In case you missed the Omar Johnson Show at the 2018 Pitney Bowes Retail (R)Evolution, here are the highlights and tokens of wisdom he imparted on all your competitors who made it to the conference:

Product is king

Instead of convoluted ad campaigns and roundabout wordplay, Johnson made Beats’ product the center of their marketing strategy. Beats headphones were the focal point of every campaign and you could see them plastered on anything Beats put out.

It’s all about the people

He integrated people into the marketing strategy in two ways: by creating meaningful connections and keeping it young. In the video below, you’ll hear a story about how he created an intimate “hand-to-hand, eye-to-eye”  connection with Kobe Bryant that made Beats, and the attention that came with the product, the most sought-after headphone on the market.

He also kept it young. In a brilliant tactical move, Johnson targeted the 18-24 age demographic, simply because everyone wants to be that age: younger kids can’t wait to be 18 and older folks wish they still were in their 20s.

Move culture with storytelling

Johnson believes you need to be authentic while creating the story you see for your company. He defines being authentic as “saying everything you’re afraid to say.” Beats listened to athletes and employees, heard their fears or hopes, and turned them into a story their consumers could relate to.

He also used storytelling to shape the public image of the company. Beats ran ads calling them the best and number one, even when they were somewhere closer to 10. But because people believed they were the top headphone company, they soon rose to be number one in 25 countries.

To hear more about storytelling, why data isn’t the key to successful marketing, and how to use fear to your advantage, listen to Omar Johnson’s keynote address.