When I graduated with a marketing degree over a decade ago, I hit the scene thinking that marketing would always be its own thing. Something like “holistic marketing” seemed unnecessary to me. Marketers had their swim lane; I’d stick to mine. Now, when I lecture marketing students at my alma mater, I couldn’t imagine not thinking holistically about marketing. The marketing function keeps expanding, as Deloitte’s Spring 2024 CMO Survey affirmed. And marketing must help other departments and the entire company accomplish its goals and objectives. That’s one of many benefits holistic marketing offers. When we free marketing from swim […]

I‘ll be honest: I don’t know anything about an “AI target audience” or finding an audience via AI. However, I want to learn because I recently started working with a local pole fitness studio in my neighborhood. I want to help it gain new students. So, dear reader, we are going to learn about AI audience targeting, its benefits, and helpful AI target audience tools together. Here we go! Table of Contents What is AI audience targeting? Benefits of Using AI for Target Audiences How to Find Your Target Audience Using AI 6 Best AI Tools for Target Audience Research […]

I cringe whenever I look at how many unopened emails live in my work inbox. I’m lucky if I open maybe ten percent of them — including anything promotional. But, of those ten percent, what convinced me to open and respond to them? Those companies did below the line (BTL) marketing right. Email marketing, direct mail, events — below the line marketing includes these and similar targeted tactics to convince and convert buyers. What goes into running a successful BTL campaign? And where do you begin? To help you start, I dug into BTL marketing: the history, its relationship with […]

When I first heard I had to write about D2C marketing, I did what many professionals do when presented with something they know nothing about — I quietly panicked and then asked ChatGPT. To my surprise, however, I learned D2C marketing isn’t as foreign to me as I thought. And it likely isn’t to you, either. Dollar Shave Club, Blue Apron, and Glossier are all well-known brands built on the business model and considered masterclasses in marketing — let alone D2C marketing. With D2C business sales predicted to reach nearly $230 billion by 2025, here’s what you need to know […]

If you’ve followed the news or opened X this fall, you’ve probably seen Polymarket. It’s that prediction market for politics (and more) that’s been all over the place lately. I’ve been following their rise for the past year from a no-name niche betting market to over $1B assets under management — with the CEO on the cover of Forbes and presidential candidates mentioning them in speeches. Throughout the rise of Polymarket, I’ve become friendly with a few members of their growth marketing team here in NYC. And the one thing I keep asking them again and again is: “HOW ARE […]

The prevalence of artificial intelligence (AI) has many concerned about job security. AI writing, AI images, AI videos — while the final products are far from perfect, they raise the question of what jobs AI could eventually replace, even if we don’t want them to. But, heck, if AI can create a marketing plan for me, I say, “Welcome to the team!” A marketing plan is a foundational piece of any marketing strategy. It keeps businesses organized and focused on their goals. However, with all the details it should consider and capture, it can be extremely time-consuming and tedious to […]

If you’d asked me early in my career to define what marketing is, I would have no doubts. “Marketing is about promoting products,” I’d say. But today, it’s one of the toughest questions to answer.  The term is so broad and flexible that it’s hard to pin down. Marketing is present in all stages of the business, beginning to end. Without marketing, you can’t truly understand your audience, create a product that fits their needs, or successfully bring it to market. Marketers have the firmest finger on the pulse of your consumer persona. In this guide, I’ll show you in […]

Tackling marketing without a solid plan is like putting together a puzzle without all the pieces — I know this firsthand. Before using a marketing strategic framework, my efforts often felt scattered, with no real direction. But once I started implementing these frameworks, things started to click. Suddenly, my campaigns were more focused, organized, and way more effective. I noticed the sky looked bluer, and the flowers smelled sweeter. Well, maybe that last part isn’t true, but everything seemed to run much more smoothly. A good marketing framework doesn’t just give you clarity: it turns your entire strategy into a […]

On my fridge, I’ve got a magnet my parents gave me that says, “Hold on… Let me overthink this.” So today’s marketing master’s third lesson really hits home for me.  Jenna Kutcher is a digital marketer, podcast host, and author. As the founder of a multi-million dollar brand, she thinks marketers are overcomplicating it.  Keep reading to learn her three favorite tips for marketers looking to get ahead during a time of such intense search volatility.  Lesson 1: Don’t sleep on Pinterest. One of the most frustrating experiences for Jenna is chatting with marketing big-wigs and hearing Insta and TikTok […]

One of my favorite Super Bowl commercials is 2020’s Boston-set “smaht pahk” ad, which heralded Hyundai’s self-parking feature.  Rachel Dratch’s and Chris Evans’ exaggerated Boston accents grab your attention. John Krasinski confidently eyeing a too-narrow parking space piques your interest. If you’ve ever squeezed into a parallel parking space, lurching back and forth a few inches at a time, this ad probably awakened a burning desire for a self-pahking cah. By the time David “Big Papi” Ortiz leans out of a nearby window and watches the sedan easily slide between two poorly parked cars, you’ve gone into action and pulled […]