Entrepreneurial Insights: Brian Tewes
Starting your own business can be brutal. Brian shares his war stories with advice for fellow entrepreneurs.
How Xero Shoes Found Success Ruling a Tiny Niche
How they bootstrapped (no pun intended) to dominate minimalist running.
How many customers do you gift away?
Forget gifts or incentives. Instead, focus on rewards for loyal customers.
Does Billboard Advertising Work?
We frequently hear, “I tried billboards once, and it didn’t work.” What separates the winners from the rest?
THE WIZARD (bi)WEEKLY
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The “I Knew It All Along” Trap: Hindsight Bias In Business
If you were aware this was relevant to you then it wouldn’t be a bias.
FedEx: How a Ridiculed Idea Revolutionized Shipping
Got a C for the idea in school. Lies. Forges. Gets arrested. Gambles his last $5000 in Vegas. And changes the world.
How Many Pancake Restaurants?
Specializing creates your position at the top of a small list rather than competing in a bigger (harder) list.
Five marketing mistakes you can’t afford
It’s not big things that lose customers; they’re too obvious. Your prospects see things you don’t.
Partner Book of the Month
Latest Monday Morning Memo
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Mastering the Process: Inside the Mind of a High Achiever
Behind every high achiever is a system for success. Jay was new to sales and the ideal subject for my experiment.
Why Great Ideas Need Champions: Xerox’s Regrets
Xerox had game-changing tech in the ’80s but failed to capitalize. What did Apple do that they didn’t?
5 Success Principles NASA Uses Available To You
A subtle takeaway from Apollo 11: Neil wasn’t striving for stardom. He was a pilot with a flight plan.
The Contagious Power of Emotions in Sales
Brain science is very clear. This is an automatic and subconscious response that can work for you or against you.
Measure Twice, Copy Once: The Kinko’s Lesson on Data-Driven Decisions
They only earned $30 each night. But the 24/7 branding spiked daytime sales by 50%.
Leading the Bull
If you’ve got to do a hard sell job to get them to take action then you’re setting yourself up for disappointment.
You WON’T Believe This Forgotten Apple Ad!
You remember the 1984 ad. They tried a similar formula in 1985 and it flopped. Why?
Why Pay Per Click is (Almost) Always a Waste of Money
Don’t waste money fighting to outbid people who aren’t looking for you. Do this instead.
How Using Nano Tools Can Improve Your Productivity in 15 Minutes
I get no commission for talking about this. I just think it’s a cool thing.
Pop Goes the Industry: How Bubble Wrap Found Its Killer App
First they filed a patent and then they had to go look for a viable market.
How will you (actually) measure success?
Tracking the wrong things in marketing doesn’t mean you can fix anything. But it sure feels good.
Pioneers and Settlers
We’ve conflated “pioneer” with “achiever” and forget that the original pioneers were pursuing a simply insane notion.
Before the Sale: Craig Arthur on Profitable Relationships – Part 2
Sending staff to help customers without training is like abandoning them.
The Secret to Building Trust: Expose Your Weaknesses
Customers ask, “Can I trust your capabilities and do I trust your soul?”
Say yes. Start now.
Just as bad experiences give birth to great stories, a bad idea can lead you to uncover a better one.
Bigger Than Me
We’ve all had some degree of feeling like we’re serving a higher calling with what we do in our business on a day-after-day basis.
Before the Sale: Craig Arthur on Profitable Relationships – Part 1
Relational buyers are more profitable and make a long-term commitment.
The Secret Weapon of Trivial Pursuit: Celebrities
Even if it sold out, they would still be in the red. So how did they make it big?
Athletes to Business. Visualization Creates Golden Results
Beyond athletics, visualization makes brands famous by driving emotional bonds and actions.
Your Life is Forfeit
In this two page ad there are no photographs, prices, phone numbers, or website address. Here’s why it works.
Curiosity: The Salesperson’s Secret Weapon
Buyers take curiosity as a signal that this salesperson is engaged, listening, and will meet their needs.
What Made Tripadvisor a Leader? Customer Centricity.
User review was an afterthought at first, but they noticed what visitors wanted.
Personality or Procedure?
Focusing on personality & flash helps you become top of mind. But without processes in the background, the work falters.
Building Your Culture is Your Brand
What sets exceptional companies apart? The story. The people. And every customer interaction.
The Right Way to Build Rapport
When a salesperson thinks, “I am going to make you like me no matter what” and overdoes it, customers recoil away.
How To Recruit Good People
If they’re hardworking and loyal, you know what they’re not doing? They’re not looking for work. So how do you get them?
6 ways to supercharge personal endorsement ads
Two categories: live reads and true personal endorsements. One is much more effective.
Branding, Like Cattle
Not allocating proper resources risks turning your brand into a temporary tattoo: easy, fun, and painless but fleeting.
Speaking with Confidence and Influence
7 tips (backed by science) for how you can be viewed as more confident and persuasive. A few will surprise you.
