Beloved Brands ❤️

𝗕𝗲𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗕𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 We make your marketers smarter to help them thrive in today’s marketing world so they produce better work and drive stronger results. Your marketing team will learn the fundamentals of how the best marketers fundamentals of brand analytics, strategic thinking, positioning, plans, and marketing execution, but also learn how to apply these principles in real-world scenarios. 𝗧𝗼 𝘀𝗲𝗲 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗕𝗲𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗕𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝘀𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿, 𝗰𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗸 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗸: https://lnkd.in/gnHrnZc 𝗪𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗼 𝗼𝗳 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗕𝗲𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗕𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺 𝗼𝗻 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗧𝘂𝗯𝗲 https://lnkd.in/gcpjJNXD #marketing #brandmanagement #marketers

📅 Discover the five elements of smart strategy thinking and how to write your marketing strategy statement. #MarketingPlan #BrandStrategy https://lnkd.in/gc5C7vjP

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗡𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗮𝗱 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗽𝗶𝗲𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗮𝗿𝘁, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗶𝘁'𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗱𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗡𝗶𝗸𝗲. I'm going against the general LinkedIn people here, as many on LinkedIn seem to love it. https://lnkd.in/gsgXTmRn This is a small tent ad when Nike needs a big tent. The Olympics is a big tent time. Every few years, Nike hits a snag. Right now, their sales and profits are way down. As a result, the stock price has gone down 30% on a year-to-date basis. 𝗡𝗶𝗸𝗲’𝘀 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗺𝘂𝗰𝗵 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝘄𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘇𝗲𝗱, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲 𝗻𝗼 𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗰𝗸 𝗿𝗲𝗯𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗡𝗶𝗸𝗲'𝘀 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀, Nike sales are projected to be down 10% for the year, a bigger decline than the 2-3% they had been projecting.. The sneaker industry is down, they are facing new competitors, sales in China are way down, and they burned a lot of cash trying to do their own e-commerce business and trying to wean themselves off Amazon. None of that has anything to do with advertising. 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗮𝗱 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗵𝘂𝗴𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗳𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗼𝗻𝗲. 𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗽𝗶𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗰. 𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗸, 𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴. The ad does not invite everyone in. It says you're either a winner, or you're a loser. This tone will push people away. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗡𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮 𝗶𝘀 "𝗪𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗽𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝘂𝘀𝗵 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗹𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝗯𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗴𝗼 𝗯𝗲𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗶𝘀 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲." This ad fails to deliver on that brand idea. Nike is no longer the edgy challenger brand from the 1980s. It's now the big tent brand for everyone. This is a small tent ad. People look to Nike to be inspired to get out and exercise in their own way. 𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗿𝘁. 𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗱. As a brand leader, I would have rejected this ad. Here's the ad they should run during the Olympics. https://lnkd.in/gyKS7WB8

𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗰 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘀𝗲𝗲 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝘀𝘄𝗲𝗿𝘀. 𝗨𝘀𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗿𝘂𝗽𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗱𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝘀𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴. The strategic thinking side of marketing is logical. It involves mapping out a range of decision trees that intersect by imagining how events will play out in the future. The risk of being only strategic is that if you think too long, you may spiral around, unable to decide. Moreover, you may miss an opportunity window. 𝗢𝗽𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗮 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗰 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗷𝘂𝗺𝗽𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗰𝗸𝗹𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝘀𝘄𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻. Their brains move fast; they use emotional impulses and intuitive gut feel. They want action now and get easily frustrated by delays. They believe it is better to do something than sit and wait around. They see strategic people as stuck running around in circles as they try to figure out the right question. Instead, these instinctual leaders choose emotion over logic. While a “make it happen” attitude gets things done, if they go too fast, their actions may solve the wrong problem. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗯𝗼𝘁𝗵 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗰 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗽𝗶𝗰𝗸 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗺𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗲𝗱. They figure out how to slow down their brains to use the strategic thinking side of their brains. They also know how to use their quick-twitch instincts for execution. 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗰𝗸, 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗺𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗯𝗲 𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗲𝗱.

𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗜 𝘀𝗲𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗷𝘂𝗺𝗽 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘀, 𝗜 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗹𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗲𝘀 𝗵𝘂𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱. Without taking enough time to think strategically, marketers fail to build on their brand’s core strength, create a bond with consumers, win competitive battles, or improve the brand's business situation. Push your mind to capture the unique circumstances before taking action. 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗿𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝗻𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝘂𝗽 𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲. Without a clearly defined brand positioning, the brand never establishes the desired reputation with consumers. Without clarity, all execution teams need more direction, so the brand messaging ends up random and confusing to consumers. Marketers should never allow competitors to define the brand because they certainly won’t like how they define the brand. We will show how to define the target market and turn product features into consumer benefits with a balance of functional and emotional benefits. 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘁𝗿𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗼 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻, 𝗻𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮𝘀 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗲𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁. Marketing plans that fail to make firm decisions spread their limited resources across so many tactics that none of the ideas create a big enough impact to make a difference. With a lack of vision, the plan meanders and confuses those who work behind the scenes of the brand. We will show how to build your plan with a brand vision, purpose, values, key issues, strategies, and execution plans. 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝘅𝗲𝗰𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆, 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘀𝗶𝗹𝗼𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗲𝗿 𝘀𝗲𝗲𝘀 𝗮 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗷𝗼𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗱, 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗳𝘂𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱. Brand communication, new product innovation, and the sales team never benefit from working together. Consumers get frustrated by the disjointed execution and never feel connected to the brand. Our playbook teaches everything marketers need to know about writing a creative brief, giving valuable feedback for better work, and making decisions on marketing execution. 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗴𝗼 𝗱𝗲𝗲𝗽 𝗲𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘆𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘀, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗸 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗼𝗺 𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝘂𝗻𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁’𝘀 𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗲. They misunderstand consumer trends, competitive dynamics, evolving technologies, shopper channels, and brand performance. The problems fester, and competitors steal the untapped opportunities. You owe your business a deep-dive business review at least once a year.

OK is contagious.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁. Every plan should start with a vision and key issues defining how to achieve that vision. From there, the marketing strategy answers the key issue question. To start, you must define the 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺𝘀 where you will invest your limited resources. Then, find an identified focused 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿 you can take advantage of. Your strategy must create a 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 result that strengthens and wealthier the brand. 𝗧𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗮 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗮𝘁 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗯𝗹𝗼𝗴 𝗼𝗻 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻 https://lnkd.in/gc5C7vjP

𝗢𝘂𝗿 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗕𝗼𝘅 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽𝘀 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗴𝗶𝗳𝘁 I remember one of my agency VPs asked me to describe the type of ad I wanted. I said, “I don’t know, but I’ll know it when I see it.” I wasn’t being coy. I was staying in my lane. I have always believed that the best creative ideas are like the perfect gift I never thought to get myself. It is the creative partners' role to figure out what I want and then surprise me with the best ideas, almost wrapped up as the perfect gift I will love. 𝗪𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝗴𝗶𝗳𝘁 𝗯𝗼𝘅 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗕𝗼𝘅, 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝗰𝗵 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗱𝗶𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻-𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴. 1. Is the creative work focused on the target market? 2. Does the creative fit with the brand? 3. Does the creative work express the ideal brand message? 4. Will the creative work help execute our strategy to move our consumers in ways that benefit our brand? I use our Creative Brief to define the parameters of the gift box. Then, I use our Creative Checklist to see if the work delivers all four dimensions. If the creative work nails all four dimensions, I will approve the ad and trust their judgment on the creativity. With any idea outside the box, I will use my feedback to highlight gaps and ask the creative partner to figure out how to get the creative work into the box. I will only tell them my problems with the creative work and not give them any solutions. I worry that my solutions will wreck my gift. I prefer to rely on their expertise and talent to find me that gift I can’t imagine.

I am a big fan of the Skechers brand. I wear them all the time. I wear their slip-ins for walking the dog, dress shoes for fancy events, and I even have their golf shoes. My wife got me hooked. She said, “You have to try these shoes.” Within seconds, I was set. No shoe is more comfortable. As someone who stands at the front of the room for 8 hours straight, I need comfort. https://lnkd.in/gunwSAmW

A brand plan presentation is a powerful way to gain approval from your leadership team. However, no one will read it a second time. Our one-page Brand Plan will keep everyone aligned with your brand strategy. Everyone on the team should keep it within arms' length. In this article, I will share plenty of Brand Plan examples and show how to use our Brand Plan template so you can build your own plan. https://lnkd.in/eVZa5uNy