Oh, woe is the plight of the marketer. With so many things to do, so many channels to explore, we often forget the one abiding truth in nearly everything we do: No one cares like we do. We find ourselves today living in the proverbial forest, trying to answer the timeless question: If a tree [...]
As much as I dislike words like ‘takeaway’, it seems the easiest way to describe something worth, uh… taking away from the event. So here, in no particular order (and without implying any synergistic connection or claims of empowerment), are the primary things I learned in Indianapolis this week. I learned, from a company much [...]
A few months ago, in April 2012, a stunning thing happened on the way to communicating with your customers: For the first time ever, more of them opened your emails on their smartphones than any other platform*. On the surface, this seems like a very big deal. In fact, it’s even bigger than that. For [...]
So you’ve registered for Connections 2012, made your hotel reservations and booked your travel. You’re amped up to join 4,000 other marketers in Indianapolis to find out what’s working for other people, hear Michael J. Fox’s keynote address, catch The Fray in concert, and see what David Blaine is going to make vanish. That’s quite [...]
William Lever, who started the notable soap company Lever Brothers, famously said, “I know half of my advertising isn’t working, I just don’t know which half.” Thankfully, we no longer live in a time where we have to guess what’s working and what isn’t. In fact, in some ways, the bigger problem today is wading [...]
I received a disturbing email from a client this morning. He had received an official-looking email that appeared to have come from an address at Rare Bird. The message said: Subj: Please update your information at [clientdomain].com Dear [clientdomain].com, Rare Bird Inc is hereby announcing a new upgrade for Content management system. We’ve upgraded our [...]
An elevator pitch (or elevator speech) is a short summary intended to quickly and simply define a product, service, or organization and its value proposition. The name reflects the idea that it should be possible to deliver the summary in the time span of an elevator ride. Most people suggest that your elevator pitch lasts [...]
As someone who makes a living helping people sell things, I get asked a lot of questions about strategy and implementation. As someone who has been dealing with emerging Internet trends for 18 years (18?!? I’m stunned, too…), I get asked a lot of questions about the latest shiny object. Sometimes these questions collide. An [...]
I love Indianapolis, and I’m pretty fired up that the Superbowl will be played out on the field at Lucas Oil Stadium. True, it would have been picture-perfect if our Colts had been vying for the coveted Lombardi trophy, but I guess we’ll have to wait for next February… Still, I think this a great [...]
Happy New Year! Now that 2012 has arrived, business owners and key managers should be looking ahead with an eye toward weathering what looks to be another tough one. Along with the general consensus that the economy will continue to be sluggish, you have the added responsibility to protect the enterprise in the face of [...]
