Robert's keynote from Like Minds Autumn 2010: Creativity and Curation

1. Achieving market leadership
Through creativity+curation
Through creativity+curation
Robert Clay

2. 1. Achieving Market leadership in my 20’s

3. Market Leadership in
my 20’s
‣ Started first business at 19
with no capital
‣ Developed revolutionary
method of preventing motor
vehicle corrosion
‣ clean
‣ odourless
‣ better application tools
and procedures
‣ Pioneered use of medical
endoscopes
The processThe process
thatthat
revolutioniserevolutionise
d thed the
industryindustry
The processThe process
thatthat
revolutioniserevolutionise
d thed the
industryindustry

4. Curation soon kicked in ...
(Years before it was known by that name)
(Years before it was known by that name)Developed stepDeveloped step
by stepby step
treatmenttreatment
procedures forprocedures for
every carevery car
modelmodel
Developed stepDeveloped step
by stepby step
treatmenttreatment
procedures forprocedures for
every carevery car
modelmodel
AwardedAwarded
Coveted AACoveted AA
Seal ofSeal of
ApprovalApproval
AwardedAwarded
Coveted AACoveted AA
Seal ofSeal of
ApprovalApproval
ApprovedApproved
As soon as aAs soon as a
new model wasnew model was
launched we’dlaunched we’d
strip it apartstrip it apart
and develop aand develop a
procedureprocedure
As soon as aAs soon as a
new model wasnew model was
launched we’dlaunched we’d
strip it apartstrip it apart
and develop aand develop a
procedureprocedure

5. Achieved 40% Local market
share
All otherAll other
competitorscompetitors
had 17%had 17%
combinedcombined
shareshare
nationallynationally
All otherAll other
competitorscompetitors
had 17%had 17%
combinedcombined
shareshare
nationallynationally
StartedStarted
gettinggetting
visits fromvisits from
all the bigall the big
namesnames
StartedStarted
gettinggetting
visits fromvisits from
all the bigall the big
namesnames

6. Offers soon poured in ...
We saidWe said
“thanks but“thanks but
no thanks”no thanks”
to all theto all the
offersoffers
We saidWe said
“thanks but“thanks but
no thanks”no thanks”
to all theto all the
offersoffers

7. Agreed to supply know-how
GlobalGlobal
companiescompanies
sought oursought our
knowledgeknowledge
GlobalGlobal
companiescompanies
sought oursought our
knowledgeknowledge

8. Exclusive deal with Castrol
CastrolCastrol
manufacturedmanufactured
products toproducts to
ourour
specificationspecification
CastrolCastrol
manufacturedmanufactured
products toproducts to
ourour
specificationspecification
We wereWe were
permitted topermitted to
use Castroluse Castrol
brandingbranding
We wereWe were
permitted topermitted to
use Castroluse Castrol
brandingbranding
The first and ONLY timeThe first and ONLY time
in 108 years that a thirdin 108 years that a third
party has been grantedparty has been granted
exclusive rights toexclusive rights to
Castrol brandedCastrol branded
productsproducts
The first and ONLY timeThe first and ONLY time
in 108 years that a thirdin 108 years that a third
party has been grantedparty has been granted
exclusive rights toexclusive rights to
Castrol brandedCastrol branded
productsproducts

9. Started
franchising
‣ Achieved massive press
coverage
‣ Effortlessly picked up top
20% of other people’s
franchisees who represented
80% of their business
‣ Started expanding globally
WithoutWithout
curationcuration
none of thisnone of this
would havewould have
happened!happened!
WithoutWithout
curationcuration
none of thisnone of this
would havewould have
happened!happened!

10. Started 2nd
business at 23
‣ Invented the glass sunroof
for cars
‣ Reduced fitting time from 3-4
days to 45 mins
‣ Manufactured in UK and US,
and sold worldwide
‣ Developed UK market to
250,000 units a year in 3
years
Became 3rdBecame 3rd
largestlargest
sunroofsunroof
manufacturermanufacturer
in Europe in 3in Europe in 3
yearsyears
Became 3rdBecame 3rd
largestlargest
sunroofsunroof
manufacturermanufacturer
in Europe in 3in Europe in 3
yearsyears

11. Sold to No.2 Co. in Scandinavia
‣ Received a call from division of Astra Pharmaceutical when in
Singapore. They “preferred to work with us than compete against
us”
‣ Eventually sold both businesses — I was integral part of the deal
‣ They needed an entrepreneur, but they were rare in Sweden
‣ They wanted car manufacturers to carry out corrosion prevention
in production, but none would embrace the concept because they
thought people would hold on to their cars longer
‣ They thought I could convince them ...

