Many people *pretend* to be marketers. These people have minimal, if any, marketing training and zero or only a few years of experience. Using “pretend marketers” can significantly hurt a company and create a spaghetti of bad work to untangle later. These people can also cause missed opportunities, inefficiencies and more. [ Read More ]
Marketing
Celebrating the 20th Anniversary of By the Sea Communications
This spring I celebrate the 20th anniversary of By the Sea Communications, LLC. Does that make me proud? Absolutely. [ Read More ]
10 Tips on How to be a Great Client
Do you know how to be a great client? I have had the honor of working with many amazing companies and people over the more than 30 years of my marketing communications career. Below are 10 tips on how to be a great client for an external marketing partner. (If you are reading this, cheers to you for your willingness to learn!) [ Read More ]
Old Work Stuff Can Be Quite Nostalgic
Old work stuff can be quite nostalgic. On a recent staycation, I went through a bunch of boxes of work stuff hidden in the basement. Here is some of what I found: Stacks and stacks of old-school media coverage books for products I led the PR on. There were thick ones for Microsoft Word, Microsoft Money, RealNetworks, Avenue A (which became aQuantive), InfoSpace and more. [ Read More ]
25 Memorable Moments in My Career
There are so many amusing and memorable moments in my career. It makes me smile to think of them. This is not a stuffy blog expounding on my “wins” although there are some in here. It’s an informal look back at some of the fun things I encountered throughout the years as well as some of the people who made a good impression on me. [ Read More ]
Maximize the ROI of Media Coverage
As you think about the allocation of your marketing budget, consider the immense ROI (return-on-investment) of a piece earned media coverage. I have been helping companies, including major global corporations, businesses headquartered abroad and countless U.S.-based companies of all sizes, earn great media coverage for more than 30 years. The ROI is tough to beat. [ Read More ]
SpaceX Wants Us to Become an Interplanetary Species
Over the weekend, I watched all five episodes of “Countdown: Inspiration4 Mission to Space” on Netflix. If you haven’t heard by now, it is a series on the recent SpaceX “Inspiration4” spaceflight which carried four non-astronaut civilians and no one else. I enjoyed the series mainly for the insights it gave me, however varnished, of SpaceX. It was also great to see 27-year-old women in high roles within the company including leading training of the civilians, mission communications with the capsule and quality control immediately prior to the flight. [ Read More ]
Why Marketing is Like Sailboat Racing
Sailboat racing is all about continuously optimizing. So is marketing. In sailboat racing, you don’t just point the sailboat in the direction of the finish line and hope for the best. You keep checking the wind, the currents, the other boats on the course. Sometimes you tack to better catch the wind. You adjust the sails accordingly, and frequently, while on the course. At times you even pull out a different sail depending on the wind and its direction. [ Read More ]
Reinventing Marketing: My Musings
I love the hot summer months and all the daylight. It gives me time to think aimlessly about life, my business and the industry I am in. There is a lot of talk these days about the evolution of marketing and I started to ponder it at random times. Below is a collection of my thoughts, both about what changed over the last several years and what to expect in the future. [ Read More ]
How to Maximize the ROI of Media Coverage
Here’s hoping your year is off to a great and prosperous start! As you think about how to allocate your marketing budget this year, consider the immense ROI (return-on-investment) of a piece earned media coverage. [ Read More ]