Much of the marketing conversation today is about the new and emerging media.  But the real key to effective marketing is still ”The Big Idea”.    

Read the trade magazines, surf the Internet, attend seminars, listen to the buzz.  What you see and hear are conversations about the Internet, SEO, new media, social media, mobile marketing, new communication technologies and innovative new high tech products.   It’s exciting.  It’s cool.  It’s fashionable and culturally relevant.  It offers new and endless opportunities.  But as much as the communication landscape changes.  One thing does not change.  That’s the necessity of “THE BIG IDEA”.  All the talk is about the medium and the message has taken a back seat.  But it can’t!

The message is still king.  We can have any number of new and exciting communication media but it’s the message that is still of paramount importance.  We can understand and use all the new cool methods to communicate but they are useless without a compelling message…the big idea.

What separates us from the competition? What resonates with the consumer?  What provides a level of intimacy and creates loyalty?  What creates brand equity?  It’s the message…the big idea.   It doesn’t matter where we speak, or how loudly or how much.  It matters most importantly what we say.

Certainly we should embrace new technologies and new communication tactics and new venues.  But when we do, we must have something to say.  Something that matters.  Something that connects.  Without that we’re just talking.  But with a strong and compelling message, we can effectively communicate and build our brand using whatever tools and venues are appropriate.

So what’s the big idea with all the new communication options? The big idea is still “THE BIG IDEA”!!!