Don’t Be Afraid To Start Small

On a rainy Monday early in December 1955, 40,000 African-Americans boycotted the public bus services in the town of Montgomery to protest the arrest of 42-year-old Rosa Parks who refused to give up her seat to a white passenger. Their boycott lasted 381 days until the city repealed its law requiring segregation on public buses.…

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Why Meaning Is A Competitive Advantage

The day after she turned fourteen, my mum (number ten in a family of eleven), woke early to catch the bus that would take her to work at her first full-time job in a sweet factory. I don’t remember her telling me about how she got the job. It’s likely it happened through word of…

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Why Story Sells

The bicycle store owner was walking the customer through the range of helmets that were suitable for her teenage son. He described and demonstrated the features and benefits of three models in various price ranges. The woman seemed unsure and looked for a moment like she was about to leave with a promise to come…

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Conversion Vs. Connection

The sales assistant took the time to explain the candle manufacturing process, brand values and founding story to the customer who was looking for a special gift for a friend. The customer, who had been buying this brand for more than ten years left delighted, with a beautifully wrapped $42 candle. And yet the company…

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Why Startups Fail

Take a look at this list of reasons startup founders give for failing. These are just some of them. The cost of customer acquisition, ahead of its time, wrong positioning, not enough income, no problem solution fit, wrong target market, low customer adoption, too early, not enough demand, no real audience and too much ego.…

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The Facts Are Overrated

Since the new Model 3 Tesla was unveiled just over two weeks ago 400,000 people (who have never test driven or sat in one) have paid $1000 to place an order. And while the price of this latest model makes it accessible to more people it’s clearly not what’s driving these organic sales. Think about…

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When It Comes To Customer Insights Go Deeper

Grace is 32 years old, she has worked hard to establish herself on the career ladder and bought her first home. Grace and her partner Mike are trying for a baby. As marketers with a brand story to tell we’re in a hurry to gather as much data as we can about Grace. We want…

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The Long Way Round

In most situations if there’s a shortcut we’re tempted to take it. It’s human nature to conserve energy and take the most efficient route from point A to point B. This makes the business of selling hard, because we are naturally impatient to see signs of success and to avoid nagging doubts about the fear…

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Not Everything Is An Opportunity

We first met casually, in a social situation one Saturday morning. Less than five minutes into the small talk Terry asked what I did for a living. No sooner had the words “I run my own business” left my lips, than his hand reached into his back pocket to draw out some business cards (one…

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5 Steps To Making Things People Want

Here’s the subject line ‘just curious’ email I got the other day. Maybe you got one too? The marketing consultant had gone to the trouble to know my name, but that’s where the personalisation ended. “Hi Bernadette, By any chance, are you interested in solutions for getting sales appointments and leads? XYZ does so on…

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