Your business situation must steer your brand’s next move
A smart brand strategy is a smart business strategy. Before moving towards a plan, you must understand the business situation you face. In this article, I will outline four distinct business situations your brand could face: Fuel the momentum, Fix it, Realignment, and a Start-up. You are running a live business, with a need to drive […]
A smart brand strategy is the foundation of a marketing plan
When it comes to creating your marketing plan, the foundation of the plan is the vision, key issues, and smart brand strategy statements. While the vision sets the direction of where you want to go, a well-crafted brand strategy steers all marketing efforts. In this post, we will come up with the key elements of […]
The smart way to write brand goals for your business
Writing goals are an essential part of running your business. We usually achieve what we think we can achieve. Your goals should have a balance of stretch and reality. In short, use your brand vision to push a little beyond your comfort level and achieve beyond what you expect. You will hear the term smart goals. […]
Ten questions to help you define the culture behind your brand
The best brands of today spend as much effort marketing to themselves as they do to their consumers. While the culture behind your brand will form naturally, you can use a brand purpose and values to steer everyone who works behind the scenes of your brand. Finding your brand purpose answers the big question of […]
The most misused and abused marketing buzzwords
On a daily basis, I hear marketing buzzwords bantered about and it becomes obvious people say them and don’t really even know what they mean. I think people use sacred marketing words like relevant, equity or insights because they figure no one will challenge them. Of course, everyone puts “strategic thinker” on their LinkedIn profile. […]
5 free online tools to use for Market Research
Marketing research is an important part of any marketing plan. It helps you understand how people think and behave so that you can create products and services that will appeal to them. For many small to midsize brands, market research can feel cost-prohibitive. This article will show you five ways you can do some market […]
Marketers Guide to OmniChannel Media: Paid, earned, shared, and owned media
In today’s fragmented digital landscape, a robust brand strategy is not just about being visible, it’s about being omnipresent. For brand leaders and top-tier marketing professionals, the strategy has shifted from a Multi-Channel media approach to an OmniChannel Media strategy. This intricate ballet of Paid, Earned, Shared, and Owned (The PESO Model™) media is where […]
Using in-the-box creativity keeps your advertising on strategy
The best creative marketing ideas come through in-the-box creativity using problem solving where the box is your brand strategy. Alternatively, save your blue sky out-of-the-box thinking for random inventions or the launch of a new brand. This in-the-box creativity can be used for any marketing communications including advertising, point of purchase, or B2B marketing. As […]
The seven essential questions every winning brand must answer
Brands aren’t just about logos, taglines, or ads. At the heart of the most successful brands is a keen understanding of their ideal target consumer, a compelling brand vision that steers everyone, and an organizing brand idea that brings it all to life. As a former VP of Marketing for Fortune 500 companies, I have […]
How to use brand purpose to drive the power of your brand
The best brand purpose is the one you never have to tell the consumer. It should be focused internally to steer the culture of those who work behind the scenes of the brand. Front line workers should project the purpose. Your brand purpose should ooze out into the experience it creates for consumers. When your brand purpose […]
