Famous Like A Water Tower

Every small town in Wisconsin has a water tower with its name painted on the side. You can see it from the highway. Everybody recognizes it, points at it, maybe takes a photo of it at golden hour. And nobody, in the entire history of driving, has ever pulled over to ask a water tower for directions.

That’s a specific kind of famous, and it’s worth being suspicious of. Recognized by everyone. Consulted by no one.

I learned the SaaS version of this the slow way. At one company, we had a big recognizable name in our deck, and saying it out loud warmed every room by two degrees. Meetings were easy to get. Heads bobbed like buoys. Then the follow-ups went quiet, and the quiet taught me the lesson: the name was doing exactly what names do. It made us familiar. Familiar is not persuasive. We had awareness by the gallon and influence by the drop.

Last week a CEO asked me how I’d build authority for a brand-new product flying a known company’s flag. The expected answer is a parade: campaigns, podcasts, a booth with good carpet. My answer was that the flag buys awareness, not influence, and the way to buy influence is that you can’t. You borrow it. From customers willing to say out loud the thing you can only claim. A claim in your deck is an ad. The same sentence in a customer’s mouth is evidence, and buyers can smell the difference through the envelope.

I get re-taught this at my own bar. Some nights I sit on the customer side of it, no logo on my shirt, and just listen. I have never once heard a guest quote our marketing. Not a tagline, not a menu description, nothing I sweated over. They quote each other. Somebody two stools down says you have to try this, and glasses start moving. The most influential media channel in that room is a stranger pointing at a glass.

So when I think about taking anything new to market, the first gate isn’t collateral. It’s a short list of people outside the building willing to vouch.

Until that list exists, every launch asset is a water tower: visible, expensive, and mute on the only question that matters. Fame gets you the meeting. Borrowed conviction gets you the signature. Awareness is for sale, and any budget can buy it by the pound. Influence is only ever on loan, and your customers hold all the paper.

I still use the big name, for the record. It opens doors, and I’m not too proud for an open door. I’ve just stopped mistaking the nod for the yes. The name on the tower gets you off at the exit. Somebody who lives there still has to tell you where to eat.

Stay Positive & Who Vouches For You?