January 2012
Positioning A President: A Marketing Case Study
Holland-Mark’s branding approach is based on the observation that people have a tendency to boil things down to One Simple Thing™. We all do it, it’s part of our genetic code and an important adaptation to a modern world overrun by complexity. We do this not only for brands (Volvo = Safety, BMW = Performance, Zappos = Service,) but for Movies (Rocky = Inspired, Notebook = Chick Flick, Platoon =...
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How To Teach Your CEO Social Media
We do a lot of work with CEOs at Holland-Mark, and some of that work is focused on helping them understand, use, and leverage social media to advance their business agendas and personal brands. We’ve learned a few things along the way about what works in bringing a CEO up to speed on Twitter et al, and about the value of a CEO who “gets it” to the business they run.
If your CEO is something...
Startup Branding: A Practical Guide for... →
My post in today’s OnStartups blog, kind of branding 101 for entrepreneurs. Feedback welcome.
Getting Naked With Clients
Knew that headline would pull.
It’s a metaphor advanced in a new book by the prolific and insightful Patrick Lencioni, about how to build a culture of client service excellence by helping people shed their fears, baggage, and ego in any business for which dealing with clients is a driver of success.
The book, which takes the form of an accessible if sometimes contrived first-person story,...
“You have enemies? Good. That means you’ve stood up for something, sometime...”
– Winston Churchill
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How Skiing Has Changed
Visited Okemo Mountain resort this weekend, for a few days of skiing with the little kids and my brother-in-law’s family. Overall a great time, but it struck me how much the skiing experience has changed since last I went… You know… Back in the 20th century.
Top 10 Ways Skiing Changed in 12 Years
10. Cotton is dead. Seriously. I was LITERALLY the only person on the mountain...
December 2011
A Blog Post Suicide Note →
These come up from time to time, but I was struck by the depth and detail of this one by the late Joe Bodolai ( @JoeBodolai .) An SNL alum and genuinely talented man, Joe appears to have struggled with alcoholism and the damage it causes over an extended period of time, until tragically choosing to take his own life in a Hollywood hotel room a few days ago.
I can only image how hard it must be to...
Christmas Poem for a Marine
Twas the Night Before Christmas, He lived all alone, In a one bedroom house made of Plaster and stone. I had come down the chimney With presents to give, And to see just who In this home did live. I looked all about, A strange sight did I see, No tinsel, no presents, Not even a tree. No stocking by the mantle, Just boots filled with sand, On the wall hung pictures Of far distant lands. With...
A Story-Sized Christmas Carol →
I love “A Christmas Carol.” I think it’s just about the perfect story, Christmas or otherwise. I’ve always wanted to read it to my kids, but the actual book is quite long.
It seems Dickens had the same problem, for the public readings he conducted when he was alive. He edited a shortened version of the story himself, available through the link above, which his audiences...
Greatest Want Ad, Ever
Why don’t we write like this more often? Just say it… tell the truth. It works, folks. I bet it worked here.
We want to add some talent to the Sarasota Herald-Tribune investigative team. Every serious candidate should have a proven track record of conceiving, reporting and writing stellar investigative pieces that provoke change. However, our ideal candidate has also cursed out an...
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WatchI love Louis CK. Lots to learn about entrepreneurship from this cat.
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Are Creative People More Dishonest? →
In a word… “Yes,” says my paisana pal Francesca Gina in the latest edition of HBS Faculty mag Working Knowledge.
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Rock Stars and Cowboys →
Twitter is navigating the rocky, dis-continuous change from product/market fit to riding the rocket, where early “rock stars” become “cowboys” in a new regime.
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Job Growth Driven Entirely By Startups →
Know how much net new job growth in the U.S. comes from companies <5 years old? How about ALL OF IT. WOW.
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“Let’s be realistic — jobs are going to be in short supply for the...”
– Charles Handy
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Start-up dilemma: to sell or not to sell →
Clearly a “white girl problem…” but when you’re working hard on something and somebody puts a check in front of your face, it sure feels like a choice with dire consequences. Here’s a thoughtful and balanced post about some of the issues involved in that sometimes tough call.
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What You Can Learn from Louis CK
I think “Louie” is the best show on television right now. It’s almost certainly the best show about a divorced, balding, goatee’d ginger Dad trying to get laid in New York while raising two girls under 10 and telling jokes for money.
Louie is the brainchild of the brilliant Louis CK, who undertook an equally brilliant experiment last week when he decided to sell a...
Edward Boches on the Steve Jobs Bio →
I know this has been covered a lot, but it’s just so good. Edward’s take away relates to the natures of great companies, and their ability to transform themselves in time of need. Hear, hear.
The Application Development Landscape →
David Skok’s keynote slides from the MassTLC Application Development conference. As they say on Southie… “Kid is wicked smaht.”
Rooting for HubSpot →
Love and respect both these guys, in part because they’re deeply in touch with their own inner hucksters. But salesmanship aside… I know from private conversations with Brian that he really means this, that he takes the responsibility of building something great and enduring for and in Boston seriously. Here’s hoping they make it.
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10 Sure Fire Ways Young Entrepreneurs Set Their... →
Good list.
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“It basically says that a startup team needs to be capable of making sudden and...”
– The Startup Team « Steve Blank (via cselland)
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“I’m not saying she’s dumb. But if she throws a pin at you, run,...”
– Anonymous
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Your Employees Are Not Entrepreneurs →
Good advice, mostly.
Amazon's Jungle Logic →
The Times weighs in on Amazon’s recent promotion encouraging customers to scan items they see in stores into a phone app, to earn a 5 percent credit buying the same item from Amazon. “There’s also something bizarrely clumsy and wrong-footed about it … [I]f the wind shifts, Amazon’s ham-fisted strategy has the potential to morph into a genuine Occupy Amazon...
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30 Brilliant Social Media Marketing Tips From 2011 →
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8 Tips For Creating a Great Case Study →
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Startups Goldman Sachs Will Likely IPO →
Interesting list. On one hand lots of good services, on the other some dubious business models. All in the queue right now.