A more useful way to think about brands

May 16, 2012

With all of the time and money spent by brand managers and strategists thinking about brands, I think we’ve actually seen very little new thinking on the topic. It seems to me there have been two basic definitions of a brand. The old old school definition was: brand is a visual symbol (e.g., logo) that […]

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It’s just better

April 11, 2012

There’s nothing inherently wrong with working to preserve the status quo. Some statuses should be preserved – at least for a while. But I can tell you this: If your job is to preserve some status quo then you are not going home as happy and fulfilled as someone whose job is to change the […]

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How to conduct a better job interview

March 27, 2012

I think that recruiting is one of the most under-appreciated functions of a business. Everything you are able to achieve in your business is dependent on the actions of your people. The right people can create a lot of value for you. The wrong people can destroy it. And the best way to have the […]

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You don’t need the sexy French maid costume

March 19, 2012

I was having a conversation with a co-worker about how to breathe life back into a team that has gotten stale. Somehow I managed to stumble across an idea that I find intriguing. At first, I made the connection between this team’s situation and the well-known cliche of a personal relationship that has grown stale. […]

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Accountable employees in two easy steps!!!

February 28, 2012

Everyone else seems to be writing blog posts with these formulaic approaches to complex problems and I was feeling left out… Alright, on to substance. Business leaders care a great deal about holding their employees accountable. Or, at least, they say they do. If you’re ever at a corporate offsite and you hear the words […]

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My graight agenda

February 15, 2012

It is very rare for me to write about political topics on this blog. I want this blog to be a place where interesting ideas are developed and refined, not a place where positions are staked out and hardened. But some active political issues cut to the core of what this blog is about – […]

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Double Shot

January 26, 2012

I just read an article about Starbucks expanding their offering in certain stores to offer beer, wine, and more food in the evening. As a marketer, I have deep misgivings about this. Starbucks is supposed to be about coffee. I worry about brand dilution. As a consumer who enjoys coffee and beer, I do not see those […]

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The world isn’t changing

January 19, 2012

So many articles and blog posts written to get people to do something different or differently, begin with the same conceit: the world is changing and we better get on board. I’ve made this argument myself more times than I care to count. It seems obvious and yet so many people refuse to change. The […]

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Be the someone else

January 16, 2012

There are many reasons why we don’t act to make our world better. One of them is the belief that someone else will do it. Someone else will give up their seat to the pregnant woman. Someone else will help that elderly man pick up the bag he dropped. Someone else will allow that car […]

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It’s not about profit, it’s about impact

January 12, 2012

It’s impossible to consider the economic and financial events of the past few years and not conclude that the business world has lost its way. Many people have cynically used the crisis to push their pre-existing agenda. The left has gleefully argued that capitalism is dead or that it never really worked. The right has […]

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