gapingvoid: "cartoons drawn on the back of business cards"

I think you're right, Hugh. And, so is Evelyn.

Good conversations are good conversations, regardless of how they begin. In fact, in the best of them, tracing origins, twists and turns is nearly impossible. ("Did she say that or did I? I forget. Anyway...")

Even though it might not matter who starts a conversation, customers' "relationships" with companies have historically been so one-sided that by stepping back and letting the customer lead the story, a company can signal an important change in perspective.

Tom, agreed, up to a point.

"Try putting your customers and your ecosystem's conversations at the center of the hub."

A perfectly nice sentiment, but like Henry Ford said, "If I had given the customers what they asked for, I would've just given them faster horses."

Both "push" and "pull" are unsustainable. What's effective is a healthy tension between the two.

Yes, Hugh, the innovator doesn't take dictation from the customer, for sure. Instead, (s)he gets into the customer's world and looks around for the opportunities that only innovators see.

Two great ways to get into that world: 1) live there, 2) listen to stories about it.

I read on a toilet door in Glasgow Buchanan Street Bus Station that Good Conversations can be bought under the counter at Mo's 24hr store on Argylle Street.

Can anyone confirm?

The sooner Blair makes 'em available on the NHS, the better.

Tom has a great point. (Ah, I never said anything about giving customers what they "say" they want.) I'm saying tune into THEIR conversations - odds are they're probably not even discussing your product directly but dropping valuable clues about what makes them tick.

Another take (I was in a snarky mood when I wrote that piece): Have you ever gone a follow-up coffee date after a networking meeting and had that person blather on and on and on about themselves (think Christmas letters, blind dates too). After an hour they realize and exclaim: "Oh, my God, I've just been doing all the talking. So, tell me, what do you think about me so far?"

Anyway, it'll all become obvious in next few months. I'm going to demonstrate what I mean as conceptually it's a bit harder to envision.

Conversations rise from relationships, not from ecosystem hubs. What you company has to offer is a relationship benefit. Why do they benefit from knowing you rather than knowing some other person.

One of the significant challenges leaders face is to move from abstractions to concrete application. For many people who talk about conversations, they are still an abstract. My business plan isn't to foster conversations, but rather to establish a mutually beneficial relationship with someone. At the end of the conversations, I want to know what I can do for them. Where's the action resulting from the conversation? Most of the time it means that the relationship has progressed.