Yesterday, I had the privilege to attend a lecture by marketing guru and author Seth Godin. Godin has often railed against conventional corporate lectures/presentations, so I was eager to see the man in action. In the informal-yet-impressive venue of the New York Times Center Theatre, Seth engaged us and schooled us in a way that I'm sure was refreshing for all.

The topic of the day was his new book, Tribes, or more accurately, the subject matter thereof. Tribalism isn't an entirely new concept in the realm of brands, consumerism, and modern behaviour, but I enjoyed the day nonetheless. The basic concept is this: the most successful brands create (or direct) a tribe. They don't view "everyone" as their target audience, but instead service the select group who is passionate about their product/service/show/team/whatever. Picture Harley Davidson riders, Mac users, Jets fans, Starbucks drinkers, or those who drive Lexuses -- no doubt a clear picture of the tribe members will jump into your head.

Seth himself is much more eloquent than I am. Or at least more practiced and succinct. His presentation was well-prepared, well-rehearsed, and captivating. He has a tremendous ability never to say "um" and the selected case studies and anecdotes helped illustrate the central theme.

In the latest episode of The Accidental Creative podcast, host Todd Henry interviews Seth about Tribes. While the interview is only about 30 minutes, it should wet your appetite enough to poke around Seth's Blog, or maybe investigate the book. You can find out much more about the book from the page on Squidoo, or just go ahead and buy it from Amazon.