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It’s easy to get enamored by the “new shiny object”, whether it’s a new trend, gadget or meme. The same is true for marketing. Topics such as social media, mobile and location-aware marketing, and the latest SEO techniques seem to take up most of the bandwidth of online discussion and debate. This is understandable of [ Read More ]
Comedian Louis C.K. recently released a new stand-up special, Live at the Beacon Theater. Rather than take a traditional go-to-market approach[1], he directed and edited the video himself, paid someone to build a website and made the video available directly to consumers for five dollars, payable through PayPal. Being a big Louis C.K. fan, I [ Read More ]
I’m a big fan of market research. Of course, everybody in marketing will say they support market research. Ask the question, “Should we do more market research?” and I guarantee the answer will be a resounding “Yes!” The problem is that many people think of market research only in terms of major projects that can [ Read More ]
You may think that measuring brand awareness and perception is a luxury only mega companies can afford. And while you might pay fifty to a hundred thousand dollars for a market research firm to perform such a study, you can do a decent job yourself with an investment of under ten thousand dollars. Why measure [ Read More ]
If you’re in a market with an entrenched competitor but with customers that love your product, here is a tactic you might try. In my early days at Wise Solutions, circa 2001, we were in that exact situation. Two players – InstallShield and Wise – dominated the market for software installation tools. InstallShield was the [ Read More ]
One thing I am thankful for is the wealth of marketing information freely available on the web. Here are 64 useful tools, guides, videos, blogs and other resources, all available free and without requiring registration. Know of some good resources I’ve missed? Please include them in the comments. Marketing Basics Tutor2u Marketing Resources – Short [ Read More ]
I live in a small town that borders a larger city. I have two choices in hardware stores – a small, local hardware store five minutes from home, or a large mega-store ten minutes away. I know the mega-store has a better selection and lower prices, but I’ve started appreciating the little things that make [ Read More ]
I just finished reading Moneyball by Michael Lewis. Being a fan of not only baseball but also rational, objective thinking, I really enjoyed it. It made me wonder, can we apply the same approach Billy Beane took to winning baseball games to winning customers in the business world? If you are unfamiliar with Moneyball, it’s [ Read More ]
We were getting ready to go out on a worldwide roadshow to introduce our new software virtualization product. While planning out the agenda and speakers my colleague Jordan came up with an off-the-wall idea – how about we kick off the presentation with a magic trick? I thought it was a brilliant idea especially because [ Read More ]
Video is great – any good marketer will tell you that. Online video viewing is growing rapidly across not only traditional browsers but also smartphone and tablet platforms. People are watching, sharing and engaging with video content more than ever. However, one intangible value of video that doesn’t get mentioned a lot is the fact [ Read More ]
