Marketing as Humans, Not Marketers

I’ve found that one of the more effective ways to gauge whether a marketing campaign will compel a customer to act is to think like a human. Not a marketer, but a human being. A human being who is constantly bombarded with messages every minute of every day, and has been able to reduce these messages to a slight, bothersome buzz in the background of everyday life.

So when we (as marketers) begin to over-estimate our brand’s ability to get through that buzzing noise, take a step back. Ask yourself: would you click the link or hit delete? Watch the commercial or change the channel? Stop by the booth or divert your eyes?

Most of the time, I’m doing the latter – and so are our customers – even with brands I know and trust. The question remains, then: What are you doing differently than your competitors to cut through the buzz?