An interesting quick post from Seth Godin.

Here’s an interesting link from Seth Godin. He explains that we are all excellent at one type of intelligence (Bodily-kinesthetic, Interpersonal, Verbal-linguistic, Logical-mathematical, Intrapersonal, Visual-spatial, Musical, and Naturalistic). Of course this means that we are bad at the other 7 types of intelligence. This means that people may be viewing you (or me) as dumb, when really we all have something to offer. Just make sure that you find out which type you are great at, then use it to project your intelligence.

Here’s a link from Seth Godin that asks a very good question. Who judges your work? He’s correct, when we’re young, we let everyone judge our work and deem it worthy or not. This will shape your attitude and progress for years to come. As we get older, we should become more selective about who’s opinion is valuable.

Personally, I think it pays to have a smart group of advisers that can help you determine if what you are working on is…

1. Quality
2. Worth your time / attention

Find people that you respect, and stay in touch with them regarding what you are working on. Their advise can be priceless. If you don’t have any advisers, I recommend re-connecting with your old colleagues, professors, bosses, etc and put together a team that will have your back.

Check out this link from Seth’s blog. This is a great example of using your product packaging to tell a compelling story. Remember, marketing is a relationship, and telling a story that grabs attention is an excellent way to establish this relationship.

Check out the link, and let me know what you think in the comments below.

Here we are, the final trend in Seth Godin’s Meatball Sundae, “new gatekeepers, no gatekeepers.” It used to be that large companies only worked with other large companies. Basically a big company would pay top dollar to promote a product on television with commercials, reviews, news stories, whatever. Smaller companies couldn’t afford to do things this way and were therefore left out of the party. Those times are over. How much does it cost to be on YouTube? That’s right, absolutely nothing. And even better, the audience actually seeked you out, and therefore you didn’t need to interrupt anyone. Wow, you just bypassed the traditional gatekeeper.

The true gatekeeper in today’s marketing landscape is Google. If you can be on the first page of Google it means that you’re among the most relevant pages on the internet regarding your chosen topic. But unfortunately many of us will not be on the first page of Google. We need help. Which means that you need to look at other ways to promote your webpage, podcast, video, blog, etc. You can have excellent content, but what does it matter if no one sees it. We’ve discussed some ways to get your name out there, but the most important of all is to just go out there and be a part of the community you are trying to build. If your site is about marketing, then go out to all the marketing blogs and comment on the things that are interesting to you. Before long, you will have the visitors, listeners, and all that good stuff.

So yeah, I’m looking at you guys that visit, but never comment. I know you’re there because I check Google analytics. I dare you to comment on this post…. if you’re marketer enough. And be sure to leave a link back to your own blog.

Well, that’s it for Meatball Sundae. I hope you guys dug it… dig it… whatever. I recomend reading the book yourself as there’s tons of insights I’ve left out. It’s definately worth it if you’re serious about online marketing.

Notable quote from this section:

• “The web is the biggest haystack in the history of mankind, and you’re just a tiny little needle. You might be sharp and you might be shiny, but without help, no one will ever see your webpage, listen to your podcast, or watch your video.”

Now is not the time to be mediocre. People want something inexpensive, or they want something of exceptional quality. No one wants “just good enough”. Right now we are in a recession, which means that now more than ever before, products need to fall in to one of those two categories. It used to be that wealthy people were so far removed from us average Joe’s. But the truth is, wealthy or poor, consumers are all very similar. When it comes to a product that is important to you, it doesn’t matter how much money you have, you will spend top dollar for the quality. Likewise, when you are looking at a commodity, or something that you don’t think too much about (salt is salt after all), price becomes more important. Seth Godin discusses this with his thirteenth trend in Meatball Sundae,”the wealthy are like us.”

Godin mentions that there are more wealthy people today than ever before. I guess this book was written a few years ago, because I’m actually seeing the opposite trend. I think that because of this current recession, more people than ever are starting to understand what it’s like to be poor. When you’re poor there are alot of things that you have to do without. Sacrifices must be made so that you can afford the things that you and your family need. If you are going to spend alot of money, alot of thought goes in to the purchase, and quality becomes even more important than it used to be. Even those fortunate enough to have jobs right now are feeling this pinch. Afterall, they are probably supporting an out of work spouse or partner. With this in mind, you need to begin thinking from the point of view that your product (or service) needs to be the inexpensive option, or the best quality option. If you are mediocre, you’re dead.

I could go on and on, but you probably would get bored and I’m sure you get the idea. The final trend discussion is coming soon.

Notable quote from this section:

• “It turns out that not only are the wealthy like us, they are us.”

Sometimes it’s the little adjustments that you make that can mean the difference between success and failure. Minor tweaks, things that increase efficiency, small improvements that maximize the effectiveness of your product or whatever (look at pro football where one yard can mean the difference between a win or a loss for that week, or basketball where one team usually wins by one or two points). Small things can mean big money for some companies, but it’s the big ideas that will set you apart from the competition. Seth Godin discusses this as his eleventh trend in his book Meatball Sundae, “The triumph of big ideas.”

In a world where all companies seem to behave the same, a big idea can make you stand out. A big idea demands attention. Look at what Nintendo did with the Wii. I’ve played video games all my life. Anyone that knows me will tell you that I love video games. But what about all those people out there that have never picked up a video game controller? I remember when controllers only had a joystick and a red button, but today controllers are more complicated than ever. How is a first time gamer going to make heads or tails out of it to enjoy a game, much less actually be good at it? Nintendo created the motion controller in the Wii to appeal to that person. Now “casual gamers” (as they have been dubbed) and “hardcore gamers” alike can enjoy the same games. Parents can play with their kids, and everyone has a great time. It’s no wonder that Nintendo is such a successful company. They get it.

