— Karen Brennan, Attorney

While on maternity leave, I watched a lot of daytime television. From this experience a learned a few things.   First, I am incredibly happy I didn’t discover A Baby Story until after I had given birth. Second, whatever Oprah mentions turns to gold.

Oprah’s marketing power comes as no surprise to anyone. She has been popularizing products for years.  The sheer mention of a product on her show seems to send sales through the roof.  Last year, she made an off-the-cuff statement about the best white dress shirt for women.  When I tried to order one the following day, the company was sold out of most sizes.  This power, cleverly termed by some “The Oprah Effect” is astonishing.  Another recent example: a few weeks ago Oprah Twittered.  After her inaugural Twitter, traffic to the website increased 43 percent.

The moral of this blog? If you have a new product, try sending it to Oprah.  If she loves it, the sky is the limit.   And if she doesn’t? Well, ask anyone in the beef industry.