Having Problems Marketing Mobile? Economy Got You Down?

One of the biggest marketing challenges--whether pushing mobile devices or stuffed teddy bears--is getting noticed and not ignored. As a marketer, you write news releases, create product and pricing strategies, maybe advertise a bit. But you still have a gut feeling no one's listening. Not good for your social life. Worse if your boss is pushing for increased sales.

You're not alone. A brief glance at this morning's Wall Street Journal:

• "Citigroup Fund Bars Exit by Investors After Bad Bet" (Hedge fund problems)
• "Spitzer Warns Bond Insurers" (Triple-A credit rating challenges)
• "Where Will the Crunch Hit Next?" (Mortgage Insurers counting their declining pennies)
• "Lack of Commitment Keeps Stocks from Engaging Rally" (Bernanke's frustrated)
• "Bear Probe May Center on Investor Call" (We're not talking grizzly's; It's Bear Stearns and hedge funds again)

On the other hand, there is some good news or, as we used to say, "behind every dark cloud is a rainbow."

• "Traders are Eating Up Wheat" (I'm glad they're not eating corn.) No, actually, this one's about spring wheat futures--one of my favorite subjects)
• "Restroom Decor: Germy Doorknobs Inspire Inventors" (Covers a door handle-mounted device called a "SanitGrasp" that keeps your hands clean as you exit a restroom. Ah, my grandmother would have loved this one. You know "cleanliness is next to Godliness."
• "Bush Touts His Gains in Africa Before Trip" (Lame duck Presidents--especially this one--always need good news.)
• "Seeking South Beach Serenity" (Art Deco, et al, in a Florida hotel. "With the teak walls, antique jade carvings, dim lighting and neutral silk fabrics, our room at the Setai Hotel in Miami has a serene vibe, right down to the New Age music coming from a source we can't determine and the do-not-disturb sign with a topless Asian figure embossed in gold metal, finger to lips in a 'shihh' gesture." Boy, that will get your mind off the global credit crunch in a hurry.)

If all inspiration eludes you, you can read my old eBay cell phone reviews, my parody posts on MarketingBeyond, or visit that Florida hotel for its serene vibes.