One of my favorite podcasts is How Do We Fix It?, hosted by Richard Davies and Jim Miegs. It reeks of nuance, alternate views, reason, and charm.
I recently listened to an episode with Alison Schrager, who has looked at how risk is managed across circumstances and environments. Some of her conclusions from her book, An Economist Walks Into a Brothel: And Other Unexpected Places to Learn About Risk, really moved me.
In an article written by Kevin Chesters, owner and partner at Harbour, an independent communications collective in London, he notes that marketing strategy is often an in-house function because of budget, time constraints, or convenience.
Well, who doesn’t want to save money, time, or hassle?
One primary concern of nonprofit organizations is budget. There’s not always a lot of money to dedicate to comprehensive marketing campaigns. But, these organizations are uniquely positioned to benefit from email marketing thanks to its comparatively low cost.
I once had a therapist who asked me if I were standing in the middle of a messy room, and had to clean it, what would I start with? My response was that I would start with cleaning up the big things. Clearing up big pieces of space at a time would help me feel accomplished, less burdened, and would help me see the smaller things better.
We recently onboarded a new client who doesn’t have a CMO. They have tons of experience supporting their brand with the digital channels and PR. They’re in the design industry, so they’re fueled by creativity and innovation. They understand the value of metrics in proving the ROI of their marketing.
But, they came to us because they realized they needed something they called “high-level strategy” in order to use their marketing budget more intelligently.
Seriously, when I heard that I thought I’d died and gone to heaven.
In the past few weeks, I’ve had the opportunity to be introduced to other marketing related firms that do things I don’t do--or don’t do well enough. In the past I viewed this as competition, but now my mind is changed.
Oftentimes, we come into a business relationship to help focus strategy, messaging, and planning. We have implementation programs with our in-house “machine,” and project manage to sustain aggressive timetables and provide air-cover for client teams.
Email unsubscribes are okay--really.
Your email unsubscribe experience will influence how people feel about your brand.
Helping people unsubscribe from your emails will actually have a positive impact on your email deliverability and internet service provider reputation, the goodwill of your customers and prospects, the health of your email list, your bottom line, and more.
Here are some stress-free concepts to think about.
As we embark on two late-2019 brand messaging projects, I’m reminded to stand my ground on the balance between brand values-based messaging and product features.
Customers (whether B2B or B2C) are increasingly adamant that the buyer experience be holistically enjoyable. Yes, they need your product or service to solve their problem, but they also want to believe they're making a good decision -- and you need to be able to describe why they should invest in you.
Only three percent of customers believe marketing is relevant. As in, 97 percent of customers do not?
It’s a staggering statistic for those of us who put everything into helping our customers define (and refine) their brand voice, craft the right messaging, and effectively deliver it to their target markets. Unfortunately, many companies don’t fully comprehend the intricacies of what makes marketing work. Simply throwing money at “marketing” is an inefficient and wasteful strategy.
Recently, a friend asked for a WSMG credentials deck to send along to a referral. I’m so grateful, but I always pause and ask: Is this really a good idea?
Credentials decks are about the “what” of what you do. It functions like a checklist. Do they do what I need?
But, it’s hard to convey the unique why-and-how in a two-dimensional asset.
