How do you determine what you will promote about your products or services? If you are like most companies, it happens in one of two ways. The first way I will call the Emperor’s New Clothes. You might remember the old fable of a regent who strutted around in his underwear, claiming that he had new clothes and only the enlightened could see them. So all of his subjects pretended he was fully clothed when they knew he was a loincloth shy of buck naked! In this scenario, the boss comes up with an idea (which he is usually very excited about) and everyone applauds his genius, even if everyone thinks the boss is a poor judge of what really works in marketing.

The second way is Group Think. This is where a group of people get together around a table and try to collectively come up with a brilliant way to market themselves. The hope is that several brains are better than one, thus there is more wisdom the more people you cram into the room. The problem with Group Think is twofold. First, in many cases, one person dominates the conversation and pushes an idea on the rest of the group. This is really no better than the Emperor method. Second, if there is not a dominant voice, then there comes a very long laundry list of features, advantages, and benefits that is the end product of the group. Everyone contributed, so they believe all bases are covered. The problem is, long lists don’t work when you are trying to market anything. But that is what typically happens with Group Think marketing – all listed as one bullet point after another.

There is a better way to come up with a marketing campaign. This is built around a process that weighs your brand’s best attributes against what the competition is doing and, most importantly, what your target market thinks is most important. Marketing campaigns are constructed from one thought that captures the attention of the potential customer. Campaigns are built around a slogan (aka taglines) that capsulizes the most saleable feature of the brand. They do so in very few words. I have listed 12 marketing slogans from national brands. Can you tell me the brand by the slogan?

• What’s in your wallet?

• The ultimate driving machine

• When you care enough to send the very best

• The best a man can get

• Eat fresh

• Betcha can’t eat just one

• Good to the last drop

• American by birth. Rebel by choice.

• Quality never goes out of style

• The world on time

• Save money. Live better.

• Think big

Answers are at the bottom of the page.

Take another look at these slogans and you will see that all of them are appealing to something their target market desires. In some cases, it is quality. In other cases, it is a low price. Others appeal to a lifestyle choice, such as the "Eat Fresh” and the " …Rebel by Choice. " In each case, they are designed to catch your attention, be easy to remember and easy to link to their respective brands.

So how do you go from a long list of your brand’s best attributes to a short phrase? Don’t throw away that list of bullet points you made in your Group Think meetings. First, define your target market by a common need they have. Next, take the list of your brand’s best features and circle the ones that help meet that need. Now from the circled attributes, underline those that are different from what your competition offers and are unique to you. It could be that you and your competition offer the same products, but your process makes it better because you can do it faster, or have better quality control, or have streamlined your processes so you can do it for less cost. Whatever that advantage is, take and build your slogan on it.

Remember that the slogan is to attract the attention of your target market. It is not to stroke the ego of the boss (Emperor) or to make your marketing campaign into a social experiment where every idea is equally validated (Group Think). Marketing campaigns are about getting customers to buy your stuff, not about you! So get past your bullet points and try to appeal to the customer. It is what successful marketing campaigns do.

See how you did with your connection of slogans with brands.

What’s in your wallet? – Capital One

The ultimate driving machine - BMW

When you care enough to send the very best – Hallmark Greeting Cards

The best a man can get - Gillette

Eat fresh – Subway Restaurants

Betcha can’t eat just one – Lay’s Potato Chips

Good to the last drop – Maxwell House Coffee

American by birth. Rebel by choice. – Harley Davison Motorcycles

Quality never goes out of style – Levi’s

The world on time - FedEx

Save money. Live better. - Walmart

Think big – IMAX Theaters