Too often, marketers try to lure buyers using information as their only weapon.  Unload a bushel of persuasive facts, the logic goes, and consumers will be swept off their feet by the logic of it all.  But the most successful marketing happens when you recognize your consumer’s pain and show them how you can relieve…

While banking is becoming a technology-driven industry, JP Morgan Chase & Co. is turning hi-tech to its customers’ advantage.  Instead of keeping customers at arms length, the bank has incorporated technological advances to make banking more convenient in real, concrete ways.  For example, it can now approve a home equity loan in just two hours;…

Small brewers and microbreweries have discovered a new weapon for their marketing arsenal.  They’re starting to show consumers how various beers complement different kinds of food.  What’s so radical about that?  It elevates beer (or at least premium beer) from its old status as frat-boy beverage of choice to a level on a par with…

Everyone has seen some installment of the “Got Milk?” campaign featuring celebrities sporting milk moustaches.  There’s just one problem: the campaign didn’t really have a dramatic impact on milk sales.  On the other hand, an effective new campaign promotes the idea (with a curvy glass) that 24 ounces of milk can help you shed pounds. …

Companies often entice new customers with discounts and other incentives.  But according to a recent study by Michael Lewis, a professor at the University of Florida, customers acquired via these kinds of promotions typically spend less and are less valuable customers over the long term than customers acquired through other means.  For example, according to…

Some ideas are so basic that they’re easy to overlook.  One of these is that a minority of your customers or clients drive the majority of your profits.  If you’re a nonprofit, the minority of contributors provide the majority of donations.  So what are you doing about it?  Here are three questions you should answer…

Bob Fosse, who directed “Cabaret” and whose choreography made “Chicago” a sultry, surprise hit, was known among his dancing peers for having bad feet, poor posture and limited flexibility.  But Fosse turned those very “deficiencies” to his advantage, creating a style of dance built on very sharp, isolated movements.   As a result, he’s one…

Last week, we highlighted a study which appeared in the Journal of Marketing Research regarding website visit duration.  That same study turned up a couple of other noteworthy findings.  For example, while a lot of advertising on a site drives younger viewers away, rich graphic content and a high level of functionality tend to draw…

Do customers, clients or prospects ever have to call your company on the phone?  If so, how well are those calls being handled?  As we noted last week, the best way to serve a customer better is to be one.  Call a few places yourself and see how you’re treated.  Call a few banks for…

When it comes to selecting colors for a logo, collateral material, merchandising displays and so on, many choices are made for all the wrong reasons.  Many decision makers tend to pick colors based on their personal preferences (“I don’t like green”).  This is in spite of the fact that color theory is a well-established discipline,…