Tag Archives: branding

A Thought Experiment: Lobby Ads

Imagine this: A set of large screens in your corporate lobby running, in real time and randomly, the actual digital ads you are running on the pages the ads are being displayed on. A viewer would also be able to stop … Continue reading →

Aside | Posted on Wednesday, 31 May 2017 11:59 am by | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

“Audiences” Mostly Aren’t

Posted on Thursday, 9 February 2017 7:28 am by

Unlike theatrical audiences, who pay money and make a conscious decision to invest their time in something, the online audience is very different. Mostly, it’s people (well, actually bots) that have kind of stumbled on your site/app/whatever and are desperately … Continue reading →

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Mistaking Surveillance for Advertising

Want to win in marketing? Think like a marketer, not the NSA. Surveillance doesn’t equal marketing strategy. Continue reading →

Aside | Posted on Monday, 19 September 2016 1:01 pm by | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Nitrocellulose lacquer: the smell of customer service?

Posted on Tuesday, 23 June 2015 10:16 am by

If you want to experience outstanding customer service in action, I suggest you visit Wildwood Guitars in Louisville, CO. I took a detour yesterday to visit the famous guitar emporium on a trip to Aspen and was greeted by Senior … Continue reading →

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When Nobody Cares About Your Brand…

Posted on Monday, 23 March 2015 1:55 pm by

…marketing gets easier. Wait, how can that be? As Bob Hoffman reminded us today and as I’ve been saying for years, nobody cares about the vast majority of the products or categories in which they buy. When you dismiss the … Continue reading →

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Your Customers Are Not Consumers

Posted on Thursday, 19 June 2014 10:01 am by

Kudos to Unilever’s CMO Keith Weed for starting to banish the word “consumer” from the marketing vocabulary. Molds, fungi, and bacteria are consumers. People buy your products and services. In a talk at Cannes today, he discussed Unilever’s marketing transition from … Continue reading →

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Lost on the Shelf? Build a Category of One.

Posted on Friday, 13 December 2013 11:55 am by

When I start a consulting engagement, I ask my new clients “what’s a Company X?”  This is shorthand for “what do you stand for, how do you do it, and why should anyone care?” When I hear “Uber for pet … Continue reading →

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The Best $2 Kimpton Could Spend

Posted on Friday, 14 December 2012 11:28 am by

I’ve been in Boston and staying at the Hotel Marlowe in Cambridge. It’s a terrific hotel and the rates for Boston aren’t too bad. I’ve been impressed with the Marlowe and Kimpton hotels because of two simple things they did. … Continue reading →

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Building Your Brand with Top Level Domains

Posted on Friday, 3 February 2012 5:01 am by

Do you have a strong brand name? Wouldn’t you like to own the letters to the “right of the dot?” I think it’s a really good idea to consider it. ICANN recently opened the window for new top level domains–for … Continue reading →

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Publicity First Doesn’t Work Anymore

Posted on Friday, 16 December 2011 9:23 am by

Louis CK’s recent direct-to-Internet video success teaches us something that most companies don’t get, or don’t want to get. It’s not about publicity anymore. The press release or the advertising campaign shouldn’t be the first thing you think about.  Sure, … Continue reading →

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