That’s Intriguing #29: Why Is it Important to Build an Umbrella Brand?

“Give me ambiguity – or give me something else.” – t-shirt slgoan

Are you a Jack of all topics – master of none?

When people look at your website and marketing material, are they confused by all the different things you offer?

Do you feel like your business and career are all over the map?

Do you find it hard to, as speaker Joe Calloway says, “pick a lane”?

Explorer Daniel Boone once said, “I can’t say I was ever lost, but I was bewildered once for three days.”

A lot of us are bewildered by what our speciality is.

And if WE’RE bewildered, our potential clients will be bewildered.

Ambiguity produces apathy. Confused customers will be reluctant to hire us because they’re not sure what we do and whether it will worth their valuable time and money to work work us.

Here’s a proprietary process I’ve developed to help my clients get clear about how they can POP! out of their pack by being one-of-a-kind vs. one-of-many.

Once we clarify their USP (Unique Strategic Positioning); we create an umbrella brand to connect all their business activities so they generate maximum pay-off for their efforts.

Sam Horn’s 5 P Approach to Building an Umbrella Brand

P = Problem

What problems are your target customers facing? Picture one of them in bed at night and s/he can’t sleep because s/he is worrying about . . . . what? What is this person’s name? Put me in his/her head. Are they single? Married? How old? Kids? How many people does s/he manage? What is s/he frustrated about? What can’t s/he figure out?

Now put “quotes” around those concerns so you’re voicing their Zeitgeist and articulating the probelms that are bothering your target customer.

P = Premise

Now, what’s your premise about those problems? It doesn’t have to be that way. There’s a better way. More effective way. More profitable way. Safer, quicker way. Less stressful way.

P = Process, Program, Product

And I’ve got the way. Here’s my 10 step process to alleviate those problems. Here’s my half-day program on how to prevent those problems. Here’s my book and audio products on how to turn-around those problems.

P = Promise

And here’s my promise to you. I will not waste your valuable time on ivory tower theories that don’t work in the real world. I will not rehash ideas you’ve heard 100 times before. You can trust me to do . . . . what? Dig deep and pull up your passionate purpose reagarding what your target customers can count on you to do. State where you’re coming from in a heartfelt way so customers know what you stand for – and what you won’t stand for.

P = Positioning

Here’s my positioning. Think about your competitors. What do they do you don’t like? How do you zig where they zag? What’s the norm in your industry? How can you be the opposite vs. the obvious? (Enterprise Rent-A-Car did this masterfully by locating in neighborhoods instead of at airports).

Once you figure out your 5 P’s, the next step is to create a clear, current, compelling, congruent, commercially-viable message and mission that you roll out through a variety of coordinated formats so everything supports each other and scales your visibility, impact and results in record time.

Subscribe to this blog to receive my next post where I’ll explain how to crystallize a 5 C Message and Mission which is the next step to building an umbrella brand that helps you break out vs. blend in.

 

That’s Intriguing #28: How Can Everyday Events Provide Fresh Insights for Blogs, Articles and Presentations?

“You can make more money and more friends, but you can’t make more time. That’s why it’s the greatest gift you can give someone.” – Captain James Key

A couple summers ago, I was so immersed in writing a book, the weeks flew by, September came, and I never went swimming once.

Yikes. I promised myself that wouldn’t happen this year. I’ve vowed to swim at least 4 times a week – either in the lake or in one of the 22 (!) community pools in our community of Reston.

So, yesterday, I wrapped up a day of consults and went “pool shopping.” I found myself driving past an inviting pool, tucked back under some shade trees. I impulsively parked and went in, armed with my goggles for some lapping and a towel for some napping.

As soon as I walked in and saw the fountain in the shallow end packed with kids, moms and a few dads, I realized I’d found the “family” pool.

As I settled in on the only available chaise lounge, a father walked in, still in his business suit, and was met with a thrilled chorus of “Dadd-ee” from his 3 kids who ran-walked (lest the lifeguard tweet her whistle) to greet him.

He walked over to the woman on the chaise next to me, gave her a peck on the cheek and went to change into his trunks.

