Coke – they already had an empire, but…
No matter how big you are, no matter how much you spend, and even if you are the best marketers on the planet; you cannot bend the consumer to your will.
Learning from the Legends: What Can’t be Questioned?
Immediately following the launch of the Mr. Whipple campaign Charmin displaced Scott as the #1 brand in America.
Gaggia Espresso Machines had a problem
This is a lesson of overcoming resistance to new innovations. What to do with unwanted oily film? The answer built an empire and even changed how fine espresso is judged.
Distinctiveness vs. Differentiation vs. Bonding
Branding aims at de-commodification: getting the customer to see you as the better, worthier option. And there are three ways of pursuing this goal.
Secrets of a genius storyteller
Learn from the great Ronnie Van Zant from Lynyrd Skynyrd. Appeal to your audience by speaking to them in their language.
An interview with a small business that applied the Wrigley formula
He does not sell gum. He sells used RVs and he applied the lessons from Wrigley’s and is growing like crazy.
“Emotional” Doesn’t Mean What You Think It Means
“Emotional campaigns are 30% more likely than rational campaigns to show large profit effects" — Binet & Field, The Long and Short of It
Should an Upwardly Mobile Zebra Shed Its Stripes?
Successful marketing, getting your company noticed, requires behavior that's not only risky, it runs counter to instinct.
Magical Thinking, Branding, and Chevy’s Christmas Ad
Your love for this small piece of commercial art, which you’ll likely share with others, can’t help but partially rub off onto Chevy.
Advertising is like cooking an egg
In an environment where results are needed immediately, microwaving your marketing might be the option. But it’s not the most ideal.
Persuading Individuals vs. Persuading the Crowd — Why Not Both?
We are social creatures, and what others think and believe profoundly affects what we think and believe.
The Poet and the Engineer
I was an engineer for most of my life. Engineers think logically and rationally but they can't stir desire like a poet. Are your ads written by the poet, or the engineer?
Winning the War for Talent – An Advertising Strategy for Service Companies
This is why character and story-driven advertising not only accelerates branding success, but recruiting success as well.
Putting Funny Ads To Work For Your Boring-Ass Business – Ordinary to Extraordinary
None of these products were inherently interesting, yet their ads have been enjoyed hundreds of millions of times.
How to Steal Your Competitor’s Customers. Part 2 of 3
Is this a good ad? Does it make you want to buy a can of John’s Tomato Juice? A good ad would.