Below is chapter 2 of Brand it Yourself. In it, you’ll be introduced to Lynn Altman’s Brandmaker Express and to a day in the life of Lynn.

The Recipe in Action

The recipe for success is only as good as the cake it bakes. So while you might agree (or not) with the theories behind our business model, youre probably wondering how it actually works to solve any number of branding and new product needs. By understanding what I go through on a day-to-day, project-to-project, challenge-to-challenge basis, you will better see how you can learn to become an expert brander in the chapters to come.

The Brandmaker Express process all starts with a thorough briefing. In most cases, this is a two-hour, face-to-face meeting where the client tells me his challenge, wishes, and objectives. This can range anywhere from a very broad new product assignment, such as: Whats the next new line of cough and cold products? to a very specific repositioning effort with a very specific audience, such as create a meaningful repositioning communication for Wheaties cereal targeted to the boomer market. The range of assignmentsand
productsthat I encounter is truly amazing. One week Im branding a new small business loan, the next week Im creating the latest greatest finger food for four-year-olds. But no matter what the assignment, there are two essential questions that I must be able to answer before I feel comfortable moving on. The first is, What are the clients goals and best wishes for the product? Lots of times, clients have multiple audiences, multiple objectives, or they have a larger plan that my project is just a small part
of. Other times there are certain buckets (marketing-speak for areas) they want me to work within or imperatives that each concept must meet. By understanding what the real expectations are for the project output, I can do a much better job of meeting them. Disappointment is one of the worst emotions you can ever evoke from a client, and death of the business to boot. But such disenchantment can come from being too creative, not just the other way around.

That brings me to the other must-have of a briefing: As important as knowing client wants is knowing client wonts. I am ever surprised at the number of consultants and gurus who shove their pet philosophies and their own favorite ideas down a clients product pipeline. Why would I ever want to create new products or branding options that could not or would not stand a chance when there are plenty of ideas that will? Theres no point in having a brilliant idea if its totally unusable, which is exactly what
makes this kind of creativity so challenging and rewarding. For an idea to be a good one, it has to also provide a workable solution.

The balance of setting expectations and limitations in my work as well as yoursis essential to success. Before you do anything, you should be able to articulateto yourself if no one elseexactly what you are hoping to achieve in your branding endeavor. How do you find this out? Ask questions.

While there are certain questions that are common to all briefings, such as target audience and competition, there is no formal guideline to what questions I ask. In most cases, a briefing is a cross between a brain dump and a therapy session, where every bit of information I get leads me to a question that might dig deeper into the psyche of the audience, manufacturer, or product itself. If a financial company told me they want to brand a credit card for busy people, I might ask what these people are busy doing
or what they wish they had more time to do instead of thinking about credit cards. Or if the product is a line of hair care products geared toward twenty-one-year-old women who love washing, conditioning, and styling their hair, I might ask what they like about it or how they feel once theyre through with their coiffing routine.

Sometimes, the briefing is no more than a conversation, other times the client has outlined every last detail, fact, figure, table, and graph based on weeks or months — even years — of market research. Neither way is better than the other. I love information in all its forms and would like to think that I pull out what I need from either one of those scenarios.

Each new assignment gives my brain a real creative buzz. Thats because my mind is simultaneously swimming in a pool of possibilities while trying to wrap itself around the complexities that each project brings. I get a rush of energy (and sometimes fear) and I dont want to wait too long to get my thoughts down on paper.

Have you ever left a meeting totally jazzed about what was being discussed and had so many ideas you couldnt wait to start? What happened to those ideas? Most of the time, they get diminished by other tasks and responsibilities and fall into the wasteland of good meetings that went nowhere. Thats why immediately following the briefing and before the excitement subsides, Im writing down all the possible ways to solve the challenge at hand. These include, but arent limited to, identifying specific functional,
emotional, visual, and tactical opportunities. I also write down, in very broad strokes, the areas I think might be fertile ground. In some cases, it can be a word or a phrase, a characteristic, an attitude, or a general style I find promising even if I cant quite visualize how its going to play out. In other cases, I instantly imagine a solution but have to find the creative meat that will make it a strong piece of communication. Just like waking up in the middle of a night from a dream that I swear Ill remember
in the morning and then dont, writing my initial ideas down is an invaluable discipline for me. I know that I can come back to these notes later, discard some, add others but if I wait a few days Ill never be able to recapture those first sparks of creative thought.