Five minutes later he was in the pool, surrounded by his adoring brood, playing Marco Polo. (How comforting to know people still do that.) The mom watched with a proud smile while the kids vied for their Dad’s attention, “Look at me, look at me,” showing the the strokes they’d obviously learned from their swim lessons.

It did my heart good to watch this Walton-like tableau unfold in front of me. This happy family basking in the innocence of a summer afternoon brought back fond memories of my sons and I reveling at Keawekapu beach during the “golden hour,” that magical hour while the sun set, the Maui trade winds died down and we had the ocean all to ourselves.

Then, the father stopped and looked up at his wife as if something had just occurred to him. He said, almost in a state of awe, “Hon, Why don’t we make this our default? Why don’t we just meet here after work every night?”

I have to admit. I held my breath. I looked at her, thinking, “Please say yes.”

She looked at him, smiled in agreement and said, “Why don’t we?”

That simple decision to “change their default,” which took 5 seconds to make, could turn this into a fond family ritual everyone remembers as “the summer we met Dad at the pool every afternoon.” The summer of glorying in each other and the gift of time.

What’s your default? What do you automatically, mindlessly do – that’s not serving you?

What could you replace it with – a new behavior – that could reap a summer, a lifetime, of fond memories?

This casual visit to a local swimming pool reminded me that intriguing “material” is everywhere – if we just look around and keep our emotional antenna up for what moves us.

If something gets YOUR attention and captures your imagaintion; it will probably get your audience’s attention and capture their imagination.

Re-enact what happend so we’re there with you – and then “hook and hinge” your aha back to your audience so it becomes their aha.

 

That’s Intriguing #27: How to Use Stories to Make Your Business Presentations More Compelling

Earlier this year, I read an article in The Washington Post Sunday Magazine about a tanker that had caught fire 800 miles off the Hawaiian coast.

Fortunately, a cruise ship happened to be going by and was able to rescue the 11 crewmen.

However, as they pulled away, a passenger heard the sound of a dog barking. The captain’s dog, Hokget, had been left behind.

When the cruise ship got to Hawaii, the crew held a press conference. The captain said how grateful they were to be rescued, but all he could think about was his dog abandoned, alone, on the tanker.

The world mobilized. Emails and donations flooded in. $5. $500. $5000.

The U.S. Navy actually changed the exercise area of the Pacific Fleet to search the part of the ocean they thought the tanker might have drifted.

The Coast Guard dispatched a C-130. Miraculoulsy, after searching 50,000 square miles of open ocean, they located the tanker and flew low to see if there was any sign of life.

Sure enough, there was a brown-and-white blur racing frantically up and down the deck. The crew couldn’t land so they dropped their power bars, pizza and oranges so Hokget would have something to eat.

More than a month later, a quarter million dollar (!) rescue mission was mounted with the donations that had poured in from around the globe.

Against all odds, they were able to save Hokget and bring him back to Hawaii.

Here’s the question.

Why did people from around the world mobilize to save the life of one dog – when there are thousands of people in their own cities, states and countries who also desperately need food, water and shelter?

The answer, posits Shankar Vedantam, the author of the article, is something called THE EMPATHY TELESCOPE.

Simply said, we can put ourselves in the shoes of one person – we can’t put ourselves in the shoes of many.

Our mind (and heart) can’t comprehend mass numbers. It’s too overwhelming. Our mind shuts down. Our eyes look away.

One person (or dog) is doable – a magnitude of millions is not.

What does this mean for you as a communicator, business owner or non-profit leader?

Where is your dog on the tanker?

What do you care about? Your cause? Your company? A new idea? If you try to get people interested by talking about the thousands of people you serve or the millions of people who will benefit; it will be almost impossible for anyone to grasp the essence of your message. The numbers simply won’t equate.

It is far better to talk about ONE client you serve – ONE person who will benefit. Tell the story of that one person – who will act as a universal stand-in for everyone.

Now, your listeners, viewers and readers can relate. Now, they can PICTURE what you’re talking about.

Next time you’re preparing a sales presentation; writing a blog post or article; creating a fund-raising campgain or working on your web copy – keep this in mind.

