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 »

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 »

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 »

When the current hot item of the month is launched, the first thing people will react to will be the photography. You may have a great product with amazing benefits and capabilities, but if you can’t capture the audience with the photo or imagery first, how can you get them to read or want to know more about the product? Read more »

Consider visual thinking to simplify a complicated sell.

Of the many unique challenges in b-to-b advertising, one in particular seems to come up all the time in discussions with my team and clients alike.

How do we satisfy the need to educate as part of the sales cycle while staying compelling, concise and on the path to close? After all, it is a sales cycle.

Read more »

Speeding prevention promotion.

I got a speeding ticket on my way back from visiting my daughter at Indiana University. I was more than a little ticked when the officer pulled me over- as I was convinced that the “other” cars on the road were going faster than I was (which they were).

Before the officer handed me my ticket, he handed me the paper shown at left and waited for me to read it. “In the United States alone, there is a death related to a traffic crash every 12 minutes. That adds up to nearly 44,000 deaths a year.” I made the connection to my speeding – what if I had caused one of those fatalities? As I looked back at the officer, he handed me my ticket ($125). Read more »

Winning moves for 2010.

Based on everything I’ve read and the discussions I’ve had with our clients, it’s going to be another difficult year. Some of us will see sales decreases, some of us will drag along the bottom, and a few lucky ones will start to see our bottom lines change from red to black.

2009 was a year filled with frustration, and for many, fear. The companies that proactively analyzed where to make changes (and invariably cuts) are in a much better position than the ones that chose a wait-and-see approach.  None of those were easy decisions, but making them also provided clarity as to the true strengths and weaknesses of an organization.

Many marketing budgets were cut deeply  for 2009. For 2010 we are seeing a mix of holding to the 2009 budget, 5% decreases and 15-20% increases.  The question I am most asked now is…where do we spend the marketing dollars this year? What will make the biggest impact? Read more »

I’m getting ready for a week of vacation – to a family cabin with no internet connection (a blessing and a curse).  On this vacation, I’m taking two months of publications to catch up on (I’m a little behind). The stack is about 27 publications high. Read more »