12. Developed robot technology for
car production lines SuppliedSupplied
products,products,
know-how andknow-how and
technologytechnology
worldwideworldwide
SuppliedSupplied
products,products,
know-how andknow-how and
technologytechnology
worldwideworldwide
In 4 yearsIn 4 years
secured businesssecured business
with EVERY car,with EVERY car,
truck, bus andtruck, bus and
aircraftaircraft
manufacturermanufacturer
In 4 yearsIn 4 years
secured businesssecured business
with EVERY car,with EVERY car,
truck, bus andtruck, bus and
aircraftaircraft
manufacturermanufacturer

13. “Wrote the book” on the subject
These processesThese processes
became THEbecame THE
industryindustry
standard, stillstandard, still
used to this dayused to this day
These processesThese processes
became THEbecame THE
industryindustry
standard, stillstandard, still
used to this dayused to this day
Within 4Within 4
years weyears we
were No.1 inwere No.1 in
worldworld
Within 4Within 4
years weyears we
were No.1 inwere No.1 in
worldworld
CurationCuration
was at thewas at the
heart of thisheart of this
successsuccess
CurationCuration
was at thewas at the
heart of thisheart of this
successsuccess

14. 2. Building an unprecedented knowledgebase

15. My marketing skills
were sought after
were sought after
So next moveSo next move
was intowas into
marketingmarketing
consultancyconsultancy
So next moveSo next move
was intowas into
marketingmarketing
consultancyconsultancy

16. Built a massive
marketing library ...
‣ Added to my knowledge by
getting to know many top
names in marketing
‣ Built up large collection of
books, audio and video
materials
‣ Started writing up extensive
notes on every facet of
marketing
CollectionCollection
includes manyincludes many
rare originals.rare originals.
Every itemEvery item
thoroughlythoroughly
researchedresearched
before purchasebefore purchase
CollectionCollection
includes manyincludes many
rare originals.rare originals.
Every itemEvery item
thoroughlythoroughly
researchedresearched
before purchasebefore purchase

17. Went Digital Mid 90’s
Wanted instant,Wanted instant,
fully searchable,fully searchable,
access to myaccess to my
knowledge withoutknowledge without
being tied to anybeing tied to any
one locationone location
Wanted instant,Wanted instant,
fully searchable,fully searchable,
access to myaccess to my
knowledge withoutknowledge without
being tied to anybeing tied to any
one locationone location

18. Built vast artificial intelligence
knowledgebase
‣ All materials digitised over time
‣ Organised into vast interconnected
map, like a mega mind map
‣ Now contains over 3.5 million
pages of notes
‣ Equivalent to 14,000+ full sized
books
‣ Content still building up every day
‣ It can be transported wherever I go

19. Content Builds Up every day
‣ Notes and relevant content added from book and audio collection
‣ Monitor RSS feeds from over 500 newspapers, magazines, blogs
and online sources
‣ Keep up with latest thinking via Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn
‣ Paper.li produces 280-360 relevant curated links a day
‣ With two clicks content automatically added to right parts of the
knowledgebase so it’s there when I need it. Wonderful for
research.
‣ Can rapidly gather everything needed into my chosen writing tool

20. Knowledgebase In Action ...

21. The HomeThe Home
ScreenScreen
The HomeThe Home
ScreenScreen
structurestructure
resembles vastresembles vast
interconnectedinterconnected
mindmapmindmap
structurestructure
resembles vastresembles vast
interconnectedinterconnected
mindmapmindmap
Contains layerContains layer
upon layer ofupon layer of
data ... 3.5Mdata ... 3.5M
pages worth!pages worth!
Contains layerContains layer
upon layer ofupon layer of
data ... 3.5Mdata ... 3.5M
pages worth!pages worth!

