For professionals in the world of PR and promotion, the notion of controversy as a way to boost sales has long been embraced.  The reason for this is varied and well worth exploring.

At the most basic level, controversy opens the door for attention to be called towards those that need to stand out a little more in an over-crowded and over-stimulated marketplace.

Traditional…or dare I say…dinosaur marketers may question the need for controversy when a large and targeted advertising campaign could yield the same result. The answer is that such results might only be possible provided you were willing to make enormous cost expenditures to raise awareness in the marketplace. For most entrepreneurs, this costly business building strategy is simply not a viable option.  Spending tens of thousands of dollars in the hope of driving attention to your business venture would have a dire effect on precious cash flow.

Conversely, taking part in a lower budgeted promotional venture that yields controversy could draw a great deal of inexpensive awareness that can translate into marketing success.

It is necessary to point out that generating controversy does not mean that your goal is to generate offensiveness, demoralize others or promote ridicule.  Far too often, people confuse being controversial with doing something outrageously offensive. While this may end up drawing attention, it will not be the type of attention you or your business will want to embody since this behaviour does not nurture long-term relationships.  Offending, ridiculing and criticising others quashes trustworthy characteristics and while under certain circumstances this behaviour may deliver an effective result, the losses will outweigh any perceived gains. This is why this approach to controversy is best avoided.

The goal of controversy is to always make people want to take a closer look at what you have to say.  In many ways, you create the potential for more people to learn what makes you tick because you have drawn them in with a promotional strategy that raises eyebrows.

One of the more interesting things about controversy is that it has the power to draw in the disinterested. Sometimes, such people could even have a proverbial "Road to Damascus" moment regarding your product or service. That is, they may be converted to actual customers if they see beyond the initial controversy and uncover the value of the product or service that you’re offering.

This does raise another helpful point: it is important to realize that the item you are selling is one of legitimate value.  The reason for this is that no matter how much controversy surrounds a product or service, its sales will always be limited if quality is poor. Again, controversy works but it can only carry you so far. The quality of your underlying product or service MUST be integral to your promotion to truly achieve the desired benefit.

As such, it is wise to explore generating controversy as a sales technique. Injecting controversy profiles an entrepreneur’s perspective and character and has the power to significantly bolster success.

© 2010 Tania Usher International
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About The Author

Tania Usher is an internationally renowned marketing communication strategist, business coach, author, speaker and adventurer.  Her company Tania Usher International is dedicated to providing communication expertise and innovative solutions to accelerate results and positive transformation for entrepreneurs and businesses worldwide.  Tania aims to touch as many lives as possible with her authentic and ‘from the heart’ get NAKED approach to business where she strips back the hype to expose raw and uncut strategies for life, business and success.

Go now to http://www.taniausherinternational.com