THROW AWAY YOUR TEXT BOOKS!

Then again, you most likely should not. But Mark Lewis, a planner in Detroit muses on the old fashion funnel model of marketing...

awareness - familiarity - attitude - action

He says: "I think most planners reading this probably know that this doesn't fit with how the world really works (this is a reflection on the client). For example, we know attitude forms after action."

So he thinks the model should look more like this...

Intrigue - Investigation - Action

Or maybe even more revolutionary...

Intrigue (among a small group) - co-option - investigation - consideration/opinion - publicity

"The implication here is that we start with a small target audience, creating intrigue among them and allowing them to co-opt and have input on the product. News about the product then spreads organically through the evagelists encouraging people to investigate. Mass ads come last, after the brand has built a base."

That sounds almost mailbox-like, or maybe that is just me. But one thing that should be noted, in order for that model to work, the product needs to be remarkable