With today’s Monday Morning Quote, author and marketing consultant, Tom Wanek, shares a quick marketing tip from Robert Wright, author of The Moral Animal: Why We Are, the Way We Are. Today’s quote discusses the limitations of you marketing strategy.

In this Monday Morning Quote, author and marketing consultant, Tom Wanek, shares a two-minute marketing tip from the wisdom of neuroscientist Jonah Lehrer, author of How We Decide. Today’s quote discusses simplicity in marketing and its effect on consumers.

Photos of your own customers and staff are best. Especially images that sparkle with candidness and authenticity. Please, junk those plastic-coated, staged photos. I promise, your customer can tell the difference between a phony and an authentic smile.

Now I admit, candid images are difficult to capture. By definition, candid moments are unplanned and occur in a flash, and you’re often too busy running your business to notice. That’s why, if you can afford to, hire a professional photographer to spend a day or two at your business.

But it’s unlikely photos of your customers and staff will be enough for all your marketing needs. No worries, royalty-free stock images will help you fill in the gaps. (Don’t even think about relying on Google image search. Images found on Google are likely protected by copyright laws.)

I always recommend using both original photos and royalty-free stock images. But you should set up a image depot and begin stockpiling images to improve your marketing.

Here’s a quick, step-by-step guide to setting up your own image depot:

1.) Purchase a good, easy-to-use digital camera for your business. And make sure its easily accessible. Stuffing your camera in a desk drawer will only ensure that it remains unused. Share in the fun and encourage your staff to take photos too. Oh, and buy plenty of batteries.

2.) Snap away. Yes, you might only get one usable image out of every 100 shots you take. That’s okay. The beauty of a digital camera is that you don’t have to pay for film. Just delete the unusable images and move on.

3.) Now, go to iStockPhoto.com and sign-up for a free account. iStock promotes a free weekly image and makes it available for members to download. If you’re absent-minded like me, be sure to schedule a weekly visit to iStock.

4.) Go to Crestock.com, and do the same. Crestock promotes a daily free image for members. Again, membership is free. And, although the quality of images won’t be as good as iStock, Crestock is a worthwhile image source.

5.) Create a dedicated file folder on your computer to store your images. I also recommend renaming the images once download to make them easier to find later.

6.) Buy the book, Presentation Zen. This book will become your “Image Bible.” It will teach you everything you need to know about selecting and using your new photos. Yes, Presentation Zen was written to rescue presenters (and audience members) from eye-melting PowerPoint presentations. But the guidelines found in this book will help you improve the imagery on your website and in your collateral materials.

7.) Most importantly, do something with your stockpile of images. Use them to rejuvenate your marketing brochures, advertisements and website pages.

That’s all. And yes, it’s that easy. Start your image depot now, and in a few short months, you’ll have a pretty good stockpile of images.

In this Monday Morning Quote, author and marketing consultant, Tom Wanek, shares marketing wisdom from Bob Hoffman and his book, The Ad Contrarian. Today’s quote discusses what comes first when branding your company. Have a great week!

Michele Miller recently commented on her WonderBranding blog that sliding sales have caused the head honchos at Burger King to finally wise-up and understand who buys their product. Women.

Yes, women. Which means, Burger King has been targeting the WRONG customer. For the past few years, the fast-food chain has been trying to woo males, ages 18- 34. (Oops!)

But here’s the kicker: Burger King’s marketing was equally ineffective at persuading this male demographic.

Allow me to explain: Burger King never tried to convince male consumers that buying a Whopper was a good thing to do. Instead, Burger King tried to entice male consumers with images of sex, which included mind-numbing, cheesy gimmicks such as the Super Seven Incher, Sponge Bob Square Butt and meat-scented body spray.

Not surprisingly, it didn’t work. You see, marketing ploys and gimmicks are equivalent to falsely screaming fire in a crowded theater. These tactics have a short shelf life, and will eventually hurt your credibility.

