In 1752, Benjamin Franklin took a ball of string and tied one end of it to a kite. He tied the other end to an iron key. He then tied two items to the key. First, he attached a metal wire from the key to a Leyden jar – an early version of an electrical capacitor that could store a charge. Next he tied a silk ribbon to the key. Franklin sent the kite to flight as a thunderstorm approached. Holding the ribbon, he anchored the entire contraption while he stood just inside a barn door to keep from getting wet. What happened next is legendary. Lightning struck the kite, sending an electrical charge down the string to the key, down the wire and into the Leyden jar. Luckily for Franklin, it did not travel across the silk ribbon he was holding or he might have met his certain death. When Franklin reached for the key, a spark jumped from the iron to his hand, giving him a shock.

You have probably heard that story before. It is part of the uniquely American folklore of Benjamin Franklin. There are many people who doubt that it ever happened, for there were several people who tried to duplicate Franklin’s kite experiment with deadly results. What we do know is that Franklin used the kite and key experiment with lightning to convince people to purchase one of his inventions: the lightning rod. He had developed the lightning rod three years prior to his experiment. However, there were a lot of questions about what lightning really was in the 18^th Century. For many, lightning represented the wrath of God as he hurled fire down from heaven. Franklin needed to convince people that lightning was an electrical charge that was attracted to the highest objects on the ground. He had to change their minds if he was to be able to sell his invention. Electricity could be redirected and grounded, but God’s wrath could not. Thus, he published the results of his quasi-science experiment and people believed him. He and his lightning rods became world famous.

What marketing lessons can you learn from Ben Franklin’s kite and key experiment? For one, marketing is given the responsibility to get around the opinions and misconceptions that would keep your products or services from selling. What are the market beliefs that threaten your sales? If there is some irrational thinking that blocks your sales, marketing has to remove the barrier. Franklin used science to change people’s minds.

The other marketing aspect to Franklin’s experiment was a compelling story. Many people believe that Benjamin Franklin discovered electricity from this story. He did not. Neither was he the first person to perform science experiments with electricity. However, Franklin’s kite and key story circled the globe and made him famous. It was an intriguing tale that was easy to remember and has been retold countless times. What is your company’s story? In our day, story lines are played on social media every day. Are you giving your customers a reason to feel good about your business? Beyond the product, the story behind the product is a good sell if it is short, memorable and fascinating. For example, a lot of historical info on the About Us page of corporate web sites is completely boring. Many hope listing the year they were founded will carry a lot of weight with the customer. Ho hum! There is nothing particularly captivating about a foundation year. You need to tell the founder’s story and, subsequently, how you arrived where you are today. This is the perfect place to create some intrigue. Weave your story throughout your marketing. Beyond your web site, use a product story in your ads. Tell how your product made life better for someone. Use real customers. Blog about your successes. In the end, people remember the stories, and that is good marketing.

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Ben’s Big Idea, www.codecheck.com http://www.codecheck.com/cc/BenAndTheKite.html