The next step in the process is translating each opportunity area into an exercise for two invention workshops that take place a few days after the briefing. Unlike a lot of blue-sky brainstorming sessions, these workshops are highly disciplined and designed to elicit potential solutions for one specific hypothesis at a time. In a typical branding project, Im looking for these solutions in the form of names, headlines, taglines, rally cries, and photographic images. Again, not because I am an advertising wannabe,
but because these mediums give me an abbreviated, marketplace-driven communication for a certain brand or idea. I also want to fashion the exercises to force people to express themselves in ways theyve never had to before. For example, if I think the key to certain brand communication is the fact that its easy to use, I might ask how Calvin Klein, in his one-word simplicity, would name an easy-to-use product. Or I might ask for a song title or lyric that already has the word or thought of easy in it, such
as Easy Rider, ABC, Easy as One Two Three or Take It Easy. (Its interesting to note that one of the most creative challenges of the process is developing the format for the workshops. The format is my version of trend analysis, my strategy sheet, my marketing plan; and it is the step that is most responsible for carving out new creative opportunities and solutions.) The benefit from creating the format is twofold: As much as it helps me get a grasp on the project, the parameters, and its possibilities,
the exercises themselves are responsible for generating an incredible amount of raw creative materialbits, pieces, and parts of ideas that will act as creative inspiration and fodder for our finished concepts.

In the end, there are about thirty exercises that comprise the format for the workshops. A team of two facilitates the session tag-team style, so that with each exercise comes a fresh voice and a fresh face. No one ever has more than thirty seconds to respond to an exercise because especially in a brainstorming environmentI want only their initial responses, which are as instinctive as they are intuitive. Those top-of-mind replies are the ones that generate the best ideas, the best products, and the best brands
precisely because thats how consumers shopintuitively, instinctively, impulsivelyand the more of those cues I can tap into, the better.

There are two consecutive workshops per project. The first includes a range of participants from the client side, including the tried and true folks in marketing, sales, market research, and product development. But we also love having the less-than-predictable participants from legal, finance, and operations. They have the knowledge of the product or brand, without having the common been there, done that mentality that lots of the marketing veterans have. The added bonus to having a diversified group is that
everyone gets excited when they start to see the possibilities at hand, and also feel (and rightfully so) that they played a role in its success.

The second workshop taps into the creative minds of people whom we call our Creative Souls. These are entrepreneurial and inventive people who, by vocation or avocation, are creating the trends and not following them. These creative souls come from the fashion industry, the cosmetics industry, graphic design, editors and contributors to popular magazines, creative writers, actors, bartenders, chefsthere may even be an extremely creative marketing maven in the mix. They are incredibly inventive, expressive, use
none of the typical jargon, remain blissfully unaware of internal buzzwords, and have complete freedom from the negative baggage that the client may have accumulated. Now be very sure that this is not a focus group, nor is it intended to be. The clients have already covered the close-in thinking, based on experience, knowledge, and familiarity with the objectives at hand. And because the format is so specific and disciplined, these fresh minds only react to what we give them, which ensures that even if they dont
know a lot about a particular subject, they can still create ideas relevant to the project. Some more traditional marketers might find this hard to believe, but Ive seen it happen again and again.

