Everything has a brand—even a church. If you ask me, Christianity in America could use a brand refresh. Many millennials are leaving the church. But others aren’t giving up so easily, they’re challenging it to reform. And I like a challenge. While brainstorming ideas for a video script for Northland Church, I kept coming back … Continue reading Godvertising: Actions Speak Louder
Content Marketing
Reading Between the Lines
Words matter. Finding the right word matters even more. That’s why I love the delete key. I can type and retype to my heart’s content. (Or until my deadline hits.) The great Leonardo da Vinci said, “Art is never finished. Only abandoned.” And I’m pretty sure he was talking about the art of copywriting. To craft … Continue reading Reading Between the Lines
What Madison Ave Learns from Motion Pictures
Advertising and acting are cut from the same creative cloth. The goal is the same: Get inside the minds and hearts of an intended audience. Storyboarding is another advertising practice taken from the motion pictures industry. Lights. Camera. Persuasion. The storyboard is a combination of visual direction, script, and audio. In this format, stories can … Continue reading What Madison Ave Learns from Motion Pictures
How to Inspire the Creative Mind
How do you get into the creative frame of mind? Are you inspired by facts? Visuals? Music? Stories? Surroundings? Snacks? Mmm snacks. If you’re in advertising, you indulge in the creative brief your wonderful account planning team poured their research-intensive hearts into. The core purpose of any brief is to inspire the team to make a … Continue reading How to Inspire the Creative Mind
The Power of the Pitch
The goal of an agency pitch is to ooo and ahhh the client. But how? Do you make the logo bigger? Not quite. You captivate the client the same way you engage the customer. You tell a story. The magic is not in the product. (My apologies, Mr. Bernbach.) The magic is in the story. … Continue reading The Power of the Pitch
This is Your Brain on Branding
What’s in a brand? A brand is not a logo. A brand’s positioning is not its tagline. Apple's brand is not the apple. Coca-Cola’s brand is not the bottle or the color red or the classic script font. Fact is, branding is an elusive concept. It’s whatever your audience says and thinks and feels it is. … Continue reading This is Your Brain on Branding
Mobile Privacy: The New Brand Builder?
Our smartphones are basically a limb. Just how attached are we? About 46% of smartphone users say their device is something they couldn’t live without. We love our devices deeply. Mobile phones also provide incredible opportunity (and risk) for advertisers. It's important for content marketers to understand that the way they use mobile data can either build … Continue reading Mobile Privacy: The New Brand Builder?
[Infographic] Stuff Content Marketers Should Know for Smart SEOing
Why content marketers and SEO analysts need to work together in 2016
4 Marketing Trends You’ll See in 2016
It’s December. Otherwise known as Potluck Season. Yep, it’s the only perk you miss out on when you telecommute. Well, that, and the weekly smell of burnt popcorn wafting from the breakroom microwave. Consider this post my potluck approach to predicting trends in 2016. What do you think will be a crowd favorite? Let’s dig in. #1. Search. Engines. … Continue reading 4 Marketing Trends You’ll See in 2016
[Infographic] Why Brand Storytelling is Old School
True stories make your brand. They make it more relatable, more accessible, and best of all, stories make your brand different. Different is good. Why do marketers tell stories? There’s no other way to distinguish your brand. Everything else can be replicated or clickbaited or 3D printed. Traditional advertising is blocked, ignored, and DVRd into oblivion. But … Continue reading [Infographic] Why Brand Storytelling is Old School
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