brand-as-business bit:   Business is defined by tensions:  manage costs vs. maximize sales, acquire new customers vs. serve existing ones, grow organically vs. acquire — and pursue innovation vs. optimize core execution.   Of course, none of these are really either/or’s — they are both/and’s.  But achieving the right balance between innovation and core execution can be […]

If you’re looking for hot topics and insights on brands, businesses, and the people who work on them, here’s a digest of my content from the past month: brand experience: McDonald’s Metro: Lipstick on a Pig – a post about how McDonald’s new Metro concept only looks better, when it needs to actually be better […]

Between spring break, March Madness, and primary season, there’s been a lot going on outside the brand world this month.  But there’s also been a flurry of new brand-building content going around.  Here’s a handy recap of what I contributed to the conversation: brand-building: Steve Jobs on Brand-Building — a slide show of what Walter Isaacson’s […]

A new definition of brand.  Inspiring employees.  My take on the Super Bowl ads and the new Taco Bell tagline.  Check out my writings on these and other topics in the following “brand-as-business buffet,” a round-up of content from me from this past month. retail and restaurants: How to Keep ‘Em  Coming Back — my […]

_

brand-as-business bit:  My latest Brand New Perspectives column in QSR Magazine answers a QSR operator’s question about keeping customers coming back. The piece outlines my thoughts on increasing purchase frequency — an objective of practically every marketer — I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the effectiveness of a heart-felt ‘thank you.’  Said with […]

_

Hi folks!  Trying a new feature this year — a monthly round-up of my published content. It’s a mental buffet of ideas that may seem schizophrenic at times (I do work on fast food restaurants as well as fitness brands, after all!), but it’s all in the service of helping companies understand and apply the […]

_

Whew!  What a year it’s been. Over the past year, my brain has pumped out 1778 tweets, 81 brand-as-business bites blog posts, 17 videos, 11 published articles, 11 brand-as-business brief newsletters, 10 podcast interviews, 8 QSR Magazine columns, 8 Slideshare documents, 7 speaking engagements, 3 guest blog posts, and countless random thoughts – not to […]