The Studio Source.com

I have perfectionist tendencies. When I embark on a new writing project, a little monster appears on my shoulder and tells me it’s going to be a dismal failure. Life coach and author Martha Beck claims this is why writers drink. In my world, that little monster can become a major creative block.

There’s a cognitive therapy technique that allegedly helps banish these thoughts. You ask yourself what’s the worst thing that could happen, then deconstruct your faulty thinking by then asking yourself what’s so bad about that worst thing. Repeat as needed.

When was the last time you got a handwritten letter in the mail? We don’t see many handwritten letters anymore, or printed letters carefully laid out on beautiful stationery. It’s a treat when it happens. You get a little thrill when a package arrives in the mail, even if it’s something you bought and paid for yourself.

In my imagination, a new bank starts up. They send me a yo-yo, with the word “Steady…” engraved on the face. The introductory letter says something like, “We know how it feels, watching the ups and downs of the economy. We’re here to help you plan sensibly for a more secure future, so you can enjoy today.”

Here’s some insight from my other life, the one where I design and create work I sell directly to customers.

Last year, people weren’t much into gift boxes. Excess packaging wasn’t cool. This year? Just about everybody is saying yes. They’re spending less, for the most part, but they want the things they’re buying to be special. This year, a little detail like a gift box is important.

I suspect that customer mindset will stick around for a while.

That doesn’t mean dressing up a low-priced item with fancy packaging. There’s an old saying about silk purses and sow’s ears, and a good reason it’s an old saying.

That doesn’t necessarily mean you panic and drop your prices, either. You might be able to break a psychological barrier ($39.75 instead of $40.00, maybe, or breaking up services into smaller, more affordable pieces), but if a price is too low, the thing attached to it becomes cheap. You’re not selling to people who want cheap. You’re selling to people who want value.

People are thinking carefully about how much money they have to spend. They’re thinking about how they can find the best value for that money and still give a gift that will delight the recipient.

They’re getting it right without overthinking it: something thoughtful, that doesn’t break the budget, wrapped with care, because the recipient is important.

That approach should form the foundation of your marketing efforts.

The Prince George Hotel in Halifax, Nova Scotia has started a series of billboard ads. The first one featured a beaming bride-to-be getting ready for her wedding. Two hotel staff members in classic black and white chambermaid uniforms are helping her with her gown.

The second billboard I saw on Saturday. This one features a family seated at a dining room table. Mum and Dad are only visible from the neck down. Their little guy, seated between them, has an expression of utter bliss on his face as he contemplates the only object on the table—an elaborate confection in an enormous glass goblet.

The message on both billboards is simple—anything for you.

This just in—the economy is a construct.

I know. That’s not news. We usually think of the economy in terms of paycheques and employment rates and the price of electricity and groceries. But the “economy” is like a strange fantasy world where we exchange pieces of paper for the work we do. Somebody somewhere put a value on that work, and we more or less agree with that value. The things we buy are also assigned a value. Sometimes that value changes.

It’s pretty weird when you think about it that way.