Welcome to another newsletter.
Last Wednesday, the world watched in bemusement as the richest man temporarily pivoted from his tech background.
It all started when Elon Musk joked on Twitter that given his surname, he should have been a fragrance (perfume) salesman.
Shortly after, he turned serious and asked his followers to aid his purchase of the social media platform – Twitter by buying his perfume.
Thereafter, he commenced the sale of Burnt Hair perfume at the price of $100 per bottle. Within some hours, sales had reached $1 million or 10,000 bottles.
The amazing thing isn’t just that he sold that amount within hours but the fact that the perfume won’t be available for delivery until early next year (Q1 2023).
For me, there are lessons to be learnt:
- Opportunities exist if we look well – I may be the only one but I never saw the relationship between Musk the surname and Musk the fragrance type. Anyways, Elon did and decided to leverage it and this example buttresses the fact that his money-making skills aren’t a fluke.
- There’s no shame in working for your money – truly if a man worth $207 billion is hawking perfume without shame; what is the excuse for not advertising our products or services with boldness? In fact, he has edited his Twitter bio to read “Perfume Salesman” and pinned the perfume’s picture on his page. This speaks volumes in my own opinion; if Elon can market his product without any inhibition, please feel free to hawk your wares at the top of your voice.
- Leverage your network – to sell his perfume, Elon didn’t have to go far – he just sent a tweet to his 108 million followers and they obliged him. I am so sure the sales figure should have doubled by now but the fact is that the man knew enough to leverage his circle of influence. For me, this is a reminder that social wealth will always reward or favour those who understand how to utilise it. Elon Musk has just given us a masterclass in this regard.
For our Nigerian members, kindly spare a thought for the several states currently flooded. Please look for an NGO involved in those areas and donate if you can.
Till we meet next Monday, do have a wonderful week.
PS: You can still access the replays of the 2022 Smart Stewards Summit here.
Toyin Oguntuyi