Engineering the Consumer Experience

One of the many pleasures I get out of life is talking with people and helping them see a connection where there might not have previously been.  

An example is when I share that my first undergraduate major was mechanical engineering, but chose marketing and advertising as a career path.  I don’t think it was a complete one-eighty either.  The two have a lot in common. *let's take a moment for the quizzical eyebrow raise*

Yes. I have spent time with engineers. I know that the surface exteriors of the two occupations are polar opposites. But, when you dig deeper, both groups have a drive to create, straddle the line of intuition and data on a daily basis as well as take tremendous (sometimes arrogant) pride in their work.

Digging even deeper yet moving upstream, think about the strategy and analysis processes used to drive the finished product. In my mind a visual example is always better, so below is a video of how to mind map.  I’ve used this to bring additional dimensionality to my customer. It has helped with creative briefs and contact strategy brainstorming/discussions.

How similar does the mind map look to process and problem clarification flowcharts used in engineering?  Can you think of other tools being used in non-related industries that we should test drive in the marketing arena?

Creativity and science indeed make for interesting bedfellows.  Thank goodness marketing is such a flirt...