After years of research into advertising, marketing, sales and performance, I have discovered the one constant to incredible business performance, regardless of company or industry. Its the power of Passion. The power of Passion was recognized years ago by the advertising guru, David Ogilvy. After designing campaigns for most of the worlds mega-corporations he came to the conclusion that only one thing could give a company the edge over the long haul. He found the key to success for any company was its ability to create an emotional bond with its customers that went far beyond the nature of the product the company was actually selling. To paraphrase his words slightly; A company competing on the basis of price can always be undercut. A company competing on the basis of uniqueness can always be copied. A company competing on the webdesign basis of a technical advantage can always be caught. A company competing on the basis of value can always be matched. But a company with passion cannot be touched. The long term success of your business or organization will be dictated not so much by the products and value you provide, but by the emotional bond you create with your customers or members. Those companies that fail to create such a bond, a feeling of something greater than the widget they happen to be selling, will not be able to compete at the top for any length of time. The passion of the prancing horse! I am, at this very moment, in the midst of a personal crisis that, believe it or not, is actually causing me to lose sleep. Now, I dont really expect my problem to arouse your sympathy, but its very real to me. You see, Im thinking of selling my Ferrari……..