Santana’s version of “She’s Not There” did it for me. That’s the first song I remember hitting me in the gut. Carlos’s emotional outpouring and devastating tone left an indelible impression on my young brain. I’ve been playing guitar ever since. Along the way, I’ve picked up recording and music production skills, and about a year ago I started learning my way around a drum kit.

I’ve spent a ton of time in music stores, and I’m on way too many music-related mail and email lists. Some of these marketers are doing a fabulous job. Let’s take a look at a couple, and see why one gets my business for important purchases.

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We are inundated with marketing messages everywhere we turn. Every day, there’s another sale, another coupon, another offer. We start to tune it all out.

The solution, however, is not to stop making offers. The solution is to make better offers. Make your audience feel “more special”. How do you do that? Make it personal. Collect quality data from your customers and prospects, then leverage that into a personalized one-to-one marketing campaign.

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Much to my chagrin, the gym I belong to pipes bad 80′s music over the speaker system. While I will admit to liking a Bonnie Tyler song now and again, it’s certainly not what I want to listen to while I’m trying to get motivated for my next set. Consequently, I bring in my iPod and all is right with the world. The other day, while I was untangling the headphone cords, the Huey Lewis song “Heart of Rock ‘N’ Roll” drifted over the airwaves. I’ve always liked Huey (though I could have really done without this information), and this tune also mentions my hometown of Cleveland. But what caught my attention was this line from the chorus:
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