Promises Implied and Promises Bought

Have you ever noticed how the words “imply” and “infer” often (if not usually) carry a negative connotation?

“Are you implying that I…” she said, indignantly.

“Certainly not! You may have inferred that, but it was not at all what I was saying!” he responded.

The problem becomes more obvious (and more complex) in a marketing context. In fact, it sometimes constitutes grounds for litigation. “Your Honor, the makers of this ladder clearly implied, in their literature, that the ladder would be safe if…” And the rest belongs in a television courtroom. Read more

A Long Tale of Long Tails

If you stopped by today’s blog, expecting your weekly dose of marketing wisdom, you may have come to the wrong place.
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Presentation Tips from a 4-Year-Old

You’re an executive. You engage successfully with colleagues, employee, and clients every day. So what in the world could you possibly learn from my four-year-old daughter, Lulu?
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A Customer’s Perspective on Engagement

When was the last time you actually walked into your bank branch? Something has changed. And it feels a little creepy.

For several years, I’ve had a business account with SunTrust. When I first opened the account, I was introduced to several of the local branch managers. My business account manager helped me evaluate options for the firm and offered to be a resource as we grew. It felt good. He knew me by name, and it stayed that way until he transferred to take a promotion at a larger branch. Over time, of course, tellers came and went – which is pretty much what you might expect from a bank, where employees have to act and dress as if they were paid twice what they are actually paid. So, I wasn’t surprised by the spinning Rolodex of happy faces. Read more

If It’s Not Working, Stop It!

We recently conducted an extensive survey of 246 nonprofit organizations, to help them better understand their marketing practices. (The results of that survey are public and will be released in February.) And one of the most surprising findings was their position on print – specifically printed direct mail.
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Either Retargeting Ads Work or Zappos Isn’t Paying Attention

It was 16 months ago that I first read the New York Times article about “retargeting ads.” We’ve all encountered them – and most people find them as welcomed as bedbugs (and even harder to get rid of).

The technology is simple enough. Some honest and unsuspecting prospective customer visits an unscrupulous merchant’s website, and ends up with a cookie in his browser settings. Next thing he knows, he finds himself being stalked by that merchant – or others selling the same or similar merchandise. Read more

The Brand Continuum

In the movie Field of Dreams, Ray Kinsella, a down-on-his-luck Iowan farmer (played by Kevin Costner) responds to a whisper in his cornfield encouraging him to build a baseball field – “If you build it, they will come.”  With blind faith he follows the vision and in the end is able to fulfill his dreams, right past wrongs, and salvage his farm in a fairy-tale ending.
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But Seriously, Folks

The question I asked was, “What were the defining qualities of the best business presenter you ever saw?”

Without hesitation, the German executive I was working with gave me this quick list:

  • Energy
  • Enthusiasm
  • Rapport

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Subscribers, Impressions and Clicks – Oh My!

When the Tin Woodsman joined Dorothy and the Scarecrow on their journey to Oz, he warned his companions to watch out for lions and tigers and bears. That scene put the fear of Oz into my kids when they were young. Which was exactly what the filmmaker intended. Of course, Dorothy never did run into any tigers or bears, and the only lion she met turned out to be a coward. So the battle chant “Lions and Tigers and Bears,” though catchy, was little more than a distraction.
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Customer Service – It’s All in the Name

Sixty years ago, my father had an insurance agent named Jack Josephson. Jack was the embodiment of customer service. He answered his own phone, spoke in simple terms, told the truth, and would drop anything he was doing to respond to a client with a claim. Jack was a good guy in an age of good guys – but since good guys were everywhere in the ‘50s, he went pretty much unnoticed. Jack worked for Prudential, the “Rock-of-Gibraltar” company. It seemed to fit. Jack was always there, never changing, solid. He was an honor to the brand he served. I remember the day I learned that Jack had died. And though I never really knew him personally, I felt like I had lost a part of my childhood.
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