BRUCE’s BLOG
A Dozen Oysters and Your Brand Strategy.
The Swan Oyster Depot does all this because after 115 years in business they know who they are and why their customers keep coming back. Whether they know it or not, the guys behind the counter have carefully aligned their products and services and their authentic truth, with their customers’ aspirational desires. They clearly and consistently talk their talk and walk their walk and reinforce their brand value.
You Could Build a Business on That.
Showing your customers not just how you can help them achieve what they want but how they can be who they want to be puts you in a singular position way above your competition.
Futureproof Your Brand and Your Business.
Your consumers’ reasons for buying what you sell, as well as their ability to pay for those purchases, is changing faster than ever before. And whether your customers are soon-to-be-unemployed cab and truck drivers or household purchasers who have just discovered Amazon Prime, it’s critical for your messaging and sales strategies to change as well.
I’m Smart. You’re Stupid.
Do critical social media posts help or hurt your brand? The whole concept of online virality is based on the energy and actions of people distributing information to people who view it and pass it on and so on and so forth.
The Evolution of the Species.
In this article I’m telling you a little bit about how I’m going to try to evolve in 2018. Or, as my friend wrote back when I reached out: “If you evolve anymore, you’ll be flapping your arms and flying.”
The More Things Change, The More Things Change.
The way to futureproof your brand is to build it around the true emotional benefit you provide for your customers. By letting them know that their lives are better because they do business with you, you’ll be letting your customers know that they should continue to work with you because of — or in spite of — where technology takes us.
Are You a Dancing Bear?
Are you operating from fear or are you looking towards accomplishing the things that will make you feel good about yourself and your life? Or are you a dancing bear, yo-yoing back and forth pain and pleasure or are you moving positively into the future? And even more importantly, are you writing resolutions that allow you to further express your authentic truth or are you using resolutions to force yourself into unnatural behaviors?
Resolutions that Matter.
Each year we burden ourselves with lots of unrealistic promises that we simply know we’re not going to keep. Truth is, I think the less realistic we make the resolutions, the more easily we can ignore them. Perhaps we even subconsciously set ourselves up to fail. Here are some proven suggestions that can help you make the most of the new year.
Dealing With Sexual Harassment in Your Company
Soon more workaday businessmen will start reaping the ills of their bad behavior. When that becomes commonplace, businesses in your own hometown — hell, even the company you work for — might have to start dealing with the long overdue fallout of sexual harassment. Remember that people make decisions based on their emotions and justify those decisions with facts. Brands that forget this simple truism do so at their own peril.
What Do YOU Think Disruption Means?
Savvy marketers are always looking for ways to interrupt your view, make you question your traditional activity or try something different. And whether you’re trying to sell crackers, direct clients to your investment company, or fill your cruise ships, disruption is still an effective way to reach your potential customers. Because unless you’re the market leader, lulling them to continue doing what they’ve always done is not the way to build your business. Getting their attention is.
You Cannot Square A Circle.
Are you presenting your brand, your business, and yourself in simple terms that your customers can understand? Or are you wrapping yourself in acres of tiresome talk? Are you using big words when small ones will do? Are you using long rationalizations when simple examples offer more clarity? Are you writing an SAT essay when you should be tweeting a competitive advantage? If you are, you are squaring the circle.
The Secret To Building a Successful Business.
Showing your customers not just how you can help them achieve what they want but how they can be who they want to be puts you in a singular position way above your competition. And making your customers feel good not about just what you can do for them but about themselves will secure your placement in their roster of critical contributors to their own success.
The Importance of Giving AND Taking.
Like Dr. Doolittle’s Pushmepullyou, there’s no moving forward without cooperation. And in an effective relationships, there’s no giving without taking.
Logically Illogical Logic
You need to not just understand your customer’s motivations but recognize their aspirations. Then, by creating your brand message to show them how they can express and accomplish their hopes and dreams with your help, your vendor/customer relationship can take a new and more profitable course.
From an Organization to a Destination.
To build desire, increase purchases, and expand your profits, position what you sell as an experience your audience will consume.
The Distractor in Chief
Why else would the president insult the pregnant widow of a fallen soldier? Why else would he insult the Puerto Rican victims of Hurricane Maria? Why else would he go to war with the NFL over freedom of speech? It’s much too easy (and naïve) to write it off to him being a clumsy boor. What if there’s something else going on?
Making wine — and business — better.
I’ve had the great fortune to spend the last few weeks touring...
Five Things You Can Learn From Fireman Bob’s GoFundMe site.
After Hurricane Irma left an 82-year old retired fireman homeless, we created a GoFundMe site to help him rebuild his home. Building Bob’s site taught me about how to use the GoFundMe app but it also taught me a lot about how to use social media as a promotional tool. I discovered five simple tips that can make your social media efforts more successful.