Digital Influence: Are you a Thought Leader, Really?

We hear the term “influencer” in daily conversation – but who exactly does it refer to? And how does one gain the status of being considered one? Influencers are incredibly powerful for two main reasons: 1) they can dramatically increase the reach of your brand, and 2) they can introduce you to new clients through their […]

Building a Great Website: 11 Tests before Go-Live

Website Launch 10 Tests

Testing is central to the process of website creation, but many marketers rarely examine this critically important step. When done properly, testing is time-consuming. Thus, when the schedule (or budgets) are tight, unfortunately, testing is the first thing to go. And when this happens, errors creep in that can destroy user trust, and damage long-earned brand equity. All […]

Sales, Marketing, and the Relationship Curve

Have you ever felt that you were being “sold” to? Perhaps from a slightly-too-pushy salesperson or an over-the-top marketing campaign?  If so, you are not alone. This reaction occurs because the marketing is aimed at answering the wrong question, or because the marketing activities do not take your emotional needs into account. The question then, is why – […]

Brand Velocity and Momentum Marketing

What defines a successful marketing campaign?  Beyond the obvious (ROI), it is the momentum that each campaign can build. Consider that a single marketing campaign is little different from driving a car up a hill. The largest SUV or the fastest luxury sports car have the same battle: gravity – let off the gas, and they will both eventually slow down, […]

Marketing Methodology, Standardization, Effectiveness and Efficiency

Have you ever wondered how KPMG, Baker & McKenzie, or any global advisory firm provides the same quality of work, no matter the jurisdiction? Or how, Subway, Starbucks or any global retailer guarantees both consistent service and consistent food quality? Behind every successful advisory engagement and delicious sandwich or beverage is one thing: methodology. Methodology […]

Driving Sales from Social Strategy

Yes, social media improves client or member engagement,  and brand awareness, but wouldn’t it be nice if Social Media could actually grow revenue as well? Here are four ways that Social Media can be used to sell services. Create a business Profile: While some people think of their own profiles as “personal” or “private” they are not. To ensure that prospective clients […]

Building an internal brand: the Intranet Maturity Model

Marketers look to advertising campaigns, the web, a logo, and earned media to build their brands.  But these are all external: how might you do it within the organization? One of the most important systems within an organization is the intranet.  While the external website is usually driven by marketing, the intranet is usually driven by the […]

Loyalty and Referrals: Looking beyond the Relationship Chain

Relationships are integral to all aspects of our life, both personal and professional.  Organizations cannot market a product or service without establishing a relationship founded on trust, transparency and credibility. The Relationship Curve model describes how relationships improve over time: the target (prospective client, prospective member, prospective employee, etc) moves through the stages of awareness, preference, trial, and […]

Marketing Automation: Nine Key Sequences

During the early years of the internet, building “the list” was a best practice for email marketing. Companies sent sales offers and buzz-worthy content to their contacts and a certain number of recipients would convert. Funds were transferred automatically into these companies accounts, as the list was monetized. Today, however, there are a number of reasons why this strategy is […]

Mobile App or a Mobile site: Pros and cons

With the majority of users accessing and searching content via their mobile devices and tablets, there are now two key questions that organizations are asking: “Do we or do we not need a mobile App?” And, “If we have a mobile (eg responsive) website, do we actually need a mobile app as well?” Today we will discuss the […]