Many DigiDame readers have spoken to me about ideas that they want to bring to market. Some ideas are just that, ideas. Others are inventions, concepts, or services. It doesn’t matter what stage you are at, you need two things: money and a marketing plan. I learned early on from the money people that they will not give you a dime (and you shouldn’t even think of spending a cent your own money either) unless you have a clear plan about how you are going to market “the big idea” and who are your target audience.

That may seem like a simple concept to you. But, in reality, it is much more difficult to make a marketing plan than it is to develop an idea. Most sophisticated investors claim that they have seen more great ideas go down the drain because no one really knew how to market the product or concept. The good news is that no one person has the corner on ideas for marketing. Sometimes the best idea comes from the guy behind the counter at the candy store down the street. The not-so-good news is that marketing ideas have to be executed the right way and often reinvented to succeed. What works one day doesn’t always work the next. To some, that is the fun of it.

So far, the ratio of good ideas to terrible ones in the world of marketing is five per cent to 95 per cent. I may be slightly exaggerating, but you get my drift. I am not even saying that my ideas are the good ones, but at least I know which ones work and what effort has to be put into a project to make something happen. I am sure you’ve heard the expression “Success is ten percent inspiration and ninety percent perspiration.” Thomas Alva Edison. One of the major reasons I am still around after all these years is that I am willing to sweat. I would not recommend this kind of challenge to everyone, but if you are passionate about what you do then you have a good chance of succeeding. I have said this before and I will say it again. “You can make it happen. You can make it work. You possess the power.”

This post is surrounded by two videos that our client RELM Wireless created to “rise above the noise” in the land of the mobile radio business. We had nothing to do with the creative. I wish we had. This will get the attention of the press and prospective buyers of their product line. There are eight videos in total which get sent out on a weekly basis to targeted audiences. They are abstract and funny. It beats the usual pitch. This is just one of many marketing tactics. I hope you get the idea.