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Marketing Definition:
by Mike Lewitz

The art and science of understanding the needs, wants and desires of what makes individuals take action, then applying that understanding in communicating a message that inspires the existing emotional and irrational drivers of individuals to elevate a psychological need, want, or desire for a perceptively external, tangible and logical satisfaction, and enticing the action of satisfying that need, want or desire by acquiring specific knowledge, products, or services provided by a specific individual or group.

Discussion

• Marketing is both an art and a science.
• Human emotions are the forces that drive us to make decisions.  Thus, all decisions made by all humans are emotional and, incidentally, irrational.
• Emotional influences result in psychological needs, wants, and desires.
• Psychological needs, wants, and desires cannot arise from emotions that do not exist.
• We humans do not function on reality, but on a perception of reality we have created in our mind.
• We rationalize and validate our psychological needs with logical factors.
• Logic is external, rational, tangible, and measurable.
• Human logical conclusions drive us to seek out solutions.
• Since solutions are perceived to be logical, solutions are perceived to be found through external, rational, tangible, and measurable means.
• External solutions are (perceived to be) found though acquiring knowledge, products, and services.

There is no globally accepted marketing definition and the most widely accepted version evolves over time.  As my personal understanding through study and application of how psychological triggers are activated to cause people to take action, I have developed this current model marketing definition.  The goal is to help people understand the incredible significance of the irrational mind in the decision-making process.

Modern brain science has only recently come to discover that we are exponentially more emotionally directed than anyone ever imagined in addition to clearly understanding the parts of the brain that control the decision-making process.  In fact, our emotions are so critical to decision-making, modern brain science has discovered that people who lack the ability to connect to the emotional part of their brain, such as from a severe brain injury, are incapable of making decisions at all.

Many former definitions relate marketing closer to consumerism and the buying and selling process, and while this is certainly the purpose for doing marketing, these activities are not the marketing activity itself, but the end result of applying proper and effective marketing principles that facilitate the emotional desire to purchase specific things.

Some definitions of marketing suggest that marketing creates and/or delivers value.  The statement is somewhat ambiguous, as value is only determine by each consuming individual.  Value is only created in and determined by the mind of individuals.

Marketing only facilitates the understanding that value exists within a given product or service or piece of information.  Marketing does not create or deliver the value itself, although marketing does …and SHOULD always… direct the creation of value through the understanding of what consumers want.

For example: Suppose I write a book about how to change your oil in your car.  First of all, the ONLY reason I would write such a book is because I initially did some research and discovered there are many people who would like to learn how and don’t really know where to find answers.  (…just go with me on this…) Since you cannot acquire the actual value of the content until you read the book, you must first purchase it based on your value perception.

If you were a master mechanic, what would your value perception be of this basic, fundamental book?  Probably zero.

If you knew nothing about cars …AND… wanted to learn how to change your own oil, what would your value perception be, now?

What if I inadvertently titled the book: “Pepperoni Pizza: A Love Story.”

What is your value perception of the book, now?

Here’s where marketing comes in:
Marketing fills the communication gap …in both directions!

The real value of the book, as determined by the person who has a want or desire for the information in the book, is not based on the title.  Regardless of the title, the content of the book is the same.  Yes, the perception of the value of the book is changed …and this why understanding marketing is so important: it’s about activating the emotional triggers to get people to take action.

The job of marketing is to come in and demonstrate, or paint the picture of, the value; to give you the perception that the book is valuable to you.

While I’ve used an absurd example, it’s important to recognize and acknowledge that people DO evaluate value based on first impression or ‘the cover.’

So, ask yourself: “How many of your products and services, even your business name, have you named in such a way that people don’t instantly recognize the value?”

If you’ve done this, you’re walking an uphill battle.

The ThighMaster is a great real-world example.

The original inventor of the item (whatever he originally invented it for) couldn’t sell it for pennies.  A smart marketer came in, bought the patent, made a couple minor modifications, got a sexy, young girl to model it (Suzanne Somers), and called it the ‘Thigh-Master.’  They created a message that communicated the value to others in a way the original inventor was unable to accomplish.

They made Millions.

Why?  Because they understood what their potential buyers wanted and then slightly modified the product and created a message that spoke directly to the wants of their potential buyers.

But, the original product was essentially the same.  The intrinsic value never changed and the marketing did not actually create any value.  The marketing simply communicated the message that the item has value to those who were looking for an item that provides the value they sought after.

The value itself is actually created by the business or individual.  In a large company, marketing tells engineering that consumers prefer and value the color red and engineering creates what marketing research has discovered will motivate consumers to buy.

Sadly, too many business got it backwards.  They create their product, then go figure out a way for people to “market” (read: sell) it …often by the time things aren’t going well.

Because nobody knows what is going on inside the mind of others, research is necessary to determine the value triggers.

Understand what your customer wants, figure out the emotional triggers, build what they want, create a message that leverages those emotional triggers and entice them to buy …in that order.

That’s the application of the definition above and a proven model to get consumers to chase you to the ends of the Earth.  …now GO take action.

