Archives for Marketing

Bionic Bob goes quack quack quack

I am sitting in a meeting room with my friend Bob Cannon.  The quiet of the room is interrupted by the load quacking of a duck.  Since the library bumps up against a park with a stream, my first thought was, “what window is open?” Looking across the table I watch Bob smack his chest and say, “Hello, this is Bob.” I thought, “what the heck is he doing?”  I sat amazed as he acted as if he were on the phone with someone, sitting there, grinning at me.  Next I thought, “hey, my friend is getting old, just humor
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What YOUR Competition Does NOT Want YOU To Know About

It is called Sub Rosa.  You need to be aware of this term.  It could sneak up on you.  Consider some recent news stories.    ·         The recruiting of Sales and Marketing Executives has found new levels of attention and activity by Executive Head Hunters (Wall Street Journal) ·         Restaurant Sales are way up over last year (USA Today) ·         Victoria Secret’s new Miraculous Bra is expected to show great sales in 2010 signaling a time when women are ready to spend on themselves again. (NY Times) The economy is coming back (no surprise) and when that happens the focus
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How ShamWow Can Mess Up YOUR Business

There is the scene in the ShamWow! commercial where the spokesperson pours cola drink into a piece of carpeting.  He then proceeds to suction up massive amounts of liquid with the fantastical Shamwow.  On watching the commercial a second time I notice that between the soaking of the carpet and the picking up the liquid there is a moment when the camera cuts to a shot of the spokesperson. When the camera goes back to the carpet all of the soda that was running out from beneath is GONE. The picture had been doctored.  Ah ha.  The ShamWow! is a
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“But Noah! I thought the Ark left at 8:00!”

Which stranger would you go with? There at the end of the pier stand two men. On the left is the wizened old man, white beard, sun toughened face, calloused hands.  To the right stands the expert.  He oozes sophistication, education and professionalism.  Again, which one would you go with?  The old man or the young professional? And what about you personally?  Where are you?  Where do you mentally slot yourself in your business, your profession?  Are you the highly educated, sure footed and professional provider of products and services? Or are you second guessing yourself, wondering if you are
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Donuts join Axle Grease to showcase a true Artist

Ralphs!  Found by referral it is an awesome auto mechanic here in my town.  I refer friends and they call with accolades and thanks. Add to the list “Georges Donuts.” The local that are in the know all go there.  When you stop several times and find out they are closed during the day you wonder why until finally figure out that he sells out everyday and closes up shop till the next round of caloric rich goodies are created. I stopped last Saturday.  A glazed Croissant?   Are you kidding me?  It was awesome.  Like eating air and sweetness.
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TransBrands – The future of business – lessons from Pandora and the blue Na'vi

My friend Carol had to go back and see the Imax version of Avatar in 3D a second time last Saturday. Carol, Glenn and I had gone to the morning show and it was awesome.  I think it represents the future of entertainment.  It is a true TransBrand. A what? Turn the clock back one hundred years.  Farmer John used to take his eggs and milk into town.  His neighbors brought their produce and they traded with each other or exchanged dollars. Then the world got sophisticated.  It certainly got bigger as the cities grew.  No longer did the luxury
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Stupid is as Wal-Mart does

Don’t get me wrong.  I think Wal-Mart provides a great service for America. Today I needed to pick up some prescriptions at my local Wal-Mart.  When I called to inquire on availability they informed me that the price was higher than I had been buying down the street at a K-Mart store. “Why don’t you match the price” I asked? “Because it is farther than 5 miles away.” “But if you don’t, I will just go back to K-Mart.” “Sorry” they said. So called the Wal-Mart that is a couple of miles further away but just down the street from
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A Small Town Pays Attention to the Small Stuff and Get BIG Results

< !--[if gte mso 10]> You gotta love someone who does their job with simple elegance and ease of execution. Many moons ago I was putting on a morning workshop for three smaller Chambers of Commerce in a small remote Ohio hamlet.  I know I need to get over myself, but I have to tell you; this was pretty good stuff.  Great information on how to grow your business, ways to communicate your value . . . all of that doctrine.  So afterward Craig Brown, who works for the Small Business Development Center in that area says, “This is something
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Lessons at the door of a hotel: The Do’s and Don’ts of Marketing Your Business

It was 3:00 in the morning at a Marriott hotel in north Dallas.  You know how you awake to that feeling that something is just not quite right.  I heard a loud argument through the wall to the next room, looked at the fire red clock display and thought, “Are you kidding me, who has the energy to be awake and arguing at this hour?” There came the slamming door in the hallway.  A few minutes of quiet where interrupted by banging on MY door with the accompanied female yells of “LET ME IN!”  I hurried to the door and
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What Should YOUR Business Look Like In a Speedo?

Mike Vance is, in my opinion, one of the greatest business speakers in the last 100 years.  His work on developing creativity is cornerstone.  He introduced the three methods to create something.  Those were: Invention Invention (i.e. the light bulb) Invention Extension (i.e. the flashlight) Invention Devention (see below) An old Nike T-shirt had a saying plastered across the front that read, “The older I get the better I was!”  That is me.  Believe it or not, there was a time when I was the captain of the swim team -many, many, many pounds ago with the svelt torso to
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