Inside the Inc. 5000: what it takes to be a high-growth company
Every year, Inc. magazine ranks the 5,000 fastest-growing companies (privately held) in the United States. They just recently released their 2011 list, providing a fresh set of data on the movers and shakers across all industries. We’ve compiled and analyzed …
10 effective advertising techniques we can learn from infomercials
During a recent sleepless night, I dragged myself out to the couch to watch TV. I was hoping to catch up on some brainless Bravo reality shows or gawk at the ridiculous hoarders on TLC, but all I could find …
Marketing ideas: make friends with other companies
You have to admit, you come across some amazing companies each and every day. Taking the time to mention them in a blog post or on Twitter, or even writing an entire article about their company not only makes them …
Forty Ipsum: epic filler text
The next time you are in need of filler text, reach for Forty Ipsum instead of your old standby. We took turns creating this tale of the Sky Admiral Aloeicious, his wife Reginia, and his trusty steed Areion — one line …
Marketing ideas: get a mascot or spokesperson
It’s easy to create an icon or character associated with your company, typically found in or near your logo. So why not go a step further and bring this character life by creating a mascot for your company as well? …
Feel at home with the new AlwaysOn Healthcare brand and website
AlwaysOn Healthcare, a Peoria home care and medical staffing provider, had all the foundations in place for a successful brand. They’re a rapidly growing company with a heartfelt purpose — to keep seniors comfortable and safe in their homes. However, …
The #1.1 rule in advertising
Some say the #1 rule in advertising is to tell the truth. Fair enough. It’s not a good idea to promise something you can’t deliver and set your customers up for disappointment. I’d like to propose that rule #1.1 is …
Tribal Marketing: Dave Ramsey
After reading some of James’ posts about Tribal Marketing, I thought it would be fun to test it out on some brands I’m familiar with that I think are doing a good job of building a powerful brand tribe. (If …
Don’t put all your eggs in the logo basket
If you went out and polled a bunch of business people about what defines their brand, you’d probably end up having a lot of conversations about logos, mixed with a little chatter about corporate colors. Many people may not realize …
How to keep your SEO juice while overhauling your website
The biggest mistake people make with website redesigns is thinking that it’s just a website redesign. They see the new site, everything seems to work, and they call it done. Meanwhile, their SEO juice is leaking all over the floor. …
Brilliant brainstorming 101
Do you need to brainstorm, but struggle with how to begin? Somedays, the brain just fails you for creative thought. Consider using an improv game to jumpstart your creative juices. When we brainstorm as a team, we use the game …
The Eiffel Tower vs. the Leaning Tower of Pisa: why rushing isn’t always the best answer
Picture the scene: You’re leading a project, and you’ve got all the plans in place. Everything is going smoothly (cue ominous music)…until you notice your to-do list has failed you. You break into a cold sweat as you realize you …
Why Post-it Notes for project management?
Pretty much every office in the world has these little sticky papers. You probably even have your own little stack nearby, right as you’re reading this! They keep us organized, on task, and up to date. Post-it notes are addicting. …
The 3 essential elements of a rock-solid brand
Over the years, we’ve found that there are three foundational elements to almost any brand: purpose, values, and style. BRAND PURPOSE Research cited in Built to Last (by Jim Collins and Jerry Porras) indicates that purpose-driven companies can outperform the general market …
Tribal marketing: sacred things
Every brand tribe has sacred things that help its members relate to the abstract concepts of the archetypes and the doctrine. They can be symbolic representations, memory triggers, evocative themes, or components of the brand tribe’s mythology. ICONS Icons are …
Special K and Wheaties: lessons in positioning
Cereal is great. You throw some milk on it, and you’ve got a tasty and relatively nutritious breakfast. Theoretically, cereals–at least the basic, unadorned ones–should be relatively universal. There’s not much about them that predisposes them to any particular demographic …
7 reasons why we’re making this up as we go
“If people never did silly things, nothing intelligent would ever get done.” – Ludwig Wittgenstein, Austrian philosopher When I first joined the Forty team, I hoped to infuse a little bit of my passion for improvisation into our work environment. …
Is your company’s power structure killing your marketing efforts?
Geert Hofstede’s research into national cultures from the 1960s onward has identified five primary dimensions of culture: Individualism, Masculinity, Uncertainty Avoidance, Long-Term Orientation, and Power Distance. This research has proven useful in a variety of contexts, from setting national policy …