advertising
241 posts
Worthy Of Your Marketing
When we’re planning a party, we know its success depends on the preparation we do in advance, often before the invitations are sent. Every detail, from the food to the table settings, the lighting to the music is carefully choreographed in anticipation of the guests’ arrival. When we’re marketing, e
The Three Pillars Of Brand Resonance
The most common reason people give for contacting me to work with them is to raise brand awareness. Conventional wisdom dictates that if only more people knew about our products and services, or our ideas and our work, then we would be more successful. There’s only one problem with this worldview. M
Is Your Marketing Working?
Last week I visited the local camping store to buy a gift card. As I was paying at the point of sale, a one question survey popped up on the keypad. The store manager asked if I’d seen their TV ad. When I said I hadn’t, she hit ‘no’ on the survey. I couldn’t resist…
Two Ways To Think About Selling
Are you selling or are you showing up in the best light for the people who need you? Sales can be a service. And vice versa. Image by Garry Knight
A Deliberate Advantage
Voting is compulsory here in Australia. To make it easier for people polling places now open the weekend before election day. Early voting in our state and local council elections opened last weekend. As we lined up at the entrance to the polling place we were met by representatives of all candidate
The Power Of Because
Over several decades our traditional, mass marketing culture taught us that marketing and sales were about finding the angle. Marketing became about getting creative with the truth and being a master of spin. It doesn’t have to be this way. We can choose to do the kind of marketing we’re proud of. W
The Feeling Customer
One of the mistakes we make when we’re building a business and communicating our value is to only create for the thinking customer and his rational mind. Messages that resonate deeply connect with people’s feelings. Beloved brands and successful businesses appeal to their customers’ hearts, not just
The Stages Of Change
If you’ve ever tried to quit a bad habit or establish a new one, you know that change takes time. When it comes to creating change in our own lives, we cut ourselves some slack because we know that change is a process. And yet when it comes to our customers, we impatiently hurry them…
The Imperfect Plan
In our imaginations, we plan for perfect. Perfect products bought and loved by perfect customers—who only show up on our best days. The days when we are perfect. Of course, the reality can’t always live up to the imagination. So we need to have a plan for when we’re far from perfect. The companies t
What Could You Leave Unsaid?
When I was in high school, the geography syllabus required us to study South America for a whole year. One of our teachers who had a special interest in South America decided to make it her business to teach us everything she knew about the continent. Everything. No stone was left unturned, no river
A Matter Of Marketing
We live in an age when it’s easier than ever to get your message in front of people. Many businesses have a strategy for getting their message seen and heard—far fewer have a plan for being believed and understood. It’s one thing to get in front of people, and another for them to choose to…
What Do You Want To Be Known For?
The food cart outside the gallery was in the perfect spot to attract the attention of hungry tourists. Judging by the two choices listed on the menu that’s exactly what the owner was thinking too. Now serving Custard Tarts Kale Soup Differentiation starts with the choice to do one thing well. Hedgin
Making Sense Of Nike’s Controversial Ad Campaign Decision
Unless you’re an American football fan, you probably hadn’t heard of Colin Kaepernick before August 2016. Kaepernick, an African American, was a quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers when he was propelled into the media spotlight for choosing to sit (then later kneel), during the United States nat
Is The Consumer The Customer?
When the Old Spice ‘Smell Like a Man’ advertising campaign launched eight years ago, it called out an often unspoken truth about sales and marketing. The consumer and the user are not necessarily one and the same. This insight inevitably alters how you tell the story of the products you sell and the
The Disciplined Marketer
It’s 6.30 am at the hotel gym, and the guests who are keen to get a workout in before breakfast are lining up. The receptionist is taking their room numbers before admitting them. As they turn to walk away, gym towel and bottle of water in hand, she asks if they’d like to book in…
The Attraction Retention Conundrum
The line outside the new patisserie snaked around the block. It never seemed to get shorter. The word that they were giving away free muffins on opening day had travelled fast and the owner wasn’t sure she’d have enough for everyone. The launch promotion had worked that was for sure! Now she just ha
Show Your Story
In the early 1960s, a Brooklyn tax clerk, named Jean Nidetch discovered a powerful and underutilised marketing technique. When Jean, who had been overweight for years, lost thirty kilos her friends asked her how she’d done it. She began sharing her diet secrets with half a dozen friends in her apart
Visible Vs. Memorable
When my friend Mark opened his bakery, he was faced with a marketing dilemma. Should he blow his marketing budget on a single print advert that would cost him several thousand dollars or should he invest that money in something else? The promise of brand validation and the creation of mass awareness
Marketing Efficacy And Expectations
When ‘meal replacement’ shakes first came to market they seemed like the answer to a dieter’s prayers. Replacing one or two regular meals with a calorie counted milkshake meant ingesting fewer calories, resulting in rapid weight loss. Meal replacements worked for some people for a little while. Thos
Being Seen And Heard
The numbers vary, but the trend is unmistakable. The average consumer is subjected to more marketing messages every day. In a world where it’s harder to get noticed marketers have responded by trying to be more visible. Being noticed is the goal of most marketing. The irony is five seconds in the sp
