1. Capture my attention. First, you have to be noticed. You need to engage my faculties, my senses, my front-of-mind interest. You have massive competition for my attention, so this is where creativity and daring are required. Giving away $20 Amazon gift cards for $10? That garnered a ton of attention for Living Social. Offering 5% off this Wednesday only? Yawn …

2. Capture my imagination. You need to engage my mind, and make me think and dream. Use a compelling illustration that will stick, or start a train of thought that builds its own momentum. Don’t tell me about a three-tiered architecture that will create efficient data exchange. Make me imagine how I can find an answer to an obscure question in 10 milliseconds.

3. Capture my affections. We all know that engaging the emotions is the most powerful way to bring people along. So don’t merely explain, tell a story. Tell me about someone like me, someone whose life has been changed. Yes, the use of video in social media is a cool thing. I don’t need the technical details—just show the video of the discovery of Ted Williams. Even though that story continues to have twists and turns, it strikes us at a deep emotional level.

4. Capture my self-interest. All of the above doesn’t yet move me to action. You need to clearly explain the WIIFM (What’s In It For Me). I’m not going to act unless I know why I should. If it’s only because of something you want, I’m going to set up an elaborate defense. I will, however, take action for something I want—you need to put a spotlight on that, and point it out to me.

If you’re a marketer, or a public speaker (yes, that includes preachers), you need to structure your communications to touch all four of these “captures.” Grab your audience in the first 15 seconds. Move their minds and hearts immediately after. Make the call to action clear and compelling. If you want to capture the king and queen of my assent, then you need to neutralize the pawns and castles that fill my board each day. These four moves will go a long way toward achieving the goal.

Yet, it would almost seem that many people, when naming their companies or coming up with a tagline, actually adopt that as a goal! Therefore, here are the Top Five Rules for those who would prefer not to stand out—who’d like to be undistinguished, unremarkable, and easily ignored!

1. Come up with a business name that means nothing. Ah, yes, Global Strategic Business Solutions—that tells me a whole lot about what you do. Or perhaps A & B Associates—catchy, unique, truly memorable! Or, to memorialize the two partners who so brilliantly launched the enterprise, let’s go with Douganberry and Smith, that’s descriptive! Remember: The goal is to keep the audience guessing. We wouldn’t want those pesky potential clients to immediately understand what the business stands for, would we?

2. Describe your business in the most generic way possible, so everyone will think they need you. “We supply business improvement products and services to businesses all over.” “We’re striving to improve health care around the world.” “Our business is going about the business of helping your business gain more business.” So now, out of 50 million companies, you’re one of them.

3. Weave a less-than-meaningful tagline into your identity. Pass by any UPS delivery truck and see: Worldwide Services. I guess that clears that up! Here’s a brilliant law firm tagline: Commitment to Excellence. Why, I’d rather have attorneys committed to mediocrity myself! Hilton rolled  a campaign under the ineffectual banner, Travel Should Take You Places (duh!). And how many companies have you seen adopting this ridiculously obvious and overused phrase: We Mean Business! Now there’s an original and unique thought.

4. Look at what all your competitors are offering and saying, and mimic them. Be sure that when potential clients are looking for something, you pro-actively blend in with the crowd, and thereby be considered on equal terms. If Company A is talking about offering “complete end-to-end enterprise solutions to enhance supply chain productivity,” be certain that you adopt that message also, so that you can stand out along with the rest of the lemmings. Never lead—it’s too dangerous. Follow!

5. Try to please everyone. Hey, it’s a complicated world, and lots of people get in on decision-making. So craft your message so that there isn’t a chance that a single person could possibly be offended, or (heaven forbid!) conclude that you have a different focus than what they’re looking for. Remember, all business is good business, so you don’t want to miss a single opportunity by narrowing your message to your unique core competencies. We do it all! is the safe bet.

On rare occasions, I forthrightly recommend that people not take my advice. This is one of those occasions!

She summed up her approach by asking this rather simple, but profound question: “What’s the point?”

The point, of course, is that the child learns. The “how” is quite secondary—if the student learns better by going out into the yard and digging up a root system rather than sitting still at a desk and reading a book, then by all means go out and dig! Just get to the point.

The phrase has embedded itself deep within my psyche and has morphed to shape my thinking about branding and my approach to consulting. Almost always, the first question that comes to mind when considering a branding challenge, a marketing initiative, a consulting project, or a written communication, is: “What’s the point?”

I would dare to say that, until you can answer that question with clarity and simplicity, it is almost impossible to succeed. In starting a business or growing a brand, in developing a message or solving a problem, there must be a very clear target that you are aiming for. Why are you doing this? What exactly are you seeking to achieve? What is your chief differentiator? What is the market need or desire? What’s the point?

When I started my own consulting practice in 2006, I had to wrestle with that question. My answers:

• My unique skills and desires were not being channeled in my current job position.
• It was unlikely that any other company was going to create a role around my aspirations, so I needed to do it myself.
• I aspired to increasingly apply my talents and creativity to entrepreneurship and network-building, after twenty years focusing on sales and marketing.
• I needed flexibility to work in a schedule that fit my lifestyle and family situation (which, in my case means starting before 6 a.m., when I am most creative and energized).
• I wanted to build something that would help others and outlast me.

Seth Godin, in his book Purple Cow, makes the point that unless your offering is somehow unique—in some way differentiated from everything else out there—you may not have a “point” for being in business. To import a term from the world of electronics, we need to have a good signal-to-noise ratio. There’s a ton of noise in the marketplace, and our brand signal—our “point”—needs to be clear to rise above it.

Ironically, sometimes, the key business stakeholder is the person least able to distill things down to the core and identify the key differentiating message. I often meet with business partners who are so involved in the many bullet points of their trees, that they can’t identify the forest.

So, what is your point? What makes you unique? Are you trying to write your brand message with a blunt instrument, or a sharpened pencil? When you can express your unique value in fewer than 10 seconds and 10 words, then you’re truly able to “get to the point!”

It surpassed our wildest expectations.

More than 180 people from around the world joined in the conversation, and more than 1,350 tweets were sent—stunning for any chat’s first night out of the gate.

But what was much more impressive to us than the numbers was the stratospheric level of the conversation.  There was genuinely smart debate around leadership insights, experiences, and sources—and in some cases blatant and ardent disagreements that were respectful and often laced with humor.

That’s exactly what a vigorous discussion should be like. We loved it!

