Tag Archives: strategy

“Digital” is Just Accelerated Direct Marketing

Says the great Drayton Bird in his email this morning: “On-line marketing is just accelerated direct marketing.” He’s right. It’s therefore more important than ever that your marketers are properly trained: it’s harder to keep the rubber on the road … Continue reading →

Aside | Posted on Thursday, 27 July 2017 11:14 am by | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Before You Worry About Match Rates…

Posted on Wednesday, 19 July 2017 9:12 am by

But before you get bogged down in match rate discussions, the more important strategic work needs to have been done up front. Never delve into tactics without understanding the mission and the strategy to accomplish the mission. Continue reading →

Posted in digital marketing, Direct Response, Marketing, Media, Strategy, Tactics | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Your Mission and Vision are Lousy

Posted on Friday, 30 June 2017 7:40 am by

I was talking about company mission and vision statements with Paresh Shah, a good and smart friend of mine. During the discussion, he gave me a simple rule to see if your mission was good or not: “Write out the … Continue reading →

Posted in Branding, Marketing, Philosophy, Product Development, Strategy | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Advertising Needs More History Majors

Posted on Monday, 20 March 2017 10:15 am by

In the United States in 2014, only 1.7% of the undergraduate degrees awarded were history degrees. In the period since 1971, the share of history and social sciences degrees has declined from 18% to 9%. 1 Why study history? According to … Continue reading →

Posted in Leadership, Marketing, Philosophy, Strategy | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

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

Innovate Creatively or Die, New York Times

Posted on Thursday, 22 May 2014 1:44 pm by

I love the New York Times. I learned how to read newspapers in school, with the Times as the teaching vehicle. What I recall learning: It contains “All the News That’s Fit to Print” The Times always gets the facts … Continue reading →

Posted in Analysis, Branding, Marketing, Media, Organization, Strategy | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Vision’s All You’ve Got

Posted on Thursday, 13 September 2012 8:40 am by

You might hire the smartest data scientists available. You might develop a product that has benefits that push all the user buttons. You might price that product perfectly. You might distribute it perfectly. You might create the most clever campaign … Continue reading →

Posted in Branding, Philosophy, Product Development | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Groupthink: A Caution for Summer Planners

Posted on Monday, 23 July 2012 9:44 am by

The classic article Groupthink was just brought to my attention via RSS feed. Most of us have heard of the 1952 article, but how many have read it recently or at all? If you’re taking part in summer strategy or … Continue reading →

Posted in Leadership, Philosophy | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

If You’re Going Out of Business Anyway…

Posted on Tuesday, 6 March 2012 10:07 am by

Why wouldn’t you try to stop it? The answer in the newspaper industry, at least according to Mathew Ingram in GigaOM yesterday is culture. The newspaper industry has been circling the drain as the shift to free/cheap classified advertising has … Continue reading →

Posted in Media, Strategy, Tactics | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

“The Channel” to Nowhere

Posted on Thursday, 10 November 2011 9:00 am by

Why do you sell through distributors, resellers, VARs, or in other words, “the channel?” Is it worth your time building lots of infrastructure to manage the rules around distributing your product, dealing with channel conflict, commissions, “owning the customer” and … Continue reading →

Posted in Customer Care, Organization, Product Development | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments