Strategy

One of the biggest challenges in marketing today is increasing retention and lifetime value of existing customers. By optimizing this value, brands have the opportunity to improve business performance. The key to successfully enhancing this value is through a Voice of the Customer (VoC) program. Developing a customer advocacy approach includes many facets, including data, measurement and research. Let’s explore what customer advocacy is, why it matters and the role…

I am so excited to let you know that today you can purchase Mean People Suck: How Empathy Leads To A Bigger Profits and A Better Life. You can buy it on Amazon, Walmart, Barnes & Noble and the audiobook will be out soon. Like in a few days... When most people hear the title, they typically say, "yeah, mean people really do suck!" Then I can see them reflecting.…

If customer service is a school coach, customer success is a personal trainer. The former is reactive, transactional, and focused on serving as many people as quickly as possible. Trainers are proactive and flexible, designing programs around what the trainee wants to achieve. But just like athletic trainers, customer success people need two things to succeed: engaged trainees and the right tools. Although a customer success staff can’t control who…

The biggest challenge marketers face right now is reaching their target audience, and I mean really reaching them. Not just publishing an advertisement or piece of content that an audience might see or read; but reaching them with a message that piques their interest and starts a conversation. This is where account-based marketing (ABM) comes in—and, it’s no wonder that ABM was deemed the second most popular marketing strategy for…

The optimal brand experience differs from company to company. That might sound obvious, but it evidently isn’t to some CMOs: By overly relying on martech, they’re creating an expensive — and unremarkable — brand experience. According to research from Forrester, CMOs are spending more on tech than any other C-suite members. Through 2022, CMOs are projected to increase their spend on automation, data, and tools by up to 11%. Over…

With the launch of Mean People Suck, I thought I would share 14 of the books that inspired Mean People Suck the most. But first, what is Mean People Suck all about? The fact is that most people are unhappy in their careers. And they point their finger at a negative work culture, a mean boss… co-worker… or customer. Mean people suck. Some leaders believe that they need to be mean in…

What do you think is the key to successful marketing? Many would say it comes down to understanding your audience. This is certainly true, but once you’ve gathered intelligence on your audience, what do you do with that information? In its essence, successful marketing boils down to understanding the mind of your customer and using psychology to influence them to perform the desired action. Smart marketers use psychology in a…

This article is based on my forthcoming book, Mastering Marketing Agility (Berrett-Koehler, June 2020).  When a CMO is hired, somewhere an hourglass flips over. Grains of sand begin plummeting from the upper half, piling up inexorably in the bottom until time runs out and the CMO is politely asked to leave. It’s a grim picture, and it turns out it’s not even a very big hourglass compared to those measuring…

Brick-and-mortar retail is dead, right? The proof is in the rise of dozens of digitally native brands like mattress seller Casper and shoe designer Allbirds — except that these brands are now opening retail stores to augment their digital presence. Casper is set to open an ambitious 200 stores in North America over a three-year span, while Allbirds’ six retail locations include New York, San Francisco, and London. Both brands…

Outbound marketing remains one of the most effective prospecting channels, but potential customers are developing even less patience for outdated communications tactics. To make the most of your outbound strategy, avoid common mistakes that send emails into the trash. Consumers deal with hundreds of ads and messages every day, starting from the moment they pick up their smartphones in the morning. They don't have time to listen to irrelevant pitches,…