Lisa says that, having grown up in an Italian family where loud voices and arm waving are not only the norm but mean you’re among family, it felt good to be a part of the chat. It represented our version of sitting around a very large dinner table, perhaps in Tuscany, where every guest has a seat at the table and the conversation is stimulating, vibrant and passionate. For Steve, who grew up in a more restrained New England environment, the free-wheeling type of discussion we experienced at #LeadershipChat is always refreshing.

If there is a “real essence” to social media, this felt like it.

We believe there are 4 key reasons the first #LeadershipChat was so successful:

1. We gave it a lot of thought before deciding to move forward, making sure we were committed and prepared.

We hope that this turns out to be a long-running weekly event, so we discussed our ability to commit to the day and time and our genuine enthusiasm and commitment.  Lisa believes that the fact that she’s been attending #blogchat quite regularly for a year now enabled her to “learn from the best” (Mack Collier) and to understand what it takes to be a great host. Steve has participated in enough chats to gain a sense of what works—and what might work better. We also decided that our promotional approach would be fun and a little offbeat, using video, graphics, and a touch of snark to gain exposure.

2. We tried to make the format unique to the topic and something that would provoke smart discussion.

We’ll learn as we go, but right now we’re excited about the plan to discuss a different leadership article each week, with Lisa posting her perspective on it Monday mornings on her blog, and Steve creating and sharing a “counterpoint” video on his blog every Tuesday morning.  We’ll turn it over to the #LeadershipChat participants on Tuesday evenings to run with it and tell us what they believe.

As we shared when we announced the launch, we see ourselves offering a “chat with a twist.” We’ll be something like your morning DJs, a “he said/she said,” “yin and yang” of leadership with Steve coming from the entrepreneurial and small business side of leadership while Lisa’s experiences have predominantly been with Fortune 500 companies and leaders. And we definitely won’t shy away from controversial topics, with lots of room for diverse opinions!

3. We know a lot of smart people.

What we really mean by this is that connections matter, and we both have always been very committed to nurturing our networks for the long haul.  Anyone wanting to start an endeavor like this wants to begin with an existing base of fans and friends. They helped spread the word for us about the chat and participated wholeheartedly.  In the end, they made the chat the success that it was.

4. We believe in the “why.”

Leadership is a topic we’re both passionate about.  Being leaders has affected our lives deeply and the leaders we’ve worked with have left their imprint, for good and for bad. As new structures of business increasingly rise to the forefront through the instrumentality of social networks, our understanding of what makes a good leader (or what makes a leader at all) is going to be a major topic of discussion and revision. This is a welcome development.

We’re both inspired by people like Liz Strauss and Terry Starbucker who had the vision to create something real and of immeasurable value by believing in people and the power of connections, and who took that vision and brought it to life with conviction. We believe that well-established leaders, emerging influencers, and all who follow them have much to contribute to the conversation. Feel free to join us on Tuesday nights at 8 p.m. (Eastern time), using a tool like TweetChat or the Twitter client of your choice!

Your results may vary? In other words, I’m a real sucker if I buy your product based on its inflated implied promises.

Change one word, and you’ve uncovered one of the ingredients in the magic sauce of marketing.

Your results will vary.

Why should I buy your product, or pay for your service? Simple: I’m not getting the results I want. I want different results.

I’ll buy what you have to offer if my results will vary!

We recently converted and updated our household phone strategy to include a mix of iPhones and iPod touches, instead of various models from different manufacturers. Why? Two words: simplicity, and consistency. We’ve tried a mix of mobile devices and carriers. The result was a confusing array of stuff that didn’t all work the same way. I craved a different result. Including the fact that now my 16-year old can take over mobile device technical support for the family. (Hey—I’m not as dumb as I look!)

Inertia means that many potential customers will stick with the devil they know, even if it is less than ideal. What is the different result they crave enough to change? In your marketing, in the span of 15 to 30 seconds, can you clearly articulate how and why my results will vary?

If you offer no real change, why should I change? But if my results will vary, you’ve got a shot at making me a customer.

In one case, it was a local restaurant that made an anniversary extremely memorable. In the other, it was a hotel/resort that redefined “above and beyond” in my book.

Both of these examples involved personalized notes.

I’ve been to countless restaurants and an abundance of hotels, and very few have been remarkable enough to be … well, remarked on in writing. I expect good service and am disappointed when it fails to occur. I am quite pleased with excellent service. But it’s time to think about providing remarkable service that is—to be perfectly tangible—blog-worthy.

For a customer to go home, and freely and happily take the time to publicly praise a person or a company’s service, is an exceptional affirmation. It is also about the best marketing you’ll ever get. It won’t cost you advertising dollars. It’ll cost you rigorous hiring practices, great training, and cultivation of an exceptional work climate.

What it will earn you is all kinds of repeat business and glowing recommendations. Worthy ROI, in my book.

Perhaps every service organization should sit down with employees and say, “We need to treat EVERY SINGLE GUEST as if they have an influential blog, and assume they’re going to write up their experience tomorrow.” Because the fact is, some of them do—and will.

Don’t just pursue good customer service. Shoot for blog-worthy service. That’s social media marketing at its strongest.

Stepping off on a hike last fall in New Hampshire, I was overwhelmed by the sense that I was back home in New England. No matter that I’d spent seven years in Tennessee, and a quarter-century in New Jersey. I’m a Connecticut boy, and the New England woods are home. Driving in and around Mystic CT last week, the trees and stone walls and topography and houses all felt like … home.

How powerful can it be, then, for a brand to become a “home” brand. So much a part of your life, that you are not comfortable without it.

From day one, the iPhone became a home brand for me. I can’t imagine not using it daily. Google is a home brand, indispensable, every day. A particularly helpful blogger can be a home brand for you. As can a certain make of car. Or a brewer, such as Samuel Adams.

One of the signs that something is a home brand is that price becomes almost irrelevant. I barely even look at my AT&T mobility bill for the iPhone. I don’t even think about writing a check to Amica Insurance. Price is secondary because it’s … home. Part of the family. And, just as we talk about our family members naturally and eagerly, so we word-of-mouth our home brands without any effort.

We all have our home brands, and if we’re marketers, we all strive to BE one of those home brands. Undoubtedly, you have a home brand or two that come to mind — share them in the comments!

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Exit Realty is Growing: So what? What’s in it for me?

