What marketing advice would you pack into a solo sentence?
You've got a lifetime of marketing smarts. You're asked for your best bit of wisdom. You take a deep breath because you've got a lot to say.
Whoa there.
That was the request that Matt McDonald made of me and some other marketing bloggers. Before you hit the link and see what Seth, Guy and some others had to say -- answer it here for all of us.
In a single sentence -- what's your best dose of marketing wisdom?
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did it. my wisdom is: underpromise, overdeliver: buzz and sales will follow.
Posted by: gianandrea facchini | Jul 30, 2007 3:49:45 AM
Reachable, Affordable, Easy to use service. Have it? Speak loud about it.
Posted by: chris | Jul 30, 2007 5:27:09 AM
Plan first, then do something to achieve it everyday.
Posted by: Chris Brown | Jul 30, 2007 6:00:59 AM
If your new product, new service, new book, new blog post, new whatever can’t make someone respond with “Holy Crap!,” then don’t expect big things out of it.
Posted by: Brett | Jul 30, 2007 6:41:49 AM
Speak with the voice of your customer.
Which is, of course, the easy part. The hard part is understanding your customer well enough to know what voice is.
Posted by: Mack Collier | Jul 30, 2007 7:46:50 AM
Create great experiences!
Posted by: Lewis Green | Jul 30, 2007 9:21:32 AM
Dazzle the customer and they'll market your company.
PS: Congrats on the book Age of Conversation.
Posted by: Zane | Jul 30, 2007 10:28:51 AM
The thing I always remember is "It's not about me."
It doesn't matter how good I am, or how much I think I have to offer a customer. It's about what the customer thinks I have to offer them. I can talk about how great I am forever, but they still won't be interested until I make it about them.
Posted by: Katie Konrath | Jul 30, 2007 12:49:06 PM
Give your customer the product you need to sell them in the way they want to buy it.
Posted by: Dan | Jul 30, 2007 3:44:10 PM
Be yourself.
It's what I've been telling our clients lately. If you are authentic - and it's relevant to enough of an audience to keep you in business - you'll be successful in the long run. IMHO, of course.
-Mark
Posted by: Mark True | Jul 30, 2007 9:10:25 PM
Falsehoods pay off tomorrow, but transparency pays every day after.
Posted by: Nic Darling | Jul 30, 2007 10:42:40 PM
Remember your target is a human being, not a bullseye.
Posted by: Mary Schmidt | Jul 31, 2007 9:07:24 AM
Be Remarkble, Be Unforgettable.
Posted by: Terra Andersen | Jul 31, 2007 10:07:37 AM
A quote I read a while back:
"Consistency is far better than rare moments of greatness."
Posted by: Andy Drish | Jul 31, 2007 11:59:03 AM
Gia -- How do you bring that mantra to life in your business day to day?
Chris -- how would you modify that for a premium brand like Harley or Tiffanys?
Chris B -- So true. The power of a little planning is one of the most under utilized advantages in business today.
Drew
Posted by: Drew McLellan | Jul 31, 2007 1:38:13 PM
Brett -- so for you, is that just a start up marketing wisdom or do you think existing products/services also need to inspire "oh crap" moments?
Mack -- We spend a lot of time with our clients talking about authentic voice. It's very difficult for some companies to let go of their sales speak and let a genuine conversation happen. How do you counsel clients to that point?
Drew
Posted by: Drew McLellan | Jul 31, 2007 1:40:31 PM
Lewis -- the customer experience. Do you think it is possible for a business to spend too much time crafting that?
Zane -- I know that your company prides itself on service. How do you define "dazzle"?
Drew
Posted by: Drew McLellan | Jul 31, 2007 1:42:32 PM
Katie -- I think that sentence is one of the marketing cornerstones. If before anyone launched an ad, a website, a new product or a customer appreciation event, they put it through the "is it about me?" filter -- we'd see a huge upsurge in marketing success stories.
Dan -- so is distribution what you are talking about or are you referring to customization?
Drew
Posted by: Drew McLellan | Jul 31, 2007 1:45:39 PM
Drew,
I don't think anything counts more than the customer experience, which encompasses everything the customer wants, needs and desires. We can't spend enough time focusing on it.
Posted by: Lewis Green | Aug 1, 2007 2:00:20 PM
Lewis,
And, considering your roots, I'll get you think that means we should start with the employees -- eh?
If a company had no idea what kind of customer experience to craft or how to craft it -- where/how would you suggest they start?
Drew
Posted by: Drew McLellan | Aug 4, 2007 8:18:52 PM
Mark -- sometimes I think we share a brain. (Which would explain why we can't do math!) You can never go wrong if you play it from the heart.
Nic -- very true. Marketing is a marathon, not a sprint.
Mary -- Think how much less "sales speak" if we remembered that single fact.
Terra -- How do you think companies can engineer unforgettable?
Drew
Posted by: Drew McLellan | Aug 4, 2007 8:24:42 PM