The "That'll Never Work" Club

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Hey there! 👋

Quick bonus newsletter for your Sunday because I came across some stories too good not to share. Ever wonder how many million-dollar ideas got laughed out of rooms before they made millions?

When "LOL, No" Turned Into "OMG, How?"

Remember these reactions?

• "You want people to pay for water that's free from taps?"

• "You expect strangers to sleep in each other's homes?"

• "You think people will pay more for coffee that takes longer to make?"

Spoiler alert: Evian, Airbnb, and Starbucks would like a word. Sometimes the best business ideas sound like jokes at first.

The "Are You Serious?" Hall of Fame

👉️ Bottled Water's Billion-Dollar Laugh: 1980s Marketing Meeting: "So we're going to bottle tap water..." "Yeah?" "...and charge more than Coca-Cola for it." "You're fired."

Current bottled water market: $270 billion

👉️ Airbnb's Original Pitch: "Hi, we want people to let strangers sleep in their homes." "That's literally the plot of every horror movie ever."

Current valuation: $90 billion

👉️ Red Bull's Taste Testing Nightmare: Market Research- "This tastes terrible." Red Bull- "Perfect. Let's charge premium prices for it."

Result: Created an entire new beverage category worth billions.

The "That's Not How It Works" Club Rules

1. If everyone says it's a terrible idea, you're either very wrong or very right

2. If the criticism is "that's not how things work," you might be onto something

3. If people laugh first but can't stop thinking about it later, you've got gold

That's it for this bonus edition! Back to our regular programming next week with another deep dive into brand building.

Until then, maybe it's time to revisit that "crazy" idea everyone laughed at? 😊