Marketing Management & Leadership – Who’s really running the show?
Marketing is full of colorful characters… Data nerds, creative prima donnas, wordsmith poets, actors, spreadsheet…
Writing better web copy — How long should that copy be? Really.
This is a common refrain these days… Doesn’t matter if the client is selling complex,…
Under Armour marketing — Sailing into a big, blue ocean of opportunity.
Kevin Plank, founder and former CEO of Under Armour, likes to tell the story of…
Automotive Advertising: Another ride down that twisting, mountain road of tired clichés.
I don’t know what it is about automotive advertising. No other category is so rich…
Effective TV advertising — How to avoid TV spots that miss the mark.
Effective TV advertising is hard to come by in my town. I just cringe when…
Deschutes Brewing Going National (How to grow without selling your soul.)
Bend, Oregon is a small town better known for big fun than big business. There…
Marketing lessons from the Olympics – Glory, thrills and honor
I’m a big fan of the Winter Olympics. I got hooked as a boy when…
Cammo brand personality (Duck Dynasty goes high fashion.)
How do you know when the alignment of the planets has gone completely askew? When the…
Airline Industry marketing (One Canadian brand stands out)
Here’s a news flash for all of you who are 35 or under: Flying wasn’t…
Retail Marketing Strategy — Super Sales vs. Super Brands.
It’s discount days in the retail world right now. Everywhere you turn there’s a super…
The ultimate franchise retail branding experience – like a kid in a candy store
My annual Christmas shopping excursion always eventually leads me to one place: Powell’s Sweet Shop….
Marketing lessons from GM — Will a $30 billion bailout buy them some focus?
The top guns of the American auto industry parked their private jets, piled into their…
Living The Brand, Scott Bedbury Style.
In the world of branding consultants, Scott Bedbury is kind of a big deal… He…
Judge Not. (And make good marketing decisions.)
Marketing is a very judgmental business. Business owners, CMOs and marketing managers are constantly judging…
State Farm is Where??? Insurance industry marketing
Insurance is one of those low-interest, out-of-sight-out-of-mind service categories that no one really wants to…
Positioning Strategy — It’s not what you say. It’s what they THINK.
In the 1970’s Al Ries and Jack Trout popularized the concept of positioning strategy. Since…
Brand strategy: Put some meat in your marketing messages.
Every year, millions of dollars are wasted on advertising that is well-produced, but not very…
Bare breasts mean business at Starbucks.
I’ve been a fan of Starbucks since they opened their first store in Portland, in…
How to survive when the economy tanks.
There’s a lot of economic doom and gloom in the news these days; Unless you’re…
Is it car sickness, or just nauseating radio ads?
Kids get car sick. Cleaning vomit from the back seat is part of every new…
To Blog, or not to Blog.
This post is from the archives… John Furgurson’s first official branding blog post from 2007….