Whether we realize it or not, we are constantly exposed to marketing. Billboards, commercials, Facebook ads, t-shirts— you name it— it’s all advertising.
As a consumer, all this marketing might be something you skim by. Let me share with you how these things are not only advantageous to those of us who use marketing for our OWN businesses, but exactly HOW to utilize this influx of information.
This is where meditation comes in. I’m going to show you how to use the lessons of meditation to drastically improve your marketing.
Now, this may not be something you’ve thought about before, but trust me, it applies!
Meditation Basics
When you meditate, you are paying attention to your thoughts. The ultimate goal is to slow down your monkey brain, which is usually flying through a litany of thoughts —what’s on your to-do list, what someone said to you yesterday, the emails you got this morning, and anything else on your mind, moment to moment.
The common misconception about meditation is that you are supposed to be thinking about nothing.
But let’s face it, you actually can’t be thought-less for very long. Thoughts will still pop into your head. Instead, it’s your goal to watch those thoughts go by and not get attached to them. Your aim is to just notice them, as though they are just clouds passing you by.
Putting the Om in Your Marketing
Now how in the world does medication apply to marketing?
Well, as I said before, your monkey brain just going and going, jumping from tree branch to tree branch of different thoughts. And because your monkey brain is jumping so much, you miss a lot of golden opportunities.
Your mind misses valuable thoughts because it’s too busy grasping at the next vine to swing from rather than slowing down and paying attention to each tree.
Just as you practice in meditation, you want to slow down your thoughts when advertisements and marketing catch your attention – even if it’s for a split second.
As you take in commercials, pop-ups, Facebook ads, and billboards, slow down your monkey brain before it jumps to the next tree limb.
Let’s break down how you can be more mindful as a marketer into three parts.
- Why? When something catches our eye, slow down and ask, “Why? Why did that grab my attention? What was different about that? How did that connect with me?”
- How does it make me feel? Ask yourself questions such as, “What is the emotion that this commercial evokes? How was that a positive association? Was that a negative association?” Now you’re noticing what marketing efforts evoke which emotions, all by being mindful of what you might have previously ignored.
- How was this feeling accomplished? “Is it the colors, is it the font? Is it a big bold word? Is it that it’s very wordy? Is it music? Was it a twist at the end that got me? Or the fact that it was very straightforward?” Look at the components that make up the ad that caught your monkey brain’s attention.
The Key Final Step
Now, for the important part!
It’s human nature to forget things – easily and quickly. So, the key is to catalog what you observe. File away these observations so you can remember how to use the techniques you just discovered!
This is where you use what the industry calls a swipe file. In this case, it will serve as a marketing inspiration file.
I personally use Evernote to store my observations and inspirations, but you can create one wherever works best for you!
When an email subject line catches your eye, file it away with a note to yourself about what you liked, how it made you feel, and where you think you’d be able to use it in your own marketing, like an email sequence, a presentation, or a sales call. The possibilities are endless as to where you can use this information!
This way, when it’s time to create your next email sequence, lead magnet, etc, you don’t have to put yourself on the spot and come up with a brilliant idea right then and there–you already have a file full of techniques!
When you mindfully slow down, you can pay attention to what triggers your interest, break it down, and leverage it for your own marketing purposes.
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