From Laura Lake,
Your Guide to Marketing.
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Do you want to attract the attention of more potential clients and customer? Then it's time to dare to be different. Over the last five years our marketing departments have become complacent. Rather than come up with new concepts, ideas, and marketing plans way to often we only revisit someone elses idea, change a few things and call it our own.

Do you want to create buzz about your products and services? Would you like people to take a look at what it is that you have to offer over your competitor? If you answered yes to either of these questions then this year I dare you to be different.

Develop new ideas, actually spend time brainstorming to firm up your own company's marketing message. Stop looking at what everyone else is doing. Quit comparing your creative ideas with others.

It's time we learn that adopting the tactics and strategies of another company is just simply not enough. It's still important to do your research regarding your competitors. However, it's more important to listen to the needs of prospects and current clients. Truth be known most marketing companies have stopped listening. When did it become ok to quit paying attention to our markets? We want a quick fix, a fast campaign, an instaneous idea. We've stopped putting in the time necessary to be effective.

Daring to be different doesn't have to be difficult, often enough it's as simple as getting back to the basics. You can do it in four easy steps. To get started consider the following:

• Define your products and/or services.
• Define the needs that these products or services fulfill.
• Survey and listen to your current clients and customers and figure out what it is that they like or don't like about your product. ask them how you can make them better. Ask them how they found out about you and what it was that brought them your way.
• Develop a marketing plan for the next 6 months using the three steps above.

I've seen way too many marketing professionals burn out and stray away from the basics. When this happens it just becomes "easier" to begin to do what everyone else is doing. Realize that I said easier not more effective. I've also seen marketing professionals turn their careers and their marketing departments around by adopting the basic principles that they abandoned. I challenge you to revisit your marketing campaigns, apply the basic principles, and dare to be different. I think you'll be surprised at the difference that it will make in the effectiveness and the excitement of your own marketing campaigns.