Mike Lewitz is an innovative marketer who truly 'gets' the mental and emotional thought processes of consumers. He's shown thousands of global business owners proven, cutting-edge marketing methods that bring abundant results.  Mike holds two Bachelor's degrees in business & marketing from the University of Phoenix and is currently working on an MBA at Western International University.

You may freely distribute, copy & share this article with acknowledgment.

Tags: decision making process, emotional influences, emotional triggers, marketing, marketing definition, Mike Lewitz

There’s an old fable attributed to Aesop known as the fox and the grapes.

Basically, the story goes something like this:

One day, a fox came upon a grapevine and saw some delicious grapes hanging from above.  He jumped many times desperately trying to reach the luscious grapes.  After his defeat from exhaustion, he walked away and scorned… “Those grapes are probably sour anyway.”

Have you ever done this …walked away from something you worked hard to achieve and told yourself you really didn’t want it anyway when you didn’t get your results?

Too often we try desperately to reach our goal and achieve success and ultimately fail for whatever reason.  When we allow a scarcity mindset to determine our success level, we convince ourselves of all sorts of things.

There’s a funny thing about we humans: we make all of our decisions base on emotion.  So, initially, we make an emotional decision to try to achieve a goal, and then when we don’t reach it we subconsciously create some kind of scenario to protect ourselves so we won’t feel emotionally let down.

The bottom line: if you really want to achieve something, just because you’re not getting the results you want when you want doesn’t mean you should walk away and feel resentful.  Maybe you just need to approach it from another direction.

Don’t let your emotions prevent you from achieving your goals.

“It’s supposed to be hard.  If it wasn’t hard, everyone would do it.  It’s the hard that makes it great.”  -Tom Hanks, A League Of Their Own

Mike Lewitz is an innovative marketer who truly 'gets' the mental and emotional thought processes of consumers. He's shown thousands of global business owners proven, cutting-edge marketing methods that bring abundant results.  Mike holds two Bachelor's degrees in business & marketing from the University of Phoenix and is currently working on an MBA at Western International University.

You may freely distribute, copy & share this article with acknowledgment.

Tags: fox and the grapes, Mike Lewitz

Let’s cut to the chase.  This is highly controvers…

Tags: al ries, branding, business success, jack trout, marketing, Mike Lewitz, positioning, small business

John Carlton may not say it with delicacy, but he’s direct and I think that’s what we like about his style.

“If everyone suddenly woke up and started being proactive, civilization would be threatened… because, at this point, much of the emotional infrastructure of human interaction is built around the voluntary zombification of the majority.”
~ John Carlton  http://www.john-carlton.com/2009/05/myth-busting/

Despite its truth, people still need to wake up out of their scarcity-based lifestyle and learn how to recognize the endless abundance that exists.  The whole notion that there is not enough money or natural resources, that we have overpopulation problems, not enough energy, etc, etc.  …these myths promoted by naive masses (sheeple?) are only there to perpetuate what is distinctly illustrated in Carlton’s quote.

If you wish to remain asleep, simply turn on the news.  They’ll tell you exactly what you should be thinking, feeling and buying.

However, if you wish to wake up, then figure out a way to step out of your comfort zone a little every day, choose to become accountable for every thought and activity in your life, and learn to recognize the endless abundance that is in your life as well as everyone’s life around you.  Use your newly discovered abundance to make meaning in the lives of others.

Mike Lewitz is an innovative marketer who truly 'gets' the mental and emotional thought processes of consumers. He's shown thousands of global business owners proven, cutting-edge marketing methods that bring abundant results.  Mike holds two Bachelor's degrees in business & marketing from the University of Phoenix and is currently working on an MBA at Western International University.

You may freely distribute, copy & share this article with acknowledgment.

Tags: abundance, John Carlton, marketing, Mike Lewitz, scarcity

So many people have been focusing on figuring out ways to make money for so long they’ve forgotten the whole point of money in the first place.

Here’s the deal:
Eben Pagan, an extremely brilliant and successful business man (whom I study often) said, “Focusing on working to make money is like focusing on driving your car to get gas.  It’s backwards.”

That quote represents the very core of every person who is struggling financially, regardless of the economic times.  Too many people are focusing on working to make money.

Money is simply an exchange of value.

That’s it.

By itself, money is just worthless paper or little metal discs with fancy artistic pictures (or numbers in a computer database).

If value isn’t exchanged, money isn’t exchanged.  This is so fundamental, yet too many people are stuck in their backwards thinking and don’t recognize it.

Now, someone is sure to pipe up at this point and say, “Well, yeah, but when there’s no money how can anyone exchange value?”

My blank stare response is:

If you believe there is no money …that the money factory burned down, or some clever ‘money-bandit’ showed up in the middle of the night and stole all the money and is hiding it deep in some undiscovered cave near a rural town in Southern Arizona… If you choose to believe what you see on CNN and the rest of the fear-based thought police and their headline news reports…

…then, what you argue for you keep, my friend, and you have certainly earned your right to be broke and stand in an unemployment line with nothing to offer but an open palm.

Money does not disappear.  Money moves around and it does not move until AFTER value is exchanged, not before.  Too many people are looking to exchange value after money is exchanged, or believe that money is somehow required to exchange value and, thus, value cannot be exchanged if there is no money.

