Ernie Wood What is the biggest lie of all time? There are a lot of jokes about this. But I’ve often wondered whether the big lie might be a statement that’s usually not on the list: “Build it and they will come.” It made for a great movie. But in marketing and selling your company’s products, not … Read more
School’s in at DeLaune & Associates. Every few days, we’re called on to learn something new. Blockchain? Check. Robotic process automation? For sure. How about the banking, insurance, food and automotive industries? Or the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation? Of course. We read up on the topic and interview experts in the field. Then … Read more
Making the acquisition transition. Your job is changing – now what do you do? An acquisition is hard. And here at DeLaune and Associates, we often see the result when a client is acquired—or when a client acquires another firm. I know a little about this. Three times, I’ve been on staff of companies that … Read more
We’ve been hearing a lot lately about the “buyer’s journey.” But in B2B marketing, the journey is not entirely about buyers. It’s also about the company reaching them. And about the communications vehicles for the trip. The concept of buyer’s journey describes the path from awareness of a need, to consideration of options, to the … Read more
In our work for IBM Security, it’s not unusual to draw attention to data breaches that have been in the news. So it’s especially gratifying when the other side of the story—data protection—makes news. Whether DeLaune and Associates is writing a white paper or solution brief from scratch, updating an existing document, or editing text written … Read more
It’s a basic, but important, lesson: In telling your story, know your audience. When I taught “Introduction to Mass Communications,” the 101-level survey course at a college, I’d open the class for the first few weeks by writing large on the blackboard: “Who is your audience?” This is important in any communication. If you don’t … Read more
It’s about the marketing—and the timing. So the popular wisdom goes. But this time it was true. Really, really true. No innovative product. No superior service. Simply a rock. It just sat there. And it made money. Gary Dahl, the inventor of the Pet Rock®, died earlier this week. He trademarked the term, so I’ll … Read more
Years ago, when I started in this writing game, I heard a story I couldn’t believe. It seems there was a newspaper copy editor who kept two typewriters (years ago, remember?). One, he used for his newspaper work. The other, he placed on the floor by his desk. And when breaks came between editions, he’d … Read more
You’ll sometimes hear a poorly functioning tablet computer criticized as nothing more than a “glorified Etch A Sketch.” But that does a disservice to the classic toy. With more than 100 million of the silver-screen drawing devices sold since its introduction in 1960, it must be doing something right. I owned an Etch A Sketch … Read more
I’ve been reading One Summer: America 1927, the new book by Bill Bryson with a wonderful message. A lot of big things happened that year, from Charles Lindbergh’s trans-Atlantic flight to Babe Ruth’s 60 home runs to the first dynamite blasts carving Mount Rushmore. People went crazy for these feats. Lindbergh could barely go out … Read more
