Blog Archives
Congratulations, Starbucks, on your chest-thumping ad campaign
An open letter to Starbucks’ marketing department: Your latest ad headline reads, “Thanks to everyone who helped make us the country’s #1 best coffee, which includes our great baristas.” Could you possibly have worded that any worse? What exactly does … Continue reading
Twitter ‘keeping it real’ serum
This is a quick screen shot from my Twitter home. Good for a small chuckle. 15 minutes always seems to take about 19 minutes in real time. Livestrong. Tweet
People love advertising
People like to complain about advertising. They see it on the internet, on the tele, on billboards, in magazines, and in the mail, and it annoys them. People would prefer to have their entertainment cakes and just stare at them … Continue reading
Branding touches high school students
I had the opportunity to speak about branding at a local Seattle high school a couple weeks ago. It came as no surprise to me that some of the students feel manipulated by the branding efforts of large corporations. What … Continue reading
3 Social Media Rules to Break
Social media at times seems to have more rules than life in a free society will ever have. I say break the rules, and break them often. Stand up, stand out, and be heard. Otherwise, sit down, look down, follow … Continue reading
How to Start Up With a Professional Logo, On Budget and On Time
Should you start your business without a professionally designed logo? The answer is a resounding No! There is absolutely no valid reason or excuse to shortchange your goals and dreams by starting your business without a professional logo. Here’s why: … Continue reading
What Advertising Is Not, a List
Advertising is not push. Advertising is not slow. Advertising is not wasteful. Advertising is not wow. Advertising is not interruption. Advertising is not necessarily big, nor is it necessarily expensive. Advertising is not outside of most companies’ budgets. Advertising is … Continue reading
5 Ways to Build A Quality Audience
In response to yesterday’s post, a few people asked me what are some better ways to find an audience? To answer that, I’d like you to look beyond simply adding people to your fan base. Quality is always better than … Continue reading
How to Become More Productive Instead of a Better Tweeter
Are you really so desperate to find an audience that you have made it a top priority to get people to follow you on Twitter? I like Twitter, sort of, but I use it in fits and starts. Or to … Continue reading
IBM Rewrites An Old Headline, and Does It Well
In the 1950s, IBM founder Thomas Watson, famously said “Good design is good business.” Truer words, regarding design, were never spoken. IBM is now running an advertisement with the headline, “Green business is good business.” This is a smart redux … Continue reading

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