Jay Conrad Levinson, author of Guerilla Marketing, defines advertising as “truth made fascinating.”  For an ad to work, it requires both elements.  First, your product or service has to offer something unique that people want or need.  That’s the truth.  Then you have to present that truth in a way that makes people laugh, that…

On a recent episode of AMC’s series, The Pitch, the head of one ad agency crowed, “We hate to lose.”  Then they lost.  Negative motivation — working to keep something bad from happening — is rarely as powerful as working to make something good happen.  One puts you on defense; the other puts you on…

It’s absurdly common in bands and brands.  You have something you want people to buy (your music, your services), and you rest your hopes on being “discovered” — by a record label, by consumers, by bloggers, by someone.  That’s the business equivalent of playing the lottery — it works for a few, and buries the…

A pyramid chart describing the attributes of a stellar product applies equally to any company.  The base is simply “performs as described,” but as you ascend the pyramid, the other characteristics make all the difference: exceeds high expectations, feels like something was missing before they owned it, can’t imagine not having it and so on. …

In a recent list of the top 100 ad campaigns of all time, just 3 were created after 1990, and most were from the 1970s and earlier.  Why?  Most modern advertising falls into one of two categories.  Either it tries to entertain at the expense of selling, or it tries to sell but without being…

Imagine you want a girl to go to the prom with you.  So you stand by her in the hall.  You talk about your car, your dancing skills, your tux, how nice she looks…but never actually say the words, “Be my date for the prom.”  Even if she wanted to be your date, she begins…

When a small group of music lovers started Numero Group, the idea was to find great lost records and release them in small quantities on CD and vinyl.  A classic “long tail” business, they’re not trying to find million sellers; they can be profitable selling 10,000 copies.  But one of their smart innovations is to…

Recently, a panel of representatives from various media was convened to weigh the pros and cons of what they sell.  When asked what worked, and what didn’t, the same theme emerged time and time again: consistency brings in money; inconsistency wastes it.  If your message isn’t out there often enough or long enough to leave…

It’s the most poorly-kept secret in business: the customer isn’t always right.  Ask anyone who’s been in business long enough, and they’ll tell you about customers or clients who have asked for – even demanded – something that wasn’t in their best interests.  Those are the moments of truth.  Do you cave in and give…

You can find plenty of people who think creativity doesn’t sell.  But they’re confusing creative and clever.  Cute for cuteness’ sake may be entertaining, but it doesn’t sell much,  Just ask Taco Bell’s talking chihuahua, long since retired.  But true creativity, the kind that gets your attention, then persuades you to think or act a…