Awhile back... The email list  heard about my #niece. I was helping her with a project for her #marketing class.

I asked her last night how that went...

Turns out she got an A - .

Not bad. I don't think I've ever got anything over a B in my life.

But I guess the project didn't win any prizes in the competition.

Sorry about that Courtney... I guess I don't know as much about marketing as I'd like to think.

But the reality is... #grades schmades.

I'm not sure how you can "grade" or even "judge" marketing.

The only way to "grade" or "judge" is to #TEST. And that means it needs to be shipped. It needs to put out into the wild and see what results it returns.

Many people, maybe yourself included, are "judging" marketing based on what YOU like, instead of what your audience will actually respond to.

Marketing is not about you.

Marketing is about them.

#David Ogilvy, the original "Mad Men" said, "If it doesn't sell, it isn't creative."

Are you worried if your blog post is cool enough?... Are you concerned if your tagline is cute enough?... Are you stressed about making your marketing creative enough?...

Stop it!!! It doesn't matter. What matters is results.

Enter the conversation in your target prospects head. Market to them. Not to your own likes, dislikes or tastes. And then see what results you get. Your results will tell you what to do next.

To quote David Ogilvy again... "Never stop #testing, and your #advertising will never stop improving."

To recap...

You can't grade or judge marketing... You can't go with what you like or feel or your gut.

You gotta test it!

One last quote from David to drive this puppy home... "The most important word in the vocabulary of advertising is TEST. If you pretest your product with consumers, and pretest your advertising, you will do well in the marketplace."