LinkedIn profile Basics

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Why is the Michelin man so plump?

In 1886, two bearded, bespectacled French brothers took over their father’s failing farm equipment business.

Andre & Edourard Michelin sold farm equipment and a random range of vulcanised rubber products, like valves, belts and tubes. And their business was on the verge of closing down. Times were tough, until one day in 1889 a cyclist appeared at the brothers’ factory with a flat tyre.

This day changed the Michelin brothers’ lives forever.

At the time, bicycle tyres were glued to the wheel rim. This meant repairs took AGES, as the tyre had to be removed, fixed, reglued and then left to dry overnight before use.

This gave the brothers an idea. What if they could create a bike tyre that could be easily removed from the rim for faster repairs?

They began working on their own version of the pneumatic bike tyre, and incorporated Michelin company on 28 May 1889.

In 1891, Michelin took out its first patent for a removable pneumatic tyre. Charles Terront won the world's first long-distance cycle race, the 1891 Paris–Brest–Paris, on Michelin tyres.

But the Michelin brothers had an even bigger vision for their new tyre business.

In the late 19th Centur, the first cars were rolling out across Europe.

And of course, they all had tyres.

Andre & Edouard spotted an opportunity and expanded into producing rubber tyres for cars. But the market was small. By 1900, there were only 3,000 cars on the road in France.

The Michelins realised that more cars, driving further, equals more tyres. They simply needed to inspire people to drive more.

So in 1900, they created the Michelin Guide for Motorists. The guide was designed to help motorists explore more with their cars and stay safe on the roads. The original Michelin Guide included:

• maps & attractions

• car maintenance tips, and

• restaurant recommendations (you see where we're going now, right?)

Soon, cars hit the mainstream & the most popular part of the Michelin guide was the food.

Then, Michelin did one of the smartest things you can do in business: double down on what works.

Our brothers hired a team of food critics to scour the world's best restaurants. After all, only the wealthy could afford cars. And they wanted new ways to enjoy their wealth & status to one-up their friends.

The Michelin Star rating system soon followed.

Today, the Michelin star system is the gold standard in food. And Michelin is the world’s second largest manufacturer of tyres, after Bridgestone.

I learnt 3 things from the Michelin brothers:

1. Add value to your customers lives, and they’ll buy from you

2. The best marketing often doesn't look like marketing

3. Maybe that's why the Michelin Man is so plump...

PS - The Michelin Man’s name is Bibendum, from the Latin phrase nunc est Bibendum meaning ‘now is the time to drink’.

The Ultimate Guide to fixing your LinkedIn profile

I’ve reviewed more LinkedIn profiles over the years than I care to admit.

The biggest problem with 99% of them? They’re boring.

And that’s because the bones of your LinkedIn profile are probably based on a copy-paste of your CV. And your CV was built on a template that was designed to play a different game than the game we’re all playing today. It’s a hangover from a bygone era.

LinkedIn has changed.

Use these playbooks to make your profile a little less boring and a lot more effective:

Profile Playbook for Founders & Solopreneurs

Profile Playbook for Execs & Professionals

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