What are some of your favorite big ideas? Discuss below… or else.

Notables quote from this section:

• “A big idea can spread so far and so fast that the market leader cannot stop it.”

In business, you want to create a product that fills a need. If the solution is scarce, then it becomes more in demand. This is basic economics. However, according to Seth Godin, the things that previously were scarce are now common, and things that were common in the past are now becoming scarce. In his ninth trend “the shifts in scarcity and abundance”, Godin discusses these shifts in detail. Here’s his list of things that used to be scarce, but now are common:

• Hard drive space
• Manual labor
• Overnight shipping
• Airtime
• Shelf space
• Long distance phone service
• Knowledge about other people

Many of these things are very important to businesses today, but they are readily available, and therefore inexpensive. If you previously made a majority of your money on one of these categories, you’ve probably had to re-adjust your focus, specialize, or come to terms with lower profits.

Here’s Godin’s list of things that were previously common, but now are scarce:

• Spare time
• Attention
• Ability to pollute without consequences
• Trust
• Sufficiently trained workers
• Open space, clean water, and other natural resources

Yeah, I think we can all agree on these. There have been companies taking advantage of these things for a while now (bottled water companies, online schools, handheld gaming systems, etc), but you need to find out how to take advantage of these for your business. Think about it, and keep these opportunities in mind when you create new products or market your existing ones. If you can fulfil the scarce needs of your clients and customers then you will be on your way to profits.

Discussion 12 coming soon.

Notables quote from this section:

• “Create and sell something scarce and you can earn a profit. But when scarce things become common and common things become scarce you need to alter what you do all day.”

I remember when I first discovered ebay way back in the day. Thankfully I had a job back then, and spent most of my disposable cash on all kinds of products that I just couldn’t find in stores. I used to by manga (Japanese comics), out of print books, out of print CD’s and old NES games. It was fun and cool, and it opened up a whole new world for both companies and consumers. With ebay and other auction sites like Bonanzle customers can now buy products directly from each other. As a matter of fact it’s about time for another shameless plug (it’s been a while since the last one). If you’re a woman, and are into clothes and stuff, check out my friends auction site here. Seth Godin’s discusses this with his ninth trend in Meatball Sundae, “direct communication and commerce between consumers and consumers.”

Many businesses have been created (or have become more successful) because of this new trend. My favorite bookstore in the world, Half-Price Books has taken advantage of this customer to customer interaction. Sure, they buy and sell used books, but I’m talking about their community meeting groups. I don’t know if all of their locations offer this, but the main store on Northwest highway in Dallas offers a place for clubs and groups to meet up and discuss their chosen topic. That means all you pen-and-paper rpg folks can game it up, all you manga readers can get together and swap and discuss books, poets are welcome to come out and try their new stuff out on an audience, Star Trek fans can live long AND prosper (how about that?), etc. I don’t know of any other company that offers this type of meeting place, and I applaud Half-Price books for doing this (HPB marketing team, please start promoting this stuff).

Instead of fighting against this trend (look at what software producer Electronic Arts is doing to punish people that buy used games; they call it “project ten dollar”), companies should embrace and even encourage their customers to interact with each other. Let’s be honest, the genie’s already been let out of the bottle anyway; we’re going to talk to each other whether you like it or not. Get with the program and create a place where your customers can talk to each other. If you don’t, just don’t be surprised when you competition does (and takes home some extra goodwill and business as well).

Trend ten discussion coming soon.

Notable quote from this section:

• “As social networks become more powerful, consumers will gravitate to each other, not just informing each other about their experiences but banding together into unions that will pressure organizations for more of what consumers want.”

There used to be only a few channels out there for businesses to communicate with their customers: radio, television, and print. Now there are an infinite number. The eighth trend in Seth Godin’s Meatball Sundae is “Infinite channels of communication.” Today, every interaction with a customer is a channel of communication. Sure, your Facebook page is a channel, so is your Twitter account, but so also are the interactions your customers have with each other and with potential customers. Let’s face it, people talk to each other, and in today’s marketplace it’s easier than ever for people to have discussions about your company and your brand. In the wise words of Luke Skywalker, “you can either profit by this or be destroyed. It’s your choice, but I warn you not to underestimate my power.”

So what does this have to do with you? Everything. Before, companies had to broadcast their messages to anyone and everyone out there in the hopes that the message would reach their target demographic. This meant that it just wasn’t economically feasible to market niche products. Why spend a fortune marketing something using mass media that has limited appeal? Sure, there are specific demographics for specific programs on TV, radio, or print articles, and so it’s not impossible to reach your target demographic in this manner. However, you will waste alot of money reaching people that don’t care about your product. Not only that, but people are actively trying to avoid these types of interruption messages.

On the internet, it’s not only possible to reach these niche audiences, it’s actually preferable. You don’t need to interrupt anyone; customers will look for you and your products if they pertain to them. You can succeed with a smaller market, but a larger market share. All you need to do is stay relevant, and treat every interaction with your customers as a channel of communication.

Notable quotes from this section:

• “In order for a customer to make a decision, two things need to happen. The second is that she needs to determine that it’s worth the time or money or risk to take action. But first, she needs to know about the opportunity.”
• Instead of reaching everyone (because you have no other choice) and creating generic products for large audiences, you can now reach a tiny slice of the market - just the people who are passionately interested in your products and services.”
• “The product is everything the company needs to spread the idea itself.”