That’s right.  It’s Girl Scout Cookie Time.

Now, who can resist the coconutty yumminess of Samoas, or the refreshing, chocolately goodness of Thin Mints, not to mention the rest of the flavorful bunch?

As it turns out, more and more people are trying to, because of dietary concerns or health issues.

But the Girl Scouts have come up with an absolutely beautiful methodology for overcoming objections to purchase.

This is what I overheard:

“Would you like to buy a box or two of Girl Scout cookies?”

“No.  My husband and I are on a diet.”

“Okay.  Well, guess what?  You can still buy a box and donate it to our troops overseas.  How would you like to buy a box for our soldiers?”

These Girl Scouts are smooooooooooth.

This is a terrific example of thinking beyond your organization in order to overcome objections and make the sale.

I bought two boxes of Thin Mints.  One box is headed overseas as I write.  The other?  I can’t tell you, because if my husband finds out where I hid them, they’ll be gone in five minutes.

By the way, these Girl Scouts are increasingly tech savvy. Check out this website for the NorCal Girl Scouts – they’ve created the “Free Cookie Mobile Locator App” for your Android or iPhone.  Cookies on demand, no pre-ordering necessary.

You, my friend, are doomed.

For those of you who can’t make it, I’m about to recommend a blog post which will rev your brain and will probably take a week to absorb. (Wouldn’t want you feeling bored while I’m gone.)

Jeff Sexton, a partner in the Wizard of Ads consulting firm, is a phenomenal writer and one of those thinkers who makes you tilt your head like the family dog in trying to understand where all this genius comes from.

His newest post, New School Branding Lessons From An Old School Great, is a must-read.  He explores the evolution of advertising in a way that makes you aware that terms like “social media” and “brand touch points” are simply old wine in a new bottle.  Pulling from the experts and analyzing campaigns like Saturn, Got Milk, and Avis, Jeff gives his own unique take on what still makes us “tribal people.”

Give it a read. Watch the videos.  Then be sure to subscribe to Jeff’s blog to get the next latest and greatest.

There’s heavy competition, though – today, literally hundreds of pool care companies (many of them one-man operations) exist in the valley. Anyone with a basic knowledge of water chemistry and pool equipment can make a decent living.

So, how can a company set itself apart? By choosing One Little Thing that will make a big impact. Jason at Evolution Pools realized that early on, and his business is growing by leaps and bounds.

When you call Evolution Pool Repair, you’re assured of talking directly with Jason, the owner. Leave a message, and he’ll call you back within two hours. He sets the appointment, gives you a window of time for the service call, and then calls again to confirm the night before the appointment.

That’s nice and all, but then he unloads his One Little Thing: he narrows the window of time in which he’ll make his appearance.

For example, the first time we hired Jason, he told me he’d be by sometime between 9a.m. and noon. The night before the appointment, he called and informed me it would actually be between 10:30 and noon. And he delivered. He always does.

His One Little Thing is to operate at maximum efficiency; he has developed his own personal system of time tracking so that he can narrow down the appointment time and beat the negative stereotype of “the repair guy who never shows up when he says he will.”

With that One Little Thing, Jason gave me 90 minutes of my life back and strengthened the trust I have in his services. Having originally found him through our home warranty company, we now call him for all of our pool needs, whether the equipment is covered under warranty or not. Jason has made hundreds (or is that thousands?) of dollars from our account alone, simply because of his consideration for the customer’s time. I’ve also referred a number of neighbors.

Jason has made his business boom, without spending a penny on advertising.

You don’t need circus tents and balloons to make an impact on a customer, and if you’re a one-man operation, you can’t always overachieve the way One Hour Heating and Air Conditioning does. But you can still make your mark by choosing One Little Thing, refining your system, and delivering on your promise every time.

What One Little Thing can you do that will have customers telling your story to everyone they know?

Thanks to the work of San Francisco-based Duncan/Channon agency, creativity and persuasion have come together in a rare pas de deux.

D/C took the time to really get to know Esurance.com and its strengths, then distilled them down into one strong, pointed message:

“Technology When You Want It… People When You Don’t.”

Sound familiar?

Below are three randomly picked ads from the series.  Viewers sense the distinct personalities of the “tech” department vs. the “people department,” both working toward the same end goal for one company.

The final message to the consumer is that there are some amazing tools on the website for you to use, but you can ALWAYS call their 24/7 support line to talk to a real person.

Strong messaging, creatively delivered.  You don’t see much of that these days.  I’m looking forward to watching Esurance’s revenue numbers climb over the next year.

The article doesn’t say a word about advertising.  It does, however, address how Ritz-Carlton maintains a freakishly high level of word-of-mouth reputation.

It’s not complicated, and it’s not a secret.

Anyone could do it.

But most don’t.

There are three basic elements to the Ritz-Carlton philosophy:

1)  Every employee lives and breathes VALUES and SERVICE. Walk up to a Ritz-Carlton employee and ask about the 12 Service Values, and they’ll likely whip out a small pocket accordion file that features each value, three points of service, and the company’s credo.