The key client team is there to observe this second creative workshop. The team has already participated the previous day, so this gives it a chance to be a little more subjective. The team members can listen to the actual strategies and thinking behind each exercise in the format, and also take a step back and listen to the responses that spout from the mouths of this very dynamic, creative group. Some of the ideas that come out of the second workshop reiterate and substantiate the client responses, which is
good. To me that means that people who have rarelyif everthought about this particular business react and respond in the same way as those who think about it all the time. Other answers, to be sure, are totally new and different than anything any of us have heard or thought of up until that point. Admittedly, half of it is what Joe likes to call dreck, which means that its either too weird, too already done in the category, or just too . . .too. But the other half, well its a mother lode of raw material
and nuggets of genius that add greatly to our work and our output.

Immediately following the second workshop, we meet with our clients for what we call the Reality Check Luncheon. This is where the single-minded thinking really comes into play. After two very intensive invention days, Ive been exposed to lots and lots of ideas. My job now is to pick out what I feel are the areas worth pursuing. How do I do that? How do I know which ideas are worthy and which are not? The I know it when I see it method of Justice Potter Stewart is the methodology I practice. Certain areas
of exploration are more fruitful, and its obvious from both the quantity and quality of the replies for that particular exercise. Other words or visual thoughts make every person nod his or her head and make each of us wish that we had been the one to create it. These are the good ideas and they naturally rise to the top.

I start the discussion with about thirty to thirty-five of the ideas I find most promising and review each single minded area with the client. I am looking for their thumbs-up, thumbs-down, cautionary words, or red flags for each conceptual area. Together, we usually narrow the list down to a workable twenty potential areas for creative development. This reality check is not a frivolous step by any means. I know that my team has only ten working days to create twenty fully developed concepts, and I have no interest
in wasting valuable time or effort on any less-than-favorite solution areas. This is such an essential step in our success because it allows us to communicate on a very practical and tactical level with our clients. Theres no blue sky, no pontificating, no fancy words (like pontificating)just the cut-to-the-chase identifying of the areas to move ahead with and a comfort level for everyone involved. I know that I can continue developing the ideas that are pre-stamped for approval and the client knows that the
only surprises will be how the concepts come to life.

The ten-day countdown begins here. It marks the time from concept agreement to creative execution of the ideas and is crucial to achieving marketplace magic. Any consultant can paper the walls with a million ideas but few actually see them through to a finished product or brand. The discipline of bringing the ideas to finished form lets us and our clients see what happens when the theoretical and the strategic become real. The ideas are flung from the safety of research-friendly concept statements, theoretical
products, and branding strategies and brought into the uncertain world of consumer communications. They will become vulnerable to all the same irrationalities, idiosyncrasies, and impulses that real products and brands must face.

All of the work I do is presented in the form of an introductory print advertisement. Again, not because my secret hope is to break into the advertising world, but because the print medium forces ideas to be communicated quickly and concisely without the luxury of a hundred-word concept statement or a thirty-second television spot. During this step, my partners and I literally tackle each concept one at a time. We create headlines, taglines, and visual thoughts first, since those are the three key touch points
of our style of communication. We start out by focusing in on what we want to say and see if any of the verbatims from the workshops or ones we create on our own could work. Sometimes its a name or a visual that gives us the key to communicating the idea. In any case, we know that each idea has to be easy to understand, compelling, and singular in focus. This requires a lot of pushing, pulling, and refining in order for it to work.

Here is what you might overhear, if you were a fly on our office wall:

Lynn: Lets do the concept about consumer satisfaction.

Joe: Okay. Someone at the workshop had that line, Your customers will be satisfied for a lifetime.

Lynn: Well, that also has longevity in it. I think we should just focus on satisfaction, something like:Satisfy your soul.

Joe: That doesnt really make sense to me. Is there something visually we can do that says satisfaction?

Lynn: How about just a close-up of a smile, like a billboard, with the words: You are here.

Joe: Love it! Then the enduring rally cry can be: Get satisfied here.