Where is your dog on the tanker? Where is your Hero Journey story of a single person who has a problem or challenge; deals with it successfully and returns home triumphant?

Tell the story of that one person (or dog) so vividly; people experience it as if they’re there; as if it’s happening right now.

And yes, this can be done with integrity as opposed to being manipulative. The goal is to remember that sweeping terms will go over people’s head – in one ear, out the other.

If you want to win buy-in, use a single individual’s real-life example to engage your audience’s emotions and mind’s eye so they viscerally “get” what you’re trying to get across.

That will capture their imagination and intrigue your audience. Better yet, they will care about what you care about because they SEE what you’re saying.

Curious about what happened to Hokget?

Here’s the link to that article in case you’d like to know, (as Paul Harvey used to say) . . . the rest of the story. http://bit.ly/7tfBYN

Do you have a favorite example of an individual or organization who captured the interest and empathy of their audience through a “dog on a tanker” story?

I’d love to hear it.

 

That’s Intriguing #26: Top 10 Intriguing Quotes of All Time

“The secret to creativity is to say an old thing in a new way to or a new thing in an old way.” – Richard Harding Davis

I guess you can tell I love quotes . . .

Fresh quotes are a quick way to get our message’s foot in our readers’ and listeners’ mental door.

Why?

When we introduce something people haven’t heard before; they want to know more.

Here, as promised, are my 10 favorite quotes of the more than 2000 featured in my books POP! Tongue Fu!®, ConZentrate, Take the Bully by the Horns, What’s Holding you Back? and the upcoming SerenDestiny.

Hope you enjoy them and are able to use them to spice up your articles, blogs and presentations so people are motivated to pay attention to what you have to say.

1. “If there were a rehab for curiosity; I’d be in it.” – CBS news anchor Diane Sawyer

2. “I think we need a 12-step group for non-stop talkers. We’re going to call it On and On Anon.” – comedian Paula Poundstone

3. “When I die, I want to come back as . . . me.” – NBA team owner Mark Cuban

4. “I am in love with hope.’ – Tuesdays with Morrie Author Mitch Albom

5. “There’s no such thing as a wrong note as long as you’re singing.” – singer Pete Seeger

6. “The minute you settle for less than you deserve, you get even less than you settled for.” – columnist Maureen Dowd

7. “There is moment in every child’s life where a door opens and lets the future in.” – author Graham Greene

8. “What a wonderful life I’ve had. I only wish I’d realized it sooner.” – singer Colette

9. “Life loves to be taken by the lapel and told, ‘I am with you, kid. Let’s go.’” – author Maya Angelou

10. Before there were drawing boards, what did we go back to?” – comedian George Carlin

Oh what the heck – I’m on a roll and can’t stop.

Here are some more quotes that get people’s eyebrows up (a sure sign of intrigue).

I use them in my programs to keep people on the edge of their mental seats – and you can too.

11. “Guard your good mood.” – Academy Award-winning actress Meryl Streep

12. “To do what you love and feel that it matters; how could anything be more fun?” – Katherine Graham of the Washington Post

13. “People treat you the way you teach them to treat you.” – author Jack Canfield

14. “Teachers affect eternity. Who knows where their influence will end?’ – Henry Brooks Adams

15. “I have the world’s best job. I get paid to hang out in my imagination all day.” – author Stephen King

16. “Let us then, be up and doing.” – author Longfellow

17. “I have found if you love life, life will love you back.” – composer/painist Arthur Rubenstein

18. “Everyone thinks of changing the world, no one thinks of changing himself.” – author Leo Tolstoy

19. “If you wait to write, you’re not a writer, you’re a waiter.” – self-publishing pioneer Dan Poynter

20. “It is always with excitement that I wake up in the morning wondering what my intuition will toss up to me, like gifts from the sea. Intuition tells the thinking mind where to look next.” – Jonas Salk

21. “”The world was shocked to learn I wrote a bestseller at 66. No matter how long you live, you have stories to tell. What else is there to do but head off on the Conestoga wagon of the soul?” – Pulitzer Prize winning author Frank McCourt (Angela’s Ashes)

22. “Is there ever any particular spot where one can put one’s finger and say, “It all began that day, at such a time and such a place, with such an incident?’ – Agatha Christie

23. “The purpose of life is to . . . matter; to feel it has made some difference that we have lived at all.” – Leo Rosten

24. “When you can do a common thing in an uncommon way; you will command the attention of the world.” – inventor George Washington Carver

25. “Creativity is based on the belief that there’s no particular virtue in doing things the way they’ve always been done.” – Rudolph Flesch

What are your favorite quotes?

