7 Common Branding Mistakes that Can Hurt Your Brand
“OUCH!”
When all that work that you’ve been doing to build your brand to make it a household word finally begins to pay off, something else happens. Your brand becomes vulnerable! When it was new and relatively unknown, you could make a mistake and it would not be...
3 Steps to Mitigate Product Harm and Save Your Brand
“I LIKE HOW THEY HANDLED THAT!”
Your product has been found to be defective! You’re facing a market-wide recall! Your buyers are considering whether to continue to do business with you or not. All those years of brand building are suddenly working against you. Your brand is finally a household word. But...
5 January Challenges for CPG Brand Builders
DID YOU MAKE THE CUT?
New Year’s means a lot of things to a lot of people, but in the CPG world, it’s life or death! January is by far the most challenging and perplexing month of the year. It is unlike any other month, making it a surprise for most...
The Trouble with Disruption
THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK!
Today the business tabloids will tell you how glorious it is to disrupt your industry. Every week there’s a new story about another successful entrepreneur who has disrupted their industry and made a billion. But that’s not even half the story. The tabloids are quick to...
5 Essentials to a Successful Brand Ad
“WHAT ARE THEY SELLING?”
Advertising is expensive. So, why not do it right? Even when done to perfection, you’ve only got a split second to grab the attention of your potential customer. You must get noticed and understood, and communicate a clear call to action – all in a blink...
Your Physical Product Brand Must Scan to Get Reordered
“IT’S JUST NOT SELLING!”
It always amazed us that the big chain and box store buyers would measure our products’ success in their stores by one thing and one thing only: scans. That’s right, how many times our UPC code was read at the registers. Never mind any other impediment...
Brand Building – Nobody Wants to Do the Missionary Work
BREAKING THE ICE
When you are out to disrupt your industry, be prepared for the “missionary work.” This is the inglorious, frustrating, thankless, and painfully slow part of the startup process that new brand producers, in their excitement, often overlook. You can see how your invention, idea, or new...
Brand Performance is Judged by Instantaneous Retail Sales
NO ONE WANTS TO RAISE THE CALF
We were shocked to find out that retailers were quick to discontinue our brand if it didn’t move immediately! We thought they would allow a few months for shoppers to get used to seeing it, then they try it, come back and buy it again. We...
5 Ways to Make Your Brand Fun – So You Can Attract and Build Customer Loyalty
“IF IT ISN’T FUN, I’M NOT DOING IT!” Randy Arnold, The Barefoot Guy
It’s amazing how many times we get asked by corporate types, “What is ‘fun’?” They want fun defined so they can bring it in to their own marketing the way we did with Barefoot Wines. Of course the thought that crosses our minds is that if...
Recover from Bad Turns by Growing Your Business Slowly
CAUTION! CONDITIONS CHANGED AHEAD!
Don’t believe the entrepreneurial pundits who say startup success is as simple as launch, prove, and scale. It’s more like launch, prove, scale, prove, scale, prove, scale, and prove again! Most businesses fail not because they couldn’t prove their concept, but because they proved it, and...
Increase Sales with Positive Customer Experience
WORD OF MOUTH TRUMPS ADVERTISING
When a new company is just getting started or sales are down, the pressure is on for more advertising. But is that the best solution? Advertising is based on your long-term commitment to running expensive ads repeatedly before you can get any “traction.” But there is...
Seizing Opportunity Requires Fast Action and On-the-fly Corrections
THE PROBLEM WITH PERFECT
Street smart brand builders are light on their feet, constantly looking for current events, market changes, and consumer mood shifts they can take advantage of. When you are building your brand, pop-up opportunities abound. But can you take advantage of them before that window of opportunity...