Newsletter/Blog
Right-Sizing Your Brand: How Big is Big Enough?
When I started my business in late 1999, I spent time interviewing self-employed contacts for advice. One mentor told me she limited herself to working with three clients at a time. That piece of advice has been invaluable to me. A three-client roster does not sound...
Why Skype Lost the Video Calling Market to Zoom
A new client requested a Skype call recently. I installed Skype on my new laptop and wanted to test drive a call with my son AJ. When I asked him, AJ said he did not think he had it installed on his four-year-old laptop. Then he asked if my new client was 80 years...
The Pitfalls of Generational Marketing
In October 1991 I took a Marketing Research Analyst position with Veryfine Products, a juice company headquartered in Westford, Massachusetts. I was in the middle of my MBA program, the first half of which I attended full-time. For the first 18 months that I worked...
Time to Change the Donuts
That’s me in the Polaroid instant photo with actor Michael Vale, better known as Fred the Baker, or the guy who used to utter “Time to make the donuts.” Mr. Vale was at the Dunkin’ Donuts National Convention at Disney World in 1996 to grace franchisee and employee fans like me with a photo opportunity.
Mr. Vale had been portraying Fred the Baker for 14 years by the time we had our brief encounter. Much had changed for Dunkin’ Donuts in that time.
My Amazon Buyer Conundrum
On March 30, like thousands of people, I turned to Amazon.com to buy toilet paper. Our household was not desperate, but after weeks of empty store shelves I was looking to secure a future supply. Amazon was empty too, except for two offerings from a brand I’d never...