If your company is growing in some form or another, surely that makes you happy. However, how does boasting about your own growth help me? Why should that make me pick up the phone, or trust you above a dozen other outfits that are willing to post signs beating their own drum?

Speaking of picking up the phone, it might be a nice idea to have a phone number or website on your advertising, too. Just sayin’…

Then there’s the name. I realize that “exiting” is one aspect of moving, but perhaps a name that has more positive or aspirational connotations would be helpful? If there are two billboards side by side, one from Exit Realty and one from, say, Open Door Realty, guess which one is likely to receive a call?

I’m all for business growth, of course. And there’s a time, and a place, and a way to express one’s success. But if you’re about growing, focus on the customer. If you want to introduce yourself to me and entice my interest in a few seconds’ span, remove as many barriers as possible. You may be growing, but there’s something you ought to be knowing.

If I’m selling my house, it’s not about you!

Specifically, in was North Face—their logo emblazoned on four jackets, all within 3 rows of me and all in my line of sight. I even sneaked out my iPhone and tried to capture a picture of these four very different style/color jackets (alas, it didn’t come out very well).

Apart from the distraction factor, I found myself grinning a bit – not only because of the coincidence of it all, but because that particular logo evokes positive feelings in me.

Why?

1. It’s a very nice, simple, meaningful design. Some logos simply don’t need to be changed. North Face has one of those (brand image).
2. In my earlier years, when I had the leisure to hike a good bit more, North Face always represented quality outdoors “stuff” (earned brand position)
3. The products I’ve purchased in the past from North Face have always been solid (personal brand experience).

Now, I hadn’t spent much time recently thinking about The North Face. Honestly, I have far more pressing concerns each day than considering clothing labels. But a company with a long-term track record of quality, and a long-term brand identity, can indeed move the awareness needle just by logo visibility. If I needed a new winter jacket right now, guess what brand I’d look at first? And the main reason why is because North Face was in my face. In a nice way.

Ironically, if a brand identity is negative, then the repetition effect is just the opposite. I’m sure that the clothing at Jos. A Bank is probably just fine, but I actively CHANGE THE DIAL whenever their radio ads come on, because I cannot stand the voice and ad format they use. Which means they end up low on my list of brands to consider.

Which brand identities make you secretly smile when you spot them? And which turn you off when they’re in your face?

…develop engagement solutions that create behavior change…educate and engage audiences with meaningful information…conceive new integrated marketing strategies and create closed loop measurement opportunities…unique thought leadership…” You know the drill. Clouds of jargon words.
Now the offering is actually quite interesting, but the key message was obscured by all the officious tech terms.

When writing marketing copy, it’s always a temptation to assume that the target audience: 1) knows everything you know; and 2) can absorb a whole bunch more. That’s not the case. Make it your goal to express one critical point very well, within the first 10 seconds. Because nobody is going to want to work hard to figure out what you do.

How to accomplish this? Simple – run your preliminary copy and messages by an “unbaptized” set of reviewers. Have some smart unofficial advisors look things over who are not in your company, maybe not even in the field – just to see if your message comes through. Your spouse. Your mother. A trusted friend from college. If you’ve distilled your message down to simple clarity, even the uninitiated will grasp the key point.

You only have a few seconds to earn attention. Don’t waste that precious time sending up fog and leaving people wondering what you’re talking about!

So we went. And it was a great display of powerful branding in action.
Ben & Jerry’s grew from a quirky little local ice cream shop to a global brand with a dedicated following, all because a couple of guys (yes, Ben and Jerry) decided to start a business based on a $5 correspondence course on making ice cream.
The tour was lighthearted and informative, and very much in line with the fun approach Ben & Jerry’s takes to branding. You get the distinct impression that this isn’t put on–it’s just the embedded DNA of the organization. They are who they are, in this case, they like to have fun while also producing a high-quality product. Powerful.
I pulled three key marketing lessons out of the visit:

1. Have a story to tell. Coming into the headquarters is all about the story. One wall (see picture) is dedicated to a timeline of milestone events and dates. The tour is an extended story-telling time. And it’s an interesting story, about quality and local commitment and innovative/socially conscious ways to do business.
2. Stick to your principles. Ben & Jerry’s started out committed to certain core values and practices, and as they’ve grown (and even been bought by Unilever to aid the global expansion), they’ve stuck with them. You will see social and environmental causes writ large on the tour and in the company overview, and even if you don’t agree with some of those distinctives, it is nonetheless impressive that they’ve kept the compass pointed in the same direction all this time.
3. Know when to step back and let your baby walk. Ben and Jerry realized, as they grew, that they weren’t the right people to scale the business. So they put the right people in place and continued to infuse the company with the unique perspectives that set it apart. Now, there are hundreds of employees and millions of customers carrying on the Ben & Jerry tradition. Founders rarely are the right ones to “operationalize” a growing business. But they are the ones that can set the tone for decades to come.

I guess I should also mention that being playful and having fun can lead to success. Clearly, these folks work hard and are good at what they do. But if you visit for the tour, the face of the company is one that smiles and chuckles. It might not work for mainframe computers. But for ice cream–yeah, that’s a winner.
Oh…and the sample at the end was pretty tasty as well. Ultimately, you’ve got to have a great product along with a great attitude!

I hate shyster pitches on the radio or TV. Like the services that want to extract money from your well-intentioned but naive wallet so that they can “clean” your PC. I want to throttle those marketers.
But sometimes, there’s grudging admiration. Like when my 7-year old comes to me with a scribbled URL he’s heard on an advertisement, wondering if we need to clean our PC with said “service” provider.
Now our family PC is getting somewhat long in the tooth, and admittedly is a bit slow. It certainly doesn’t need the virtual snake oil these crooks are selling. But the message made sense to a 7-year old. It got through, to the point of him taking action in the only way he could. Advising Dad to visit this website to get a PC cleanup!
They’re not getting my money, of course, but they did teach a valuable lesson. Does my marketing message make sense to a 7-year old? Can people easily repeat back my value proposition? Is my message so clear, so compelling, that those listening know exactly what they’re supposed to do?
If the shysters can effectively get the point across, we who have legitimate offerings need to do them one better. When somebody’s kid recommends you, you know you’ve won…!
What are some of the best, clearest, most memorable “take action” messages you’ve encountered? Share in the comments!

