I didn’t expect it. But I guess these things happen in life. You’re happily married to a wonderful woman for 20 years, with two great (for the most part) kids. Life is proceeding nicely apace. And then, bam, you run smack dab into your soulmate. She’s Emma Brudner, author of a HubSpot blog post, “The Ultimate List of Words That Sell.” There are 13 such words. But it was Emma’s first two that made my heart go pitter-patter, because they’re the exact two that have formed the bedrock of my entire career in branding and marketing. And seeing them writ…
READ MOREWant to know the brand messaging mistake that bedevils Fortune 500 companies and start-ups alike, again and again? It’s self-centeredness. Me, me, me. I, I, I. We do this. We provide that. We were established then. Blah, blah, blah. News flash: Your prospective customers don’t care about you; they care about themselves. They don’t care what you do; they care about what you’ll do for them. They don’t care about your success; they care about how you can make them a success. As well they should. It’s always curious, then, when a company’s first pass at a brand message is so narcissistic. But…
READ MORE