Frontline Perspectives

Have you ever told someone about a funny TV commercial but couldn’t remember what product it was advertising? Some ad gurus might say it doesn’t matter whether or not you remember the brand, as long as the commercial sticks with you. Others say you really do remember — on a subconscious level — even if you think you don’t. But pretty much every marketing expert would agree that subtlety doesn’t work for B2B. Read more »

From data sheets to newsletters to websites, we work on a lot of projects here at MarketSense that include sidebars. The same questions always come up: Should the sidebar go on the left or right? What should we put in the sidebar? Will anyone read it or care? Read more »

The Rolling Stones sang this well.  Life is full of unfulfilled dreams, wants and needs. And many of us get pretty darn crabby about it. For the sales and marketing teams:  “If we only had the resources to develop the website more, or the money to develop an SEM campaign, or hire five new sales people to develop the new verticals we’ve danced around.  And then there’s the video and green room that could take our video platform to a whole new planet.  We could be so much better, only if we hand X, Y, Z…” Read more »

With winter officially behind us, it’s time to think about getting active again — in your writing! Even if you aren’t a copywriter, you probably write something every day that would benefit from an exercise in active voice. Take a sprint through the following tips on keeping your e-mails, business letters and other communications fresh and engaging. Read more »

Friday night, I tossed my disposable contact lenses into the trash after realizing I’d been wearing them way longer than the recommended period. When I reached for a new pair in the medicine cabinet the next morning, I came up empty. I’d just bought a year’s supply of lenses with my new, ever-stronger prescription, and they weren’t where I thought they were. Read more »

Most of us wouldn’t be working here, at a business-to-business creative agency, if it weren’t for school art programs, extra-curricular art programs, art festivals, art movements and, last but not least, the money to fund those programs. In recent years, the arts have had some series cuts in funding, especially where it is needed most: in schools. Read more »

First, a disclaimer: I realize that the quickest way to ruin something funny is to overanalyze it. So before I ruin this, I just want to say:

Here’s a link. Enjoy these posts … some of them are pretty damn funny. Things Real People Don’t Say About Advertising. Read more »

We’re in the process of hiring right now, which means I’m spending a fair amount of time reviewing resumes. I’m continually amazed that the majority of people don’t include a cover letter with their resume. And those who do include one have serious grammar, spelling and clarity issues. What this means is that the majority (and I mean more than 75%) of these people have either made very little, or a terrible, first impression. And because of that, they’re not going to get to the interview stage. Read more »

I think every marketing person needs this written on a T-shirt to remind them what their customers are really thinking. Read more »

Sometimes results have little to do with your message or who’s listening.

If you’ve ever worked with me, or even read my last few posts (When not losing is better than winning and Need to be Creative?), you’ve probably picked up that I measure the value of our work on one scale: behavior modification. Read more »