Fortunately, there is help – the social networking crowd is very giving and supportive. There are many reasons why businesses and marketers should use social media (See Chris Brogan’s 50 Ways here), but let’s focus on the individual for the moment. Why are you getting involved in Facebook/Twitter/LinkedIn/blogging? Is it just to chat with friends, or to promote yourself, or to create an Opportunity Network? Are your trying to connect with the past, build for the future, or some combination of both? Your main goal(s) will determine how – and where – you get started.
Then, you need to decide just how much of yourself you want to share, and where. There are at least 5 levels of participation, with growing levels of transparency, disclosure, and interaction. Do you simply want to put the basics of your professional resume on-line as a passive outposting strategy? Do you want to create more formal connections with professionals through a platform like LinkedIn? Are you interested in lifestreaming, whereby you’re sharing various personal thoughts and media through applications life Facebook, Twitter, and the like? You may wish to join more private, “walled garden” communities that are built around a specific area of interest. Or, you may choose to disclose yourself much more fully on open web communities like Twitter, or via blogs and other public platforms. Bear in mind that you may start at a certain level, and then, as your comfort level with on-line disclosure grows, you may well evolve into new levels.
Whatever you choose for an approach, there are resources to guide you. Amber Naslund has put together a great little Social Media starter kit (free download). I’ve also created a free e-book (Getting Started with Social Networking) with loads of links and resources for those taking initial steps into the on-line networking world. Antony Mayfield has produced a nice (free) overview of social media. And a whole bunch of friendly networkers on the various platforms described stand ready to help you “learn the ropes.” People like Gavin Heaton, Jane Hart, Paul Gillin, Mack Collier, and many others who once – well, just started.
So, maybe someone you know pointed you to this post and said, “Get Started!” What are you waiting for? Jump in and join the network – shallow end or deep, the water’s fine!

R&F – Reach and Frequency – does work up to a point. In fact, huge swaths of traditional marketing approaches have relied on this method. And that is why, once social media appeared more prominently on the radar screen, a growing number of marketers (and spammers) have jumped on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and other channels as means to pump out one-way messages to a growing audience.
Some well-known folks on Twitter – such as Guy Kawasaki – openly embrace this model, using social tools to reach an ever-larger audience with frequent messages (although in Guy’s case, he does actually interact with people on-line).
Those of us who are active in social networking tend to decry this development – the commercialization of what started off as a peer-to-peer approach to communications – but the fact is, we’re not going to be able to stop it entirely. Brands will promote. Celebrities will blab. Spammers will annoy.
Instead, let’s concentrate on not getting sucked into the R&F model. Yes, it is potentially a good thing to have a large number of followers/readers/connections on social platforms, but there’s a mentality to avoid – a mentality that sees people as means to an end. That’s the traditional marketing and selling model, and whether your goal is to extract dollars from wallets or collect names as followers, it’s all the same – people as objects to be manipulated.
I hope that people won’t be turned off to social networking because it has devolved into another reach & frequency method of self-promotion and manipulation. It’s easy to see through that, and, like many healthcare professionals, simply shut the door. Let’s continue to encourage people to enjoy peer-to-peer networking, and patiently instruct newcomers (individuals and businesses) about Authenticity-Based Communications (the A-B C’s of social media).
The first enthusiastic flush of social media newness and idealism is rapidly passing by. It’s time to settle in for the long haul. I’m in – are you?
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Everybody that does social networking probably has, at the back of their minds, the goal of building a large group of connections/readers/followers. Hey, it’s fun, it’s a challenge, and it’s self-validating. The more the merrier, right? But then there are those who have connection-collecting at the FRONT of their minds. As if the short-term goal is some astonishing number of Twitterites, whose attachment to you is just as superficial and meaningless as your attachment to them.
News Flash: You’re not networked. You’re subscribed.
Building a quality network organically takes time and steady effort. It means interacting, writing good quality stuff, sharing, caring, and (yes) getting away from the computer screen to meet some of these fine people in real life. And, wonderfully enough, when you build deep connections with a smaller number, you grow your network anyway. Because people want to share you with their friends.
Sometimes it seems like a big yearbook party – whoever can gather the most signatures is the most popular. Bah, humbug! We don’t need tricks and techniques to gather a bunch of disembodied subscribers so we can pound our chests and say we’ve arrived. Just quietly provide value, open your heart and mind, and get to know people. That’s real social networking.
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Who wants a matchmaker that brings you the dregs? And who would pay for the services of such a yenta?
However, loads of people pay for the matchmaking services of, say, eHarmony, because a service of real value is being offered — sifting through a myriad of potential choices to narrow things down on the basis of compatibility — and then, facilitating the introduction.
Quite a business model. Can it be replicated by an entrepreneur? Yes, it can. Anytime there is inefficiency in the choice-making process, and expertise that can be employed to help two parties “win”, there is an incredibly valuable service. And in times when many great professionals (some of them potential entrepreneurs) are being laid off and hoping to create something of value that won’t be destroyed by the next corporate mis-step, it’s worth considering whether you have the potential to be a business yenta — a matchmaker.
For a case study, I’m going to describe my 3-year old consulting business, which was launched on a network/matchmaking model, servicing a very select and well-defined niche. I share this, not to gain new business on my part, but in order to potentially help others consider how they might launch something similar in their areas of expertise. Also, I happen to know this particular business model in full first-hand reality mode, not in the abstract!
The problem: Vendor selection. Pharmaceutical training & marketing professionals outsource a lot of development and delivery, and a slew of providers service the marketplace (sometimes, clients are getting 20 vendor calls a day!). Many of those in the training depts. are in rotational positions, so not only are they often not career training or marketing professionals per se, but they are hardly there long enough to know 10% of the vendor landscape. Hence, it is difficult to identify and select optimal vendors, and there is a tendency to default to “the devil they know” (an existing vendor that may or may not be good for a specific project), or just make a guess based on a series of pitches. How to find best-in-class vendor partners for short-term and long-term projects?
On the vendor side of the fence, there is also a problem – suppliers have difficulty gaining new clients (remember those 20 calls a day? – they’re just part of the noise), and the cost of sales/new business development is very high. How to get solid, targeted new business without high up-front costs yielding an uncertain return?
The solution: A third party matchmaker. I consult with clients, free of charge, on the whole range of their needs, without having a pre-set sales agenda. Then I identify one or more well-targeted potential vendor/partners, and make recommendations. I get paid a referral fee (by my preferred partners) if, and only if, new business is transacted, and only when they start getting paid by the client.
It’s a TripleWin (maybe I should trademark that?) business model. The client wins through time and effort saved, and costly mistakes avoided; the vendor/partner wins by gaining qualified new business generated without up-front cost of sales; and only then does the matchmaker win. It’s a networking model also – this matchmaking is a person-to-person introduction via a third party who is in a position, by knowledge and experience, to make solid recommendations as to the “fit” between the need and the provider.
Another aspect of the networking advantage is this: my clients also provide ME with THEIR recommendations about the best vendors they have found. Therefore, I am better able to serve the community by using the network to sift out the wheat from the chaff, and I can continually discover new suppliers that have a track record of being good “matches” through proven performance. And, needless to say, the network and recommendation processes subtly enforces great customer service – if you’ve been recommended as a provider to a client and then mess it up….what do you think are the consequences?
Now, step back from the particulars of what I’ve described for my little niche, and think about your own area of business. Are there inefficiencies that can be solved? Are there connections that you can help make? Are you in a position to help two other parties win, so that everyone is profoundly happy that you are there making things happen? Then maybe you ought to consider a high-value, low overhead, entrepreneurial business as a matchmaker. How would you see the yenta model working in other industries and business settings? Feel free to discuss in the Comments!
A lot of folks are settling for hairy monkeys, or frogs. If you know how to bring princes, you can become a very valuable partner. Let’s face it; there’s isn’t a lot of job security out there anymore – xcept for those who provide unique and valuable services! A trustworthy, smart, networked “matchmaker” can carve out a very secure career by making the pie bigger for everyone.
[this post is actually, in a sense, part 3 of a series on Social Media, Networked Business, and Matchmaking - part 1 and part 2 on the StickyFigure blog provide some backdrop]

