Philippe stood at the very edge of the South Tower.
1,368 ft above the sidewalk of Manhattan.
It was August 7, 1974. Shortly after 7:15 am.
The wind carried murmurs of disbelief from the stunned crowd below — would he really do it? Was he crazy? What about his friends and family?
He had been dreaming of this moment for six and a half years. He and his accomplices had been in New York for the last 8 months seriously planning it.
It was now or never.
He took a deep breath…
Then stepped off the edge of the building!
His full name was Philippe Petit.
For the next 45 minutes he walked back and forth on a high-wire between the Twin Towers — with nothing but a 26 ft balancing pole to keep him from plummeting to his death.
His amazing feat would land him on the front page of the New York Daily News and Post.
They would call it the artistic crime of the century.
After the event he was arrested and taken for psychological evaluation. Some people called him crazy. Others said he was a genius.
Either way there are a TON of marketing lessons in his story…
Take a look at a few of the challenges he faced:
- he had to find a way to bypass the WTCs security;
- smuggle the 450-pound steel cable and rigging equipment into the towers;
- pass the wire 140 ft between the two rooftops;
- anchor the wire and tension it to withstand the winds and the swaying of the buildings;
- walk, kneel and even lay on a 3/4 inch wire, going back and forth 8 times between the buildings… and try not to fall a quarter mile to his death!
And he only had a rag-tag crew of co-conspirators to help him — French who didn’t speak English… an Australian and American’s who didn’t speak French… and a stoned musician.
So, how did he do it and what are the marketing lessons?
Let’s break down each challenge:
1. He had to find a way to bypass the WTCs security.
He studied the towers for weeks and made notes on what the office workers wore. He carried out multiple recon missions — posing as a businessman, contractor and French journalist — and knew the best time to undertake his mission.
The marketing lesson: Research. Know your market.
2. Smuggle the 450-pound steel cable and rigging equipment into the towers.
He made notes on the type of clothing the contractors wore, the tools they carried, and the times they came and left. He gathered some friends then befriended an “inside man” and through sheer passion for his mission convinced them to help with the illegal stunt.
The marketing lesson: Show the market you’re just like them. Be passionate about what you do. Relationships matter.
3. Pass the wire 140 ft between the two rooftops.
He tied the 3/4 inch steel cable to a heavy rope, the heavy rope to a lighter rope, the lighter rope to a fishing line… then used a bow and arrow to shoot the line across the 140 ft gap!
The marketing lesson: Start with the solution (fishing line) instead of your product (cable) then gradually move prospects from one to the other.
4. Anchor the wire and tension it to withstand the winds and the swaying of the buildings.
He built a scale model of the building and tested dozens of different solutions.. He tied two secondary cables diagonally to the main cable and secured them both to each tower. Used a large lever to tighten the heavy cable.
The marketing lesson: Testing. Support. Leverage.
5. Walk, kneel and even lay on a 3/4 inch wire, going back and forth 8 times between the buildings… and try not to fall a quarter mile to his death!
He’d been walking high-wires for years (starting just a few feet of the ground) before attempting it at such heights. He even practiced for hours on a scale model (width only!) of the towers.
The marketing lesson: Practice makes perfect. Dream big but master the small things first.
Oh yeah, Philippe was arrested the moment he came down… but his story still has a happy ending.
Not only did escape all charges, be declared completely sane, get a lifetime free pass to the observation deck, get “sexual favors” from a local girl the moment he walked out of the police station, and become a hero to thousands of people…
… he also transformed popular opinion of the Twin Towers, which were though of as an eyesore by many New Yorkers up until that point.
The marketing lesson: Publicity stunts can pay off in many exciting ways!
Talk soon
Kyle
P.S. Philippe’s story is told in a beautifully powerful film, “Man On Wire”, which I highly recommend you check out.
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Kyle
Wonderful well written post with a powerful lesson. Experiences around us continually offer us lessons if we pay attention.
James