• Forbes CMO Network, Friday, August 6, 2010 10:49 AM

I grit my teeth, pinch my nostrils and plug my eardrums as I repost this item titled "Marketers Can Learn From The Vuvuzela." It's not that Donovan Neale-May, executive director of the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council, doesn't realize that the bleating, droning plastic instrument of aural torture that drowned out World Cup commentators is "offensive," "invasive," "intrusive," "hostile," "horrible," and "annoying" -- to skim a few observations -- it's that it's also "viral, vocal and visceral."

And, he writes, an outrageous product success story. Here's his conclusion, which might send your product engineers scurrying from their drawing boards to the streets and shorelines in search of the next, truly disruptive, technology:

"Forget the hyped-up, technologically advanced football cleats and apparel, the state-of-the-art Jabulani football design, the immersive 3-D television displays or the nifty mobile phone apps debuting at the FIFA World Cup. The simple snoek fisherman's horn came to the fore and trumped all other product innovations by playing a new note of novelty, simplicity and local ingenuity."

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