Escape From Cubicle Nation.

Pam Slim and I met in a non-descript corridor in the Austin Convention Center about six weeks ago. We'd known each other for some years. She was an early commenter on this blog and we'd spoken via phone and email on a frequent basis, but we'd never met. The fact that we immediately started chatting as if we'd seen each other yesterday speaks volumes to me and made me think.

Because if marketing is all about making people like your product/service so much that they want to hang out with it, wouldn't it be useful to ask oneself the question "What makes me like somebody?". Not with the aim of anthropomorphising your offering along the lines of the ghastly Microsoft Clippy, but to identify the traits that appeal on a human level.

For me, some that spring to mind are common sense, energy, intelligence, communication, transparency, realism, passion and fun. Pam has all these in abundance which is why I like her and which is why I think you'll like her book that came out yesterday. When the time comes that you choose or are forced to go it alone, you should have it (and her) by your side.