At the heart of it all, Burger King’s marketing was focused on being surprising and entertaining. But, entertainment is NOT the goal of marketing. The goal of marketing is to persuade. Just know that ploys and gimmicks rarely persuade because they lack relevancy. And your brain immediately discounts that which is irrelevant – even if the information surprises you a little.

Today’s edition of Monday Morning Quote discusses marketing wisdom from the book, A Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Construction. Yes, this is a book about the architecture and design, but this quote is extremely relevant to your marketing efforts. Have a great week!

Make no mistake, selling a bushel of rotten apples will cripple any company’s credibility. But Toyota’s recent quality and recall headaches are especially devastating.

For more than three decades, Toyota has been synonymous with quality. The reliability of Toyota’s vehicles became a linchpin for the company’s credibility, and it’s most defining trait. So iron-clad was Toyota’s quality that Consumer Reports magazine would regularly assume an average reliability rating for the company’s newest vehicles, all without ever relying on survey data from Toyota owners.

Consumer Reports no longer gives Toyota a free pass.

And neither do consumers. Quality is a characteristic that you and I no longer associate with the company.

Yes, the halo is broken.

Watch Toyota’s recent television ad below. The ad is brilliant. But do you trust the company now when they tell you that Toyota vehicles are the world’s most reliable?

I didn’t think so.

Here’s a more accurate barometer of the public’s opinion of Toyota:

“I got this beautiful car, now I’m afraid to drive it,” said Maria Ciresi of Smithtown, New York.

I don’t mean to kick Toyota when it’s down. Really, I don’t. I only want you to appreciate that YOUR company’s credibility is inextricably tied to its defining characteristics. And this relationship is fragile. Betray your company’s defining characteristics and your credibility will surely tumble. Just ask Toyota.

Today’s edition of Monday Morning Quote discusses the wisdom of Al Ries and Jack Trout from their marketing classic, Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind, 20th Anniversary Edition. Have a great week!

The heart of the problem: It’s a noisy world. Five thousand advertisements ambush you and I daily (Yankelovich 2008). And many of these ads are saturated with ad-speak and hype, leaving consumers more than a bit overwhelmed.

So, what can you do about it?

Consider forming an exclusive marketing partnership with a complimentary business.

The marketing partnership between Select Comfort and Radisson Hotels provides a sparkling example. Since 2004, the two companies have teamed up to outfit Radisson hotels with the Sleep Number bed – a move that provides a marketing boost for both parties.

So let’s quickly break down the marketing benefits for each.

Benefits for Radisson:

Swapping out the standard-issue hotel mattress with the Sleep Number adjustable bed creates a strong point of differentiation for Radisson.

More than anything, you want a good night’s sleep while away from the comfort of your own bed. Right?

Now Radisson can promise you what no other hotel chain can: personalized comfort. Just dial up the exact degree of firmness that allows you to sleep like a baby.

Benefits for Select Comfort:

The Radisson partnership gives Select Comfort a way to introduce its Sleep Number bed to consumers in a non-intrusive way, cutting through the clutter of ad-speak and hype.

Better yet, it allows the company to demonstrate the comfort and versatility of its Sleep Number bed. After all, there’s nothing more persuasive than giving customers the opportunity to experience the virtues of your product or service before buying.

Conclusion:

I’m unaware of financial details of the agreement, but I’m betting it’s a win-win for both companies. I imagine Radisson gets a sweetheart deal on a top-notch mattress for its hotels, while Select Comfort benefits from an effective, inexpensive way to advertise its product.

Ready to take action? Make a list of complimentary businesses you can explore negotiating an exclusive partnership with. But don’t stop there. Call or send an email to each. You never know what opportunities will emerge.

Today, I’m kicking off a new series on my blog called, Monday Morning Quote. My thought is to ease you into the workweek with a quote that relates to your marketing and advertising. I’ll briefly discuss the quote and explain the wisdom behind it.

Today’s quote is from legendary advertising executive David Ogilvy, and discusses the goal of advertising. Have a great week!