Please email quotations that have made you laugh, think, act or cry to us as Sam@SamHorn.com.

We’ll feature your favorite quotes in future blogs – with attribution – so other people can read ‘em and reap.

 

That’s Intriguing #25: Want to Make Your Art Your Work?

A friend gave me a card recently that read, “A friend is someone who knows the song in your heart and can sing it back to you when you have forgotten the words.”

I believe this is the ultimate power of books, blogs and presentations – and spending time with a compatible friend.

The best communicators introduce ideas that result in an epiphany – either of something we once knew and have forgotten or of something that crystallizes in front of us and we SEE a truth for the first time.

That was my experience of re-connecting with Jane Pollack, author of the insightful and moving book Soul Proprietor. http://janepollack.com/

I had the privilege of keynoting the Speaker U event sponsored by NSA – NE recently. I walked into the lobby of the conference center and there was Jane. We had met years before at Book Expo. What a treat it was to see her again.

We found a quiet corner and played “hookie” so we could get caught up. Jane’s found her life purpose which is coaching people who want to make their art their work; their passion their profession.

If that sounds good to you; be sure to get a copy of Jane’s book Soul Proprietor which has been described as an “an artist’s odyssey from remote crafts fairs to an invitation to the White House and appearances on NBC’s Today Show.”

Soul Proprietor is one of those books you can dip into on any page and find something thought-provoking. It features one hundred 1-2 page lessons including:

Lesson 12: Don’t quit before the miracle.

Lesson 44: Keep calling.

Lesson 74: Stay productive (not busy).

Lesson 87: Enjoy the ride, but don’t let the ride drive you.

Lesson 98: What you do for pleasure is your passion.

Intrigued? If you want to love your work and life, check out Jane’s blog for her wise observations about how to lead a remarkable life now, not someday . . . http://janepollakblog.com/

 

That’s Intriguing #24: Why We All Ought to Adopt the Wisdom of Randy Pausch

My son Tom just called me to ask, “Have you ever watched The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch?”

Tom is a 25 year old living his dream, working as a certified mission controller at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. He still gets “chicken skin” (what Hawaiians call goose bumps) at the thought that he gets to work with the shuttle and the ISS (International Space Station).

As he says with wonderment in his voice, “I do something down here; and it makes something happen up there.”

Tom was at a birthday party over the weekend and someone mentioned the impact that Randy Pausch’s video had on him. Tom promptly went home and watched it. http://bit.ly/3rvB6V

If you haven’t seen this You Tube video before, carve out an hour and a half to watch it.

Trust me, it will be worth it. Randy is absolutely brilliant. Funny. Dropping to the floor to do push-ups. Condensing a life-time of lessons into pithy, profound sound-bites.

It will have an enduring effect as it reminds you of how precious each day is. How important it is for us to look around and imprint and be grateful for each breath, each moment, each loved one.

If you don’t know Randy Pausch’s story,this beloved Carnegie Mellon professor, husband and father of three young children was diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer and told he only had months to live.

Randy dug deep and asked himself, “If I have the opportunity to give one last lecture to pass on to my kids, my students, anyone who cares to listen, what I passionately feel about life, what I’ve learned, what I want them to know — what would that be?”

His wisdom, wit and enduring observations about really matters – “That time is all you have – and you may find one day you have less than you think” – are classic.

I thanked Tom for “re-introducing” The Last Lecture to me.

Tom said, “What do you mean ‘re-introduce?’”

I said, “Tom, are you familiar with Maslow’s Heirarchy of Needs?”

