Wiener Dogs Forever: The Power of Crowd Promotion
This is about a community movement where the stars are everyday people. Most businesses that attempt to do something like this do it badly.
Personality Prescription, Part 4 – Other Homeowners’ Motivations
Value Conscious Homeowners are shopping, too. But not for the best deal. They are looking for an expert they can trust.
A childhood bribe taught me about bad marketing
Bribing a customer does not have the same effect as bribing a child. The campaign works, but the strategy fails.
“Unique” Is Overrated — And Far Less Powerful Than…
Do you care whether you get a “unique” plumber to fix your flooded house?
Personality Prescription, Part 3 – You’re Choosing Cheap Ones
You’re probably attracting Price Sensitive Homeowners without even knowing it.
What’s in a Name?
When I walk into my local Starbucks, I feel like Norm Peterson walking into Cheers. What do you do that makes customers feel comfortable?
Forget TL;DR — it’s TB;DC you gotta worry about!
The art of ad writing requires the creation of ads that work even for an audience that’s half-paying attention.
The Personality Prescription, Part 2 – Never Cut Price
Dropping price to be competitive means we’re only working harder to put ourselves out of business sooner.
Piña Coladas & Persuasion
This is what separates the heroes from schmoes in branding: The ability to use entertainment & humor to drive home the message, rather than obscure it.
The Personality Prescription, Part 1 – Stalled Growth
Stalled growth is an outcome of a growing dependence of home service contractors on digital media. They’ve bought into the “wasted circulation” concept.
The Five Elements of Fame
Experts on marketing effectiveness determined that Fame is the most important element for producing extraordinary ROI.
Knuckleheads are the test for success
On the path to happiness, knuckleheads shake owners like a paint can. They are a test. Are you really going to live up to your guarantee?
What riding a motorcyle taught me about marketing
Many companies use loyalty programs, Facebook groups, and email spam to gather the troops. That’s not a tribe. It’s list building.
The Biggest Risk of Bonding Campaigns
Normally, when a business falls short, customers are merely disappointed or frustrated. Not so with relational customers and businesses to which they’ve bonded.
6 Degrees of Benjamin Franklin
Doing business with — making yourself vulnerable to — a complete stranger feels bad. Nobody wants to put themselves in that situation.