40 Questions for a Smart Branding Strategy
Branding is critically important to every successful business. That’s why smart marketers approach branding strategically.But how do you create an effective branding strategy? What should you consider when developing a new or revamped brand? What do you need to know to do branding right?As marketing and branding consultants, we’ve developed branding strategies and brand identities for many types of organizations. Here are 40 questions we ask when we’re creating a smart branding strategy for a client.
7 Ways to Use Your Value Proposition in a Marketing Strategy
Understanding and articulating the unique value your organization delivers to your customers – your value proposition – is crucial for smart marketing. Here are seven ways to use the value proposition insights gleaned from customer interviews in a smart marketing strategy.
Why Your Reputation Trumps Your Marketing – Every Time
Why the things people say about your business matter far more than what you say about yourself in your advertising -- no matter how much you spend on marketing.
How to Create a New Brand Identity: 7 Steps to Success
Does your organization need a new brand identity? Branding is one of the most important strategic decisions you will make. Getting it right can help your business vault to the top of your industry. Getting it wrong can result in costly misconceptions about your business. Here are the seven major steps of creating a new brand identity from our experience developing branding strategies and brand identities for many organizations.
10 Crucial Marketing Questions for Every New Business Owner
Marketing is one of the most important factors in the success of a new business. So before you put your name on the door, consider this: Every business needs a marketing plan that outlines objectives, positioning, messaging, targeted audiences, channels, tactics, and implementation. Whether you develop that plan yourself or hire a marketing consultant or agency, there are the 10 key questions every new business owner must answer to create a smart marketing strategy.
How to Turn a Product Shipment into a Branding Opportunity
A product shipment is a golden opportunity for branding. Here are two examples of very different marketers – Nuts.com and Chanel -- who are transforming product shipments from routine transactions into branding and marketing magic in a smart marketing strategy.
How Your Employees’ Public Behavior Can Damage Your Brand
Marketers spend a lot of time and money building their brands. But nothing can hurt a brand faster than bad behavior by a company’s employees in public. Here’s why your employees’ behavior outside the workplace is an important factor in a smart marketing strategy – and how easily employees can hurt your brand and your business.
How to Change Your Organization’s Name: A Marketer’s Guide
An identity change is a major undertaking with enormous marketing implications for any business. Where do you start? How do you do it? And how do you avoid mistakes? Here are the steps of planning a name change and selecting a new name for your organization.
6 Reasons You Still Need Print in a Smart Marketing Strategy
Do marketers still need printed promotional materials in a tech-driven world? The answer is yes. Here are six reasons why print still packs a punch in a smart marketing strategy.
6 Marketing Lessons I Learned as the Mother of the Bride
Brides are spending big money on weddings. According to the Wedding Report, the cost of an average wedding in the U.S. is $25,200. Market research firm IBISWorld estimates that the U.S. wedding industry has grown to $55 billion in annual sales.That’s a lot of cake, tulle, and flowers – and as the mother of the bride, I can tell you from personal experience that it’s also a fascinating example of what works (or doesn’t work) in sales and marketing. Here are six lessons for your smart marketing strategy that I learned as the mother of the bride.
Is that Super Bowl Ad a Smart Marketing Strategy?
The Super Bowl is marketing nirvana for advertisers. Not only is it the most-viewed TV program of the year, but viewers are almost as interested in the ads as the game. But how do you know if a Super Bowl ad will be a winner -- and a smart marketing strategy? Here's my annual guide for how to evaluate the marketing effectiveness of Super Bowl advertising.
6 Reasons to Use Your Own Name in Your Company’s Branding
Building your company’s brand around your name can be a smart marketing strategy, especially for professional services companies. Here are six reasons why it’s smart to name your company after yourself, three ways it can be problematic, and some tips for branding success.
Is That Super Bowl Ad a Smart Marketing Strategy?
The Super Bowl is the most-watched event on live television. Marketers spend millions to buy 30-second ads.But many of those ads will fail. How can you tell if a Super Bowl ad is a smart marketing strategy? Here's an encore post about to evaluate the marketing effectiveness of Super Bowl advertising from my viewpoint as a marketing consultant. I'll be tweeting comments throughout the game; follow me on Twitter: @jeangianfagna
Mocking or Mean? When Ads Go Too Far to Be Funny
One of the most common creative approaches in advertising is making fun of someone or something.When it’s on point, an ad that mocks can engage and entertain. But when it goes too far, it feels mean, casting the marketer in a bad light and unsettling the audience.How do you know when funny goes too far in advertising? Here are five tips for developing a creative approach for your smart marketing strategy that mocks without being mean.
5 Business Fundamentals That Lead to Great Marketing
Behind every great marketing success story is a great business — an organization with such a strong foundation that the marketing (almost) comes easy. Here are five fundamentals of a successful business that are essential for a smart marketing strategy, based on my experience as a marketing consultant.
11 More Timeless Tips for Smart Marketing
How to be a smarter marketer:11 more timeless tips for creating smart marketing strategies from Cleveland, Ohio marketing consultant Jean Gianfagna -- part 2 of a 2-part post
21 Timeless Tips for Smart Marketing, Part 1
How to be a smarter marketer: 21 timeless tips from 21 years of experience in developing marketing strategies and campaigns, from a Cleveland, Ohio marketing consultant - part 1 of a 2-part post.