How a city evaded conquest by changing the goalpost

Brno has this funny looking clock. Locals joke a lot about it:

This clock references the Thirty Years War. In 1645, Swedish forces started sieging Brno with about 30,000 men. Inside the walls, there were probably just a few thousand soldiers - but they managed to put up a fierce resistance. Faced with this, the Swedish commander made a promise:

"Tomorrow we hit the city for the last time. Before the bells at Petrov ring noon, Brno must be ours. If not, we will retreat."

The next day, battle commences. The Swedes charge. And so legend has it that the locals simply rang the bells at the Petrov church one hour sooner, at 11 AM, making the general retreat earlier. Brno came out victorious and lives were saved.

True or not, I find this an interesting story that relates to marketing.

People care about metrics. But we don’t always have the right numbers - at least, not the ones they care about.

So what do we do? We find new metrics to talk about - ones where we shine! Brno could have also waited for noon and face a Swedish attack. Instead, they were smart and changed the metrics.

Perhaps your product is not the fastest. But maybe it’s the most durable.

Perhaps your product lacks features. But it loads the fastest.

Perhaps you’re not the leading player. But you try harder.

Being behind isn’t an excuse to give up. It only opens up doors for creativity.

By the way, you can read more about the legend here.