January 21, 2009

The Importance of Listening

Happy new year, all (yes, it still is new)!

The new year is a time for changes, for starting the new and shedding the old. And so we are. After a great deal of consideration and sincere comments from people we respect, we have decided to rename our project, our concept our book from Fear of Marketing to, well, we're not sure yet, though we have some ideas. We listened, we heard.

While the name Fear of Marketing is provocative, which is one of the reasons we like it, we get that if we want people to listen to us, we need to impart a positive message. As an adolescent, I spent many hours in junior high in the counselor's office, where he had picture of a road with a big yellow line down the center that sat directly in my view when I sat in the chair next to his desk. It had a caption that read, "Respect is a two way street." Being a problem child had its perks, like getting out of class by getting sent to the counselor's office, I learned something in those many hours: Respect is a two way street. We get that if we want people to listen to us, we need to listen, too.

So as we're changing the name of the blog, we get a new logo design and very likely will change the look, including the color scheme. So we ask you? What do you think? Be honest. We crave your input. Why? Because we are market driven. (In corporate speak, "We eat our own lunch," or in the more colorful vernacular, "We eat our own dog food.")

Good marketing is about listening to your market. So tell us... What do you like about the look and the layout? What don't you like?

We're out here...listening.