You finally got it right. Now don’t blow it.

It’s easy to spot when an organization has a revolving door policy related to its marketing director, advertising agency, or both. Such companies can’t seem to find a message they can stick with.

Take the Select Comfort Sleep Number® Bed, for example. This technology allows two sleepers to, essentially, inflate or deflate their own side of the mattress to fit their particular firmness preference. In a category whose most recent update since the water bed was adding a little cush to the mattress and calling it a “pillow top,” the Sleep Number Bed was fairly significant.

Select Comfort introduced the product with television spots showing couples beaming with pride over how they came to identify their own Sleep Numbers, which, by the way, hovered innocuously over their heads as they spoke. These were inexplicably followed by bland testimonials featuring, of all people, Lindsay Wagner. The former “Bionic Woman” from 1970s television described (in a voice with a one-octave range) how the Sleep Number Bed had changed her life.

Now, the company has finally landed on a position that actually has some oomph: You can cure tired.

The position is being supported by two relatively humorous spots, one showing people employing unique methods to fake having had a good night’s sleep, and the other highlighting the lengths tired people will go to for a boost of energy. While the new commercials come off as a good start, the position is finally rock solid. After all, who wouldn’t want a “cure” for tired?

Yet, even the company doesn’t seem so sure, as they continue to mix in their original concept with the new one, while relegating the “tired” positioning line to a mere button on their Web site. So, only time will tell if they hang in there or bail on this one, too.

Want to make certain you have a concept that works – and that you don’t give up on it too quickly? Here are a few ideas:

• Strategy first, then creative. Do the hard work of defining your marketing strategy first, and don’t be tempted to back into it just because someone comes up with a clever creative concept. Eventually, someone else will think it isn’t so clever, and there’ll be no meaningful foundation supporting it.
• Set goals, measure results. Pinpoint what defines success. More hits on the Web site? New prospects? Visitors to the store? Better closing percentage on prospects? Identify the appropriate measuring stick (or sticks), define a target number, and make sure you have your ducks in a row to collect the data you will need to give your efforts a fair evaluation.
• Ignore your fatigue. The old saw about “the client (or company) gets tired of the advertising before the target market even sees it,” is so true. Don’t be tempted to think in terms of “this year’s ad campaign.” If you’ve done the spadework, give it time.

The message? Your target audience isn’t nearly as interested in what you have to say as you wish they were. If you want to see just how little they care, keep changing your message every time you lose a night of sleep wondering if your creative is dead-solid perfect.