To my surprise, Tom said no. Tom knows about galaxies, physics and can even explain a black hole to you, however hadn’t yet been introduced to Maslow.

I explained, in layman’s terms, “Abraham Maslow posited that human beings have a pyramind of needs. Physiological needs – breathing, water, food – are at the bottom. Next is Safety, then Love – Belonging, then Esteem. Finally, at the top of the pyramid, is Self-Actualization. http://bit.ly/fAla

Only AFTER needs at a particular level are fulfilled can we move up the pryamid to the next level.

Maslow also posited that ‘A fulfilled need is no longer a motivator.’ So, once we have plenty of food, water and safe shelter, we tend to take them for granted because they’re taken care of.

Once we have a family and friends, we tend to forget what blessings they are and tend to focus on what’s wrong with them rather than what’s right.

For most of us, our health is a fulfilled need. We breathe without any problem, so we never give it a moment’s notice. We can get up and go outside for a walk whenever we want, so it’s no big deal. We go through our days without aches or pains, so that’s a given. We just count on waking up in the morning and having a guaranteed tomorrow, so we never stop to realize what a miracle it is.”

I told Tom, “I think the power of Randy Pausch’s The Last Lecture is that we need to over-ride Maslow’s Heirarchy of Needs on a daily basis so we DON’T take for granted all the daily blessings we have in our life.

Randy Pausch would have LOVED to have had another year, another ten years, to see his children grow up. He would have LOVED to have continued to teach, and run, and spend time with his wife and friends. He didn’t have that opportunity and he’s pleading with us to fill our mind with the marvel of it now instead of looking back with regrets because we didn’t see it, feel it, appreciate it while we had it.

So, thanks Tom, for reminding me of Randy Pausch and his impassioned reminder to look at everyone and everything as if we’re seeing them for the first – or last – time. Then our days and moments will be filled with the wonder and appreciation they deseve, instead of being overlooked, ignored or missed altogether.

Have you read The Last Lecture – http://amzn.to/9CALSa – or seen the You Tube video?

How did it impact you?

 

That’s Intriguing #23: How to POP! Your Book Title

A client asked me on Friday, “What are the purposes behind choosing a book title that works – for all the right reasons?”

I told her, “Good question. There are 7 things we’re going for with our non-ficiton book title. A winning business or self-help book title and sub-title should:

1. Stop people in their tracks and grab their attention because it doesn’t blend in with all the other books on the shelves.

2. Address a problem you’re facing, a need you have, or a benefit you want.

3. Contain strategically selected key words that bring your title up high in online search so people “googling” that subject find your book annd website.

4. Promise real-world, actionable deliverables – what readers will stop, start or do differently as a result of reading your book.

This is why many sub-titles have metrics in them. When readers see 7 Steps, 12 Keys, 30 Days, 10 Ways; they conclude the book will give them replicable recommendations and tangible results.

5. Tease or engage readers with a NURD (new word), provocative concept or visual allusion that gets their eyebrows up and causes them to reach for the book as they think, “Hmmm, that’s interesting, I want to know more”

Think Freakonomics and Blue Ocean Strategy.

6. Feature alliteration or rhyme so the title rolls off the tongue and stays in the mind.

You can test the memorability of your title any time you want, for free. Just tell people your title and ask them to repeat it. If they can’t repeat it; they didn’t get it. And if they didn’t get it; you won’t get the sales, clients or media.

And yes, alliteration and rhyme can be annoying if overdone so run your title by your brain trust first to make sure it’s not cutesy or an over-the-top eye-roller.

7. Contain no superfluous words. As Strunk and White said, “Every word must tell.”

In fact, you may have noticed a trend in business books these days.

Many feature a one word verb.

Drive by Dan Pink

Blink by Malcolm Gladwell

Switch by Chip and Dan Heath

Nudge – Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein

Sway – Ori and Rom Brafman

Roar by Kevin Daum

POP! – Sam Horn (had to throw that in)

Linchpin – Seth Godin

When you do this right, like Seth Godin did with Tribes and Malcolm Gladwell did with The Tipping Point, you coin a NURD (New Word) or an iconic cultural phrase that everyone adopts when talking about that issue and it becomes part of our vernacular.

