"A witty saying proves nothing."  Perhaps some of us would not entirely agree with Voltaire's offered enlightenment.  In the very least, the notion of such gives me something to discuss in my post.

You've probably observed commercials, billboards, tweets, and other forms of marketing literature wax upon OPP, other people's poetic.  It's because the quotes speak to the collective consciousness, to general observations or mass-recognizable 'truths.'

It's not so much about whether you agree or disagree with a quote entirely; it's that the better ones speak to us, inspiring us to feel a familiarity and often respond.

Quote-worthy Marketing
Some writers make good marketers (*cough*); writers are observers of nature.  Often, a writer's message speaks to 'the collective.'  Writers compose with the end-piece's audience in mind.  This is already written in my mind; now I'm laying down the tracks from my mind to (hopefully) your understanding.  That's what marketing needs to do, 'speak' to the targeted consumers.

But why should I struggle to find the right words when the notion I'm trying to convey already exists? There's probably a good quote out there which captures the essence of what I'm trying to…

"But in marketing, the familiar is everything…"

Make messages feel familiar and truly speak to your market's collective consciousness.

Simple is Complex
Ernest Hemingway is often heralded as a great writer, especially by writers.  He was obsessed with constructing the most simple sentence to convey his thoughts to his readers.   However, the pursuit of such simple communication is highly complex.

"It is perfectly okay to write garbage--as long as you edit brilliantly."

It takes time to simplify things well.  However, as we can see via the popularity of quotes, a short yet dense sentence offers value to others; maxims are artful and mindfully stimulating at the same time; people appreciate and gravitate toward such sentiments.

While formulating this article, I came across Copyblogger's prior Ernest Hemingway writing post.   The post's conclusion features a facetious interchange between Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald, where the former author admits of throwing a good deal of writing in the wastebasket.

See.  Good message creation takes time.  Crafting something that immediately registers with people is not so simple to do, yet is well worth the complex effort.

Practical Magic
Do you know the BIGGEST secret of magicians?  There's an absolute correlation between the amazing and those who spend tireless hours practicing, until these routines are ingrained in mind and muscle memory so well, brief exhibitions appear to be supernatural and magical to onlookers.  Good writing and marketing does that too.  Such dedication elicits the "Wow!" reaction of a good quote or an effective marketing message.

Practice crafting your marketing messages…over and over…until it becomes like second nature to make that connection to your targets, until it becomes a practiced magic, a practical occurrence.

"Eight hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year, that's the only way I know how to do it."