When I say, do you really know what is going on out there, I’m not talking about just having a presence on the Internet. Actually having a presence on the Internet should be a given. What I’m talking about is your advertising and it is not just about key words and banner ads anymore. The Internet is where people are spending most of their viewing time these days. In an article just posted by Brand Week, “Custom content lures ad dollars to computer screens”, they begin to notice the new trend in viewing. It is not for just content anymore, however that is still very important and often required these days. People are flooding to the internet to gather more than just information and buy things. They are going there to be entertained! Last year alone, 10% of the people online, went there to watch their favorite television shows. It is also estimated that “by the end of this year, 40% of programming will be viewed through the Web”, said James McQuivey, an analyst at Forrester Research, Cambridge, Mass. That is a pretty staggering statistic and if you are spending endless amounts of your advertising dollars on television, it might be time to rethink your strategy. Online video advertising just might be the new “next best” thing.

For months I have been saying stop focusing on the features and benefits in your marketing. Finally, someone else is preaching the same message only this time it is directed to the sales force. To read more visit, Builder Online, “Listen Up”. In my opinion, both sales and marketing need to go hand in hand. The marketing must drive the traffic and the sales people must then close the deal. However, if they are delivering two different messages your audience is not going to connect with either.

In a market where everyone is completing for a much smaller pool of buyers, we need to start focusing on what potential customers are actually looking for, connections. I’m talking about connections with the property/community, with the builder, with the environment, with their emotions, and finally with the sales people.

In our upcoming newsletter, From the ground up, we are focusing directly on this topic as it relates to marketing. Stay tuned for a more in depth look at emotional connections and how they can change the tone of your marketing for the better.

One other thing I wanted to mention about making a connection, sometimes we forget that we are all people and one of the basic needs in our lives is to connect with other people. With the world getting more and more digitally connected every day, we are tending to get further and further away from actual face to face connections. If you ever want to learn more about how to grow and connect as a person or a business, Keith Ferrazzi of Ferrazzi Greenlight, and the best selling book, “Never Eat Alone”, is one the best speakers/writers ever to broach the subject. To visit his blog, click here.

Now go out and make more connections. Your entire self and business will change as a result

The experts are weighing in, at this point if you ask me, it is anyone’s “guess” where are economy is heading. I think if we look back at history, like Bill Fleckenstein does in his article on MSN, “Why we can’t cruise past a recession”, we might find that he’s not all that off base. He takes a look at history, and some reason it does tend to have a funny way of repeating itself.

I’m not trying to be all doom and gloom. However, if perhaps we recognizing things for as they are, it might be easier to take steps to fix the problems and not just continuing creating new ones. Food for thought.