22. This search forThis search for
“story” found“story” found
11,949 documents11,949 documents
in 0.005 secsin 0.005 secs
This search forThis search for
“story” found“story” found
11,949 documents11,949 documents
in 0.005 secsin 0.005 secs
Can findCan find
anything in aanything in a
fraction of afraction of a
secondsecond
Can findCan find
anything in aanything in a
fraction of afraction of a
secondsecond

23. Helping people with
information overload
‣ Vast volume of information
available today
‣ No normal person can sort
the worthwhile from the
mediocre or convert it all into
useable wisdom
‣ The information is too widely
dispersed and people are
too stretched, too short of
time and too stressed
““More informationMore information
is now produced inis now produced in
2 days than was2 days than was
produced in allproduced in all
time before 2003”time before 2003”
— Eric Schmidt,— Eric Schmidt,
CEO GoogleCEO Google
““More informationMore information
is now produced inis now produced in
2 days than was2 days than was
produced in allproduced in all
time before 2003”time before 2003”
— Eric Schmidt,— Eric Schmidt,
CEO GoogleCEO Google

24. Helping people with
information overload
‣ 200 days a year invested
into seeking, filtering,
distilling and synthesising
vast quantities of the best
data out there
‣ The best bits brought
together and turned into
useable knowledge, step by
step processes and real
wisdom to solve real
business situations
200 days a200 days a
year investedyear invested
in contentin content
curation!curation!
200 days a200 days a
year investedyear invested
in contentin content
curation!curation!

25. Helping people with information overload
‣ As information multiplies, the ability to distill, process, research and
present useable and relevant information becomes increasingly
necessary
‣ It saves people days, weeks, months and years of their time
‣ They get exactly what they need to know so they don’t have to do
this distillation and research for themselves
How can youHow can you
reducereduce
informationinformation
overload foroverload for
people whopeople who
need your areaneed your area
of expertise?of expertise?
How can youHow can you
reducereduce
informationinformation
overload foroverload for
people whopeople who
need your areaneed your area
of expertise?of expertise?

26. Curating your own knowledge
‣ But you can start with product like
Evernote: www.evernote.com
‣ It connects all the computers and
phones you use daily
‣ You can capture content in one place
and access it from another
‣ If you can see it or think of it, Evernote
can help you organise it, find it and
remember it
‣ Create multiple notebooks. Search for
anything. Remember everything. Access
it from any computer or phone

27. Evernote in action
See somethingSee something
you like on theyou like on the
web? Clip itweb? Clip it
with a singlewith a single
click and you’llclick and you’ll
have it for everhave it for ever
See somethingSee something
you like on theyou like on the
web? Clip itweb? Clip it
with a singlewith a single
click and you’llclick and you’ll
have it for everhave it for ever

28. Start the curation process
‣ Set up RSS feeds in Google
reader. Monitor newspapers,
magazines and blogs of interest
from your computers and
smartphones
‣ Follow people on Twitter, LinkedIn
and facebook who add value in
areas that interest you
‣ Set up a Paper.li account based on
a quality list of content providers
ClipClip
everything ofeverything of
interest intointerest into
Evernote (orEvernote (or
equivalent)equivalent)
ClipClip
everything ofeverything of
interest intointerest into
Evernote (orEvernote (or
equivalent)equivalent)

29. 3. Empowering others to make a quantum leap

30. the World’s top marketers all said ...
‣ People seek their knowledge,
often paying £50-100K or more
for their knowledge and
expertise
‣ Then they do nothing discernible
with the information
‣ They also invest in books but do
nothing with the information
‣ They invest in audio and video
materials and attend seminars
but do nothing with the
information
Less thanLess than
1% ever1% ever
implementimplement
what theywhat they
learn!learn!
Less thanLess than
1% ever1% ever
implementimplement
what theywhat they
learn!learn!

31. Why don’t people Implement?
‣ They’re too busy and stretched to
figure out what to do, how everything
inter relates, and how to execute well
‣ They don’t have the time or
inclination to immerse themselves in
knowledge
‣ They never gain more than a
superficial understanding of the
content or how to use it effectively
‣ They never get a chance to fully
engage with the knowledge and build
it into everything they do
Even the bestEven the best
intentions soonintentions soon
get overtaken byget overtaken by
the immediatethe immediate
demands ofdemands of
running arunning a
businessbusiness
Even the bestEven the best
intentions soonintentions soon
get overtaken byget overtaken by
the immediatethe immediate
demands ofdemands of
running arunning a
businessbusiness

32. The Workshop that changed everything
‣ I realised 10 years ago that people were seeking quick fixes (that
never worked) and overlooked two critical needs:
‣ IMMERSION in the knowledge, and
‣ ENGAGEMENT with the content
‣ The answer was an intensive 3-day, 30-hour workshop designed to
fully immerse and engage participants
‣ Aim: to impart more knowledge to participants over 3 days than
most people would experience from a lifetime in business

