As I have grown in my career, and as I have consulted with clients in different industries and backgrounds, it has become more apparent to me that the ingredients for success in marketing (or any functional area of business) are often the same and are usually very simple. If you have a marketing team, lead a marketing… Read More
Most businesses get into the rut of marketing their products and services by launching campaigns around their “new and shiny” things, by extolling their features, benefits and discounts, and just by simply pounding customers over the head again-and-again with the same cliched messages. The common factor that creates this seemingly endless cycle is that the… Read More
In a small town—like, blink-and-you-miss-it small—about an hour south of Nashville, there’s a small business that you’ve probably never heard of producing unique, high-end, world-class leather goods that are sold and shipped worldwide. They really don’t do much marketing, but they deliver exceptional products and exceptional service, and this company you’ve probably never heard of… Read More
How your customer feels about their experience with your business or brand (you met, did not meet, or exceeded their expectations) is ultimately the thing that matters most and the thing that you can focus on the most to create long-term brand impact. Now, consider that 90% of people use online reviews to decide who they’re going… Read More
Your brand is your promise to your customer. It lets them know what they can expect from your products and services, and it differentiates your offering from your competition. There are two ways to build a brand: by accident or on purpose. So what does it look like to be purposeful about building your brand?… Read More
In an age where authenticity is everything—especially if you deal with a younger audience—there are some basic tenets to keep in mind when creating or expressing anything related to your brand. 1. Keep your promises. When traveling for work, I fly exclusively Southwest Airlines. They are consistently on time (or early), have the best fares… Read More
One of the core values of the team I lead is that “we do amazing work.” That matters to us because we have a vision to be the best marketing/creative/content team in our organization. To be the best, we have to be doing work that is so good (or amazing even) that it gets noticed… Read More
As I’ve written about before, the best way to generate word-of-mouth marketing (aka, FREE marketing) is to consistently exceed your customers’ expectations. To be clear, for this to work, you have to be consistently MEETING expectations. This doesn’t work if your bar is so low that exceeding expectations is just showing up for a service… Read More
When was the last time you sat down and talked to your customers? Moreover, when was the last time you truly listened to them? There are a variety of ways to listen to your customer to understand their expectations and uncover new opportunities to serve them better. Here are four simple things you can do… Read More
This past year was full of memorable experiences—some good, some bad, some incredible. Personally, it’s been one of the most challenging years I’ve ever had. There were days—weeks even—that I wish I could put behind me. But when the going gets rough, the good moments can either get lost…or they can stand out and be… Read More
