Posts Tagged ‘Building Brand Value’


The Worst Presentation of My Life

April 19th, 2011

Last Thursday I gave the worst presentation of my life. I wish I were exaggerating for the sake of this blog, but I’m not. I was truly awful.

I was showing work I’m proud of and talking about new concepts we’re excited about but I wasn’t scoring any points with the people sitting across the table. My audience just stared at me.

When I finished the main part of the presentation and opened the floor to questions and answers, the request I got was, “show me more.”

So I brought out more samples and plunged in anew and went through more great work and more successful campaigns. And what I got back were more cold stares. Again I asked what else they’d like to see and again I was told, “show me more.”

So I dove in one more time and started discussing another concept we’d come up with a while ago. This idea seemed to pique my audience’s interest so I searched for the Keynote on my laptop and went into more depth. But truth be told, I was so flustered at this point that I didn’t even honor my audience’s rising enthusiasm and just plowed through the pitch.

I had blown it and I knew it. Felt it, too. Hate to admit that I can be so thin-skinned but the rest of Thursday sucked. My morning jog didn’t clear my head. Friday sucked as well.

Saturday morning I got up early and set out on my long run. You can start shaking your collective heads now and save this blog post as evidence for when my wife tries to Baker Act me but there’s nothing like a long, sweaty, and even uncomfortable run to knock the blues out of me.

At exactly 10.84 miles on my miraculous Garmin wrist computer my body started screaming. My left hamstring reminded me that even though I don’t think I’m a year older than 28, my muscles are 53 and a half. My right knee reminded me of that ski trip back in 1977 with my friends Marvin and Anna and Barbara when I tore my meniscus. And my lower back said it was sick and tired of all the pounding, too.

To get through the discomfort I started doing exactly what I didn’t want to do on my run. I started picking apart the poor presentation I had given on Thursday. Reviewing the proceedings didn’t help the pain go away but it did distract me a bit.

And that’s when it hit me! When my audience said, “show me more,” they didn’t mean for me to show them more work because that work is the past; it’s ancient history. What they wanted to see was the future. They wanted to know what we were going to do for them next. And when they did get excited about one of the later ideas I showed, I was too busy presenting what I was interested in to stop and further explore the things they were interested in.

The realization stopped me in my tracks (okay, okay, so did my left hamstring). I didn’t screw up the presentation because I didn’t speak well; I screwed up the presentation because I didn’t listen well. Whether it was listening with my ears or listening with my eyes or even listening with my sixth sense, I was just too damn busy paying attention to me to pay attention to them. Their silence should have clearly communicated their disinterest— and it probably did. I just wasn’t paying attention.

One of the reasons I enjoy making presentations so much is that it’s one of the few times that I’m fully engaged. There’s no iPhone, iPad or iMac distracting me, and the stakes of being up in front of people and sharing what I know and care about is important enough to keep me focused. And knowing that it will take my full concentration to be ready to answer the next random question focuses me, too. It might not be Yoga but it works for me.

But what I’ve also learned is that sometimes that intensity of focus can blind us to the things we need to pay rapt attention to. Ironic, perhaps, but critical, whether you’re listening to your body or your audience. Even more ironic because the first rule of my latest book, Building Brand Value, is All About Them.

“People care most about things that affect them. In order to reach them you need to communicate in a way that tells them what’s in it for me?”

I wrote it. I know it. I believe it. I preach it. Apparently, sometimes I just don’t quite do it.

So where’s the positive conclusion, the silver lining, the valuable take-away lesson? How does this week’s article leave us all feeling good? As my associate, Gual, wrote when I asked for his early opinion on this piece, “…although we are all humans and vulnerable, and fail at some point, we can redeem ourselves by taking the good from the bad.”

I take that to mean that even though I may or may not get another shot at this piece of business, I certainly won’t make the same mistake again. And I believe that if you’ve read this far, that you’re smart enough to learn from my mistake, too. And that’s gotta be a whole lot easier way to learn the lesson.

Tags: , , , ,
Posted in Uncategorized | 47 Comments »



Teaching harmonica at Rejuvenate Marketplace in Louisville

February 10th, 2011

Usually when I speak at corporate conferences and ask “who wants to get on stage?” I need to volunteer people. After all, few corporate types think they’re paid to enjoy themselves and have a good time.

But when I spoke to my first faith-based group at Collinson Media’s Rejuvenate Marketplace in Louisville, the same request almost got me trampled!!

(PS – Check out my new speaking representative, Robin Ware, shaking it on stage. Can you believe this is how we met??!!).

What fun.

Tags: , , , ,
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »



Interesting is a Euphemism.

February 6th, 2011

The power of euphemisms is something that most people don’t think about at all but we marketers obsess over.

