In the same way, a blogger who knows how to use a single big idea as his/her underlying concept for all the articles on the blog will really stand out from the crowd. This is marketing at it’s finest.

Think about Frank Kern. What makes him stand out? It’s his underlying (and not immediately obvious) big idea of the surfer dude lifestyle that speaks of freedom. Everything he does communicates his big idea, dropping subtle hints to your unconscious mind that if you buy his stuff, you too can lead a free life like him. Powerful stuff.

Celes, you already have some great ideas. If you can take one of them, specifically your “Sleepwalking” series, and make it into your Big Idea that anchors everything you say, I believe your messages will grow ten times as powerful! (There’s a reason why you had 18 Trackbacks and 24 comments for that article!)

Btw, Michael’s article was from his Early to Rise newsletter. It’s simply the BEST newsletter I’ve come across, and the ONLY one I read daily. I reposted this article with permission. You should sign up for his newsletter too! Go to http://www.earlytorise.com

Charles, I love what you said about big idea being the underlying concept vs. just the headline – the big idea is not always what’s immediate obvious. It’s the anchor which connects all elements of the marketing plan and drives the whole campaign forward. Which is why the big idea is so critical, because if it’s off, all the parts will fall all over the place too.

Look at one of his examples. The one with the lead for the salesletter that is – “Imagine yourself wearing a top hat and tails, on the balcony of a private rail car, the wind whistling past as you sip the finest French champagne …”

The Big Idea is that the Internet was going to have as big an impact on the 21st century as the railroad had had on the 20th century.

Now, think about it, the salesletter could have been written in any way. I’ve read the salesletter before, the product is selling Investments in Internet Companies. An ordinary headline “earn 25-75% more than other stocks” could have worked, but instead why did the copywriter write so weirdly. (What rail car…? What French champagne…?”) That’s because he is using the Big Idea comparing the Internet to Railroads.

The reader becomes far more compelled to read, because it instantly forms a connection in his mind – Just like how Railroad stocks skyrocketed in value in the beginning of the 20th century, Internet stocks are going to skyrocket in the 21st century.

It’s not immediately obvious, but that’s what so powerful about it! The unconscious mind picks it up and makes it’s own conclusion. And we all know the unconscious mind is far more powerful than the conscious mind.

I’m still learning lots from Yoda Michael Masterson, but soon, as Luke Skywalker Charles, I hope to attain mastery of the Big Idea in time to come!

I remember the second example of the one-legged Golfer was written by none other then the most ripped off copywriter on the internet, John Carlton. And he is really a world-class copywriter, I love reading his rant newsletter which I actually subscribe, even though I’m not yet a copywriter, still the ideals and secrets he share really spark me.

So what really is this “Big Ideal” is it the creating of the headline or the creating of a successful marketing campaign?