This makes your book an evergreen because people become your word-of-mouth advertisers and keep you and your topic topc-of-mind.

As someone who has helped thousands of people craft the right title for their book, I know there is an art and science to titles and sub-titles.

In my next blog, I’ll share 3 examples of brilliant non-fiction titles and sub-titles that are paying off, big-time, for their authors and publishers.

I welcome your recommendations and submissions. What’s your favorite non-fiction title and why?

 

That’s Intriguing #22: Is Confidence the Key to Winning American Idol?

A USA TODAY article entitlted “Idol Outcome Looks Like a Toss-Up” starts with “All season long, American Idol judges have told Lee DeWyze, “Have confidence.”

They like him – arguably more than Crystal Bowersox, whose “indie, coffee house” vibe may not result in the huge sales and fan following that’s their priority.

But the judges keep asking him, “Do you believe you can win this thing?”

The point? Before convincing others; we ourselves must be convinced.

If we don’t think we’ve got what it takes to come out on top, why should other people?

My book What’s Holding You Back: 30 Days to Having the Courage and Confidence to Do What You Want, Meet Whom You Want and Go Where You Want – http://amzn.to/aniG4l – (which Jack Canfield says is “a must read for anyone who wants to be more poised, polished and poweful at work, at home, in social settings, at school, and in sports.”)
claims that confidence is the key to just about everything.

Talent’s important. Intelligence is important. Appearance is important.

But we all know smart, talented, attractive people who never fulfill their potential.

Why? Because they’re their own worst critic. Because their doubts get in the way of their success.

If I were coaching Lee right now, I’d suggest that the single best way to give himself confidence for tonight – a night that could set his SerenDestiny in motion – is to mentally prep himself to OWN the stage.

The key to confidence is to TOWER, not cower.

Instead of walking out with his shoulders hunched over, (which leads to a meak, weak posture that keeps us tentative and hesitant) . . . . he needs to lift his shoulders up and roll them back. Aaaah, that feels better already.

Then, instead of clasping his hands in the “cover up” fig-leaf position (which will keep him unsure and insecure and make him want to hide) – it’s better to hold his hands like he’s holding a basketball. This will “open” him up and make him feel more natural and relaxed.

Then, instead of standing with his feet close together (which will keep him off-balance, literally and figuratively); it’s smart to stand with his feet shoulder-width apart – in the athlete’s stance – so he feels “well-grounded.”

Then, in the moments right before his performances, instead of filling his mind with performance-ruining doubts, (“What if I get pitchy and go off-key? What if if forget the words?”) – it’s crucial to mentally pump himself up with determination and gratitude.

It’s important to fill his mind with “I LOVE my audience. I am so GRATEFUL to be here. I am going to take advantage of this opportunity by singing my heart out so I connect with every single person watching and they rise as one into a heartfelt standing ovation.”

If Lee TOWERS instead of cowers, and fills his mind with DETERMINATION rather than doubts, he will enter the “zone” of peak performance and exude the confidence that will result in a win for him and a win for everyone lucky enough to witness his bravura performance.

Who are you pulling for in tonight’s American Idol final?

What’s your advice on how Crystal and Lee can turn panic into poise and perform with confidence?

 

That’s Intriguing #21: What’s the Link Between Story-Telling and the Perfect Pitch?

“It’s not overly dramatic to say your destiny depends on the impression you make.” – Barbara Walters

What a treat it was to wake up and find that Ian Ayres had written a Freakonomics – NY Times blog called Pitch Me Your Day.

In it, he featured a video clip of National Public Radio’s Ira Glass talking about the art of story-telling – along with a link to a previous blog he’d done about me and POP!

http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/05/14/pitch-me-your-day/

In this fun blog, (Go Ian!), he makes the piont that “it never ceases to amaze me how few academics can succinctly describe a take-home point of their research. When we ask one another, ‘What are you working on?’ we’re really saying ‘Tell me a story.’ When someone tells me he’s studying network neutrality or the right to privacy, I yearn to say, ‘you’re ‘wasting my time.’”

