Inference – A forgotten part of cognitive fluency
It’s not the cleverest campaigns that convert the most. It’s the ones that feel effortless, are clear and emotive. Not effortless to make, but effortless to process. If someone has to work at understanding your message, you’ve already lost them. However, a lot of marketers don’t get this. We’re usually above average communicators. Marketers typically […]
Is your businesses story telling portraying you as the hero? OR the villain?
No hero = no story Let me be direct: you can’t have a story without a hero. If there’s no hero, there’s no one to root for, no stakes, no reason for me to care. Without a hero, you’re just retelling a situation. But here’s the thing: heroes aren’t just defined by their existence. They’re […]
Large Brands vs Small Brands: Marketing Wins and Fails
In the vast landscape of marketing, the strategies employed by brands of different sizes can vary significantly. While larger brands often allocate their resources strategically, focusing on specific goals and leveraging influencer collaborations and press coverage around key, considered times. Smaller businesses tend to rely on consistent drum beat marketing. In this article, we’ll delve […]
The #2 biggest mistake businesses make with their marketing
I’ve worked with a lot of different businesses, and I’ve consulted with even more. There are two evil twin sisters that keep cropping up in each preliminary call that I have with a new client, and they always say: “Come and play with us Katie” And I’ll be honest, I used to go in and […]
Is marketing….evil?
I was scrolling through Facebook the other day when I saw some sponsored content by a widely-used website building company. The blog was about how to use persuasion science in your marketing techniques – aka ‘neuromarketing’ and pretty much everyone responded with “but that’s evil! Here’s a marketing strategy for you – if you have […]
Brand tone of voice – Definition, consistency and integrity
I had an interesting Q+A session the other day. During which a lady asked me what was appropriate to post on social media, should we refrain from posting about social topics? “Well” I said “If it’s relevant to your brand then post it, if it’s not, then don’t.” “But I don’t want to be all […]
Most marketing is unprofitable
Most marketing is unprofitable. Notice I said marketing, not businesses. There are actually a lot of businesses who get by with little to no marketing success, but it makes client acquisition a graft. I wonder what percentage of businesses are actually thriving with marketing? As in, they’re exceeding their sales forecasts. When they want to […]
Enabling workplace creativity using design thinking
via GIPHY Being creative isn’t a magic skill that we’re born with. It’s not an inherent way of being. As I’ve been in a design and art education from the ages of 16-21, I know that all good designs come from what is essentially a five step process: Inspiration/exposure Brainstorming. Initial ideas. Editing. Developing ideas. […]
Customer pains and strategy
It’s no secret that I think SWOT analysis and most marketing strategy documents (and even business plans) are largely useless. Most of the time these are static Microsoft Word files that someone creates at the beginning of the project and never get looked at again. Often they include information that isn’t analysed and everybody is […]
The Con – How Internet Con Artists are Abusing Marketing Techniques
Common ways marketing and sales persuasion techniques are used unethically, and how you can spot them.