I grew up in the magazine business back in 2000. At that time, most of our revenues came from print advertising, later evolving into digital advertising and sponsorships. Regardless, the idea was the same…companies were paying us to get in front of our audiences. It all seems fine and good, right? Well, only until you […]
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Queen and Audience-Building Strategies that Work
I love Queen. I remember the first time I heard Another One Bites the Dust. I was seven-years-old and my life was changed. Then I listened to Bohemian Rhapsody. Wow. Queen could, arguably, be the greatest Rock band of all time. But how did they do it? Earlier this week I watched The Show Must […]
Continue ReadingConsistency and The Hook. Do You Have These?
First…Consistency New York Times Journalist Brent Staples, a Pulitzer Prize winner for his coverage on race relations, has been writing about U.S. Military base names for years. Two days before George Floyd was killed, Staples published another editorial piece on the military issue, entitled, Why Does the U.S. Military Celebrate White Supremacy? In it, Staples […]
Continue ReadingYou Need a Subscriber Plan…Stat!
I started my publishing career in 2000. Over the next seven years I worked with over 30 different media brands from a dozen different industries, welding to restaurants to HVAC. Maybe more than anything, I learned about the power of the subscriber. It was well known information inside the company that loyal subscribers were more […]
Continue ReadingTime to Kill Your Social Media Channels?
A few days ago I chatted with a social media manager for a mid-sized software company. She was exhausted. She and her team were responsible for managing LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube, as well as some smaller tests on Reddit, TikTok and Snapchat. Basically, their charge was to be everywhere their customers were, even […]
Continue ReadingWhy Riot Games Is Out-Marketing You
This week, I heard Kara Swisher from ReCode say that the COVID-19 pandemic isn’t changing trends, just accelerating what was already happening. A few minutes later, I heard Professor Scott Galloway from NYU Stern say the same thing on his podcast. It’s happening in grocery pick up and delivery. It’s happening with plant-based meat. And […]
Continue ReadingSuccess Later Means Dancing Now
NOTE: Before you read the information below, I want you to know that I’m generally a very optimistic person. For example, I believe there are so many good things to come in the next three to five years. I believe that the economy in the next decade is going to flourish. I believe we’ll be […]
Continue ReadingPreparing for the Things that Will Be Different
My wife and I were watching the last 20 minutes of Angel Has Fallen on Netflix. We hardly ever watch full movies. We just pick the last part of a movie and watch the end. Go figure. In it, Morgan Freeman (the President) says this – It’s our moments of struggle that define us. I […]
Continue ReadingAre You Waiting It Out or Seizing the Day?
Everything feels weird. Maybe you know the feeling. I live in Cleveland, Ohio, and we are all under “shelter in place” orders to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Of course, you are dealing with this as well…literally wherever you are at. What’s going on is tragic. People are dying, and will continue to […]
Continue ReadingNow Is the Time to Diversify Your Marketing Revenue
I’m a part of a Facebook group of marketing speakers. For many in this group, speaking is their sole income (while some earn in the mid-five figures, there are a few that make over $1 million per year speaking at events). Sadly, event after event is cancelling due to COVID-19 concerns. South by Southwest was […]
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