Purple Cow by Seth Godin

The concept behind Purple Cow came from his family trip to France, many years ago. For the first twenty minutes of their drive through the countryside, the whole family was struck by the beauty of the landscape, and the magnificence of the countless brown and white cows that dotted the countryside. Within twenty minutes, however, the cows became part of the background, never worth mentioning again. Even the "best" brown cow they may have seen later in the trip was not worth mentioning. BUT. As Godin suggests, had they suddenly driven by a Purple Cow... that would have been worth talking about.

The classic bestseller that taught the business world that safe is risky, very good is bad, and above all, you're either remarkable or invisible.

We've all experienced it, I'm sure - something new captures our attention and is so unique, so remarkable that we can't help but focus on it; can't help but talk about it. Purple Cow is about re-creating that "this-is-worth-mentioning" feeling with our products, services or company. It's about creating something truly noteworthy; something that makes people sit up and listen. and then automatically share what they've discovered with their friends.

Starbucks was also a small business when it was a single coffee shop in Seattle 33 years ago. Since then, it has grown from a single coffee shop to a $4.1 billion international company today. The Starbucks marketing strategy has always focused on "word-of-mouth" advertising and letting the high quality of their products and services speak for themselves. For years, this has been uniquely Starbucks, and it has played a huge part in making Starbucks Coffee Company a success.

So how do you build something remarkable? Be passionate about solving problems. Be passionate about making something that you truly believe in. It will be easier for you and carry over to your product or service. And, to create an idea (and a product or service) that spreads, don't try to make a product for everybody, because that is a product for nobody. Since the there are too many choices in today's huge marketplace and people are fairly satisfied, an "everybody" product probably won't capture their interest. Find a niche market and overwhelm it. Own it. By starting with a niche market that you can provide a solution for their problem, you will find people more likely to listen to what you have to say and they will most likely tell others.

"In his book Purple Cow: Transform Your Business by Being Remarkable, Seth Godin says that the key to success is to find a way to stand out--to be the purple cow in a field of monochrome Holsteins...He is uniquely respected for his understanding of the Internet, and his essays and opinions are widely read and quoted online and off."
-Forbes.com

"Thousands of authors write business books every year, but only a handful reach star status and the A-list lecture circuit. Fewer still-one, to be exact-can boast his own action figure. . . . Godin delivers his combination of counterintuitive thinking and a great sense of fun."
-Businessweek

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