Newsletter/Blog
How Your Brand Can Take a Stand Without Getting Panned
I didn’t have to convince my children to stay off their cell phones when they had friends over. My kids were in middle school before smart phones became common. But I was that parent who limited screen time during playdates. My challenge was mitigating Game Boy use. A...
How Crocs Cultivated Community to Thrive
On May 20, 1993, my then-boyfriend Dan and I watched the Cheers finale along with 84 million other Americans. Unlike most of them, we watched from bleacher seats in front of the Bull & Finch pub, the Boston bar that inspired the series. NBC was going to broadcast...
Should You Charge for Your Newsletter?
If I had a dollar for every time someone predicted the death of email, I could probably pay for a flight to Paris. Peak season, first class. It’s the misguided prognostication that keeps popping up like dandelions in your yard. Ninety percent of people in the US use...
The Truth Behind Barnes & Noble’s Turnaround
As a mother of two young children in the early 2000s who worked from a home office, occasionally I would need a break. A few hours out of the house on my own to remember who I was without any obligation to feed, clothe, wash, educate, entertain, or otherwise support...
M&M’s Marketing Mayhem
For decades M&M’s conjured memories of focus groups for me. During my years in consumer insights departments (aka marketing research) for Veryfine Products and Dunkin’, I sat behind the mirror watching customers react to new product ideas, ad campaigns, and new...