When you write, does everything that you put down on paper - or come out of your mouth - deliver exceptional value? Or is there a certain amount of low-value filler that invades your communications? There are three strategies that can significantly upgrade your value in the eyes of your [More]
Back in the dark ages of the internet, marketing was simple: send a monthly ezine, sales offers, and any other buzzworthy content down the pipe and a certain percentage of people will “convert.” Money automatically transferred into your account as the list was monetized. Today, it’s no longer that simple. [More]
Have you ever felt that you were being "sold" to? Perhaps an over-the-top marketing campaign, or perhaps a slightly-too-pushy salesperson? If so, then you're not alone; the question, however, is why. And why do organizations so often encourage such off-putting activities? Some of the obvious reasons: The momentum of the [More]
Think what it was like to be Lewis Downing Jr: Back in the mid-late 1800's, he was the President of the Abbot-Downing Company, one of America's most celebrated stagecoach manufacturers. He was at the top of his game, literally opening up the west with his vehicles. Lewis Downing Jr. supported an entire [More]
Often times, the greatest insights happen at the intersection of two areas, and this is certainly true of the intersection between marketing and business development. Typically, what lives here are leads. Marketers develop initiatives that build leads. Then sales "works" the leads, hopefully converting them into clients. This is true, [More]
Back in the early days of journalism, there was a clear distinction between the "news" and paid advertisements. It was considered of the highest ethical imperative that journalists could not be "bought" or even influenced, by an advertiser looking to make a large ad purchase, or a threat to pull [More]
Are you unrealistically optimistic? Most marketers are, and it is not particularly healthy. Think about it: a marketer's job is usually focused on generating leads. About great design. Attracting attention. Building. It's other people who have to worry about delivering the product or service, headcount, logistics, and the vagaries of [More]
Have you ever felt that each year, there is yet another set of marketing buzzwords that you need to learn? Service marketing, value marketing, values-based marketing, content marketing, Social Media marketing, and the list goes on. What these terms all have in common is the connection between your organization and [More]
In the olden days, domain names were easy. Take your brand, add dot com (as in www.RandallCraig.com) and you're done. Those of us who didn't want to fight the squatters also registered the dot net and dot org versions: www.RandallCraig.net, www.RandallCraig.org. And of course, you might want to register your [More]
What is the difference between a successful marketing campaign and an unsuccessful one? Yes, ROI is certainly the standard answer, but it is also completely insufficient. A single marketing campaign is not very different than a car going uphill, battling gravity, with a driver giving a single pump of the [More]
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