Value Number One is:  “I build strong relationships and create Ritz-Carlton guests for life.”  Whoa. Even if the other eleven Values are blank, that one alone should blow your hair back.

2)  Every employee has AUTHORITY and RESPONSBILITY. Every employee of Ritz-Carlton has automatic authority to spend up to $2,000 to help a guest resolve an issue.  That’s right – $2,000 per guest, without having to obtain permission.  There’s a built-in level of trust, but with that comes a great deal of responsibility.  Once an employee gets a complaint, they own that complaint. No passing it off to someone else – they can get help, but they have to see the resolution of the problem through to the end.

You may not be able to afford $2,000 per customer, but what if you gave your employees authority of even $25 per customer to resolve problems?  And what if you made your employees see the resolution of a problem through to the end?  Imagine what kind of trust and pride that would build.

3)  Values, Service, and Pride are re-visited each and every day. This is the kicker, and the one reason why Ritz-Carlton is a cult brand and you’re not.  They didn’t just make up the values and customer policies then let it ride.  The staffs of each hotel meet at 8 a.m. every single morning to review their mission, discuss issues, and often times hail an employee for a specific success.  Pride and teamwork are reinforced each and every day in order to maintain consistency and to grow the brand.

Are you committed enough to customer experience to meet with your staff every day for a review of the company’s values, highlight customer resolutions, ask for help resolving problems, and feature success stories?  Do you have the fortitude that it takes to do it every single morning?  Because that’s what it’s going to take if you want to take your business to the next level.

Brian Bennett, a regional director for Ritz-Carlton knows that marketing and advertising have limited effect.  “It’s the positive experience that will make a guest who visits us five times a year visit us six or seven times.  The experience is what triggers change in human behavior and that change is pure profit.”

The recovery of the economy is still further off than we’d like to acknowledge.  Businesses that survive, and then rise to the top when times get better, will be those that take the Ritz-Carlton methodology and apply it to their own situation.  It’s not easy, and probably means a complete “lifestyle change” for your entire business.  But trust me – you need to do it.

The question is:  Will you?

The company realizes that social media is not the end-all and be-all of marketing strategy.  (As I said on a panel discussion last week, if that’s the way you think, then you need to have your head examined.)  They are using outlets like Facebook to do two things:

1)  Research. Surveys and questions posed to fans of the page (yes, I still call them fans) in order to learn more about what kinds of clothing styles are hot now and where trends are going. (click on image to enlarge)

2)  Conversation. Ann Taylor is working hard to answer comments left by fans, to let them know that the company cares, and to nip potential bad feelings in the bud.

Customers recently spoke up, saying that there was too much airbrushing of swimsuit models.  Check out the company’s reply:

When customers questioned whether LOFT’s clothes might look as great on “real women” as they do on stick-thin models, LOFT began photographing employees of varying size wearing LOFT outfits.

This is how you use social media.

It’s not about the latest viral video, trying to drum up something wild to get attention.

And it’s not about direct selling.

It’s about conversation.

Conversation that will provide consumer research data you never could have otherwise gathered.

Conversation that requires you to be open, honest, and flexible.

Conversation that could make current and former customers fall in love with you all over again.

How are you using your company’s Facebook page?  Is there a disconnect between what you want and what the customer wants?  Maybe it’s time to review your strategy.

Instead of holding yet another giveaway contest or asking mommies to write in how they “feel” about being, well, … mommies, the company is acknowledging the other dimensions of mothers’ lives and requesting business proposals for funding consideration.

Grants of $15,000 each will be awarded to “mompreneurs” who have viable business ideas and can demonstrate not only need, but also a solid plan for how they will use the grant.

According to a 2008 report from the National Association of Women Business Owners, moms start new businesses at twice the rate of business as a whole.  Yet only 3% of all venture capital funding goes to women.

This is a smart marketing strategy for the Huggies brand.  The program gives a shout-out to customers, acknowledging that being a woman with children doesn’t define who you are.

For about a quarter of the cost of one produced television ad, the program has impact and, if managed correctly, could grow into one of the most innovative, important online marketing strategies to date.

What do you think?  How can Kimberly-Clark enhance the marketing impact and grow the program to be as powerful as Dove’s “Real Beauty” campaign?

But how many are willing to take a risk and follow it through to its inevitable end?

How many, as my partner Roy would say, are willing to “pull the trigger and ride the bullet?”

Not many, from what I’ve experienced.

I’ve worked with small business owners who won’t trust their own instinct.  The easy way out is to ask for advice from anyone who will listen (usually numbering in the dozens), then plead confusion.  The result?  Inaction at worst; mediocrity at best.

I’ve encountered small business owners (with marketing budgets that could afford to take a risk or two) who agree pull the trigger, and then freak out with doubts.  They either try to do an about-face, or start brainstorming ideas in order to dilute the risk.

“Maybe we should only take on part of this project.”

“Let’s start slow.”

