Image: Blend In or Stand Out

What is your Buzz Factor? When you go to the closet to pick out your clothes, do you choose something that blends in or stands out? Are you trying to be invisible or in the spotlight? On a scale of 1 to 10, consider what your buzz factor is for various parts of your life and business. Dress: Buzz Factor 1 – I dress to match the people I am going to meet. I choose business neutral colors. I hear blue makes people trust you. Buzz Factor 10 – I choose clothing to stand out and let people know I am fearless. I create my own trends and people imitate my style. Website: Buzz Factor 1 – We have all the pages everyone else has. About Us, Contact, Products, Services…. And we have blue because we know that means people will trust us. Buzz Factor 10 – Our website engages the visitor. We are not afraid to state opinions, use bold colors and create pages that challenge people to think. We encourage employees to post on our site and in their own blogs. Business: Buzz Factor 1 – We keep at it and are making a modest profit. Buzz Factor 10 – We are nimble and not afraid to dump poor performing products, change direction or start new lines of products and services. We swing for the fence and what we do have a certain cool factor to it. We turn some customers away when it is not a good fit. Marketing Materials: Buzz Factor 1 – Our Logo is straight out of the sixties and it is what our target market expects from us. Buzz Factor 10 – We market in many different new mediums and use bold colors and images that differentiate us from others in our industry. We create viral marketing messages and pay close attention to word of mouth marketing. These are just some of the categories in which you can measure your buzz factor. Take time to understand how much buzz in each area is good for you and your business, and then start moving up the scale. Your goal should be to get noticed as an innovator, as your own person, and get people to talk about you positively to the people around them.