What The Waitress Remembered

My name. To look me in the eye. How I like my coffee. That her smile could brighten someone’s day. To make a difference. That giving a damn is seriously underrated. To hope to see me tomorrow. Not to hide behind the rules. To love her job. That what she does every day matters. Image…

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Give Them A Reason

Half of the products in your pantry now have a ‘like us on Facebook’ icon on the label. Why should you like a brand of mass produced honey on Facebook? Why does the brand manager think you should care? Marketing is about doing great work that gets noticed. It’s about giving people a reason to…

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Make Your Idea Matter

Make Your Idea Matter is finally available to buy on Amazon. Thanks to the people who bought the book yesterday it bagged a Top 3 spot on the Amazon Bestsellers list overnight! It’s taken most of our Australian winter (or your summer), to simply get the book edited, formatted, designed and ready for publication. We’ve…

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Thinking About How People Feel Vs Making People Do

Every one of us is a marketer. We spend our days persuading people to do what we want them to do. “Buy now.” “Click here.” “Please retweet.” “Only 5 4 left.” “Don’t drink and drive.” “Eat your greens and you’ll grow big and strong.” My friend Mark and his wife Cindy own and run a…

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Listen To Your Outliers

Not all women love to shop. I am one such woman. So when I fall in love with a product, they’ve got me for life. That’s just one more decision I don’t have to make in the store. Glasshouse is a product I fell in love with years ago. Their fragrances are amazing, an indulgence.…

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How To Scratch Your Customer’s Itch

Speak to the few, the ones who really ‘get it’. Empower them to do what they want to do. Find ways to help them do the things they don’t even know they want to do yet. Tell them the reason you exist. Remember what problem you are solving and spell out how you solve it.…

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The Best Brand Stories Are True

As I was overtaken by the van of a solar panel company on the freeway today, I noticed that they weren’t telling the whole truth. If this is the story you’re telling on your website then your company had better be living it too. “It only takes one person to make an eco-conscious difference in…

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How Low Can You Go?

There are over fifty yoga studios within striking distance of the affluent Eastern suburbs of Sydney and they’ve discovered a tactic to get bums on mats. Many of them now offer two weeks of unlimited Yoga for just $25, which works well…… for a little while anyway. A savvy Yogi can take them up on…

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How To Sell An Idea With A Better Story

This is the story of Brick Maier who sold a cardboard box and a poster for $49 and got his Kickstarter Project backed within a week all because he knew how to tell a better story. Brick didn’t just tell us about dimensions and weight or specifications and functionality. He framed an ideal and painted…

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