Its an odd example, I admit, because its totally out of context and without a real product in mind. However, there are a few interesting things going on in this kind of interaction, which is the point of the example in the first place. First of all, its a constant discipline to come up with a truly single-minded idea. Secondly, ideas do not happen all at onceits good to have someone to bounce ideas off of if possible, and, if you dont, then its good to play devils advocate with yourself. Create ideas
in a vacuum and you usually come up with clouds of dust. Lastly, and perhaps most important, theres a huge difference between a strategic direction such as satisfaction and the consumer-friendly expression of what that actually means.

Theres a second scenario here and one that I think bears mentioning. This is when the idea sounds good on paper, but is very difficult to bring to life in a concept. It typically happens when an idea is too broad, too convoluted, or trying to do too many things at one time. Often, we dont know it is any of those things until the actual moment we try to convert it into consumer-focused language and visuals. Take a look at scenario B, this time with a product:

Lynn: Lets take a swing at customer satisfaction because of our one-page approach to insurance.

Joe: Okay. How about, One page and youll be happy.

Lynn: One page of what? How about, After just one page, our customers are happy.

Joe: No . . . it doesnt really say enough about what the one page is all about. How about if we give the one page a more formalized name, like: Were proud to introduce the One-Page Approach to insurance.

Lynn: I love that idea, but now its missing customer satisfaction. But at least now I get what the idea is all about.

In a case like that, we may decide that since weve covered customer satisfaction in another concept, the real news here is indeed this unique one-page approach. Maybe customer satisfaction becomes more of an umbrella concept for lots of different product thoughts, such as the one-pager. Point is, a lot of times, consultants who stay in the theoretical dont have to put their ideas through the same kind of practical filter, and never get to see exactly how message hierarchies can work within a brand. Conversely,
if we only thought executionally without having to commit to one specific selling message, then wed be no better than ad agencies who often fall victim to very creativehowever hollowcommunication.

The process of bringing the ideas to life in this one-at-a- time fashion takes nearly three full days. For each one, we have to agree on a thematic set of words as well as a visual thought that best conveys every single concept. We have to be able to envision how it might play out, and also make sure that each one could potentially provide a real and complete solution to the challenge at hand. And when twenty concepts are at stake, it amounts to a lot of work. When naming is involved, it typically happens during
this time, although names are tough and can slow down the project momentum, so we often add in names throughout the ten days. Once we have the headlines, taglines, and potential names with the ideal visuals in mind, we meet with our art directors who are responsible for understanding what each concept is about and finding the right kind of images and pictures that will best communicate each idea. We dont want to show a general, meaningless picture of a woman smiling in her kitchen simply because were talking
about a dishwashing product. If the idea about this dish soap is that it will take less time to wash the dishes, then we want to show the woman specifically leaving the kitchen, not standing in it. As the art directors search image banks, stock photography sources, and magazines for the right kind of pictures, it again forces us to make sure that the ideas we have envisioned can actually be communicated. Sometimes the art directors tell us that our ideas dont make enough sense, sometimes they find a picture
and we realize that its the picture we want, but the words we initially chose have to be revised. Other times (and I truly love when this happens), they find a picture, and it either changes our thinking altogether or inspires a whole new concept we had never thought about before. And thanks to so many online resources such as Google Images and royalty-free stock photography sites, it shouldnt be hard for you to also find the pictures that best suit your concept.

Once the pictures are in place and the ideas are beginning to take form, we return to the concept wording. For each concept we must write a concise paragraph of supporting copy that explains in very brief terms exactly what the concept is about and the reasons to believe whatever it is that were asserting in each one. I am a staunch believer in the three sentence rule: Say what the concept is about, why the product fulfills that idea, and say see you later with a nice wrap-up thought. To continue with the
dishwashing liquid concept, we might say:

Speed up your dishwashing routine with One & Done dishwashing liquid. This incredible dishwashing treatment contains fast-acting beads that go to work fast and rinse off in a flash. Plus, it comes in such great scents and is so gentle on your hands, youll fall in love in an instant.

