Neun and Neunzig Trial Balloons

A paragliding instructor once told a friend of mine that we might not be so eager to go up into the wind if we could see it.

A trial balloon gives us a bit of a picture of what's happening in the sky.

The idea of a 'trial balloon' comes from the French term, ballon d'essai. It's a small balloon released before a 'personed' ascent to understand the upper air conditions.

But these days, it refers to an announcement to test how people will react to something.

It gives you an idea of what's going to work or not work.

When you float a new idea and seek feedback, you get some valuable perspectives that inform your next steps. But it can get pretty frustrating to keep trying ONE THING after another that doesn't work.

Sometimes you need to launch a lot of balloons to find the ONE THING that will have some impact or resonate with your audience or market.

So get some eco-friendly balloons and test things out. It creates engagement with people who love the idea, awareness with people who had never thought of it like that, and it creates clarity about what you need to adjust to make your ONE THING a success.