It all started with a problem: two roommates who couldn’t pay their rent. Back in 2007, Joe Gebbia and Brian Chesky were brainstorming about how they could afford their San
Thinking Beyond the Consumer, Part 4: Is the Customer Really Always Right?
There’s an idiom in American business that the customer is always right. It makes sense in theory – after all, your customers are the ones who pay the bills.
Thinking Beyond the Consumer, Part 3: Give Your Employees What They Truly Need
What makes an employee quit? Often, it’s because they feel unappreciated, unnoticed, and unrewarded for their efforts. In fact, 79% of surveyed employees who left a job said lack of
Thinking Beyond the Consumer, Part 2: Getting Your Employees Fired Up
“My employees don’t care about the business like I do. So why should I go out of my way to care about my employees?” As an employer, it’s easy to
Thinking Beyond the Consumer, Part 1: Marketing to Your Employees
Word around the water cooler is that at least three of your employees are sending out their resumes to other companies. Two of your customer service reps are currently at
How NOT to Succeed at International Marketing
So you’re thinking about growing your company by expanding overseas. After all, over 50% of iPhones are sold in Japan, almost 30% of Louis Vuiton Moët Hennessy’s sales come from Asia,
Building Brand Equity
Walmart. Coke. Amazon. When you read the name of each of these brands, you associate them with specific ideas. Walmart is cheap. Coke is refreshing. Amazon is fast and easy.
Turn Your Customers Into Your Salespeople… For Free
Imagine that your company was approached by an advertising firm willing to tackle a large share of your marketing needs. Their fee? Nothing. That’s essentially what user-generated content is. User-generated
From Ancient Rome to Flash Mobs: Marketing’s Fascinating History
From Twitter wars to flash mobs, modern marketing seems to be so, well, modern. But marketing practices actually have a fascinating history, one that has changed dramatically over time, due
Are You Kidding Me?! Using PR Stunts Effectively
Shoot a monkey out of a cannon carrying your latest ad! Walk a tightrope across Niagara Falls blindfolded! Drop hundred-dollar-bills over the crowds in Times Square! On the one hand,