33. 53 topics covered in 3 days
‣ Building your marketing foundations
‣ Lead generation
‣ Sales conversion
‣ Maximising transaction values
‣ Increasing transaction frequency
‣ Customer retention
‣ Optimising your business
‣ Building layer upon layer of
strategies
Wrote specialWrote special
computercomputer
software tosoftware to
immerse andimmerse and
engageengage
participantsparticipants
Wrote specialWrote special
computercomputer
software tosoftware to
immerse andimmerse and
engageengage
participantsparticipants

34. Workshop software in action

36. Results?
‣ Last 315 participants uncovered £423 million in hidden revenues
from their top 4 strategies alone, i.e. Average £1.34 million each!
‣ Participants curate their own information into their blueprint
‣ Everyone emerges with an entirely different perspective
‣ They leave knowing exactly what’s required to transform their
business
‣ Many go on to become market leaders
Approach addsApproach adds
enormous valueenormous value
to process. Makesto process. Makes
it useful toit useful to
people. The’ll paypeople. The’ll pay
good money forgood money for
these outcomesthese outcomes
Approach addsApproach adds
enormous valueenormous value
to process. Makesto process. Makes
it useful toit useful to
people. The’ll paypeople. The’ll pay
good money forgood money for
these outcomesthese outcomes

37. Case Study
‣ Met sports nutrition expert, age 23. Spare bedroom business
‣ After 4 years: largest sports nutrition company in Europe
‣ After 6 yrs: won Ernst & Young national “Entrepreneur of the Year”
award (The year before: Stelios of EasyJet)
‣ After 7 yrs: First mentioned in Sunday Times Rich List
‣ After 8 yrs: sold £10M stake to private equity co
‣ After 11 yrs: sold £75M stake to another private equity co
35 bidders, including Nestle, Unilever and private equity cos

38. Saturday 19 June 2004
Times Article Jun 2004

39. FT, December 2007
SoldSold
£75M£75M
StakeStake
Dec ’07Dec ’07
SoldSold
£75M£75M
StakeStake
Dec ’07Dec ’07Friday 14 December 2007
WithoutWithout
curation,curation,
immersion andimmersion and
engagementengagement
these resultsthese results
wouldn’t havewouldn’t have
been the samebeen the same
WithoutWithout
curation,curation,
immersion andimmersion and
engagementengagement
these resultsthese results
wouldn’t havewouldn’t have
been the samebeen the same

40. What can you do?
‣ How can you add value to any content you curate?
‣ You could pull together your own best practice procedures ...
‣ You could write blogs, articles and books to share your curated
knowledge with the world
‣ You could deliver seminars, workshops and webinars that save
people time and give them the cohesive content they’re seeking
‣ You could publish audio or video content
Today’s toolsToday’s tools
make it easy tomake it easy to
do all of thesedo all of these
things fromthings from
virtually anyvirtually any
computer orcomputer or
smartphonesmartphone
Today’s toolsToday’s tools
make it easy tomake it easy to
do all of thesedo all of these
things fromthings from
virtually anyvirtually any
computer orcomputer or
smartphonesmartphone
Why not giveWhy not give
some contentsome content
away to build aaway to build a
following, thenfollowing, then
charge for thecharge for the
really in-depthreally in-depth
stuff?stuff?
Why not giveWhy not give
some contentsome content
away to build aaway to build a
following, thenfollowing, then
charge for thecharge for the
really in-depthreally in-depth
stuff?stuff?

41. 4. Building on lessons learned

42. The big question ...
‣ So what do you do when people can get all the content they want
for free? You need to recognise that:
‣ Everyone suffers from information overload
‣ Nobody has enough time to pull together content on their non-
core activities from millions of dispersed sources
‣ People need to be immersed in and engaged with the content
before they will act
‣ Only 1% act on knowledge imparted without further support
ProvideProvide
immersion andimmersion and
engagementengagement
and people willand people will
happily payhappily pay
ProvideProvide
immersion andimmersion and
engagementengagement
and people willand people will
happily payhappily pay