Considering that this short paragraph is still three sentences more than consumers ever read about a certain product, there is a definite takeaway here, which is speeding up your dishwashing routine. There have been projects where weve taken much more of the billboard approach, where the visual element and main headline told the entire story and body copy simply didnt exist. This happens more often with high imagery brands, such as spirits, fashion, and other nonfunctional categories where clients knew there
would never be an actual reason to believe in the products communication. Take Absolut vodka as an example. The imagery was the brand. If forced into a typical marketing-concept writing, it would say something absurd such as Absolut vodka is the brand you drink when you want to reflect your sophisticated self or The more you drink Absolut vodka the better you will feel about yourself.

All of this creative development takes us ten full days. On day eleven, were back to our clients with the finished project, and theyre typically quite delighted. Sometimes they have minor refinements with a visual choice, name, or product claim. Other times, they go straight from presentation to research, utilizing the concepts in qualitative or online testing.

I know you must be wondering about the times when a presentation has failed. Thankfully, there have not been that many, but they do happen and usually one or more of the following four elements are in play: The key decision maker has not been present throughout the process and doesnt see his or her pet idea in the mix; there are multiple agencies working on the same project and competition (and criticism) becomes fierce; objectives are elusive and change several times throughout the project; or, we screwed up.
While the built-in reality checks and spectrum of ideas lessen the likelihood of a total train wreck, snafus are unavoidable. I remember right before one presentation the client was mad because he had wanted us to join him for lunch but we couldnt because we had to catch the last plane out in order to get to a meeting in another city the following morning. In our defense, no one mentioned anything about lunch, but that was not taken into account. He sent down his subordinate to tell us that he was not a happy
man and that we had to change our travel arrangements, which we couldnt. So we presented to an already unhappy client who had some other agencies at the presentation who took advantage of our doghouse status and critiqued nearly every concept we presented. Years later, this client switched companies and hired us on four separate accounts. Nobody (besides Joe, maybe) was more surprised than me.

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This excerpt comes from Brand it Yourself by Lynn Altman, Penguin Books, November 2006. If you like the excerpt, perhaps you should check out Lynn’s visit to our blog.

What if a company recruited you by sending bits and pieces of your future story with them? That’s exactly what the University of Oregon does to recruit their football team. Here’s a look from Mind Your X’s and Y’s at way various organizations personalize their marketing efforts to reach Gen Xers and Yers.

SHINE THE SPOTLIGHT

Extreme Personalization Gives Marketing a New Face

Chris Murphy sits down in his bedroom to open the mail. The walls are lined with ribbons, trophies, and newspaper clippings.1 The headlines say it all: Murphy has the right stuff. States top receiver eyes the championship. The rest of the room is your average teenage haven an Xbox on the floor, CDs piled next to an iPod, and a stack of comic books in the corner. The pages are frayed and worn, but seventeenyear- old Chris hasnt spent much time reading comic books in the last year. Hes been too busy
with school, social life, and football. Chris is a senior and the star receiver on his high school team. Hes already tasted the thrill of state championships. Next up, college.

Several times a week, a new batch of letters arrives from schools across the nation. They all have the same goalrecruiting Chris. He tears into one crisp envelope after another: Dear Chris, To Mr. Murphy. They bear formal seals and read like textbooks. At first the attention was flattering. They all want me? Chris thought with amazement. Soon it became difficult to separate one school fromanother.

He opens an envelope from the University of Oregon in Eugene. Poised to throw the paper on the trash pile, Chris stops. Its a partial comic book. Thats cool, he thinks, and starts flipping through the pages. Each frame looks professionally drawn. The only thing that sets it apart from his own stack of comic books is the black and white pagesNational Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) recruitment bylaws prevent all schools from sending color materials. Hes about to set it down and head out for a run
when he realizes theres something very different about this comic.

