A lot of small businesses have been driven out of business by big box stores over the years. If you’re running a retail chain like Walmart you can spend a half a billion dollars a year flooding the airwaves with advertising in order to sway public opinion and build credibility for your brand. Small companies … How to build credibility for your brand, one chapter at a time. Read More » Read more about How to build credibility for your brand, one chapter at a time ..read more

When you look at companies — large and small — that have become successful brands, you’ll notice strength, consistency and often superiority in three key areas: Relevance, Credibility and Differentiation. Let’s look at the 3 key elements of branding and see how companies combine them into a winning recipe for sustainable growth. Elements of Branding … 3 key elements of branding: Relevance, Credibility & Differentiation Read More » Read more about 3 key elements of branding: Relevance, Credibility & Differentiation ..read more

It’s the age of information, and much of the marketing buzz these days revolves around content marketing. Especially for business-to-business marketers, it’s all the rage. We have YouTube videos, webinars, blog posts, slide sharing Powerpoint Presentations, Facebook updates, LinkedIn articles, tweets, podcasts, websites, ebooks, and white papers coming out our ears. In many cases, all that … The secret, missing ingredient of content marketing. Read More » Read more about The secret, missing ingredient of content marketing ..read more

One of the hosts of an immensely popular golf podcast recently said, on the air, that “custom club fitting is a total waste of time for most people.” It was the type of statement that boosts ratings and incites debate among golf industry insiders. But his reasoning was weak; “It’s not like real life,” he … Custom club fitting:  Path to perfection or folly of the fragile golf psyche? Read More » Read more about Custom club fitting:  Path to perfection or folly of the fragile golf psyche ..read more

Let me tell you a story about storytelling in business — the most important, most under-appreciated leadership skill. All business revolves around persuasion. You have to persuade prospects to buy, investors to invest, employees to perform and suppliers to deliver. There’s no getting around it… if you’re going to succeed, you’ve got to persuade. You … Storytelling in business — a good story equals strong leadership. Read More » Read more about Storytelling in business — a good story equals strong leadership ..read more

  Don’t rely on Ai for SEO search traffic.   Last summer I set out to prove that I could write better ad headlines than Chat GPT. Remember that one?… It was me vs. Chat GPT in an epic headline smackdown. I won hands down, but it was based on subjective criteria and it was … Ai-generated blog posts – the data is in. Read More » Read more about Ai-generated blog posts – the data is in ..read more

I had an experience in a brewpub some years ago that was inspiring and insulting at the same time. If you’re in the restaurant business — or any service business for that  matter – you can learn from this little case of bad brewpub branding. It proved that what you say, and how your front-line … Brewpub Branding: The problem with beer snobs. Read More » Read more about Brewpub Branding: The problem with beer snobs ..read more

It Depends.   I always tell clients and prospects “There are no dumb marketing questions.” They still hesitate because it’s human nature… they don’t want to look dumb or sound uninformed. When they do chime in with questions, this is what I commonly hear: “What’s the best advertising channel in 2024?” “My competitors are super … The answer to all the marketing questions you’ve ever had… Read More » Read more about The answer to all the marketing questions you’ve ever had ..read more

I took a load to the local dump the other day. As I hucked yard debris and unwanted consumer goods out the back of the truck, I got to thinking about waste in advertising… There are mountains of it. Despite all the analytics that are available, the digital targeting and the plethora of specialized channels, … Garbage In, Garbage Out — How to avoid waste in advertising Read More » Read more about Garbage In, Garbage Out — How to avoid waste in advertising ..read more

A client of mine recently saw some competitors doing some pretty shady stuff, and asked me if he should run some comparison ads. Point out the problem. It’s a good question, and the answer depends on a wide variety of factors. Comparison advertising can be wildly effective when it’s done right by underdog brands. There … Comparison ads – From Cola Wars to Computer Wars Read More » Read more about Comparison ads – From Cola Wars to Computer Wars ..read more