Selling Ads in the West Point Bugle Notes has been an annual dreaded affair for more than sixteen years. But a sudden shift in strategy has turned dread to delight. Despite fear of missing its only market, one that has been slow to join the high-tech era, abandoning traditional methods of marketing in favor of online marketing has made all the difference in the world!
Everywhere we look these days there are attractive, seductive, provocative visuals to lure us into clicking, reading or watching. Without these enticements, we move right along until something captures our interest. Okay, it’s fair to say that there are indeed words that can do this as well. Actually, phrases would be more accurate. The right mix of information can succeed in stopping us dead in our tracks and getting us to pay attention. Combine that with the right image, and you’ve got a sure winner. But wait…let’s take that one step further: the right combination of words, the right visual and a crisp, professional presentation - now there is a formula that leads you by the nose down the path of no return. You’ve been apprehended without even knowing it. So powerful is the attraction that you’ve lost all awareness that you’ve been sucked into a trap, your curiosity propelling you deeper and deeper into the beckoning abyss. Suffice it to say that this constitutes the essence of effective marketing, one of the most manipulative forces in the cosmos. Transcending culture, intelligence, profession, and every other human characteristic, this is a phenomenon of unimaginable proportions, capable of moving an entire lifeform to a desired end. (more…)
Marilyn Bontempo has been directing Mid-Hudson Marketing since 1975, leading a diverse group of clients to long-term success with innovative vision and inspiring creativity.
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