Blog
Brands that make life better
A report on mediapost.com confirms a deeply held opinion of mine and provides some insights for all of us. The report states that the 50 fastest growing brands have something important in common. They publicly state their mission in terms of how they make the...
Shouldn’t travel and tourism advertising be the best in the world?
What industry has the best advertising? It's a tough question. Beer commercials can be funny. The automobile industry comes up with some clever advertising and also has some stunningly beautiful brochures and websites. With the exception of Apple, technology...
A simple truth about advertising
I heard some good business news on TV recently. Since good news is a bit of a novelty, it certainly stands out as memorable these days. Volkswagen reported that it delivered 8.16 million vehicles to customers in 2011, a 14.3% increase over the previous year. That got...
Just One Resolution for 2012
I could — and perhaps should — fill a notebook with New Years Resolutions. Heaven knows I have plenty of room for improvement in my life. Instead I am going with just one resolution although it's an ambitious one. In 2012, I have the same resolution for myself...
In praise of verbs
Most elementary and high school students across America receive essentially the same education in the English language. I don't think it has changed much in decades either. They learn about the parts of speech, sentence structure, grammar and punctuation. English...
Montana Sells Winter
It’s rare for me to be stricken with a case of agency envy. You know, that feeling advertising professionals get when they see creative work and think, “I wish my firm had done that.” I have a case of the envies right now, thanks to the State of Montana, which just...
All I Need to Know I Learned on the Ski Slopes
Way back in 1988, a writer/minister/modern-day philosopher named Robert Fulghum wrote a great book called All I need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten. It was a collection of essays that took its title from the first essay about life lessons learned as a child....
Making heritage tourism appeal to more than just history buffs
History was not my best subject in school. Even today, I do not consider myself an avid history fan. Still, some of the more moving and memorable places I've been in my travels are historic places. • Monticello – Walking the very halls where Thomas Jefferson once...
Five questions to ask to find out if your tourism brand needs help
1. Can you explain your destination’s brand in a single, concise sentence? 2. If you asked a co-worker, board member, community leader or elected official to explain the brand, would his or her single sentence be remotely close to yours? 3. When making decisions about...
What do you believe?
As the firm I co-founded with my esteemed business partner approaches 20 years old, I have been reflecting recently on the changes we've seen in the advertising world. The industry has changed a lot over these past two decades. Technology offers more ways to reach...
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