Maxim: a proverb; a truth pithily stated.

In the hundreds of marketing books, courses and other resources I have studied over the years, I have found few that approach the subject the concepts, the maxims, that make it all work. Most are full of techniques, but the truly creative, innovative marketing campaigns come from understanding and using the feel, the concepts.

A maxim is more than a saying, it is a fundamental principle or rule, especially one intended to advise or recommend a course of conduct. In legal matters it is defined as a proposition of law that because of its universal approval needs no proof or argument; the mere statement of which gives it authority. In sociology a maxim is an inner attitude toward the meaning or content of a continuing social relationship. And in philosophy, it is a statement expressing a general truth or rule of conduct.

The Maxims that have guided my marketing success were developed from personal marketing experiences over 30 years. Some were first published in 1997. Some may be familiar, others were literally stumbled upon as I worked in marketing management, sales and sales management, especially after I started WEB3Direct.com. They began as a way to identify the concepts, the “feel,” that makes a successful direct marketing piece or campaign. After having verbally taught and conveyed these over the years, my staff and other marketers began referring to them jokingly as “Brantley’s Maxims,” and the name stuck. Like marketing, the maxims that make it all work aren't static. I'm constantly discovering new ones to add to the list.

In this blog we'll explore what I consider the core of marketing: understanding the many relationships prospects have with your company, what turns suspects into prospects, and prospects into buyers, and how to use these concepts to tailor your online and offline marketing campaigns to have greater results. But it won't all be about marketing.

I've found as a master marketer that everything in life seems to be filtered through the maxims as well. It's hard for me to see an ad, a new product, a political speech or a social problem and not relate it back to the marketing, the market, and the messages that are being sent. For example, I have three daughters. I'm constantly aware of how marketing messages target girls -- and usually with a negative "under the radar" message (you're too tall, too short, too fat, too thin ... you NEED this, this, this...just to be OK). So this blog will also explore some of life's musings and dig a little deeper than how to write a good salesletter.

Anyway, that's the objective. If some of these thoughts trigger some "maxims" you've discovered as well, let me know! Might even feature you here on this blog!

Carpe Diem!
Emerson