Silly Putty – Ad Writer Acquires It For $147 Then Earns $140 million
GE couldn’t sell it, but an out-of-work marketer found the right angle.
Is Your Bank Really Working for Your Business?
The same banks that are less convenient for personal banking may be the best banks for your growing business.
Recruiting Your Sales Rockstar: Finding the Right Sales Manager
7 common things to avoid doing and 7 things to actively look for that make all the difference in this crucial role.
Scatterbrain Synesthesia
If you want to think outside the box, the easiest way is to relax and allow your right brain to tap into a well-spring of ideas.
Craft Your Vibe: A Lesson from Herschel Supply’s Branding
Both the aesthetic & story stood out. So they soon became the first backpack sold at Nordstrom.
Bottom Line Growth: Don’t Just Renew, Renegotiate
If you have no problem with the quality of service, you can often propose a longer-term contract with lower rates.
How To Use The Liking Principle to Grow Your Business
Weak sales relationships had only 30% acceptance for their proposals. But strong relationships converted at 70%.
Break the Gumball Machine
Brand building doesn’t work like a gumball machine — you can’t expect immediate fame from minimal investment or effort.
Donut Theater: How Krispy Kreme Used Spectacle for Word of Mouth
We didn’t go because of an ad. We went after someone said, “Oh my God, you’ve gotta try this.”
Selling Your Baby: A Practical Guide to Business Exit
How to put the best face on your company and get the outcomes you’re hoping for.
Boost Sales Conversations and Stop Guessing What Customers Are Thinking
Epley, Steffel, and Eyal studied this. We think we know what somebody is thinking, but we suck at it.
Achieving Branding on the Brain
I’m always going to believe in the power of sound to resonate and provoke a response months and years down the road.
Selling High-End in Hard Times: The Rise of Healthier Bread
It’s the depression and bread costs 10 cents. Pepperidge was fully sold out at 25 cents.
Social Media Sucks Today
Because they sell reach as an advertising platform, why would they give it for free when they can convince you to pay for it?
The Principle of Scarcity
Should I emphasize limited time or limited quantity? Which is more persuasive? Learn the science on that and more.
Winking in the dark
Speaking to the masses is the only way to have the masses buy your better mousetrap. And it works like any courtship.
Loyalty Grows When Your Company Commits To “Do With, Not For”
How I found the care home my brother deserved, and the magic that made it successful.
Are You Paying for Too Much for the Wrong Keywords?
Cheaper branded keywords not only have higher clicks and conversions, they also have higher average tickets.
Adventures in A.I. – Left, Right and Connected
A chance meeting led to an adventure in A.I. development. The recreation of the human brain?
Brand Building vs Sales Activation
95% of your potential customers are not currently looking for you, but they will someday.
Futuristic Game for the Ad Masters
You can’t rely on the same old tricks to get attention. So what does the future of advertising really look like?
2024: The Year Digital Becomes “Traditional”
Digital marketing is too old for excuses like “the algorithm changed,” and “it’s still new technology.”
Pretend is bad for business
When you communicate real beliefs, customers drink that tall glass of water and keep coming back for more.
How to Get the Most From Sales Training Events
It’s no good to just learn new skills. It’s only good if we apply them.
The Michael Kors Story: Adaptability and Building a Brand
Brave, bankrupt and brilliant. The young model bounced back.
Strategic Giving: A Guide for Local Businesses
If I ask you how many charity dollars you have left, and you don’t know, you are digging a dark hole.
Dominate Your Market Like Rolex — 4 Powerful Branding Lessons
Who are you NOT for? Who do you NOT want as a customer?
Finding Your Blind Spots
We all have a blind spot, and it’s shaped exactly like us. – Junot Diaz
Harnessing the Principles of Influence to Boost Sales
90 percent of what we do is System One thinking, and these 7 principles speak directly to System One.
Poinsettia’s Billion Dollar Rise to Become a Christmas Icon
With free samples and a patent, how a family created a tradition from thin air and held 90% market share.
To Unlock Success Prioritize Effectiveness Over Efficiency
You don’t want a race car built for speed but missing tires — it will just slide around with nowhere to go.
MYTH: Everyone goes to Google first
Empty your bank account and give it all to Google. The click still goes to the known brand 8 out of 10 times.
Military-Grade Persuasion for Your Branding
4 factors of messaging that make rivals clutch their pearls and whine at their inability to effectively counter you.
People Fit and Healthy Attitudes: Hiring Strategies to Avoid Bad Apples
How to avoid hires that make you feel sick and recruit a healthy (and profitable) culture.
Cultivating a Purpose-Driven Sales Team
Dr. Adam Grant’s breakthrough research drastically improved results — repeatedly — and fostered purpose with context.
Offline Marketing for an Online Business: The Angie’s List Strategy
They opened 100 markets in 18 months but users weren’t discovering Angie’s online.
Classical Conditioning: Pavlov’s Dog in Advertising
How to get attention? Simple. Speak to the dog in the language of the dog.
