Thoughts

So what exactly is a brand? A brand is a person’s gut feeling about a product, service, or company. It’s a gut feeling because we’re all emotional, intuitive beings, despite our best efforts to be rational.
—Marty Neumeier, The Brand Gap.

There are really only three possible responses to a request or proposal—to accept (yes), to decline (no), or to counter-offer (renegotiate).

While this way of framing is broadly applicable (I even use it with my kids), it can be a fundamental eye-opener for sales and marketing in the realm of product and services companies.

In the world created by Google and Facebook, the accessibility of data and the capacity to produce results based on metrics is a seductive trap. Here’s the thing: we can hit the goal and still be nowhere.

As business owners and entrepreneurs, we are often saddled with the myth that we are the job creators—the little engines that grow the economy.

I would like to suggest that we take that on—not just as a talking point—but really live in it. Let’s begin now to work on creating the path forward—even if we’re standing on broken business models.