Agreed.

We’ve got 30 seconds, max, to make a positive first impression in our presentation or pitch.

One of the best ways to do that is to use the two words “For example.”

As soon as we say those two words, people’s attention perks up because they think, “Now, it’s going to get interesting. Now you’re going to quit with the gobbledy gook and illustrate your idea with a real-life situation I can see in my mind’s eye – something I can relate to.”

For example, (see?) . . . in our BOOK IT event at USA Today headquarters on Friday, I shared the example of a writer who was not getting any interest in his book.

Why? His description was all over the map. At the end of his pitch, no one was interested because they didn’t “get” his work. And if people don’t “get” what we do, they won’t want what we do.

So what did Wally do?

Wally doused for whales. He would put a sonar device in the ocean off Hawaii until he heard a pod of humpback whales. Then, he claimed not only to be able to listen to their “conversations,” he claimed to be able to communicate back and forth with the whales.

Many of the agents and editors thought he was one taco short of a combination plate and were not about to give him a book deal.

I spent a few minutes working with Wally and suggested we use a POP! technique called the Valley Girl technique. I asked, Wally, “What song, movie, person or book are you like – with a twist?”

He thought about it for a moment and said, “Well, I’m kind of like Robert Redford in The Horse Whisperer.”

Bingo.

Wally became The Whale Whisperer.

That short, easy-to-relate-to-and-remember brand name and pitch got people’s eyebrows up (a sure sign they’re intrigued).

So, what do you say when people ask, “What are you working on?”

What’s your pitch for your book, cause or project?

 

That’s Intriguing #20: Why Does David Meerman Scott Rock?

The New Rules of Marketing and PR

Are you a blog believer?

You will be after reading David Meerman Scott’s book The New Rules of Marketing and PR Precedence builds buy-in.

How can you not believe that blogging is one of the best ways to build buy-in for your business when you read dozens of real-life examples about how billion dollar compaines and mom and pop shops have tripled their client base, visibility and revenue due to their blogs?

One of my favorite stories in David’s book is about a pastor, Mark Batterson, who started his National Community Church on a snowy Sunday in 1996 with a grand total of . . . 3 people showing up, himself, his wife and his son.

Mark is an unconventional minister. He holds services in movie theatres, Washington DC’s Union Station and coffee houses. He also uses online technology to turn his “un-sermons” into Webcasts, Evotional blogs (tagline “Spirit Fuel”) and podcasts.

As a result of his innovative social media outreach, his blog
batterson.blogspot.com is followed by tens of thousands of readers around the globe. When he blogged about his book In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day: How to Survive and Thrive When Opportunity Roars, it went up to #44 on Amazon.com and sold out.

Mark says, “A guy named John Wesley, who founded the Methodist church, traveled 250,000 miles on horseback and preached something like 40,000 sermons. I reach that many people thrrough my ‘word of mouse’ marketing every day.”

One thing David preaches in his book is to stop thinking you have to be brilliant with every blog.

That’s a surefire prescription for writers block. Unrealistically high expectations cause us to procrastinate because we know deep down we’ll never be able to live up to our perfectionist standards.

Instead, do as David Meerman Scott http://www.webinknow.com/ and Mark Batterson do – write mini-blogs.

300 word blogs. 150 word blogs. Snippets. Just enough to throw a provocative thought out there and stay in touch with our readers.

I’m going to try it. No more epistles. No more War and Peace.

I already can tell what a relief it’s going to be to believe it’s ok to just jump online and share an idea or observation in the heat of the moment and ask what YOU think – instead of agonizing over every word and trying to make it perfect.

Please let me know what you think of this experiement.

What’s your own approach to blogging? How do you make it fun and easy so you’re more likely to do it – instead of putting it off because you’ve pressured yourself into thinking it has to be perfect?

(Side note: I get to thank David Meerman Scott in person – http://www.davidmeermanscott.com/ – for his wise advice when we keynote Speaker U for the New England Chapter of National Speakers Association on June 10-11. http://www.nsanewengland.com/speaker_university_program.asp Hope to see you there.)