Data Events Marketing Psychology

Marketing Lessons from the 2020 Election | Part I: Identity & Common Enemies

I don’t believe there is any greater, more public example of capitalist-driven marketing on display than the American presidential elections. It is, unquestionably: A globally-followed eventA marketing-driven (rather than product-driven) outcome10X+ larger in spend than any other marketing campaign on Earth Ad spend figures from Quartz, Nielsen, & OpenSecrets This pinnacle of influence-driven action is much more than that, obviously.…
Data Product Psychology SparkToro

Analyze Your Audience’s Political & Media Behavior in SparkToro

In our ongoing quest to provide unique, valuable audience intelligence, we’re launching a brand new feature in SparkToro today: Media and Political Insights. You’ll find this data available in the Audience Insights section of any SparkToro search. Any timing of this release with major, upcoming political events is purely coincidental… 😉 ABOVE: Media and Politics Insights for users of the…

Why You Should Hire Agencies & Consultants (for everything you can)

In my first decade as a tech CEO, I consistently got advice about how building a great team was essential to building a great business. Agencies and consultants were never part of this conversation. It was always: hire full-time employees in areas where you need a competitive advantage; only hire agencies for functions you want to put on autopilot or…
Psychology Startups

We’ve Gotta Stop Using “Lifestyle Business” as a Pejorative

For a long while, American business culture has worshiped at the altar of big. Entrepreneurs want to build “big” companies, because they believe that’s how they prove their worth. The media tells us that’s true when they report on every move made by big companies, but barely cover small ones. Speakers on stages and webinars reinforce it when they talk…
Marketing Psychology

Outreach Tips (better than anything you’ll find searching Google)

It’s 2020, so your inboxes probably look like mine. Bloated with requests from people you don’t know, overrun by low-quality spammers, a bubbling morass of bandwidth-consuming time vampires mixed in with people and sources you actually *want* to hear from, forcing you to pan for gold amidst the sans serif grays and post-modern white of your mail provider’s “productivity-centric” user…
Data Marketing Psychology

Too Much Creative Marketing is Stifled by Attribution

You’re listening to a podcast. The guest describes a product that sounds compelling, alluring, something you’ve been looking for… What happens next? Yup. You search Google. And then what? Google shows you the website for that alluring product, and you click. Maybe you explore the site a bit, perhaps give them your email address or even buy the product. Next…
Marketing Psychology

The “Wall Street Journal” Marketing Problem

If you’ve worked in the marketing field long enough, either with consulting clients or as an in-house practitioner with executive participation, you’ve encountered a scenario just like this one. Marketer: “Based on this market research, we know our primary audience: tabletop board game enthusiasts with kids. So, we’ve designed a content marketing campaign, followed by PR and social media outreach,…
Marketing Psychology

Want Your Content to Succeed? Make it Resonate with the Right Audience (no, not that one).

You know the stats. 75% of content gets no links. 91% of content earns no Google traffic. 85%+ of content earns fewer than ten social shares. And we’re not even talking about all web content — just those pieces creators produced specifically to earn shares, links, rankings, and traffic. Tragically, much like the US economy, content marketing is a winner-take-all…