Actionable insights straight to your inbox

logo_equities.svg

What did “Movember” Do Right?

To most of the world, it’s November. But for thousands of men it’s actually Movember, or the time of the year to put away the razor, get out the clippers, and grow a mustache. Most all
Jacob Harper received his BA from the University of Missouri in 2005, and his MA in Writing from Missouri State in 2009. He's written for American Express, Wisebread, LA Foodie, and Fox Digital, and he served as a Writer & Editor for the 2013 Los Angeles edition of the guidebook series Not For Tourists. Jacob currently lives in Los Angeles.
Jacob Harper received his BA from the University of Missouri in 2005, and his MA in Writing from Missouri State in 2009. He's written for American Express, Wisebread, LA Foodie, and Fox Digital, and he served as a Writer & Editor for the 2013 Los Angeles edition of the guidebook series Not For Tourists. Jacob currently lives in Los Angeles.

To most of the world, it’s November. But for thousands of men it’s actually Movember, or the time of the year to put away the razor, get out the clippers, and grow a mustache. Most all mustaches are welcome – the Selleck; the Sam Elliott; the recalcitrant Frenchman; the turn of the century bicycle enthusiast; the tenured geography teacher. They’re all welcome to the mustache party.

But this month-long ‘stache craze isn’t just about a few guys getting esoteric with their facial hair. Movember was designed as an unusual fundraising effort, and so far has raised over $25 million for prostate cancer research.

We thought it would be interesting to look into how Movember grew as a movement, and how it grew to become a legitimate part of the zeitgeist.

So what can other nascent fundraising efforts learn from the success of Movember?

1)       Have a catchy name.

A portmanteau of mustache and November, Movember is instantly memorable, catchy and easy to remember. It all starts with a good name, and Movember is certainly that.  

2)      Be a fashion statement.

From the (now-quite passé) Livestrong bracelets to the Live Aid shirts of the 80s, fundraising efforts that frankly become a fashion statement unto themselves have more legs than their clunkier counterparts. Rather than derail into a discussion of “how could people be so shallow about cancer?” we’ll just mention that being fashionable doesn’t hurt a movement’s popularity.  

3)      Let people take a socially acceptable vacation from themselves.

Think of Movember as a month-long Halloween. Yes, it’s people playing dress up, but growing a mustache is just this side of daring, and let’s people escape their otherwise doldrum, non-mustache sporting lives. Of course, this is in service of the good deed of fundraising. But the dress-up element definitely helps.

4)      Require no effort.

Perhaps Movember’s greatest asset as a fundraiser awareness movement is that it requires no effort past selective facial hair sculpting. No matter how little you try, hair grows, so growing a mustache doesn’t require the sacrifice of effort.

To say the current situation isn’t pretty now seems an understatement, and it’s likely to remain chaotic for a while. Which is why it’s so important for leaders of all kinds not to fall prey to the very human tendency to go negative, playing the blame game.
Bargain-hunting friends of mine have been asking: “Should I buy First Republic?” After all, First Republic is prestigious. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg got a mortgage there. Dozens of customer surveys rate its satisfaction scores higher than super-brands like Apple and Ritz-Carlton.
Many of us economy-watchers have been expecting recession, though with significant differences on odds and timing. Regardless, recent banking developments just made recession more likely and may have accelerated its onset.