Several months ago I accidentally met Scott Harrison, the founder of Charity: Water, though had no idea who he was and what Charity: Water was all about. Scott and I talked about surf breaks in San Clemente, and I remember thinking he looked a bit like Leonardo DiCaprio. When I returned home and looked at their website over the weekend I was intrigued about Scott's U-Turn in life, where he essentially gave up the life he was promoting nightclubs to models and hedge fund guys, living as a New York City 'influencer' (a popular marketing term) and stepped into a role that ultimately influences thousands if not millions more.
About six weeks ago, I attended a panel on digital marketing for causes at the Robin Hood Foundation, where the majority of the audience worked in development or marketing for not-for-profit companies. When the question was asked what organization among their peers they admire most -- the majority of the room acknowledged the marketing brilliance of Charity: Water, an organization that was started without any experience or endowment, when the founder first simply gave up his birthday to raise money for clean water for others. It reminded me of nearly every conversation I've been in with clients where every brand wants to be like "Apple", a company that has again topped Fortune's Most Admired Company list from a CEO survey.
On both cases, it has to do with innovation, and reinvention. When you have a few minutes, Scott's story is worth watching.
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