They’re called by different names such as premium brands, luxury brands or even high-road brands. Regardless of the name, the value of attaining premium status in your industry comes with high rewards and the greatest return on sales (ROS) or margins in the industry. Moreover, as you attain premium…
Archive for January, 2009
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
‘Thought Leading’ Your Way to Premium Brand Status
Continue reading "‘Thought Leading’ Your Way to Premium Brand Status"
Monday, January 19, 2009
Marketers Want To Play With Your (Social Media) Toys
Think about it: None of these cool new social media tools were developed with “us” (marketers) in mind. Blogs, social networks, YouTube, etc. were created for people to keep in touch with their family and friends. So it shouldn’t be a big surprise that the majority of people who first embraced…
Are Companies Targeting the Wrong ‘Influencers’ With Social Media?
In the last couple of years, as companies have become more interested in social media, they have tried to find ways to use these tools to reach “influencers.” Sometimes these initiatives are referred to as ‘blogger outreach’ programs. But there is a much more influential and important group that…
People Don’t Buy ‘Run of the Mill’ Anything Anymore!
I work in a professional services firm and in order for firms like ours to differentiate themselves, they have to create perhaps hundreds of personal brands around individuals who understand niche topics extremely well. And since buyers have transparency through the use of search engines they can…
Friday, January 16, 2009
Don’t Fall In Love With the Brochure Rack
Back in the day, while working in marketing at Starbucks Coffee Company, I remember a phase where nearly every product manager wanted a brochure printed and put in the brochure rack to promote their product. There were (and still are) only a few places where signage and communications can live…
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Ghostwriting, Social Media and Ethics
A few weeks back, Geoff Livingston and I wrote an off-the-cuff, tongue-in-cheek post “Top 25 Ways to Tell if Your Social Media Expert Is a Carpetbagger” and it drew the most interesting conversation around ghostwriting (#7 was “Will ghostwrite blog posts and other social content for you”).
There a…
Revisiting My Media Consumption
Robert Hruzek is running another of his fascinating group writing projects. This time, for his Blogapalooza, he is inviting people to share what they learned each month of 2008. My own entry will appear on January 19 …. but the entries are still open (so you can still share your own learnings up…
How to Build a Lead Nurturing Super Highway!
Not all leads should be treated equally. In our business, for example, the sales cycle can be upwards of 9 months …. so lead nurturing it critical to stay in front of your prospect during their journey from awareness to consideration to purchase.
Furthermore, you are never quite sure when that…
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Want to Learn How to Use Social Media in a Crisis Situation?
Social media has long been lauded as a wonderful way to connect with customers and to build excitement for your brand/company/etc. But social media can also be an amazingly effective crisis management tool. That is, if the tools are in the hands of someone that knows how to utilize them properly,…
New Blockbuster Study Confirms ‘Food and Product Safety and its Effect on Consumer Buying Habits’
Deloitte LLP issued a very important report this fall, based on a survey the company commissioned. “Food and Product Safety and its Effect on Consumer Buying Habits” put hard numbers to what marketers have long known.
Pat Conroy, Deloitte LLP’s vice chairman and consumer products practice leader: …
