If your Brand is not your Logo, then what is it?
According to an article written by brand catalyst Isabelle Mercier Turcotte of Leapzone Strategies, branding is when you take a good, honest look under the hood of your business and get crystal clear about: Who you are and what makes you different. What problems you...
Focus Inward not Outward, for Better Results
As a business, what makes you valuable to your customer? If you can’t answer this question succinctly, then you won’t be able to communicate your value to your customer in such a way that engages them to enter into a buying relationship with you. How does a company...
Get your (Business) Groove Back
“Help, I’m stuck!” I hear this often from business owners I come into contact with. Businesses can sometimes grow despite themselves, with a great deal of sweat equity invested by the business owner, lots of DIY marketing, word-of-mouth sales growth, customer...
Nothing (Intentional) Happens without a Plan
Too many business owners are stuck in the ‘busyness’ trap of working in their business and not making the time (a priority) to intentionally design the business they actually want to be in. If you are in the business of providing a service, in an ideal world you want...
A Little Business Integrity, please…
I was appalled when I read an article published in BC Business Magazine entitled Fake It to Make It by Niko Bell. I found the fact this was the ‘featured’ article in the Marketing section of the magazine to be somewhat curious. Giving earned media to Gravytrain...
Inside-Out Marketing: 5 Secrets to Success
To truly engage customers for whom traditional advertising (push marketing) is increasingly irrelevant, companies must engage with customers in a new way. At the end of the day, customers no longer separate marketing from the product—it is the product. They don’t...
Q&A: Value Based Fees vs. Billable Hours
Scenario: I’ve been in professional services for 10 years and based on my experience I am becoming faster at outputting the work I am hired to do. I charge an hourly rate; I am now getting paid less by the hour because I’m faster at getting the work done. Q: How do I...
Is Content Marketing a Trend or is it here to Stay?
One of the biggest marketing trends this year is content marketing; future predictions from marketing pundits place content marketing on the trend watch list for 2013 as well. I don’t think it’s as much of a trend as it is one of many examples of the paradigm shift in...
How to Create a Simple Social Media Strategy
This post was provided by our friends at Out-Smarts Marketing Incorporated; a full service Internet marketing company with a strong focus on Social Media Marketing. Thank you to Out-Smarts for the great tips! At Out-Smarts we like to k.i.s.s – now don’t go getting any...
Leadership Lessons from Influential Women in Business
Business in Vancouver and the Professional Women’s Network hosted the annual Leadership Lessons from Influential Women in Business. This half-day forum consisted of interactive discussions with some of BC’s most influential businesswomen. Here are my Top 9...