In February 2020, I was thrilled to give the morning keynote ("The Power of Play") at the Iowa AMA Experience 2020 event. I gave an earlier version of this presentation at the Midwest Digital Marketing Conference (MDMC) in April 2019.
In March 2018, I spoke on Building Brand Love in B2B at MDMC. Feel free to peruse the slides below, watch a video of an earlier version of the presentation (which I gave with Atomicdust Creative Director Mike Spakowski), or download the ebook I wrote on the topic.
VIDEOS
How to Build a Brand Worth Falling in Love With
In this short video, I discuss our close relationships with brands, why brand love matters and how businesses can achieve it.
In this short video, I discuss our close relationships with brands, why brand love matters and how businesses can achieve it.
INDUSTRY INSIGHTS
Six Tips to Turn a Free Trial User into a Paying Customer
As the SaaS (Software as a Service) market grows, the competitive landscape grows with it. If you’re the owner or marketing manager of a SaaS product with a free trial program, how can you ensure trial users snap up your subscription offer instead of the dozens of others they may be fielding? Read more.
As the SaaS (Software as a Service) market grows, the competitive landscape grows with it. If you’re the owner or marketing manager of a SaaS product with a free trial program, how can you ensure trial users snap up your subscription offer instead of the dozens of others they may be fielding? Read more.
Deceptive Design: Why It Happens, and How To Avoid It
Design is manipulative. It says “look here, not there.” It nudges people toward a specific decision, whether it’s which button they should click on a website, the direction they should walk through a museum, or the decision to “impulse buy” a candy bar strategically placed near the checkout. Read more.
Design is manipulative. It says “look here, not there.” It nudges people toward a specific decision, whether it’s which button they should click on a website, the direction they should walk through a museum, or the decision to “impulse buy” a candy bar strategically placed near the checkout. Read more.
Playing Nice With Others: Struggles with Creative Collaboration
You must love the process of creating something amazing with your team more than you love being “right,” or being the decision maker. A “we’re all in this together” mentality isn’t just a nice-to-have. It truly improves the quality and thoughtfulness of the work. Read more.
You must love the process of creating something amazing with your team more than you love being “right,” or being the decision maker. A “we’re all in this together” mentality isn’t just a nice-to-have. It truly improves the quality and thoughtfulness of the work. Read more.
To Lead Your Industry, Look Outside of It
Here’s a question we often hear from clients: “This has always worked for my industry; why mess with the formula?”Any brand that wants to dramatically grow market share or take that coveted number-one spot from a competitor has to reject this thinking. Read more.
Here’s a question we often hear from clients: “This has always worked for my industry; why mess with the formula?”Any brand that wants to dramatically grow market share or take that coveted number-one spot from a competitor has to reject this thinking. Read more.
Writing is Courageous (But First You Have to Actually Do It)
The act of writing for the public is inherently a confident act. At worst, it could be seen as a narcissistic one. It assumes an audience. It declares a belief in its own worth. By putting a piece of writing into the world, you imply that it—and by extension, your opinion and your voice—deserve to be heard. Read more.
The act of writing for the public is inherently a confident act. At worst, it could be seen as a narcissistic one. It assumes an audience. It declares a belief in its own worth. By putting a piece of writing into the world, you imply that it—and by extension, your opinion and your voice—deserve to be heard. Read more.
The Art of Giving Feedback
I would rather go through 1,000 rounds of client feedback on the way to groundbreaking work than spend my time on something easy and run-of-the-mill. I think most agency creatives feel the same way. Feedback is a tough topic. It literally means noise – unwanted sound. But part of helping clients is hearing from them. And great creative thinkers really do want to help their clients. Read more.
I would rather go through 1,000 rounds of client feedback on the way to groundbreaking work than spend my time on something easy and run-of-the-mill. I think most agency creatives feel the same way. Feedback is a tough topic. It literally means noise – unwanted sound. But part of helping clients is hearing from them. And great creative thinkers really do want to help their clients. Read more.
Copywriting and the Love of Learning
In my two years at Atomicdust, I’ve had the opportunity to study the post-WWII evolution of the saw blade sharpening industry, the origin of the plumb bob, the process of producing lump charcoal, and more about the healthcare industry than I care to admit. And I liked it. A lot. Read more.
In my two years at Atomicdust, I’ve had the opportunity to study the post-WWII evolution of the saw blade sharpening industry, the origin of the plumb bob, the process of producing lump charcoal, and more about the healthcare industry than I care to admit. And I liked it. A lot. Read more.