This is quite sad, actually.  For anyone who knows how to exchange value with others, money will always be available.  Always.  Why?  Because, again, money is simply a means of exchanging the value, money is not the value itself.

Here’s a real-life scenario:
On Monday, February 16, 2009, Frank Kern earned almost $4 Million in 8 hours …and on a holiday, no less.

How did Frank Kern do this?  How was this possible -with “everyone” broke and “nobody has any money?”  Does Frank have magic powers?  Did he discover another secret money factory and not tell anyone?  Maybe he found that ‘money-bandit’ in an Arizona ghost town saloon and slipped a mickey in his Gin to make him talk?  Or maybe Frank has secret ties with some bank executives and swindled a few out of their bail-out money (Frank Kern is quite the wordsmith).

Seriously.  Frank understands how to give away huge value.  In fact, Frank Kern gives away TONS of value …with no strings attached… and so does Eben Pagan, along with many other highly successful people most of the world has never heard of.  They give their value away first without ever receiving a penny.  If these successful business people did not give their value away first, they would not be at their level of success.

The bottom line is: If money is just an exchange of value, and money is not coming to you, and value precedes money, then obviously YOU must figure out a way (or a new or better way) to start exchanging value with others, whether that is in your own business venture, at your job, or at a new job that allows you to exchange more value.

In other words… If you lack money, you’re not giving enough value to others.

A college degree is supposed to help you exchange more value.  Unfortunately, many people believe the value is just in the degree itself.  They don’t understand the degree itself is worthless.

As a quick, final point: Most people and businesses attempt to increase profits by raising prices.  Naturally this lowers the monetary buying power over time.  Years ago, a candy bar was 79¢ (and even less).  Now, they’re about $1.29 for the same candy bar.

Adding value to products and services increases monetary buying power.  I might sell a training course for $100 and give $100 in value.  However, if I also offer a $200 web site at no additional cost, now $100 buys $300 of real product, effectively increasing the monetary buying power.

The only way to solve personal economic issues is by giving more value to others -and as much value as possible.  If you are giving what is genuinely perceived by others as valuable, money will naturally flow to you.  This is the spiritual Law of Reciprocity and is unbreakable.

Focus on genuinely benefiting the lives of others and you will achieve a life of wealth beyond your wildest dreams.

Mike Lewitz is an innovative marketer who truly 'gets' the mental and emotional thought processes of consumers. He's shown thousands of global business owners proven, cutting-edge marketing methods that bring abundant results.  Mike holds two Bachelor's degrees in business & marketing from the University of Phoenix and is currently working on an MBA at Western International University.

You may freely distribute, copy & share this article with acknowledgment.

Tags: abundance, backwards thinking, Eben Pagan, exchange of value, frank kern, law of reciprocity, Mike Lewitz, money problems, money troubles, success, successful people, unemployment line

“We are all right now living the life we choose.”
Not certain if I read that somewhere else. If so, let me know and I’d love to give them proper credit.

We have full control over the life we lead and must learn to accept our responsibility for all of our decisions and actions (as well as our indecisions and inactions). So, the next time you feel unempowered about something, instead of saying “I can’t do…” or “I can’t be…” say “I won’t…”

It feels strange and kinda icky to say …as if we’ve suddenly realized our inability to do something is actually OUR fault or within our control and we’ve simply chosen to not take appropriate action instead of us just being a victim of some external, invisible force (like the economy -hint, hint). Saying “I won’t” places the accountability back on US. Yeah, it feels kinda weird at first.

When we say we won’t, it’s like we said, “Well, I could’ve if I wanted to, but I chose not to and I didn’t, but if I really want to I can and if I decide to I will.”  Instead, we’ve chosen to use the word “can’t” to take the responsibility off us.  Heaven forbid we accept responsibility for our decisions (even if they were subconscious).  We use it so often as an excuse, we’ve actually convinced ourselves that we’re now powerless.  “Can’t” is known as a slave word -it disempowers us, according to R. Neville Johnston (and I completely agree).

Using “won’t” is empowering.  We’re not used to empowering ourselves.  We feel out of place.  We must first recognize and acknowledge the power within us so we can bring it into our lives.

The neat part is… when you realize you’re no longer a victim and recognize you actually DO have complete control over 100% your life, you will learn to make BETTER decisions to have a better life. Cool, eh? (It’s that whole ‘Law of Attraction & Abundance’ thing. Check it out sometime. Really.)

Try it.

Choose to do it over and over. You WILL see a sudden change in your thinking.  To grow you must step out of your comfort zone.
And, naturally, when your thinking changes, your life will change right along with it.

Mike Lewitz is an innovative marketer who truly 'gets' the mental and emotional thought processes of consumers. He's shown thousands of global business owners proven, cutting-edge marketing methods that bring abundant results.  Mike holds two Bachelor's degrees in business & marketing from the University of Phoenix and is currently working on an MBA at Western International University.

You may freely distribute, copy & share this article with acknowledgment.

Tags: abundance, better life, happiness, law of abundance, law of attraction, Mike Lewitz, r neville johnston, scarcity, spiritual law, success

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