Mouth open in amazement, Chris flips back to the front cover. The whole comic book is about him. The title page reads, The Amazing O-Men. Mild-mannered Chris Murphy or Catch-everything C. Mack? A Hero Is Born. In the top right-hand corner is a personalized C. Mack logo intertwined with the Oregon O. Chris is the star of the story, which begins as he joins the Oregon Ducks and starts his collegiate football career, and each frame is drawn with a remarkable likeness to Chris himself. He methodically
scans each and every page, then jumps from his bed and dashes out the door. By the end of the week, all his friends, his parents, and even his football coach have read the comic.

For the next few months, Chris eagerly awaits new installments. He receives a new section every couple weeks that takes the story just a little bit further. Its the first envelope he opens when the mail arrives and the only college mailout he reads from top to bottom.

One week, he receives page 13.

Heres the snap and a quick pass to Chris Murphy.

The next frame shows an ESPN broadcaster looking out over a packed Autzen Stadium, rising to his feet as he describes each play.

The next page is blank. A brief note tells Chris that hell receive the final piece when he visits the Eugene campus to check out the school in person.

Chris pulls out his duffel bag and begins packing.

College sports are big business. Money, prestige, and school reputations are all at stake, and everyone wants to snag the hottest highschool prospects. In the spring of a students junior year, colleges begin sending mail to potential student athletes. Most schools work with the more-is-better philosophy, flooding their prospects with letters and materials. The University of Oregon has taken a vastly different approach.

Back in 2002, Oregon decided to differentiate itself by combining traditional form letters with graphically rich mailers of different sizes, layouts, and formats. Their aim was to send their prospects more information of higher quality than any other school in the country. Every piece of mail was aligned with the Oregon football brandan in-your-face, cutting-edge look that infuses everything from the green and yellow uniforms to the schools state-of-the-artfacilities.

In 2003, the Oregon football staff and a team of twenty sportsmarketing interns launched a poster series that featured action shots of uniformed players (the face in shadow) with the recruits number running through the Oregon O. The players name was spelled in bold letters at the top of the poster and the bottom copy read, The Future of Oregon Football. The idea was to help each prospect build a relationship with Oregon by visualizing himself playing in the Ducks uniformas if he were already part of the
team.

The first posters were sent to a handful of prospects with a personal note from the Oregon coaching staff. People were thrilled. Many recruits mentioned the personalized posters to their coaches, requested extra copies, or even contacted the recruiting staff to inquire about Oregon for the first time. The posters were used to welcome prospects and their families during official school visits. Opposing coaches mentioned the posters to Oregons staff with considerable envy as they noticed them framed, front and
center, in many living rooms during their home-recruiting visits. The posters were clearly doing their job.

It was time to step it up. With the 2004 recruiting season on the horizon, the Oregon staff challenged themselves to create a full campaign that was targeted, personal, and innovative.

Deryk Gilmore, director of player development, and his team of student interns set four key objectives for 2004:

1. Organize a separate mailing campaign for individuals who receive a written offer from Oregon.
2. Individualize all mail in the interest of recruits and their personalities.
3. Create specific identities and logos for recruits that bond them with Oregon football.
4. Strive to be innovativeconstantly redefine the cutting edge.

They dubbed the campaign Coming to Oregon, and launched several initiatives, including the wildly successful personal comic books. Oregon football coaches also sent handwritten notes to each prospect on a weekly basis and outlined their favorite drills and training techniques in graphic postcards mailed to the prospects high-schoolcoaches.

In the late stages of recruiting, coaches also brought in magazine mock-ups. They entered players homes with mock-up copies of sports magazines featuring the recruits on the cover wearing Oregon uniforms. Instead of showing magazines depicting former Oregon stars, the marketing team decided to help recruits visualize what a career at Oregon could produce.