It didn’t take long. Some of the thoughtful comments raised interesting issues, and pretty soon it became clear to me that perhaps the main problem was with the ladder itself, not its number of rungs.
Back to the drawing board. Now I posted a revised graphic on the blog post, and, after a couple more comments, expanded and revised it further. Still not happy that a simple analogy (the ladder) had turned into a scratchy looking drawing with boxes and arrows and labels, I took a walk out in the yard to re-think and came up with a Pie analogy (yet another update).
Why recount all this? Well, the ever-helpful Mack Collier left a comment on how this Saturday adventure in blogging was an example of what he calls content co-creation – bloggers sharing their ideas and having other participants come on in and suggest, refine, refute, and improve. Bingo – he was absolutely right.
I’ve posted before about the Opportunity Network we are building using social media. But we are also building an Idea Network. We are lashing our minds together to create a whole much greater than the sum of its parts. The Forrester neuron kicked it off with the ladder graphic. My neuron toyed with the idea, others kicked in, and pretty soon lots of synapses were firing as the idea became more refined.
We have the privilege of tapping into the neural pathways of smart minds the world over, enabling the iterative evolution of ideas at a very rapid pace. “My” idea may have merit, but “our” idea typically will have more. Neurons left to themselves don’t accomplish much, but lash them together into a functioning brain, and pretty soon, bigger and better ideas begin to flow.
(And, by the way, I’m still not satisfied with the end result of the ladder/pie ruminations, as I think a better illustration to pull together the raw material in that post is waiting out there in someone’s mind – maybe yours?)
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Because pharma is a highly regulated industry, new methods of communication that are not top-down and well-controlled have a very slow uptake. With good reason – pharmaceutical companies are responsible for what is said by their representatives, and on their sites, so free exchange of dialogue (which might include discussion of off-label usage of products, or reports of adverse events) can lead to big trouble and large fines. Hence, the cautious toe-in-the-water approach to fast-moving new platforms such as Web 2.0 and social media.
There is a small, but growing, number of social media users inside pharmaceutical companies, or among those who (like myself) provide services to pharma. Some of these truly “get” what community networking via social media is about, and some robust discussions are occurring about how to incorporate social networking. But many of those who are talking about it come at it from the traditional marketer’s perspective – here is one more mechanism for reach and influence. One more tactic for messaging. A new medium that needs its legal/regulatory clearance. Another tool in the bag that needs to show rapid ROI.
Therefore, I decided to take my 6-8 minutes during the panel and talk about 4 Rules (probably should have said Perspectives or Principles – oh, well) to bear in mind about the on-line networking culture as you seek to enter in:
1. Immediacy. We value instantaneous communication, quick feedback, dialogue. This is a major shift in approach for pharma, which practices careful, centralized, one-way communication. Nonetheless, it’s important to understand that the culture isn’t going to adapt to the old, tired method of being spoken to in crafted speech that takes 6 weeks to compose. Pharma has to find a way to adapt to the culture.
2. Multi-level communications. We dialogue, comment, share, tweet, mashup, and iterate. Communications and messages move and morph. That’s uncomfortable for a regulated entity. But it’s the way it is.
3. Long-term commitment. Don’t view social media as one more tactic to try out – or, as one of the presenters put it, don’t think about “piloting” it. This is not the place for ROI calculations the first quarter when you start. You’re entering and taking part in a community. This has to be a long-haul strategy. And since many pharma marketers are “rotating” through their roles for 12-24 months, that often leads to short-term thinking – which means that a multi-faceted team should be setting the soc med strategy.
4. Transparency and Authenticity. Put human faces on your social media outreach efforts. We see enough marketing fakery in all other mediums. Not welcome here. Learn to be genuine. Those who are merely seeking to manipulate through marketing will be shunted aside. Real people who add real value will be welcomed.
The crucial thing to remember is that social media influencers are passionate participants who communicate, not passive targets of marketing communications. The microphone has been passed, from official marketers to people who can now create their own broadcast channels. It’s my hope to help people in pharma to recognize that the conversation is already happening – with or without them – and that we, as the community, are making up “the rules” as we go along. This is the time, therefore, to get firmly involved somehow – START! – and recognize the contours of the landscape as you begin down the path.
What other advice would you have for major companies – especially those hamstrung by tight regulatory requirements – as they consider their initial forays into the social media world?
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For a while, I was enslaved, under contract, and you could pitch whatever you wanted at me. I would wear the mask, put on the glove, mutely make signs; but whatever signals I gave you about what I wanted, you simply ignored. You pitched what you wanted.
There were very few strikes. Mostly balls, wild pitches – lots of screwballs in the dirt. But you didn’t care. Pitch, pitch, pitch. Sell, sell, sell. Your message, one way, pounded from the mound.
What perhaps you haven’t noticed is that now I’m a free agent. I can call signals, and if I don’t like your pitches, you’re not on my team anymore. In fact, I’ve been promoted to General Manager, and if you don’t start listening, you’re fired! Cut from the team.
Oh, yes, you’ve discovered social media all right. But you just think it’s another pitch engine. Grab that ball with a Twitter grip, put a Facebook spin on it, and voila! – we’ve cracked the code.
It’s time to wake up. We’re not “consumers.” We’re not a “demographic.” We’re not objects for your marketing manipulation. And we’re no longer your catchers. Staying on the pitching mound puts you in foul territory these days.
If I like what you have to offer, if you add value, if you listen, I’ll tell you where the strike zone is. Otherwise, get lost. You’ll be cut from the roster and retired soon enough…
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Yet one of the most wonderful things about blogging, Twittering, Facebooking, or (fill in the blank)-ing is that unpredictable and unanticipated connections happen. Strategy meets serendipity.
As happened to my wife just this morning, contact was re-established with an old high school friend because of Facebook. People find each other in airports while Twittering during flight delays. New jobs are found because someone knows someone who knows someone else via blogging. The examples are legion.
Each day, I look forward to finding new resources, connecting with friends new and old, and wondering what new and seemingly random things might happen through networking. And this is something that any business jumping into social media has to account for. The Pinball Effect. Much of marketing is driven by predictability, metrics, and measurable ROI. But involvement in purposeful networking with PEOPLE is going to have a delightfully unpredictable element to it. One critical conversation, occurring as part of a long-term networking strategy, might be the key to a 25% increase in business.
I’m all for measurable results. But can you afford not to bake deeper interactions with customers, and the power of serendipity, into your growth plans?
What are some ways in which the serendipity of social media has impacted your life and business? Share in the comments!
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Then you realize, a few years later, that your chances lie fixed somewhere between fat and slim. The horizon is closer, and it looks a lot more like mortgage payments and daily survival. So much for world domination.
Now you’re ready to really think about conquering something. And that’s a niche. Leave World Domination for Hannibal. You want Niche Domination.
What is niche domination? It’s creating, or moving into, a market cavity narrow enough that you can become the big fish, and expansive (or expand-able) enough that you can make a living dominating it.
You’re a marketer. Fair enough. So are millions of others, so you immediately are in no position to be THE go-to marketer of the century. So…
- What specific marketing competency(s) do you possess?
- What are you most interested in?
- Which industry is the one you best know, or in which do you see the most opportunity?
- What sub-set of that industry is your best target?
- Which companies do you stand a realistic chance of making your mark on, or with?
- Is there something quite unique – a hole in the market – that you can fill?
Now you’re ready to pursue Niche Domination! The fact is, you have to be a big fish in only one very small pond to be a resounding success. You don’t want to be in a large lake jockeying for position with 200 other boats, chasing after the same fish. You want to find a small, hidden body of water where other boats don’t go.
Forget world domination. Or at least, build your foundation with niche domination and move on from there. There’s a ton of success to be had, and money to be made, in the small creases of the marketplace!
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I don’t think anyone will argue whether the bathwater of an inauthentic persona (faux personal brand) should be tossed out. But, let’s talk about the baby.
I’ve tended to view personal branding as a secondary issue. If you’re looking to project a personal brand, the primary question to you need to answer first and foremost is: What is your value-add?
You don’t have a brand worth a nickel unless you are clear in what value you have to offer. That’s true of personal branding, corporate branding, political branding, and whatever other type of branding du jour we’d like to dream up.
Look around you. Right now – in your office, your home, or even look at all the various Twitter avatars and e-mail addresses on your computer. Not a single one of those people can offer what you do. Each one has inherent value as a person, and unique value as an individual who can contribute to the greater good. And you, too, have a unique and irreplaceable value-add. Focus on the gold – what is it?
I know mine, though it has taken many years to clearly identify and articulate it. But even if you are struggling to put your own value-add into words, you still have that value, and probably those who are closest to you can tell you what it is. Here is an exercise to help you – try to find 5-8 adjectives or nouns that summarize what you do best. Ask your friends and colleagues to help (you might even want to have some fun by making it a Twitter exercise).
Now you’re much closer to figuring out your “personal brand,” because you’re understanding where you add value. And you should think about your value-add on at least 2 levels – the professional level (how do I help my employer and clients succeed and make money?), and the community level (how do I help my family/church/neighbors/network grow and succeed?). Usually, you’ll find quite a bit of overlap, because you are you in both realms, and your strengths carry over.
And that’s the point about having a personal brand. The best personal brands are those that are authentic – that is, they reflect who you truly are, in all realms. You may emphasize specific activities and outworkings in your projected identity, because we all put our capabilities and strengths to use in tangible realms of endeavor, but that projected identity – that personal brand – is coherent with who you are. If you changed jobs, locations, or responsibilities, your brand would remain quite consistent.
If you’re trying to create a persona to hide behind – a faux personal brand – you’re wasting time and energy. Toss the bathwater out the window, identify your true value-add, and embrace it. Then you can project yourself without fear, and we won’t need to waste so much digital bandwidth beating down “personal branding”!
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Great, right? But then you get the connection requests. And suddenly you realize – your transparency on social media networks could become a double-edge sword.
It can be very uncomfortable to be an isolated individual – a social media leader or practitioner – among those who don’t “get it.” But perhaps it can be even more uncomfortable when your thoughts can be read by those who sign the paycheck.
One blogging friend asked me about this a couple days ago, and I had to confess that it’s a issue (as a solo entrepreneur) that I don’t have to deal with. But I can imagine how this might be quite awkward for others, and might inhibit free expression. I believe that Chris Brogan has written on this topic before, and others have as well (if you have specific links to posts on this topic, please add them in the comments!)
What is your take? Do you feel comfortable “friending” your boss, or is this a matter of uncomfortable obligation? How do you deal with the potential cognitive dissonance of being both an employee, and creating your own personal brand? Any advice on navigating this choppy waters? Add your comments!

