Feedback needed- should I use AF?
Edgy in a good way? or too much? I'm contemplating building an online community for small business owners and considering these names. Obviously more edgy than my usual branding but honestly, I'm feeling edgier and less constrained right now! Plus I want to have fun...
Happy June
Yep, we're almost halfway through the year! Is it going well for you? Do you need to take a pause to review what's working? what's not working? Do you need to engage in some planning for a terrific second half of the year? I've got some upcoming workshops (one...
Marketing in the Wild: How far can you extend a brand?
I love all things home and interior design/ DIY and follow several designers on Instagram and watch their shows on HGTV, Discovery+, etc, Jean Stoffer, who I follow, has a TV series called The Established Home and was also highlighted in another series called "A...
Spring into Summer – is seasonality a factor for your business?
Do you see a shift in your business with the seasons? For some folks, nearly all of their annual revenue might come in a short burst. For others, revenues are similar from month to month. For small business owners, understanding these fluctuations and their impact on...
Marketing in the Wild: No New Customers!
Can you guess what kind of business this is? The first thing that comes to my mind is they have some kind of capacity constraint. Maybe it's a self-imposed capacity constraint, like they want to leave their shop at a decent hour or maybe they don't have enough...
Springtime in France- COVID challenges
If you've been here for a while you know that I help with an Executive Education course that's put on by INSEAD at their campuses in Fontainebleau, France, and Singapore. The pandemic shut down both classes in 2020 and we did an online version in October 2021. We...
Marketing in the Wild: 4/20 Edition
I've been thinking about documenting "Marketing in the Wild" for a few years.. There are so many good (and bad) examples of marketing efforts out there in the wild! What have you seen that you've liked? thought worked? thought were terrible? A client recently sent me...
Is it time to change your price?
I've recently had some strategy calls with clients about their pricing. Pricing is tough for small service businesses because it's often wrapped up in money mindset issues- both our own mindsets and our perception of our clients' money mindsets. Right now, we're...
Is it hard for you to ask?
I've been listening to the audio version of "The Art of Asking" by Amanda Palmer. I'm really enjoying it and learning about our challenges with asking and, conversely, how powerful asking can be. She has a chapter or two on her own and others' Kickstarter campaigns...
Trouble sleeping? yes, this is about marketing!
A week or two ago I opened up the CVS app and saw this. I laughed out loud when it popped up! If you noticed the top left corner, the time was 5:56 AM. I am an early riser but I rarely open the CVS app at 5:56 am and some clever marketer figured that anyone opening...