Helping good people build great brands.
Sparkling water costs pennies per can to produce.
If you knew this fact only, and you were in the sparkling water business, you might reasonably conclude:
What happens?
Continue reading “Of Sparkling Water and Hockey Pucks”
“Manipulating the masses into buying stuff they don’t need! That’s what I do! That’s marketing!”
That’s an actual quote I once heard from a marketing director. This was during an inventing session, the goal of which was to create new products that would make his customers (in other words, people) happier.
I’ve also been in a conference room when an executive flat-out called his customers (also people) “stupid.”
Continue reading “If Nothing Else, Start With Respect”(Reading Time: < 1 minute)Why is consumer trust of marketers at an all-time low?
Because, in part, of crap like this. Continue reading “More Dirty Marketing Tricks”
(Reading Time: 2 minutes)Well, it happened again.
Earlier this week, in a seemingly unrelated conversation, a stranger found a chance to take a swipe at Millennials, and went for it! According to this person, Millennials not only “don’t take direction well,” they often “don’t even want to show up to work at all.”
Huh. I’m a crusty old Gen-Xer myself. But I’ve worked with, and even hired, a number of Millennials. And I don’t have any proof that their work ethic or character is any worse than that of (say) my college graduating class. Continue reading “Let’s Cut the Millennial Crap”
(Reading Time: 5 minutes)The last few weeks have been bad for Southwest Airlines.
So bad, in fact, that it’s fair to ask: Is Southwest still a great brand? Let’s discuss the cases for and against.
There was a time, not so long ago, when I would use Southwest in my keynotes and seminars as a clear example of a great brand.
I would start by asking the audience to join me as I painted a picture of Major Airline Advertising. This was easy to do, since Major Airline Advertising is both familiar and largely interchangeable. It might go something like this: Continue reading “Is Southwest Airlines Still a Great Brand?”
(Reading Time: 3 minutes)Regular readers of this blog know that I’m an advocate of feedback loops.
There are dozens of ways that you can (and should) use feedback loops to better understand your consumers. These include advisory panels, ethnography, surveys and so on.
But too often, we brand leaders forget that we’re an active part of these feedback loops. We need to send signals as well as receive them. And we can build stronger bonds by signaling the right things to the people we serve. Continue reading “The Best Brands Use Feedback Loops Both Ways”
(Reading Time: 2 minutes)There’s a terrific scene in the movie “Big,” in which Paul, the rival of Tom Hanks’ Josh, shares his silver-bullet idea for the upcoming year.
In the spirit of toys that transform, it’s a robot that turns into a… building.
“I don’t get it,” Josh famously says. “There’s a million robots that turn into something. This is a building that turns into a robot. What’s fun about playing with a building? That’s not any fun!”
“This is a skyscraper!” Paul insists. Continue reading ““This Is a Skyscraper,” and Other Lies We Tell Ourselves”
At some point in the history of marketing and sales, the “purchase funnel” was created.
At the top of every funnel is the first step – awareness. We then proceed down the funnel to consideration, evaluation and purchase (though the exact steps vary from model to model).
And so some marketers began to believe that brand awareness was a reasonable objective of their efforts. How can we stuff consumers into our imaginary funnel if we don’t start with awareness?
Continue reading “Why Is Brand Awareness Such a Weak Objective?”
(Reading Time: 2 minutes)Be selective.
This is not a suggestion or an empty mantra. It’s one of the very few brand-building imperatives I’ll propose to you.
As a leader of a challenger brand, you’re starting from behind, and with fewer resources than your competitors. And limited resources must be focused if they are to have maximum impact.
Here are five important ways you can be selective: Continue reading “Be Selective (To Do More With Less)”
Your brand is not your logo.
Your brand is not your website.
Your brand is not your color scheme.
These are elements of your brand. But they’re not your brand.
Continue reading “Stop worrying about your branding.”