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Be remarkable
You’re either remarkable or invisible.
—Seth Godin
Master marketer and best-selling author Seth Godin says that companies that resist innovation are like brown cows—after a while, they all look the same. If you’ve seen one brown cow, you’ve seen every brown cow there is to see. You don’t notice them even when they’re standing on the side of the highway. They might as well be invisible.
But when a purple cow comes on the scene, it stands out at once. You can’t take a brown cow and paint it purple, Godin explains. Purple cows are purple from the inside out—or they might be blue from the inside out, as in the case of JetBlue Airlines, a company that meets Godin’s criteria for excellence.
What is Seth Godin trying to teach us about marketing this time? If I’ve learned anything from Godin since his 1999 Permission Marketing, it is that he doesn’t waste his readers’ valuable time. So I’ve learned to listen to what he has to say. What does he have to say in Purple Cow? It all comes down to two words: Be remarkable.
I hope you’re listening, too. ?You’re either a Purple Cow or you’re not,? says Godin. ?You’re either remarkable or invisible. Make your choice.? I think you have made the right choice; otherwise, you wouldn’t be taking the time to read this. You’ve taken the first step toward becoming remarkable. This report will show you how to separate yourself from the millions of invisible brown cows on the Information highway. When you finish this report, you won’t be a brown cow any more. You may discover that you’re not a purple cow either. You might be a blue cow, a red cow, or even a pink cow. But one thing is certain: You’ll know what it takes to build the kind of list that can skyrocket your Internet business. You’ll know what it takes to be remarkable.
Forget the advertising—innovate
It would be easy to notice a purple cow if we suddenly encountered one, of course. But how do you spot purple cows in the business world? To be a purple cow in the business world, Godin explains, ?Stop advertising and start innovating.
Consumers are immune to most of the advertising that reaches them, but they are hungrier than ever for real solutions to real problems. The secret of successful Internet marketing is to create and drive word of mouth.
When fifty-two JetBlue planes were frozen on runways in an ice storm last February, passengers were stuck inside the grounded planes for hours. Other airlines cancelled flights in anticipation of the winter storm, but JetBlue vowed to get customers to their destinations.
When it didn’t work out as planned, the company had a customer service nightmare to deal with. Police were called in as irate passengers argued with JetBlue employees at airport check-in counters.
At the height of this public relations disaster, David Neeleman, founder and CEO of JetBlue Airlines, posted a video message on YouTube to apologize to customers. As far as I know, this was the first time the CEO of a major corporation posted a video message on YouTube directed at customers.
In his YouTube message, Neeleman explained that steps were being taken to prevent the same thing from happening again. And he outlined a new customer protection plan with enough substance behind it to show customers that he wasn’t just blowing hot air.
Customers may not have forgotten what happened, but they seem to have forgiven JetBlue. When the situation got out of control, Neeleman didn’t do what other corporate leaders have frequently done. He didn’t call in his staff to manage the crisis. He didn’t hire a public relations expert. He did what Purple Cows do—he innovated. He created an innovative information product. And it worked.
Information products—the key to the success of your
Internet marketing business
Creating a product or program is a powerful—and possibly necessary— step in your business development. When you do so your business has the potential to skyrocket.
—Michael Port
An information product that adds value to people’s lives is the best tool for creating word of mouth. When you offer real solutions to real problems, satisfied customers will want to tell the world about you.
The best way to start a viral marketing campaign is to share your knowledge and expertise with prospects and customers.
As an Internet marketer, you know that the key to your business success is the ability to build a list of customers and potential customers who look forward to hearing about your new product releases and special offers through e-mail announcements. And you know that successful list-building depends on your ability to build a bond of trust with prospects and customers.
You already have a powerful list-building tool right in your own hands—literally. Whether you type on a keyboard, talk to your voice recognition software, or grind it out the hard way with a pencil and paper, you are the best tool you will ever have for building a list.
A lead-generating information product is one that you give away in exchange for an e-mail address and permission to follow up. A lead-generating product is the easiest, fastest, and most effective tool for creating a connection with potential clients. As you build trust with potential customers, you will soon reach the point in the sales cycle where prospects are ready to buy your products or services.
Your information product is often the most powerful tool in the sales cycle. Readers will brand you on the basis of what you offer them in exchange for their e-mail address and permission to follow up. Creating an information product is the easiest and fastest way to establish yourself as an expert, build your brand, and win the trust of customers and potential customers.
A free offer of something valuable turns visitors into friends. When you follow up by continuing to add something of value to people’s lives, you establish the kind of rapport and trust that turns friends into clients. And when you cultivate client relationships by keeping in touch, offering new solutions, and creating additional benefits, you turn customers into clients for life. The best time to build your database is now Do not wait for a change of environment before you act; get a change of environment by action.
–Wallace D. Wattles
The best way to build your database is by offering an information product designed to generate leads. Find a product idea you’re enthusiastic about. If you can tie it into your current business model, you have the topic for a great information product.
When you give first-time visitors a free information product in exchange for their e-mail address, you take the first step toward establishing yourself as an expert. And when visitors give you permission to follow up, you start to build a bond of trust.
