Out of the corner of your eye

Juxtaposition matters. And so does surprise.

Most marketing is intentional. In this ad I will advertise this product.

So is most writing. A knitting blog writes about...wait for it... knitting.

Our mind is prepared for what we are about to receive. If it's a sales pitch, we're ready to ignore it. If it's on a familiar blog, we're ready for it to be familiar.

Real memories are created by surprises.
Real change is created by unexpected juxtapositions.

Time magazine used to work (when it worked) because an irrelevant and slightly loopy article about some unusual idea was right between an article on Israel and one on welfare.

And New York City works, when it works, because the zoning is so mixed up. Right in the middle of the meat market district... there's a high end clothing store.

Most marketers, probably you, are busy putting your round pegs in the round holes that have been given to you. What if you did the opposite?