Have this happen a few times, and you end up with a company full of employees with tragically low morale and extremely high turnover.  More often than not, the company itself does not survive in the long run.

At some point in your career – and in your life – you’re going to need to pull the trigger.

But before you do, remember this:  you can’t pull the trigger halfway.  Once that sucker leaves the barrel, it’s going somewhere.  Momentum can be your friend or your foe.

When thinking about risk, always ask yourself the Two Most Important Questions every business owner needs to know.

Then, decide: can you not only pull the trigger, but ride it for all its worth?  Because that’s what it’s going to take to survive this next era of small business ownership and have the firepower to pull away from the pack.

Recently, I heard that she’d had to change the name of her business because of trademark issues.  I contacted her to see if she’d like to share her story, as a cautionary tale for anyone who is thinking of starting their own business.  Kelly was game, and so we talked!

MM:  The original name of your company was Womenwise Marketing, correct? How did you come up with that name, and what year did you start the company? What does your company do?

Yes. I’m a freelance copywriter, and I named my first business “Wordwise Marketing.” But over time I realized that my true passion was helping other women in business, so “Womenwise Marketing” seemed like a natural transition. I started using that name in the summer of 2008, and started the Womenwise Marketing blog later that fall.

MM:  Then you ran into some trademark issues. Can you tell us a little about that, and how it transpired?

Almost three years after I started using the name “Womenwise Marketing,” I received a letter from a lawyer saying that someone else owned the trademark, and they were giving me a week to re-brand. I have an acquaintance who’s a trademark lawyer, so I had him look into it. He told me that the other company owned the trademark, and had started using it before me. So unfortunately, I had little choice but to comply.

MM:  And how did things turn out?

I was devastated at first, because I had put so much work into the brand. But eventually I thought of a new name: “One Woman Marketing.” It not only described me perfectly, but described the situation of many women I work with: like me, they own their own businesses and serve as a one-woman marketing department. I began to see the situation as a God-send, because I never would have changed my name had it not happened.

MM:  So, you had to change the name – not only for your business, but your blog, etc.

Yes.  First I was angry. When I learned I had no case, I felt incredibly stupid and guilty. I kept saying, “I should have known – but how could I have known?” I also spent a few days feeling sad and resigned and sorry for myself. Rebranding eventually distracted me. And people have been amazingly supportive, which helped.

It’s important to let people know that the other company isn’t the villain. One of the things I learned is that when you file a trademark, you become responsible for pursuing anyone who encroaches on that name. Otherwise you could lose rights to it. So the other company wasn’t being a bully — they were just protecting their business.

MM:  You’re pretty resilient, and I admire you for that. If you were to meet someone who was also going through the same situation, what advice would you give them?

Thanks! I’d recommend finding a trademark attorney you trust. People kept encouraging me to fight the lawsuit, which would have been a losing battle and could have cost tens of thousands of dollars. But having a trademark attorney explain things helped me to avoid a lot of problems.

Also keep in mind that this happens more than people might think. During the re-branding process, several clients of mine revealed that they’d experienced similar situations — some more than once! It made me realize that I’m not alone.

MM:  In order for business owners to avoid such a conflict in the future, what would you recommend?

Don’t just rely on a cursory Google search to see if someone owns a trademark. Search the trademark registry at http://www.uspto.gov/trademarks/index.jsp. And if your name is something you can’t afford to lose, talk with a trademark attorney and make sure it’s protected. Trademarking your name requires a small upfront investment, but it can protect you from trouble in the future.

MM:  It looks like you’ve come through this with flying colors. I see that One Woman Marketing has already reached the #1 position on Google (even for the “Womenwise Marketing” search!). What are your plans for the near future?

The name change helped me clarify where I want my business to go. I was never really comfortable as a marketing “guru,” but I’ve always been happy to share what I’ve learned. So I’ve allowed myself to become more personal on my blog and in everything else I do.

I’m currently developing a coaching program to help women overcome insecurities and create a workable marketing plan for their business. I also have a marketing book proposal I finished last year that I’d like to get published eventually. And as always, I’m doing web copywriting, speaking gigs and trying to build my blog readership.

MM:  Thanks so much for sharing your story, Kelly, and for offering such great advice to all business owners out there.  To read more from Kelly Watson, be sure to check out her blog at One Woman Marketing.

But there’s one news item that got my attention, and I wanted to share it with you.

Target has launched Target Mobile, with new cell- and smart-phone tools that raise the bar on the mobile shopping experience.

With Target Mobile, shoppers sign-up and/or download free apps, and are immediately privy to:

• Checking out with a mobile phone, using Target gift card information
• Locating and updating gift registries
• Coupons sent to a mobile phone, complete with bar code – no more paper coupons

Even if you own a small business and think you can’t afford such programs, sit tight and watch for now.  Immerse yourself in what companies like Target are doing, because it is the future.  It is YOUR future.  The time will come when the software to create such mobile shopping programs is cheap and easy to use, and you’ll need to be ready.

Sign up for Target Mobile today – it could very well be some of the best consumer research you’ll do this year.