There was always this vague discomfort that I was only telling part of the networking story, however. Because, while I view my network as a professional safety net, that was never actually the primary purpose. My strategy around using blogging, LinkedIn, Twitter, and other tools has to do with creating opportunity. It’s an Opportunity Net(work).
In fact, my entire consulting business model is the use of a growing network to bring together clients and providers. But furthermore, outside of pharma, I’ve been growing a network in the marketing/branding/social media field that now spans many industries, regions, and roles. These are all individuals, for whom I may be able to add value and open doors, and who may open doors for me. The shared sympathy that we’ve developed (primarily) via social media tools creates a giant, growing opportunity network.
What is coming of these bottom-up, individually-cultivated networks? New jobs for the displaced. New business for talented folks who can help each others’ clients. The development of more efficient, virtual business models that will aggregate talent without regard for borders. More rapid integration into a community when someone moves. Exposure to new resources, tools, and approaches. Even something as simple as helpful advice when visiting a new area for vacation.
I wish I could travel more often. If I were flying to San Diego next week, I’d be sure to pal around with Becky Carroll. If I were to take a vacation in Hawaii with my wife, the first person I’d contact for advice would be Rosa Say. I’ve already had very fruitful contact with “Director” Tom Clifford, who freely and generously gave advice about film-making work to my interested son. And others have approached me for input and advice. Valued people, all “met” on-line, all part of a growing opportunity network.
Yes, the old corporate safety net is gone. But the new safety network, and the new opportunity network, is here for all of us to weave ourselves into. My faith has grown the longer I’ve participated, that “If we build it, (opportunity) will come.”
What are some ways that your are building – and experiencing – the new Opportunity Network?
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For years, we’ve had ROI (Return on Investment), which has been applied – with mixed success – to various endeavors. And I’m all for calculating a financial return on a specific investment – WHEN IT IS POSSIBLE to actually show that a specific endeavor led to a specific business result.
The problem is, the RoW mindset can inhibit people from making sound business decisions for the simple reason that something is the right thing to do. The green-tinted RoW glasses can be like handcuffs, preventing businesses from implementing healthy long-term strategies because of a compulsion to show short-term tactical dollar returns. Calculating financial returns on specifics, in other words, can be a murky science at best – and a ball-and-chain at worst.
For years, people have tried to pin the ROI monster on training and development endeavors. And while there are a relatively few instances where you can make an accurate calculation of return on specific training interventions, by and large, training remains an article of faith in business – you simply know that trained people will do better than folks left to themselves. It’s the right thing to do.
Companies that are joining the conversation in social media are making a step of faith. Metrics are pretty immature in this field, but: does it make sense to listen to individuals in the marketplace? Is it smart to adopt a long-term strategy of engagement with customers at every level (including social platforms)? Is using every targeted means of communication an (overall) wise thing to do? The answer to all of the above, for many companies, is YES. So what if you can’t count which blog post or tweet led to which nickel in the bank??
There are some things that you simply believe are productive and effective even if you can’t prove them with a calculator. And, like Nike, you just do it.
What’s the ROI of investing an hour or two helping someone out who is on a job hunt? Maybe nothing. Or maybe, that person will open up a fabulous business opportunity downstream because they remember you. If you believe there is a return on helping people, because it’s right and because that’s how you’d like to be treated, then you make that investment without counting the nickels.
The fact is, sales happen and business grows primarily through long-term, multi-channel delivery of customer value and the marketing message. That’s the brand. It’s very difficult, in many cases, to calculate the ROI of one or more specific tactics. One incident of pleasing a customer may cost the company a few bucks in direct ROI, but another incident may lead to $100,000 of downstream value. Nordstrom’s prospered by going overboard on valuing the customer, even at the cost of a few dollars here and there…and that’s the point. They prospered.
What’s the ROI for Chick-Fil-A choosing not to open on Sundays, providing a day of rest for all employees? We don’t know, because it’s a decision based on doing what’s right, not based on spreadsheets and metrics. One thing’s for sure, though – you don’t find Chick-Fil-A looking for a financial bailout. Instead, they are growing (and, incidentally, doing a lot of social and charitable good as well). Perhaps more focus on the ROI in doing right should trump some traditional categories of financial calculation – as we are now painfully aware with the mortgage industry.
If you’re delivering quality, adding value, communicating effectively, trying new ways to reach people, and creating a growing reputation of excellence in the marketplace, you’re likely to get a good RoE (Return on Everything). Because all of it matters. Give out creative swag, use good technology, make all your communications top notch, and don’t get too uptight about calculating ROI for every bit and piece. Measure what you can, but embrace the intangibles also. If you’re running for the touchdown, you don’t need to be too distracted with counting the yardage markers!

