“Research is formalized curiosity. It is poking and prying with a purpose.” – Zora Neale Hurston There is science in connection with your audience. After you’ve completed steps 1: the SWOT analysis and 2: Maslow’s Pyramid, you now know the benefit you want to convey to your audience. Now, it’s time to find out how Read More
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6 Web Development Don’ts for 2017
We’ve come to the last of the installments of our 2017 website tips. We’ve been through design. We’ve been through content. Let’s talk through the final piece of the trifecta: web development. This is where the rubber meets the road. All your strategy, design, and writing will pay off…if you build it correctly. Even though websites Read More
Great Marketing Leaders Declare War…on Themselves
In one of my former jobs, I was conducting a highly-complex systems training session with a group of people…and I had a “challenging” leadership moment. It was the kind of moment where corporate politics was the game, jockeying for position was the play, and keeping my cool in the middle of it all was the Read More
How Not to Kill Your Marketing Team
Shepherds. They tend their sheep daily. They guide them, rear them, and teach them. It is their duty to protect the flock and count each sheep’s lil’ fluffy head to ensure none have wandered astray. For thousands of years, shepherds have watched over their flocks with care. I’ve heard business leaders use the analogy of Read More
Marketing Doesn’t Mean Manipulation
A debate topic being tossed around our office right now is marketing (Is it a good thing? Is it evil?). I’m willing to bet we’re not the only ones arguing. Some people have majorly negative connotations when the words “advertising” or “marketing” come up in conversation, and rightfully so. Unfortunately, perceptions about marketing are being Read More
The Catch-22 of E-Commerce
One of the most difficult things a business owner can do is see their brand the same way a customer does. Our companies are our babies. We watched them grow from nothing into something. We’ve seen them overcome challenges, rise above competition, and become forces with unlimited potential. We don’t see them as they are Read More
Cold Emails: The Enticing First Sentence
Writing is hard. I lamented that fact to my author mother recently, and she solemnly shook her head in affirmation. Working in sales usually means you’re loaded with interpersonal skills. But the digital divide means those skills don’t transfer 1:1 to writing emails. “Cold calling is dead,” says Hubspot’s Jill Rowley. Cold emailing is now Read More
Banks & Credit Unions Need Brand Identity
Trusted. Secure. Convenient. Simple. Blah de blah de blah. Talk about a saturated market. It only takes one morning commute to see a bank or credit union operating on every other corner. Between the FDIC and the NCUA, there are about 12,500 banks and credit unions in the United States. That means you’re more likely Read More
Brand Identity Makes Marketing Work
Flush. That’s the sound of a shockingly large number of marketing dollars spinning down the toilet. I hope you waved goodbye. Marketing has always been more of an art than science, but that art form has become extremely complex. With all the strategies, calendars, campaigns, digital tools, and activities involved, many companies have resolved to Read More
Brand Identity Helps Organizations Grow
Growth. You’re as likely to hear this word come out of a CEO’s mouth as you are to watch the Cubs not make the post-season cut. In today’s economy we use words like: acquisition merger new products or services geographic expansion Each of these situations presents its own set of challenges. Mergers and acquisitions include Read More
