How'd He Do That?

When you first arrive at the Blue Penguin website, it looks much like any other—with a logo, navigation buttons, a subscription link and some written content in the center. But then something happens. A man standing only a few inches high wanders across the screen and addresses the visitor.

"Hi, I'm Michael Katz," he says, adding with mild self-deprecation, "If you've never seen what I look like before, let me just say, I share your disappointment."

"Here at Blue Penguin," he continues, motioning to the text behind him, "we do one thing, and one thing only: email newsletters." After explaining that readers will always find the latest edition of his newsletter at the home page, Katz points to the subscription link. "If you like what you see, feel free to sign up. Just click the subscribe button on the sidebar up top and I'll send [the newsletter] to you when I publish every other Friday."

The humorous tone continues as Katz puts his hands over his eyes, and then takes a peek between a few fingers: "If you don't like what you see, well, give me a chance to cover my eyes before you leave."

Michael Katz delivers Marketing Inspiration by showing visitors the tone they can expect in his content, and by turning what could be an annoying intrusion into an amusing primer with helpful information—in just 34 seconds.

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