Happy Happy, Joy, Joy
Whether cartoons or ads, magical things are created when geniuses are given complete creative freedom.
When Good Advertising Advice Conflicts — And How to Reconcile It
Buyers want to hear what’s in it for them. They also need to know “why can I trust you?”
Robots or Eyeballs?
Who to serve first. Is it humans with actual eyeballs? Or do the web-crawling spiders that fuel search algorithms win out?
To Sell or to Serve: Can You Do Both?
The sale is won or lost with genuine questions and listening at the opening in needs analysis. Not through telling.
Wonder Bread: A Case Study in How to Stay Ahead of the Curve
Reimagine and eliminate the friction… What they did over decades to keep Wonder Bread at the top.
The Wooing of Lifelong Customers
Jail time or love? It all depends on if you skip these steps.
Make the Invisible Visible — What Van Halen Can Teach About Branding
Apple earphones are white. Christian Louboutin features red soles. Is your brand that visible?
Don’t Just Trust The Numbers
The numbers never “speak for themselves” and assuming they do sets us up for failure. Here’s how to look at them.
Hear, See, Speak No Advertising
We encounter 5,000 ads on a daily basis. Can you opt out? Or can you rise above the sea of sameness?
How To Quickly and Effectively Convey Your Value
Your team knows their stuff, but it sounds like a sales pitch. Time to update their elevator speech.
Ditch the Rulebook: Why Breaking Best Practices Can Be Powerful
Do you actually want to be a leader in your industry? Copycats never lead the pack.
Why Branding Is the Cheat Code for Long-Term Growth
You’ll eventually reach a point where you can no longer grow based on short-term advertising alone.
Nuclear Family Business Problems
Love & emotion are the fuel for families, but money & reason make the engine run in a business.
Predictability: The Silent Assassin of Storytelling?
In marketing, like any other story, you need the courage to take the risks necessary to create something truly memorable.
Sales Funnel or Production Line? Either Way, it’s NOT a Numbers Game.
If there’s a bottleneck or flaw at any stage of the process, it hampers the entire operation.
Can You Afford to Use Mass Media? Can You Afford Not To?
Here’s how to tell, and where you’ll find the tipping point in most markets.
How Clairol’s Bold Campaign Transformed Norms and Ignited Demand
Nobody wanted to dye their hair and it took 3 years for Good Housekeeping to accept their ads.
Learning the “Yes. And…” Rule
Whether on stage or at work, the best predictor of success in a team setting is the psychological security felt by every member.
The Science Behind Successful Advertising
Many are seeking a perpetual motion machine for generating leads. But that violates Newton’s first law of thermodynamics.
Uncovering the Hidden Barriers to Business Growth
The CLA tool can fix blind spots, avoid stagnation, and boost growth, but it takes vulnerability as a leader. Ryan is a perfect case study.
Supercharging Your Sales Persuasion With Universal Appeals
First agitate. Then when you present the solution, offer it up as an ideal solution for special people, just like your prospect.
How Harry’s Found the Perfect Edge in a Dull Market
They faced Gillette’s 70% monopoly and never blinked. Bought their own factory and marketed direct to consumers.
Farming Versus Fishing
It’s attractive to fish for customers, reeling in a huge catch with flashy sales. But only farmers can create a bumper crop of future revenue.
Taglines vs. Positioning Statements vs. Brandable Chunks
Brandable chunks are refined from average advertising in the same way that hi-octane gas is refined from crude oil.
Will AI outplay SEO? Or Will Humans Come Out On Top?
SEO agencies have often been enticed by the idea of gaming the algorithms by optimizing for the engine over the searcher.
Navigating From the Rear View Mirror
Focusing on business output metrics instead of customer-centric input metrics leaves you with little insight into how to improve and grow.
Chomping at the Bit for Success: The Unlikely Story Behind the Empire
27 years old and bankrupt, Pete had an itch that wouldn’t go away. Hear the story of his $100 million side-hustle.
How to Write Your Business Narrative
Use AI if you want your message to sound exactly like everything else published on the internet last week.
Feeling Spring Sluggish? Tap Into The “Vacation Effect” For Your Business
The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. Or right now. The same applies to crafting your branding & strategy.
Are You The SAFE Choice? Or, How One Weird Trick Boosted Sales by 30%!
The safe, easy choice wins out over the potentially better choice that carries more risk.
How Sun Bum Used Guerilla Marketing to Take Over the Beach
Literally radio stations would be getting calls going, “What is this ape that we keep seeing everywhere?”
10 Magical Words of the Direct Mail Kingdom
Despite the relatively high direct mail cost, the pay-off can be tremendous, and the benefits unrivaled.
Repurpose The Proven
The proven “Mother’s Day macaroni” ads were sappy and flowery, but man, did they work. Right up until they didn’t.
How To Build a Multi $100 Million HVAC and Plumbing Company
80% of executives believe they deliver a “superior experience”. But only 8% of customers agree. How can that be?