Is it live or is it Memorex? OK…I dated myself…but I can’t resist. Some of you might remember before there was real digital technology—and most music lived on cassette tapes or vinyl—there was a series of famous commercials for Memorex recording tape. They answered the question above by playing a recording on a Memorex tape that was able to ...

I did an interview for the I Love Marketing podcast/portal with Joe Polish over five years ago. I hadn’t thought about it (maybe because I thought it was “old news”) but I was reminded of it for a couple of reasons this week. First, because of the title: Everyone is going right, time to go left ...

The world’s smartest people do not necessarily provide the best answers. Instead, they focus on asking the right questions.  -Ted Nicholas, April 2005 I’ve often said that one of the most important characteristics of a top copywriter is to be a world class interviewer. Of course having superior writing chops helps once you suck ...

One of the most instructional pieces of research a marketer or copywriter can do is to study 5-star and 1-star reviews on Amazon for the books their core audience is reading. It’s one of the best ways (in addition to joining forums and groups where your customers and prospects hang out) to get into ...

How did we advertise in the “good old days” when there was no email, internet, product launches, VSL’s, Facebook and a myriad of other media? And if you were a small Mom and Pop retail or service company, how would you know how to advertise if you never read a Dan Kennedy book or ...

While I am not a huge heavy metal fan, Metallica’s Enter Sandmanis one of my favorite songs because it always reminds me of one of my heroes, baseball pitcher Mariano Rivera. And it’s also a great tune to put on “repeat” 8 times to get through 45 minutes on the treadmill. 🙂 The song was played ...

I’m sitting in a hotel lobby in New Jersey thinking about my “champagne problems” and feeling bad that my town got hit hard by Hurricane/Tropical Storm Isaias. It looks like my electricity–and more importantly WiFi! (and even cell service)–will be out for the next week. And various trees missed my house by an eyelash ...

If you were asked, “What is the top priority in your business,” how would you answer? I’m sure you would say things like: Keeping my clients/customers/students happy Getting new business from new people (new customer acquisition) Creating new products or services (innovation) Commitment to positive cash flow and profit margin Fulfilling on your mission I know ...

A little over a year ago, while recovering from my stroke, a song kept playing in my head from the Broadway show Hamilton. It came back to me again in recent weeks with the release of the movie. It is titled “Why do you write like you are running out of time?”  (The link above has ...

During a hot seat on our weekly Titans Xclerator call (they are now weekly instead of monthly—an over delivery as a “benefit” of COVID!), the member had a revelation. And the ripple effects of his epiphany went way beyond what he was talking about—which led to a discussion about many other issues. I want to share ...

I received an order for Breakthrough Advertising a few weeks ago from a chap in the U.K. He then sent me an email telling me how thankful he was that I had brought this all-time classic back to life (because he thought it was out of print). We got into a lively email correspondence from this ...

The legendary newscaster Hugh Downs died this past week at 99 years old…and it was the fullest 99 years of anyone I have ever known. And while I only met him for the first time when he was a sprightly 84, I felt like I knew him forever because he was so generous with ...

These are turbulent times—maybe the most turbulent times in our lives—yet there is also a calm about it if we take time being mindful about everything around us—and not jump to action (or inaction). I don’t have to tell you about COVID 19, the tension and protests in the streets, or the economy—it’s obvious ...

According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, here is the definition of reciprocation: 1a: a mutual exchange. 1b: a return in kind or of like value. What I don’t like about this definition is that it implies that reciprocation has a “price”—that is, the exchange between two parities needs  to be “mutual” and even “a return in kind ...

What does it mean to make an “ask from nowhere?” Let me define the term first: It’s when you ask someone for their time, their expertise, or try to sell them something with no relationship established…or you simply want to “pick their brain.” My friend Joe Polish says “when they want to pick your ...

I was an English major in college. “What are you going to do with THAT!”  my parents asked as they threatened to pull me out of college during my sophomore year. Thinking on my feet I said: “I guess I will learn to read and write.” I have admitted previously that while I am not a ...

It’s been a fascinating couple of weeks…and despite still being home most of the time, I feel more connected to the outside world than ever before.  Zoom is one reason. (I know I should have bought stock in that company.) But it’s also how starved everyone is for connection, knowledge, idea exchanges…and doing business. ...

When we do hot seats within Titans Xcelerator, or when I am on a rare consulting call, much of the time the conversation at some point morphs into “what do you offer that no one else offers?” It’s a pretty simple question but many marketers, copywriters and entrepreneurs don’t spend enough time going deep on this question. ...

I turn 62 this week which is a good time to think back 40 years when I was 22…thinking about all of the friends, colleagues and soon-to-be mentors from a charmed career for which I am grateful…and wondering, “How did I gather so many friends, colleagues and mentors.” I wasn’t collecting them to just ...

My Mom turned 95 last week. We had a socially distanced birthday party for her, complete with 4 sweet potatoes, 3 cans of sardines, 2 bags of  prunes (pitted of course) and a small cake that unfortunately we couldn’t enjoy with her (but it was the thought that counted). Obviously doing her shopping was ...