So Here’s Your Challenge

Has your organization invested in a “game-changing” software project, only to discover that the promised benefits never really materialize?  Or that the implementation was so flawed that the system is regarded as a financial and operating disaster?
Sadly, this happens far more than it should… but must this always be the case? 

Would you rather be a reporter, or a columnist?
Reporters have a great combination of investigative skills, communication skills, moxy, and pluck. Columnists are made from the same raw material, but they get paid far more.  Why?
 

How can you be your most creative? Google the topic and you will find millions of pages with an answer. Some will say you are “born” with it. Others will say it is a matter of following a process.  And others will claim it is a matter of using a secret sauce formula, which, when applied, will help you create the new and the beautiful...

Too often, the signals we send through digital channels (web, social, email, etc) are so focused on transactions – which often mean price – or so focused on expertise – which means content – but very little is focused on trust.  Pretend to be a client: when they interact with you online, will they see you as cheap, smart, or trusted?  

Unlike the written word, it is almost impossible to scan a video and get any value from it. At best, a video scan helps a user find their place: at worst, it is an exercise in frustration. But does it have to be such a low-value experience?  Is there a way to impregnate your video with value, knowing full well that the user might merely be a scanner?
 

Did you ever wonder how children can so quickly learn new things? And ever hear the expression “Children should be seen, and not heard”? Maybe there is a connection between these two concepts that can help us be better leaders.
 

What professional activity have you purposely decided to do over a multiyear time-frame, continuously? Perhaps attending monthly trade association meetings?  Completing an advanced degree or certification?  Or perhaps writing a thoughtful blog?
The concept of 365 is equally applicable at the organizational level: what is the stake in the ground – and the associated initiatives that support it – that your organization is known for?
 

While the increasing speed of change is not new, how we market around it is.  Today, marketers have two key responsibilities: the ‘today’ marketing of today’s products and services, and the ‘today’ discovery of tomorrow’s products and services. Unfortunately, because of the very real pressure to drive current quarter sales, most marketers focus exclusively on the today.  Tomorrow is someone else’s problem.
 

Where do you spend your organization’s budget?  Should it be on communications, or on training?  Should it be on infrastructure, or on people?  Inside the organization, or to partners?
While these may all be good questions, there is merit on reframing it – especially when it comes to questions around growth.
 

Most marketers think of themselves as builders. Their work grows the organization, grows market share, grows the portfolio of products and services. A bit more tactically, the marketer builds page views, conversions, and social engagement; underlying all of these activities, the marketer builds trust, and builds relationships.
But is there merit in growing marketing itself? Not the ad spend or departmental head count, but the number of simultaneous marketing initiatives that the organization can successfully run?