Why Instagram Changes The Face Of Marketing

It’s no secret that I’ve been a huge advocate of Instagram as a customer engagement and brand storytelling tool since Pintrest was knee high to a grasshopper. I’m amazed that more brands are not taking advantage of what I believe is one of the most rich marketing and brand storytelling opportunities of the decade. So…

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Jimmy Choo Doesn’t Sell Shoes

Jimmy Choo has spent the past fifteen years successfully selling exactly the same thing over and over again and that thing isn’t leather or heels. When a woman holds or covets a pair of Jimmy Choos, she isn’t imagining how the shoes will feel on her feet, she’s fantasizing about how she will feel in…

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Why Fascinate?— An Interview With Sally Hogshead

If you haven’t read Fascinate by Sally Hogshead go out and grab yourself a copy. In the book Sally explains how fascination plays a role in every type of decision making, from the brands you choose to the songs you remember, from the person you marry to the employees you hire. And by activating the…

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What If You’re Not Selling To Joe?

In a Googleised world it’s now possible to get a logo designed within a few short days for just $40. I know because my friends at the design agency Mat Dolphin wrote a post about it for Creative Review, The £25 Logo. What’s a designer, a freelancer or a creative entrepreneur to do? You’re not…

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Show Them What You’re Made Of

You could wait around until the CEO rubber stamps your ideas. Your book can gather dust for years until an agent discovers your writing and you can while away a decade in a cubicle wondering when Saatchi and Saatchi will call. Or you can simply show the world what you’re made of and pick yourself.…

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Why ‘How To’ Is The Wrong Place To Start

I hardly ever write ‘how to’ posts, even though they are a great way to drive ‘traffic’ to your blog. If you want to do that, go write a great list post. Focusing on the ‘how to’ stops you thinking about the why and the what first. Most companies question, how they will get their…

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Giving A Damn Is Seriously Underrated

My boys had a sick rat last week. At the vet’s she was weighed and had her chest listened to. The vet sent her home with an antibiotic and instructions. If she didn’t get better very quickly the outlook wasn’t good. At ten the following morning I got a call from the vet nurse. She…

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Your Brand Is A Story

I’ll never forget the day my son read his first word. We were living in the UK at the time, I was driving through town that day when he piped up from the back, “that’s Asda”. I whipped my head around and saw him pointing an impossibly tiny finger at the huge ASDA sign towering…

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Even The Big Guys Are Guessing

A couple of days ago Cadbury did their first product launch on Google+. The launch was an experiment, their best guess and they went with it. Even they don’t know for sure what will work and what won’t. Yes, they pay people to help them with the process of being more sure, but they never…

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The Story You Tell Is A Choice

The story you tell is a choice. Creating a series of lines in the sand. Symbolic of values that you’re not willing to compromise on. Your brand can’t be all things to everyone. This and that. The brands that stand out, that have soul, that win by being different, choose. They choose to stand for…

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