industry thoughts from Clarteza

Being a dancer has always been a passion of mine, but it was little more than an unfulfilled childhood dream until I finally decided to take up ballroom dancing – as an amateur – almost two years ago.

Now, when it comes to my professional career, I generally understand what’s required of me and what I’m capable of; I’m aware of the steps I must take to get things done and the skills I must master to ensure success.

Ballroom dancing on the other hand, has been a whole new challenge. It’s always exciting … Continue Reading

“Why Then Can One Desire Too Much of a Good Thing?” – Shakespeare

These days, it feels like the discourse between the Marketer and the Consumer has become something like a Shakespearean sonnet on steroids:  No longer is the Consumer being poetically wooed in a 60 second commercial, She is being craftily urged with texts, video billboards and in-store TV offers each shorter than an iambic tetrameter for “brevity is the soul of wit” says Shakespeare.  Despite all the attention, nay, the beloved Consumer seems rather disinterested as She has to manage Her smart phone, home phone, blog, email, Facebook page, … Continue Reading

Picture yourself at a cocktail party filled with near-strangers.  What is the best way to start a conversation with someone you don’t know well?  Ask them about themselves.  Why? Because people are most connected to their own life experiences and therefore most likely to be engaged in a topic in which they play a central role.  Truth be told – people love to talk about themselves.

This is not only a great tip for the most socially-awkward among us, but it also has important implications for marketers dealing with the challenges and opportunities that social media presents.  It is this very … Continue Reading

The big idea:  It’s out there, and you want to be the one who discovers it, markets it, and profits from it.  Right or wrong, there is no shortage of approaches to uncovering the big idea, from trend analyses, to focus groups, to epiphanies in the middle of the night.  But how do you know when you’ve found it?  How do you uncover the diamond in the rough from the laundry list of ideas that come out of any well-meaning brainstorming effort?

Your gut is certainly a good start, and there are situations (and corporations) that call for avoiding conventional consumer … Continue Reading