I was in a board meeting and discussing new ideas when the guy at the head of the table commented on the concepts. He started with, “You know, it’s interesting…”

I think he said, “it’s interesting” without much preconceived intent, and no one else in the room seemed to notice, but my internal Lost in Space Robot sounded the alarm. “Danger, Will Robinson, danger!” Why? Because interesting is a euphemism.

“What do I think of your son’s portfolio from art school? Interesting.”

“Your wife has a flair for colors and wants us to make some changes to the Internet program we’re producing? Interesting.”

Interesting is a good way to say, “ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME??!!” when it’s not prudent to say exactly what’s on your mind.

Of course, interesting isn’t the only euphemism in the quiver.

“You wrote it by yourself? Wow, I never would have thought of that.”

“Now THAT’S a painting.”

“You know, you just don’t taste home-baked treats like these every day.”

No matter which ones you use, euphemisms can be a great way to avoid a difficult situation but they can become habit-forming. And when used indiscriminately, euphemisms can gum up copywriting and turn off potential consumers who can’t find relevant meaning in non-specific statements.

How do you police and purge euphemisms from your writing and speeches? I’m sure there are plenty of sophisticated technical solutions and grammatical processes, but for me the easiest way is to simply read my copy in my finest W.C. Fields’ voice. If the words sound duplicitous and smarmy, they probably need some editing. After all, the key to good writing is not in the writing but the rewriting.

“Interesting, my little chickadee, interesting.”

_________________________________________________________________________

Special Valentine’s Day Offer

My friend Chris Barr at Heinau Flowers creates incredible real flower arrangements that have been specially treated to last for at least six months. Really.

He has offered my friends and the folks in our office a special free shipping deal for Valentine’s Day. Because I believe in Chris and his products, I thought it would be fun to make the offer to all of you. This is not a paid promotion – I am not charging Chris to be on the blog and I’m not making any money on the flowers he sells. I just think it’s a great idea, a great deal and an easy way to take the pressure out of Valentine’s Day gift giving.

Here’s what Chris wrote:

“Roses are the perfect, classic Valentine gift. Their only imperfection is that they fade after just a few days.

Heinau Flowers are cut fresh at the farm and then carefully and naturally preserved. There’s nothing plastic or dried out or artificial here – the petals are as soft and supple as the day they were born, and they will continue to absorb moisture from the air. They’re maintenance free and do not need watering, ever.

Our flowers can help you make a small, subtle statement or a bigger, dramatic statement. Either way your gift will leave a truly lasting impression every day for a year.”

If you order before 10:00 AM, February 10th, Chris will give you free shipping and deliver by February 14th.  Just enter the promo code LOVEBRUCE or LIKEBRUCEALOT (the codes were Chris’ ideas.) at checkout.

Click HERE if you’re interested in learning more or ordering.

Tags: , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Uncategorized | 6 Comments »



Can Millions Of Words Earn Millions Of Dollars?

December 6th, 2010

It’s funny. Almost everywhere I read and listen, people are talking about the passive income that can be earned selling books and e-books online. Speakers at the National Speakers Association meetings speak about it; magazines such as FastCompany and Wired write about it, and Tim Ferris even wrote a New York Times Bestseller — The Four Hour WorkWeek — about it.

Yet almost everyone who actually writes online products (and speaks honestly about it) says the same thing: there’s really very little money in it and it takes an awful lot of time and effort.

Truth be told, I haven’t found my blog or any of my books to be directly profitable. The first two (BrainDarts and New Design: Miami) were coffee table volumes published through Rockport Publishers and only produced a little bit of money. The third (Building Brand Value) was self-published and has produced real dollars but mostly because the people who invite me to speak at their conferences often buy 300 or 3,000 copies at a time to give to their attendees. Believe me, the hand cramps I get at the signings are a welcome price to pay for the privilege of distributing my words.

It seems to me that book publishing is like speaking is like blogging is like painting is like recording music, and so on. Lots and lots of people do it and lots and lots of people do it well but very few make any money at it. However, since a small number do cash in, that carrot keeps the rest of us donkeys moving forward and snapping at the end of the stick. We read that Mike Arrington sold his five-year old blog, TechCrunch, to AOL for ±$30 million and we believe we all can do it — and so thousands and thousands of people keep cranking out millions and millions of words, hoping to get their bite of the apple. Ironically, what many of the bloggers are writing about are occurrences such as Arrington’s big hit and that just fuels the fire further.

But the online world continues to grow and develop and lots of people keep trying to figure out where they’ll find their own big opportunity. It’s similar to almost every other craze that came before Web 2.0 — from 1627’s Dutch tulip mania to new world exploration, cyclical real estate booms, and Web 1.0. Except now thanks to today’s burgeoning 24-hour news cycle, we hear about it all the time.

So what is the real value of all of this democratized data distribution?