I will make a public confession: I like swag. On the (now rare) occasions that I go to tradeshows, I love picking up interesting toys, tools, office supplies, and other goodies given away by vendors. And some of them make quite an impression – I still get regular comments every time I go to the gym in a Freshbooks t-shirt that has a blue tie screen-printed on the front!
I also like giving stuff away that, hopefully, will stand out. Recently, I sent clients and business partners jars of a particular BBQ sauce that I love, as part of a mini-campaign. It was memorable because it’s different – not merely another pen, hat, or post-it note.
Not long ago, a vendor gave away little earbuds with a retractable cord, perfectly suited for use at the gym. I used those things (and saw the company name being reinforced) multiple times every week. That’s effective swag-ger.
What about you? What have been the most effective giveaways you’ve used, or received? Let’s share some of the best ideas and resources we’ve seen for great swag in the Comments – I’m always looking for better ways to market, and I’ll bet you are too (otherwise you wouldn’t be visiting this blog)!

We’ve all seen companies named for their founder(s). Lehman Brothers. BlessingWhite. Any law firm you can think of. Naming a company after oneself may gratify the ego, but there are several crucial reasons why it may be incredibly short-sighted…

1. The name, in an of itself, communicates nothing about the purpose of the firm. Do you really want potential clients to be guessing?
2. The name may be awkward to pronounce or promote. Sure, you’re used to it – but you’re not the potential client.
3. When the founder leaves or retires, it is often too late, from a marketing point of view, to go through a major branding change. As my 7-year old might say, “you’re stuck with it!”
4. For the founder(s), control of a most crucial asset – his/her name – is lost if he/she moves on to another endeavor

I once worked for a company named Frank Barker & Associates. What does that name tell you? Well, the founder was Frank Barker, and he hired some associates. All market identity had to be grafted onto a name that carried no meaning, wasn’t sexy, and didn’t lend itself to sticky branding efforts. That’s self-defeating.
Right now, you could be doing your searches via “Brin and Page’s Internet Search Solutions”. Instead, you use one of the best-known brands on the planet: Google. Sergey and Larry had the forethought to create a brand name that could become bigger than their own names. And while we’re on the topic of bad naming conventions, certainly avoid meaningless acronyms (the bumble of a jumble) which cannot easily connect with the minds and hearts of customers.
Sometimes, you just have to bite the bullet and make the change to a more future-looking name, abandoning the initial name for something that can more easily accrue brand equity (here’s an example of one company that did just that). There may be times to name a company after its founder and retain that brand identity, IF the goal of the company is purposefully set out to be built around that individual. But if you’re looking to build something bigger than yourself, better to make a name for yourself by not naming if for yourself. Those who join you and follow after you will be grateful to have you in the corner office, and not emblazoned on the business card.