Parents were included in the process, too. The team created a diploma series, which reinforced the schools commitment to academics and to helping their sons graduate with high standing.2

THE CRAVING: SHINE THE SPOTLIGHT

The Connected Generation is eager for personal recognition. They want to make a differenceor at least a splash. The marketplace is waking up to a national obsession that sees ordinary citizens make their mark, achieve celebrity, and rise to prominence. Whether its singing on American Idol, writing a book or blog, getting their video on Current TV, or being celebrated as the next great surfer, this generation longs to be recognized for who they are and what they bring to theparty.

People are looking for their big break; they enjoy being big fish in small ponds. They feel ready to be known, and ready to have their dreams and experiences acknowledged and legitimized. Hand over the microphone and start the cameras rolling. Give them the backstage pass and the insider treatment. These folks are itching to stand out, stand up, and be celebrated with their names in lights (or print, or pixels).

In response, companies are waking up to the power of personalization and highly engaging tools that celebrate individuals talents and potential. Personalized license plates, stamps, and mailing labels were just baby steps. Today, a whole slew of high-end products put you smack in the center of the action. Companies large and small are getting in on the opportunity. Masterfoods has taken M&Ms color customization process one step further. The candies can now be printed with two lines of text, up to eight
characters on every bite-size piece. Consumers can have their own custom-colored, personally branded treats for $9.49 for an 8 ounce bag (a plain old bag of M&Ms of the same size runs about $2.85).3

New York independent art and design catalog company Elsewares (www.elsewares.com) offers a custom six-panel comic drawn to order by artist Mark Weber, whose work has run in The New York Times, the Village Voice, Rolling Stone, and Playboy. Hand-drawn, 8×11 art on 11×14 acid-free paper, the custom comic strip is a cool $150. If books are more your thing, husband-and-wife team J. S. Fletcher and Kathy Newbern will write you into one of their
romance novels. For about $50, the intended couple can relive their romance in one of eight personalized books that range from mild to wild, incorporating into the text not only you and your sweeties names, but also your hometowns, occupations, pet names, hair color, perfume, and so on. At Highly Flammable Toys (www.highlyflammabletoys.com) film-school grad Russ Tucker will feature you on a custom 81/2×12 inch movie poster ($95, plus shipping). You can add
film critic quotes and a list of fake credits.

En masse, customers are leaving the audience and taking the stageready to stand in the spotlight. Brands that tap into this powerful need with highly creative and customized efforts will get not only some great buzz, but a whole new level of loyalty and brand ownership to match.

Why We Crave the Spotlight

1. Were hardwired.
   
   Its human nature to crave attention. We all want to be recognized and celebratedwhether its on the football field or in our daily lives. We want to be understood, supported, desired, and even courted. We want to feel special.
2. Were burned out.
   
   Weve all spent years being yelled at from the television screen. We dont want to be told anymore to buy the latest detergent or open a savings account. Consumersespecially media-savvy Generations X and Yare cynical and extremely educated about the entire marketing process. Add in a collective obsession with celebrities, and people everywhere are longing to experience the insider treatment. They want to feel like someone really cares about their dreams and desires.
3. Weve seen whats possible.
   
   The quest for a high profile is now entrenched in our cultural fabric. Everyone knows a handful of people who have been plucked from the ordinary and enjoyed their fifteen minutes of fame. Its fun to watch and observe real lives, and we feel like our own days might be just as interesting. New venues such as MySpace.com and Current TV, plus podcasts, blogs, reality television, and interactive Web sites, allow us to share our unique personalities and talents with the world. These new tools have made it simple
   to launch us and our friends into the public eye.
4. Theres a sense of entitlement.
   
   Members of the Connected Generation see the market intimately tied to their own lives. Its a web of opportunity to explore, not a hierarchical structure to climb or conquer. I deserve it and Im ready for it now, is the common attitude. This group is not looking for a slow build, and they dont care about paying their dues.
5. Every industry has a celebrity culture.

   Celebrated experts are everywhere todayno matter how mini or mundane the industry. From sought-after eyebrow shaper Anastasia (one of Oprahs favorites) to celebrity chefs who teach thousands of home cooks how to make thirty-minute meals, to plastic surgeons and dentists who orchestrate extreme makeovers, to landscapers, carpenters, and mechanics who outfit homes, yards, and cars, people have become famous for doing even the most behind-the-scenes work with flair and personality.