There’s choice, of course. We no longer have to read just what the established publishing juggernauts think we should read. Instead, we can open our minds to opinions from all stops on the spectrum. Conversely, we can choose to limit our input to our own narrow viewpoint (conservatives getting all their editorial opinions from Fox News and The Wall Street Journal’s editorial page, for example).

Then there’s the fulfillment of genuine expression — thanks to the Internet we all posses the means to have our voices heard — regardless of whether we have something worth saying or not. And there are the advantages and disadvantages of unfettered access to information — WikiLeaks’ outing of State Department secret correspondence is the timeliest example of this phenomenon.

As my friend, author and copywriter Susan Greene points out, becoming a published author can position you as the authority on a particular topic. Your writing can also help build your brand more quickly and cost effectively than many other forms of marketing.

To Susan’s point, I find that the real advantage of publishing is the credibility that it produces. My blog reaches almost 9,000 people every week and many of them (you?) are favorably disposed to what I write about. At speaking events and agency presentations lots of people comment on what I’ve written and most of them wouldn’t know me from Adam if they hadn’t read my words. And while my published books don’t produce direct income commensurate with the amount of work they took to create, they do produce oodles of credibility — they’re great to send to prospective clients and to demonstrate that we have a unique process and a strong opinion about building brands and selling our clients’ services. The monetizable bottom line is that the notice and credibility result in speaking dates, consulting gigs and agency contracts, which in turn produce hard dollars and continue to provide additional opportunities.

But perhaps most importantly, it makes my mom happy that her son is a published author. Who knew all this new technology would lead to that?

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Uncategorized | 7 Comments »



The Simple Precision Of Language.

October 6th, 2010

Do you know how to read musical notation? If you do, you know that when you’re reading music you’re actually reading at least two things simultaneously. Written music tells you what note to play and when to play it.

Written language, on the other hand, only tells you one thing – what letter to pronounce. Of course, punctuation helps indicate pacing – pause at a comma, stop at a period, I’m not really sure what to do at a semicolon – but it’s still up to the reader to interpret how the author wanted the piece paced.

For example, read the following sentences aloud and place the emphasis on the underlined word. You’ll see how the pacing, and the meaning, can change based on where you choose to place the emphasis.

I didn’t say you should leave now.

I didn’t say you should leave now.

I didn’t say you should leave now.

I didn’t say you should leave now.

I didn’t say you should leave now.

I didn’t say you should leave now.

I didn’t say you should leave now.

Music notation is not like that. The composer provides the note to play, the time signature to play it in, the exact time each note should be played, the way the note should be attacked and the volume with which the note should be played. That’s why an entire orchestra can play a piece of music simultaneously and get it mostly right on their first reading. Of course the conductor can add flavorings and nuance, as can each player, but the basic structure still provides instructions for every part of the composition.

At the same time, musical notation has a way to allow the musician to add his or her own ideas, or improvisation, to the piece. Here the composer might suggest what the musician should play but also provides for the instrumentalist to create their own music and explore their own musical ideas by playing what they feel, and hopefully, what fits into the structure of what the rest of the ensemble is playing.

Ironically, written language, which doesn’t put nearly the same restraints on interpretation of prose, has no such flexibility. Sure, a rabbi or minister might halt their liturgical reading to allow parishioners to riff on a theme (they call it private mediation) but when was the last time you were reading a novel and the author inserted a few blank pages for you to add your own thoughts? There’s no room for readers to add their own words to a written piece.

That’s why sarcasm and irony seldom works well in print or static online advertising. It’s one thing for the copywriter to add their own inflection to a headline when they present it to a client but it’s quite another to expect a reader to add that same emphasis. Instead, the language of ads must be clear, simple, and to the point. Hopefully this will cause an emotional response without depending on a specific interpretive performance from the reader.

Imagine if Gershwin had e-mailed the lyrics of his famous song to his manager:

“You like potato and I like potato,

You like tomato and I like tomato,

Potato, potato, tomato, tomato,

Let’s call the whole thing off.”

Say what? Call the whole thing off just because we use the same words? Clearly something was lost in the transmission.

Remember Gershwin when you’re writing to be understood and when you’re writing to be influential. Your reader most certainly won’t read your text the way you want them to; instead they’ll bring their own pacing, emphasis and meaning to your words. To build your brand value it’s important that your intention be so clear that your audience will internalize it no matter how they pace their reading.

By writing simply and clearly, the results of their interpretation will be music to your ears.

Tags: , , , , , ,
Posted in Advertising, Branding, Branding Yourself, Brands, communications, Copywriting, creativity, Writing Coach | 14 Comments »



What Do You Do When You’ve Finished Your To Dos?

August 24th, 2010

Everybody wants more time but what’s the best thing to do when you get it? [TO READ COMPLETE ARTICLE, PLEASE CLICK ON TITLE]

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Uncategorized | 75 Comments »