Capturing the attention of your target audience is the “Holy Grail” of marketing. For decades eager marketers have produced goofy jingles, shocking images, and unique perspectives to make us stop, look, and listen.

Every once in awhile a marketing campaign works perfectly. It’s rare, but it can happen. Recently, I found myself spending almost an hour glued to a marketing campaign. In fact, my three kids were huddled around with me staring at the monitor. We were a hypnotically captured audience. (Pathetic!)

Within 15 minutes my kids were pushing me to buy a thousand dollar blender. A thousand dollar blender? That’s ridiculous to consider. I mean, what, am I going to start the next great smoothie shop? I don’t think so. But I was still very tempted to purchase something I had no real need for and at a price that’s about 15 times the price of a similar product I could find at Target or Walmart.

I’d like you to take a look at the best online marketing website I have ever seen. And I’ve analyzed thousands of them.

When you’re finished checking this out…and after you purchase your first thousand dollar blender; I’d like you to give me your opinion about why this site works so well. What stands out for you? Why does this site hit the Holy Grail of marketing? I’ll look forward to your comments…

Here’s the site…hide your credit card: www.willitblend.com

Check out these great blog posts for more information about this topic:

6 Brilliant Marketing Campaigns

8 Steps for Great Marketing

Marketing on a Small Budget

6 Great Guerrilla Marketing Campaigns

How to Refresh Your Marketing Campaign

Business, as in life, is always in flux. Change is constant. How we respond to change defines our outcomes–our results.

Many entrepreneurs fail to actively look for the changes taking place around them–it’s more comfortable to maintain the status quo.

In “Managing in the Next Society”, Peter Drucker tackles the topic from a different perspective. Most of us shy away from change or hope that things stay just as they are. Drucker encourages entrepreneurs to actually search for change, evaluate it carefully, and respond effectively.

Here’s what this great business leader had to say on the topic of change in a segment he entitled, “Searching for Change”:

“A change is something people do; a fad is something people talk about. Smart entrepreneurs see change as the norm and as healthy. The entrepreneur always searches for change, responds to it, and exploits it as an opportunity.

Look at every change taking place around you, look out every window. And ask, ‘Could this be an opportunity?’ ‘Is this a genuine change or simply a fad?’ The difference is very simple: A change is something people do, and a fad is something people talk about. An enormous amount of talk is a fad. You must also ask yourself if these transitions, these changes, are an opportunity or a threat. If you start out by looking at change as a threat, you will never innovate. Don’t dismiss something because this is not what you had planned. The unexpected is often the best source of innovation.”

I’m trying to heed Peter Drucker’s advice. I’d encourage you to do the same.

Drucker continues on the topic with the following advice, “Take a half an hour to discuss with a colleague the changes sweeping your industry and identify the biggest genuine changes. Ignore the fads; figure out how to capitalize on the genuine changes.”

Check our these great blogs for more information about this topic:

Self Growth and Business Development Brings Success

5 Reasons Why People Refuse To Accept Change

3 Principles to Create Lasting Change

Ten Tips on Managing Change

Several months ago I stumbled across some YouTube marketing presentations by John Moore of Brand Autopsy.

Here’s an interesting presentation called “Jumbo Marketing: Get Bigger by Acting Smaller”.

In this clip, John, formerly a National Director of Marketing for Whole Foods Market, outlines some of his thoughts on “Getting Bigger by Acting Smaller”:

1. Be the best, not the biggest

2. Be passionate about your business

3. Passion attracts passion

4. Treat employees as family

5. Re-define success–measure the impact

Check out these great blogs for more information about this topic:

Small is the new big

How Business Can Get Bigger by Acting Smaller

Bigger Isn’t Always Better

Small Giants

I read an article this morning on Entrepreneur.com that reminded me that I’ve strayed from some important basics within my own company.

At Northstar we launch a lot of new marketing initiatives. Sometimes we forget to outline a clear, concise plan before we move forward. That’s marketing 101, but even experienced marketers fall into the trap of overlooking fundamentals.

When I look back, I can see that failing to follow some basic rules of planning has cost us an awful lot.

I thought this was a nice reminder of how you can utilize a simple exercise to make sure that your marketing plan is headed in the right direction.

As Al Lautenslager explains, “Here’s a simple process to creating a marketing plan using just seven sentences”:

Sentence 1: What is the purpose of your marketing?

Sentence 2: Who is your target market?

Sentence 3: What is your niche?

Sentence 4: What are the benefits and competitive advantage?

Sentence 5: What is your identity?

Sentence 6: What tactics, strategies and weapons will you use to carry out your marketing?

Sentence 7: How much money will you spend on your marketing; what’s your marketing budget?

I’d suggest you go and read Al’s entire article, and most importantly, make sure you implement this simple strategy before your next market launch.

Every business likes to boast of their awards and achievements. They should, it’s a good credibility-booster. It can also be a great PR vehicle.

But awards can grow stale and when they do it’s time to put them away forever.

I recently upgraded my life insurance policy and was instructed to visit a Port-O-Medic facility for my physical check-up. (Interesting that their name suggests a mobile service yet I had to go to them.)

After I checked in I sat in the lobby browsing through a 2001 edition of Family Circle waiting to be called in by the nurse. I looked up and noticed a prominently displayed arrangement of award plaques on the wall. As I am always interested in businesses that succeed, I got up and walked over to take a look. They all had a reference to, “Outstanding Branch of the Year”. I was mildly impressed.

But then I noticed the date of the awards: 1992. That’s was 15 years ago!

Immediately, I wondered what’s taken them so long to repeat that accomplishment. I had to wonder what the heck was going on in that branch. It got me a little nervous about what I would find behind the door. That stale award had an instantly negative impact on my view of their business.

So, go ahead and brag about your business accomplishments. But take a look at the dates. If your only accomplishments worth bragging about date back more than a couple years or so I suggest you to two things: First, stop bragging about them and put the plaques and certificates in storage, because now it’s old news. Second, go do something worth bragging about again. It’s about time.