the public domain since the Apollo program was government funded. The contractors suddenly had photos of their products being used in space. Even companies who didn’t go to space could use the photos (just like I’m doing in this post).
These breathtaking photographs from space were soon everywhere. From commercials to magazines to lunch pails, space went from an unknown to every child’s dream. The free photographs inspired action far beyond space travel as well and images of Earth from space were a catalyst for the emerging environmental movement.
In our projects, we need to learn from NASA. Empower others to do the sharing for you. Make it easy for people to participate and market on your behalf, just like Marc has done with his #believeinguernsey movement.
Enabling prophets might mean offering training, marketing kits or free photos. Whatever it is, make your huge goal something everyone wants to attach their name to. Then help them talk about it.
6. Build on Your Goal
When Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, it was the most watched moment in the history of television, then and now. The world was inspired and children suddenly wanted to be astronauts.
With all this excitement and momentum, you would expect space exploration to reach new heights. However, once the goal was reached, interest waned. Years later, Apollo 15, 16 and 17 landed on the moon. Even though there was a live color feed from the moon, TV stations didn’t want to give up their air time to play it. Episodes of Gunsmoke were now more important than walking in space.
Since 1972, no human has traveled beyond low earth orbit. Instead, we send robots. These trips might make a brief appearance on the news cycle, but they are quickly forgotten or ignored by the general public.
Do not suffer the same fate as the Apollo Program. You cannot rest on your laurels but must throw the target further down the road.
When you complete your quest, create a more audacious goal that continues to inspire and attract attention. The enemy of progress is stagnation. Without a goal, stagnation quickly arrives.
Our Space Race
Space travel once seemed outlandish, yet in less than a decade it became a reality.
In our own lives, impossible goals lead to real creation. Aim high because an audacious goal inspires others to join your quest. Even if you don’t succeed, your vision will achieve the ultimate goal: action.
