Imagine I gave your business a magic marketing wand.

You get one wish.

What do you shazam into reality?

If your answer isn’t the attention of those you desire to serve, you’re wrong (sorry).

I rarely take hard stances. But I believe we’re all playing for the same thing: attention.

Thankfully, not from the same people. The smoke shop on Fifth Avenue is targeting the attention of a very different group of people than the Pilates place on Paramount Drive.

However, the downtown Peleton store competes with Pilates Place to get attention from the same people. And that’s where the game plays out.

I hope this isn't a surprise to you.

We’re monkeys.

We’re humans. But we’re really just thoughtful animals with clothes on.

We desire to be seen by those we identify with or aspire to be like. And to be seen, we first require the attention of someone else. It’s a critical component.

Imagine your best friend or spouse randomly gave you zero attention. Acted as if you don’t exist. That would kill you. And it has for those who have gone through “splits.”

The attentive gaze of someone listening to you speak can fill the spirit full quicker than anything else. It’s a built-in feature of the human to desire and bask in the attention.

It makes complete sense that marketing, a brand-to-human connection, has attention wrapped into it. Without the attention of your ideal customer, you can’t serve them. IMPOSSIBLE.

Unless you’re the local DMV.

What exactly is attention?

The term "attention" originates from the Latin word “attendere,” which means to stretch toward, to apply the mind to. For centuries, philosophers and psychologists have been interested in attention due to its influence on human behavior and cognition.

Psychologists such as William James (19th century) began to study attention in depth. James famously defined attention as "the taking possession by the mind, in clear and vivid form, of one out of what seem several simultaneously possible objects or trains of thought."

This definition emphasizes the selective nature of attention, which allows us to focus on specific aspects of our environment while ignoring others.

In the context of marketing, attention is of paramount importance as it acts as the gateway to a consumer's mind. Without it, a message or product is unlikely to make an impact.