This blog was originally published in March 2018. As any good marketer knows, research should be at the core of everything you do. Sometimes you need to research the product you’re selling, sometimes you need to research who your audience for a product or service is, sometimes you need to research your audience itself, the… Read More
Tag: Audience
Business writing isn’t everyone’s favorite thing to do. I’d even guess it’s on the shortlist of many people’s least favorite things to do. But at some point in your career, you’ll have to put together a report, multi-page memo, presentation or another piece of business writing. That’s why it’s imperative to have a strong foundation… Read More
For the Love of Swag: Non-Profits
Non-profits are like any other business in that they need to promote themselves, what they do and the services they offer. However, unlike traditional businesses, funds are usually limited or low so it is especially important to be selective about the promotional items you select. T-shirts help identify volunteers and increase your visibility in the community. Shirts… Read More
The Importance of Formal Email Communication
Since the dawn of the Internet age and the rise of social media, dramatic changes in communication have occurred that have blurred the lines between formal and casual writing. Nowadays, more and more people are beginning to send formal communications stylized in a format that would be more appropriate in a text message to a… Read More
Understand Your Target Audience through Personas
My last article, “What Story is Your Brand Telling?” discusses how marketers can use ideas from storytelling such as the 12 common character archetypes to help define their target audience and brand. Another way to better understand your target audience is to create personas. A persona is a real or ideal representation of a person… Read More
Attention is the New Currency: Storytelling
This is part two of the two part blog post “Attention is the New Currency.” In the last post we explored how it is necessary to think differently to gain the attention of your audience. As promised, in this section I will be discussing the necessity of storytelling in advertising. According to Adweek, nine out… Read More
What Story is Your Brand Telling?
Woody Guthrie’s song, This Land Is Your Land, plays as I watch vivid images of explorers trekking across the vast landscapes of America in a The North Face commercial. When watching this commercial, it’s obvious who The North Face’s audience is. If you guessed explorers, adventures, or travel-junkies, you are correct! Think about some of… Read More
7 Marketing Secrets They Don’t Want You To Know (Part II)
In the first installment, you learned about three marketing tactics worth testing in your market, if you’re not already. In true Zeigarnik Effect fashion, I kept you guessing until this post, where we detail the final four of our ‘Marketing Secrets They Don’t Want You to Know.’ To recap, the first three secrets are: The… Read More
Boost Brand Loyalty with a Social Media Influencer Marketing Campaign
I’ll be completely honest, I’m willing to purchase almost anything based on a product suggestion in a video from my favorite YouTube personality, Casey Neistat. That may be surprising; however, I’m not the only one willing to do such a thing. According to Adweek, a recent study revealed that, “Around 40% of respondents said they’ve… Read More
What Millennials Want – Trending Swag
Who are millennial customers? And what do they really want? Businesses everywhere have posed this question and brainstormed about it at nauseam, as the millennial customer continues to dictate trends and spending habits. According to Accenture, the roughly 80 million millennials in the U.S. spend approximately $600 billion on shopping. Doesn’t that seem like a number your… Read More
Enrich Your Business with Added Value
Bringing value to your customers should always be the focus of your business and is usually one of the top reasons why your customer returns. Value can mean different things to different people. In the dictionary three definitions of value include the following: “The regard that something is held to deserve; the importance, worth, or… Read More
When we first started franchising Proforma in the late 1980s, most people in our industry scoffed at our business model. So, we reached out to people outside our industry to start building our franchise concept. In the late 1980s, there was no internet! So we relied on advertising in business publications and attending “own your… Read More