Brand Against the Machine: How to Build Your Brand, Cut Through the Marketing Noise, and Stand Out from the Competition

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Feeling Good

AT SOME POINT IN TIME the fun must have been sucked out of most businesses. The overwhelming majority of businesses take themselves way too seriously. They also take their marketing efforts too seriously. They are causing their brand to be extremely boring.

This is actually a very serious problem. No one talks about things that are boring. When was the last time a friend said to you, “You have to see this movie, it's so incredibly boring!”? Exactly. The best way to ensure no one cares about your brand is to be boring.

A boring brand doesn't land on people's radar. You might as well not exist. Sometimes entrepreneurs are so concerned about coming across as professional that they forget we are all humans. Yes, being professional is great, but remember that you're doing business with people. There's a difference between being professional and being a boring stiff. People like to be entertained. Somewhere we lost the human element to our marketing and business. Unless you're reading this in the year 4025, you are a human. It's okay to act like it.

A little humor and a little silliness every now and again shows people you're approachable, and it adds a human element to your marketing. People respond well to humor, and they respond well to people that like to have fun.

Take YouTube.com's massive popularity, for example. It is full of silly dumb videos, and it's awesome (have you seen the one with the monkey riding backward on the back of a pig? Awesome). The point is ...