Remember My Service

Brad Baldwin of Rocky Mountain Voices interviewed Sharlene Hawkes of Story Rock Electronic Publishing this week about a new service they provide for military units. The offering is called Remember My Service and you can watch the interview feed by following this link to Rocky Mountain Voices. Hawkes is a CMO for Story Rock, a small start-up in Utah that focuses on capturing more dynamic CD and DVD versions for milestone life experiences. Rooted in the education industry, some of their core offerings include turning traditional yearbooks into online stories that include video, music, and the interactivity of the Internet.   

The company's newest offering focuses on the returning war veteran, creating a movie quality experience that covers their unit, its journey and impact.  Complete with testimonials from fellow unit members, superior officers and other footage captured online, the offering creates a complete picture of a solidier's service to his or her country that can last a lifetime. Imagine if this service had been available after World War II, Korea or Vietnam. Literally millions of memories could have been preserved and stories that many were too humble or too traumatized to tell would have been documented for future generations to share and learn from.

This is exactly the kind of tuned in experiences we love to see companies create. Story Rock followed the process exactly and identified a resonator in the process: 

1. They found an unresolved problem -- the physical and emotional distance between the families of those serving abroad and the soldier's ability to articulate/create a picture of what their service was all about.
2. They understood the buyer personas well -- the pride and desire of the units to stay connected and the ability of families to understand and reintegrate after service. 
3. The impact of the service is quantifiable -- a historical important memory captured for a lifetime.
4. They created a breakthrough experience -- through an online medium that captures the story and presents it in a way that is easy to follow and share. 
5. They articulated a powerful idea -- that remembering the value of the service for a lifetime and beyond satisfies a deep unmet need in all of us. 
6. They established an authentic connection -- by gaining the support of local units and military leaders around the globe to support the development of a 'real' picture. 

Kudos's to Hawkes and her team for tuning in and to Brad for finding and sharing their story. We continue to marvel at how simple and powerful the process of tuning in can be. If you've ever wondered ... why didn't I think of that? ... the answer is in the approach. 

When you stop thinking how can I get others to buy the products and services I have and start focusing on solving real problems that will positively impact the lives of others, the breakthroughs others are finding will start coming your way.