Imagine this. You’re driving down Route 1. You’re passing field after field, many of which are dotted with black, white, and brown cows. (I know, I know. There aren’t that many cow fields on Route 1, but stay with me on this. There’s a point.) So you’re passing all these black, white and brown cows and then, all of the sudden, you spot the most remarkable cow that you’ve ever seen – a PURPLE cow!

Well, you stop your car to take a closer look. You get out your camera and take a few photos. You call your friends on your cell phone and tell them “You’re not going to believe what I’m looking at right now.” When you get home, you make an entry about the cow in your BLOG and you send a few emails out to friends 'from away'. You want to let them know there's more to Maine than lobsters. And so on…

In other words, you become a one-person marketing machine and sales force for the “purple cow experience.” And you convince a good number of your friends, near and far, to get in their cars and go take a look.

So, what in the world do purple cows have to do with your business? Absolutely nothing. But, being purple – or, more specifically, remarkable – has everything to do with what you do in your business.

This basic idea is the subject of Seth Godin’s simple book, Purple Cow: Transform Your Business by Being Remarkable. In the book, he describes how being remarkable – with your service, product, business model, employee relations, etc. – isn’t a ‘nice to have’, but a necessity to survive. The remarkable factor should be built into and a part of everything you do.

Admittedly, being remarkable is not a particularly original idea in the business world. However, the purple cow parable provides an easily remembered visual for communicating the marketing power of a remarkable business. Remarkable businesses – like purple cows – sell themselves.

Here’s an example of a remarkable business here in Maine: L.L Bean: You can return an item for any reason at any time – period. 1 day after purchase or 10 years. They don’t care; they want you to be happy. AND the Freeport flagship store never closes. They’re open 24 hours a day; 7 days a week; 365 days a year – period. They don’t even have locks on any of the doors in Freeport! Now that’s remarkable. (Besides the quality of the merchandise is good, the prices are reasonable and the people are pleasant and sincerely helpful. Now that’s remarkable.)

So, in what ways is your business remarkable? In what ways could it be remarkable? And, most importantly, what will you do to make that happen? No one will do it for you.

Until next time, Think Big and Be Bold. It all starts with a vision.

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