43. How I Monetizable My Curated knowledge
‣ I run Eureka, a mentoring program for aspiring market leaders
‣ Participants meet with me face to face, by invitation only, for a one-
day immersive workshop every 90 days
‣ Each workshop introduces another fully developed marketing
strategy that can be implemented immediately
‣ Each strategy has years of experience, curated knowledge,
research, development and real-world testing behind it
‣ The aim of the program is to build a market leading business that
grows almost entirely by word of mouth

44. Eureka: Mentoring Aspiring Market Leaders
‣ Program provides immersion, engagement and accountability
‣ Each phase is structured and delivered over 3 years
‣ Phase 1: building your foundations for exponential growth
‣ Phase 2: building the ultimate sales machine
‣ Phase 3: Attaining and maintaining high net margins for your
sector; growing loyal clients and turning those clients into
zealous advocates who talk about you continuously and
spontaneously whether you’re there or not

45. Step by step implementation roadmaps ...
Step by stepStep by step
implementationimplementation
plans like thisplans like this
simply don’t existsimply don’t exist
elsewhere, andelsewhere, and
aren’t available ataren’t available at
any priceany price
Step by stepStep by step
implementationimplementation
plans like thisplans like this
simply don’t existsimply don’t exist
elsewhere, andelsewhere, and
aren’t available ataren’t available at
any priceany price

46. Curated content also used to ...
‣ Write blogs, and articles
‣ Create seminars
‣ Create in-depth workshops
‣ Write in-depth books
‣ Create audio recordings
‣ Create video content
In-depthIn-depth
workshopworkshop
in progressin progress
In-depthIn-depth
workshopworkshop
in progressin progress

47. Results?
‣ One participant—in a sector particularly hard hit by the recession—
has increased profit targets by 500% over past 4 years. They’re
routinely exceeding those targets by as much as 160%. They’ve
also gone from a relative unknown to one of the most successful
businesses of their type in the UK
‣ Another started a 2-man business just last year. His revenues now
exceed £100,000 a month and he won the North East of England
Entrepreneur of the Year award
These areThese are
just twojust two
examplesexamples
These areThese are
just twojust two
examplesexamples
People WILL payPeople WILL pay
for content, if youfor content, if you
add sufficientadd sufficient
value. And they’llvalue. And they’ll
pay you wellpay you well
People WILL payPeople WILL pay
for content, if youfor content, if you
add sufficientadd sufficient
value. And they’llvalue. And they’ll
pay you wellpay you well

48. So what can you do?
‣ How can you get paid for the content you create?
‣ What should you give away free of charge?
‣ What unique products/content can you build from your curation?
‣ How can you immerse and engage people in your content? Unless
you provide those extra value added dimensions they won’t pay
‣ What can you do to save them time, effort, frustration, and/or help
them achieve significantly better outcomes?
‣ What are people willing to pay good money for?
I add masiveI add masive
value forvalue for
aspiring marketaspiring market
leaders. What’sleaders. What’s
your angle?your angle?
I add masiveI add masive
value forvalue for
aspiring marketaspiring market
leaders. What’sleaders. What’s
your angle?your angle?

49. Conclusion

50. Summary
‣ Creativity+curation have been central to my entire working life
‣ Have written books, manuals and procedures from early age to
share my curated knowledge with others. Today also write articles
and blogs, and run regular seminars and workshops
‣ My 3-day workshops provide immersion and engagement; and
have near legendary status
‣ Eureka provides seriously in-depth roadmaps, ongoing immersion,
engagement, peer-group support, accountability and knowledge
that can’t be found elsewhere
That’s how IThat’s how I
add value.add value.
Now whatNow what
can you do?can you do?
That’s how IThat’s how I
add value.add value.
Now whatNow what
can you do?can you do?

51. If you’d like to learn more ...
‣ As a LikeMinds participant if you’d like see some of my content
curation at work, you’re welcome to attend one of my 2-hr
seminars in London or Bristol in November at half price. Seek me
out and use the discount code on the back of my business card to
book online.
‣ Visit: marketingwizdom.com/events. Offer expires in 10 days.
‣ To see more content curation at work, visit:
marketingwizdom.com/freebook and you can download a
copy of my book “Introduction to low-risk/high-return marketing
strategies”
‣ Twitter: @marketingwizdom
Now tell meNow tell me
your ideas foryour ideas for
adding value inadding value in
your area ofyour area of
expertiseexpertise
Now tell meNow tell me
your ideas foryour ideas for
adding value inadding value in
your area ofyour area of
expertiseexpertise