We as a industry are obsessed with death. And its a trap that clouds your thinking. Facebook did not kill MySpace, YouTube did not kill Hulu, Google did not kill eBay, Pownce did not kill Twitter, and I could go on and on and on.

Yes, like cars and soft drinks, web services compete with each other for customers/users. But there are almost a billion internet users globally these days. And you can build a very nice business serving millions or ideally tens of millions of users.

So I’d like to suggest that we stop focusing on who is going to kill whom and instead think about market share, business model, sustainability, and profitability which are the measures that people in most businesses tend to focus on.

The Death Trap : A VC

The Idea:

- Take your customer to work day (a twist on take your kids to work day)

How It works:

- Invite your customer into your workplace to shadow an employee; parties are encouraged to sign up and then paired

- Open your office, back-shop, or factory doors for the day to give your customers a behind the scenes glimpse of your working environment

- Your employees represent your brand for the day

- Customers see for themselves what truly makes your company special

Why It works:

- It’s the ultimate case for accountability and transparency

- Responsible businesses will be rewarded for their good practice; irresponsible competitors will be exposed. Can you imagine the charade some companies would try to pull? False scripting points and employee actors!

Obviously this idea would be difficult to make happen. But if a few influential partners jumped aboard and issued a corporate challenge, I believe it could potentially make a real, positive impact. What do you think? Does anyone spring to mind that might be interested in championing such a crazy idea? Anyone? Bueller? Godin? It’s an idea I’d love to share out.

Take Your Customer To Work Day « her Nature his Nurture