There’s a price to pay for rising above the crowd and seeking to lead. You become a target. Dirt bombs and mudballs find their way into your orbit, because if you win, someone else loses. And that happens in business as well.

Leaders – including market leaders – end up with dirty uniforms. Consider it, not a tragedy, but a badge of honor!
If you are a thought leader, or a dominant player in the marketplace, or an innovative competitor creating disruption, one of the spoils of success is that you’ll be attacked. Perhaps you’ve actually earned the opprobrium of your detractors by wrong or ruthless business practices (that kind of dirty leader isn’t good!), but perhaps your character is being publicly assassinated simply because of jealousy or hatred. It’s hard to break new ground or expand into new fields without stirring up some soil.
One way or another, few leaders escape getting dirtied. It comes with the territory – the territory of success!
Military, business, political, even religious leaders have all been muddied, bloodied, and publicly crucified – figuratively and literally – whether or not they deserved it. Leaders who are unethical reap what they sow, but even those who are sincerely trying to do the right thing will be spattered with mud, and moving from obscurity to the spotlight means that more folks will see the dirt – and perhaps even seek to add to it!
Of course, it’s important to manage your brand and your market image as positively as possible. To minimize PR damage. To quell lies and distortions. But the bottom line is, any dirt that comes your way may well be an affirmation that you’re on the right track. It may be that adding a little plastic bag of soil to your “award and honor shelf” will help you remember that earthly success has an earthy mark, and a bit of dirt thrown your way is something to secretly smile about. All the good ones get a little muddy!

We do this. And this. And this. And this. And this. And, oh, also that. Here’s the whole list of keywords, in fact.
Branding by bullet point. Really bad idea.
Why do companies do this? I think one reason is that they don’t want to miss any potential business. Therefore, they feel compelled, on websites, on collateral, and in presentations, to list off every conceivable thing they do. In a live presentation, it’s one of the quickest ways to start the audience on a business nap.
The effect? The company that claims to do everything is doomed to be remembered for nothing. Plus, credibility is instantly lost, as savvy potential clients know that no-one does everything well.
The answer? Distill your capabilities down to a single, distinguishing message. Sure, you may do six things – but what is the one thing that you are best known for? What is the flag that you wave highest over the marketplace of your competition? What makes your company unique? Focus on that, sell on that, and leave the list of capabilities as a minor sub-point.
Speaking of naps, let’s say you’re having trouble sleeping and need a new bed. Will you be more inclined to reach out to Sleepy’s (tagline: The Mattress Professionals. Advertising jingle: Trust Sleepy’s – for the rest of your life), or to Vinny’s Home Furnishing Outlet (tagline: Whatever – it’s here. Advertising jingle: Vinny, Vinny, we got the skinny). You can just imagine the endless list of “whatever” at Vinny’s – but you know that at Sleepy’s, they’re talking about what you’re thinking about – sleep.
Now maybe Sleepy’s, or your business, has some other things to offer besides the main front-and-center offering. But people will be more inclined to consider those bullet points once they’re feeling like you have the one thing they need.
One of my business partners had a website that contained the usual list. But there was one section that really stood out – deep client-side experience. I encouraged them to center their message around “we’ve walked in your shoes,” rather than the list of “stuff we can do.” Competitors claimed to do all the same stuff. But they didn’t have the distinguishing element of practical experience on the client side of the fence.
You can be quite NON-memorable by saying too much. But you can stand out by saying one thing well.

For those of you not familiar with Krispy Kreme, it is a shop that started in the U.S. south, and quietly grew until a decade or so ago, when the brand began exploding in popularity. Why? Two words – HOT NOW. You could go into their stores, watch the doughnuts being made, and sample them right off the assembly line, as hot and fresh and gooey as can be. A guilty pleasure-fest of empty, fat-producing calories. People would rhapsodize about the pleasures of eating Krispy Kremes, and when a new store would be inaugurated, through effective marketing techniques, huge lines of hungry folks – the zealots and the curious – would await the opening of the doors.
Now, from a graphical design perspective, their logo is nowhere near as attractive as many others, and certainly not as appealing as their doughnuts. But KK has earned a lot of brand loyalty, and so – at least for me – they passed the T-shirt test.
And the mug test (fair balance: I also have Starbucks mugs). I did pass on the HOT NOW boxer shorts, however.
Brand loyalty is often shown by a proud wearing of the colors – since you have very positive feelings about a certain company or product, you will gladly wear the T-shirt, the hat, and other elements of the uniform. Sports teams (college and pro) are the ultimate in this type of sartorial advertising, but your brand can gain a place in the wardrobe of its fans.
The first rule is simple: have a great graphical design for the item you’re giving away or selling. Classic, understated logo/tagline designs are commonplace and nice, certainly. Remarkable and funny designs are even more effective if they are congruent with your brand identity. I enjoy wearing my Ravenswood “No Wimpy Wines” t-shirt because it is not only humorous, but it has the wink-wink nudge-nudge element of an “insider” message (I appreciate good wine). And, I never fail to get remarks on my FreshBooks t-shirt, because it has a fake blue tie screen-printed on the front (and I don’t even use the FreshBooks software)!
The second rule is much more challenging. You clients and fans need to love you. You have to earn the right to be emblazoned on their body as they walk out the door. They need to riffle through their 25 t-shirts, see yours, and put it on with pride, ready to tell others how great you are. For no logical reason, they need to enjoy that cup of coffee just a little bit more in your mug. Not only because it’s cool-looking. But because they feel pretty cool having selected you for a brand.
What brands pass your t-shirt test? To paraphrase a recent credit card commercial: What’s in your closet? Share your favorite brands that pass the T-shirt test, and why, in the Comments!
(full disclosure: I should also mention here that there’s a very nice Marketing Profs t-shirt that is on regular rotation in my closet. In fact, I think I better go change right now…)