Marketing Brain Trust

Rest assured that no matter how smart you are, you do not know everything about marketing. You don't even know anything about marketing your product! You can't figure everything out yourself, or see all the angles, or provide every bit of critical thinking.

The solution? Create a marketing brain trust.

Use the mastermind principle which says more brainpower brought to bear on an issue means more ideas and greater insight. Gather together a mixed bag of thoughtful, intelligent people who have an interest in helping you create breakthroughs in your enterprise.

Adding brains to the brain trust produces non-linear results. Breakthrough results. Unreasonable results. Quantum Results. Because of the interactions among several people's ideas bouncing off each other, the increased thinking- effectiveness can be multiplicative or even exponential.

Enroll people into your marketing brain trust. Find people who have a vested interest in your success, or the success of your business. You can't have a great brain trust unless people are truly committed.

Your marketing brain trust can take different forms. If you want it to be official (and tax deductible) call it your Board of Advisors. Make it the board's job to help you pilot your venture. You can even ask each advisor to be accountable for a specific segment of information or knowledge, but their real role and true benefit is to work as a group - to release the mind synergy.

Meet periodically - monthly or quarterly - in person, or by phone, video conference, the Internet, or some combination. Check in with individual brain trust members between meetings. Keep them up to date on your progress; let them know how you are doing. You can pay your advisors and honorarium, or give them options on future ownership.

A different approach is to form a marketing mastermind group. This is less formal and less committed than a Board of Advisors. Gather the mastermind members together periodically and provide refreshments - dinner or perhaps just a case of wine. (I find that red is better than white for masterminding.) Entertain them while they ponder specific issues with you.

The job of the marketing mastermind is to bring alternate perspectives, help you create ideas, and in general, think things through in a way that looks differently than you would yourself.

Let your master-minders know topics in advance, and provide them with appropriate backgrounders to get their creative juices flowing. You may also ask them to suggest topics based on what they already know about you.

Try to make this group diverse. Your mastermind members need not be familiar with your particular business; in fact they need not be business people at all. Get artists, scientists, musicians, technologists, writers, humanitarians, hackers, theologians, philosophers, and psychologists - all sorts of creative thinkers, along with marketers, entrepreneurs and executives, to complement those members familiar with your specific business.

You should limit the size of your mastermind group to no more than ten or twelve people, although you can get started with as few as three or four. Really, any number is going to be an increase over just you.

Lastly, create a simple Roster of Marketing Brains. This is the network of friends, associates and acquaintance you can call on who are expert thinkers in specific areas, and might have some vested interest in seeing you succeed. Some of these people you barter with, some do it because they think what you are up to is cool and going to make a difference in the world, some of them you pay as consultants. You may never gather all these people together at once, but assemble them in ad-hoc groups to tackle whatever issues are at hand.

These three marketing brain trust formats are not mutually exclusive; you might have them all. After all, the when it comes to creative minds, the more the merrier.

---

Special Requirements for Reprint: We ask only that you include Paul's name and resource box, and keep all hyperlinks as live links.

To find out more about kicking your marketing strategies into high gear to increase your sales and profits, get in touch with Paul Lemberg at http://www.marketingsuccessdaily.com

---

Survival Strategies

1. Do the moneymaking things first.For an entrepreneur, generating income... Read More

You?re In Charge. Now What?

For years now, you have been waiting patiently for that... Read More

Business Promotional Items ? How to Stimulate Word of Mouth Advertising

If the promotional items you give out end up in... Read More

Stop Your Marketing Leaks

Thirty percent of all the drinkable water that runs between... Read More

6 Things I Know About Postcards That You Don?t

In my plethora of experience tucked away between these ears,... Read More

Build Your Business Through Networking

Here's one of the most important success principles you'll ever... Read More

Developing the Unique Selling Proposition

The "Unique Selling Proposition" advertising campaign was developed by Reeves... Read More

The Marketing Funnel: Simple, Effective Marketing Strategy

No matter if you're publishing your first book or producing... Read More

Focus...a Marketing Strategy

The secret to increasing sales doesn't lie in choosing just... Read More

Boost Your Direct Mail Response Rates with Mapping Technology

On Superbowl Sunday, Domino's Pizza delivered more than 900,000 pizzas-and... Read More

Neuromarketing: Smart Marketing Or Jedi Mind Control Trick?

In the international bestseller "Blink," Malcolm Gladwell explains why our... Read More

Five Joint Venture Marketing Skills A Small Business Owner Must Have

Joint venture marketing is a lucrative way of leveraging the... Read More

Tricks of the Trade: Design your Booth for Maximum Impact

The fight for your customer's attention at a tradeshow has... Read More

People Do Business with People They Like

People do business... Read More

Youre Halfway There!...Or Not Part 1

The year is almost over and the last half of... Read More

Send Postcards To Save Money and Cut Through E-mail Clutter

Use your computer to send personalized color postcards in quantities... Read More

Trade Shows Are Not a Waste!

According to the Center for Exhibition Industry Research (the trade... Read More

The Marketing Plan and the Four P?s

The Marketing Plan section of the business plan demonstrates how... Read More

13 Lessons in Marketing, Super Bowl Style

Each year, the Super Bowl provides marketers opportunity to study... Read More

What the Heck is a Campaign and Why Do I Need to Do One?

Many people ask me, "What is a postcard campaign, exactly?"... Read More

These Four Things Will Make Your Direct Marketing Successful

Direct marketing is built on four things. The other way... Read More

5 High-Impact Marketing Tips

Here are 5 high-impact marketing tips you can use to... Read More

How to Measure the Benefit Your Product or Service Offers

Measuring the benefit of your product or service means putting... Read More

How To Start A Mail Order Business

The Mail Order business is not a business of itself,... Read More

How To Be A First Class Marketer?

Did you now how to follow up a new customer... Read More

Creating Customer Value

The purpose of business is to create and retain a... Read More

Keeping Your Mailing List Clean and Efficient

Your mailing list retains its value best if... Read More

Make Your Marketing Solve a Problem

You may be engaged in a marketing activities that are... Read More

Viral Marketing with a Powerful Twist

What would you do with 500, 1000 or more additional... Read More

Defining Moment

Do you know your audiences? I mean really know... Read More

Who is Your Perfect Client

When I started my coaching practice I believed that I... Read More

10 Start Up Marketing Tips

This list has been compiled as a result of years... Read More

Money-Makers Secrets to Renting Profitable Mailing Lists

As an entrepreneur involved in selling and/or promotion... Read More