Once upon a time there was a bloodhound who lived on a yellow (not brick) road in a cozy little dog house with a blue roof. He got his one square meal a day and spent a lot of time playing with his favorite red rubber ball. But dry kibble was a pale diet, and he was always on the look out for something more exciting.

Attention. With the 220 million smell receptors in his nose, he’d sniff through lawns and gardens, along the highways and byways. Mostly he found grass, shrubberies and weeds. Maybe some crumpled paper or a crushed soda can. Not exactly the sort of stuff his stomach got excited about. But one day, out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of something down the yellow (not brick) road.

Interest. Something very interesting was on a blue plate. He lifted his nose into the air, catching the first tantalizing whiff of … could it be … it certainly smelled like it …MEAT!?

 

Desire. It really did smell like meat. It also looked red and juicy, very unlike crumpled paper and very much like meat. Oh, what excitement! If it really were meat. I’ve always wanted meat! the bloodhound thought, and he galumphed faster in anticipation and longing, toward the plate sitting on the yellow (not brick) road.

Action. The closer he got to the blue plate, the more his senses convinced him this really was an exceptionally fine piece of meat, and his enthusiasm grew by leaps and bounds. Until, as certain as he could possibly be, he was leaping himself for the object of his dreams.

Satisfaction. The first bite was better than he had ever imagined, and by the third bite, he was feeling remarkably territorial about his piece of meat (he was of no mind about the plate). Everything that came before this sublime moment was nice and necessary, but his pure delight was the payoff. This was one happy bloodhound – if you could only have seen his tail, you’d know!

We’ve talked about AIDAs before … in fact, you probably know by now that I consider it the fundamental basis for momentum through the buying and selling process. AIDA is something lots of marketing folks learn as a basic framework – the letters stand for: Attention, Interest, Desire and Action.

In our offices, we expand our interpretation of AIDA. We add S to the acronym – Satisfaction.

Doing business online, an environment in which taking action is the only tangible (and measurable) thing your visitors experience, is only partly about capturing attention. You must also be concerned with retention. Attention and retention. When you add satisfaction to the momentum of AIDA, you complete the loop by making the process wholly customer-centered – you provide the critical closure for relevance. The key lies in the logical and intelligible management of your message – identifying the central message, communicating it, remaining true to it.

So think how you’re going to work toward retention, turning your yellow (not brick) road into the metaphorical equivalent of a Mobieus strip by adding satisfaction into the equation. It’s the piece of the puzzle that allows you to truly integrate your branding efforts with your marketing efforts. Folks take notice when they are satisfied – and their satisfaction makes it possible for you to capture their attention yet again!

Originally published on www.grokdotcom.com