   Thanks to the proliferation of new media, including a vast wilderness of television cable channels, there are a greater number of people who receive widespread recognition and global profile. Add reality and unscripted television to the mix and you have a veritable celebrity free-for-all, with has-beens getting second chances and no-namers leaping into the headlines.

6. People want profile in familiar formats.
   
   Television, video, magazinesthe basics still count. New media is everywhere, but people want to be where the daily interactions occur. They dont necessarily want to win awards or fellowships; they want profile. In the past, only the wealthy got their names out there by funding a library or backing a new hospital wing. Today the options are broader and the criteria for celebrity are random, quirky, and wide open. Consider Jared the Subway guy, who became famous for losing weight by eatingSubway sandwiches.
7. Youthful celebs wield major power.
   
   Popular media are celebrating the youth culture more than ever before. The old Mickey Mouse Club has turned into a talent pool for young performers like Justin Timberlake and Christina Aguilera. With so many kids in the spotlight, children begin dreaming about their own celebrity sooner and with greater specificity. They also start preparing earlier. Kids are groomed to play college sports when theyre still in grade school, and parents, teachers, and coaches have all signed on to give their prodigies a jump
   start.
8. We see where profile can take us.
   
   Jessica Simpson was a B-list singer living in the shadow of Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera until her MTV reality show, Newlyweds, hit the air. What followed was an amazing series of lucrative opportunities, including cosmetic and clothing lines, product endorsements, movie roles, and countless magazine covers. Its not clear how long her star will shine, but she is a stellar example of how greater profile can open the door to financial and social prosperity. As consumers, we watch and learn.
9. We want promotion without the appearance of self-promotion.
   
   Theres a fine line between self-promotion and having other people celebrate and recognize your contribution. While the Connected Generation craves the spotlight, its not considered cool to just shamelessly self-promote (to a point). You need other people to celebrate your talents and abilities. If one of the Oregon recruits made his own comic book, it simply wouldnt fly. Currency comes when someone else highlights you.

By all accounts, Oregons integrated marketing program was a huge success. The materials and innovative strategies were just one piece of the puzzle, but they helped the coaching staff land what many called Oregons greatest recruiting class ever. In fact, Allen Wallace, national recruiting editor for Superprep magazine (www.superprep .com), called the coveted and talented 2004 freshman group the surprise class of the year and ranked Oregons group of recruits number 10 in the nation.4 The previous year, Oregon
had ranked a mere 41 out of 117 competing schools.

Recruits consistently expressed excitement about the materials and attention they received throughout the year. Perhaps the best indicator of success was the number of recruits who assumed their superhero personas while still playing for their high-school team. Local newspaper and online articles highlighting the athletic achievements of Bone Crusher, Action Jackson, The Dominator, and others surfaced in hometowns across the country. Although the Oregon marketing team was careful to work within all NCAA
recruiting regulations, word spread about the incredible materials the school was sending to its prospects.5 The NCAA no longer allows Oregon to send comic books to their prospects.

Although the marketing approach had approval from NCAA governing officials prior to its launch and worked within industry guidelines, competing schools were up in arms over the unfair advantage it appeared to give the team. In a nutshell, Oregons marketing was scary good and it got them shut downa minor setback for a crackerjack creative team that has a habit of topping themselves each and every recruiting year.

Oregons recruiting campaign is an inspiring example of going over the top for a desirable inner circle. It was smart, savvy, and effective. Here are the key lessons to take away from the University of Oregons considerable success.

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Thisis an excerpt from Mind Your Xs And Ys: Satisfying the 10 Cravings of a New Generation of Consumers Satisfying the 10 Cravings of a New Generation of Consumers by Lisa Johnson, Free Press, August 2006.