Strategy
Susie F*#&ing Sunshine over here
I’ve always been good at what I call “zoom in, zoom out”. What I mean by that is… I can see both the 50,000-ft view and the detailed, up-close view, and zoom in and out to see how the pieces connect. And as a result of that ability, early in my career I became the…
Read Morewhy I don’t do discounts (and I don’t advise my clients to either)…
Back in the day when I worked in retail, I had a pet peeve… and it was this: Almost every time our merchandising staff had a really cool offer on something, they wanted to advertise it in the worst possible place… the weekly circular ad. Yep, that bundle of junk mail you get in your…
Read Morethe hidden source of sales
If you’ve got an offer out there in the wild, odds are you’ve encountered objections. And when you’re not expecting them (like when someone randomly replies to an autoresponder with a surprisingly personal message), they can be a bit discouraging or overwhelming. But I actually REALLY love objections. On my teams, I’ve got an “objection…
Read MoreWhy stand when you could wear kneepads?
Mo’ money, mo’ problems. RIP Biggie… those are probably some of the wisest words ever said on life and business. The funny thing about starting a business or making more money is, to me, this notion we get in our heads of “if only”. “If only I could make X, I’d be happy.” “If only…
Read Morethe mummies got me
So I’m currently sitting at the Tampa airport, waiting for my flight home. For the past week-ish, I’ve been in nearby St. Petersburg, FL for the most fun marketing conference I’ve had the pleasure of attending… Copy Chief Live. Lest you think I’m exaggerating, here’s a smattering of happenings: Jonny Vance of the Harmon Brothers…
Read Moregood marketing doesn’t stop at the sale
I see a lot of companies out there focused on the marketing. Considering I’m a marketer, I’d say that’s a good thing. Keeps me in business. I like that. But if you think marketing is going to magically save your company, I’m gonna stop just short of calling you willfully deluded. In reality, marketing is…
Read Morehow to know which mentor is right for you
So in my last post I talked about shortcuts and magic pills, and how they’re rarely the instant boost they claim to be. And then I shared my personal shortcut – mentorship. Now, mentorship doesn’t negate actually showing up and doing the work… but a good mentor can help DRASTICALLY shorten the learning curve (and…
Read Moretaking shortcuts
People love a good shortcut – that’s part of what makes the job of a marketer a lot easier. Unethical? Promising a magic pill? You’ll probably get a lot of sales… followed by a lot of [best case] disappointed/angry customers and [worst case] law suits or even injuries/deaths. Yikes. Not the legacy I want to…
Read Morethe ethical entrepreneur
“Marketing is just a bunch of bullshit from people trying to sell stuff.” It’s interesting when I hear folks say that (or worse, when I tell them what I do for a living and I see that “eww, used car salesman” look on their face). Let’s clear a few things up about legit, ethical marketing,…
Read Moreevery solution creates another problem
I have this really cool bedside lamp – it’s a touch lamp with three lighting levels and I love it. The only thing I don’t love is that it takes specialty bulbs… G9 to be specific. If you haven’t heard of those, they’re pretty weird looking and sometimes a bit finicky: I was reading in…
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