Branding Archives - Making Every Word Count

The Powerful Case for B2B Blogging in the AI Era

Let me ask an uncomfortable question. Why am I writing this article?

Seriously. I am spending time researching, outlining and writing about whether anyone should still be writing articles like this one.

In the age of generative AI, couldn’t you simply ask ChatGPT, Gemini or another AI tool the same question? You could. In fact, you probably should. So perhaps I am wasting my time. And perhaps you are wasting yours by reading this … but I don’t think so.

I think b2b blogging still has an important role to play. It just isn’t necessarily the role it played five years ago.

Creative, Affordable Case Study Video Options Are Still the Best Way to Tell Your Customer Story, As An Essential Part of Your Brand Message

Understanding the customer journey is step one in effective marketing. Without a clear map of how your buyers think, evaluate, and decide, your efforts are guesswork. This journey is not linear. It’s messy, influenced by peer reviews, competitive research, budget timing, and internal priorities. Once you understand your customer’s journey, a case study video is the best way to share this understanding to help find new prospects.

For marketers, the job is to understand that journey inside and out. What questions does a prospect ask early? When does skepticism peak? Where does trust form? To answer these, you need data, interviews, and behavioral insights. Once you understand the path your buyer takes, you can start placing proof points at the right moments.

That’s where the case study comes in.

Unconscious Branding – Is This The Future of Marketing?

I recently had the opportunity to hear Leslie Zane, an award-winning Fortune 500 brand consultant, give a presentation. The event was a virtual conference hosted by the American Marketing Association on January 23, 2025. Her presentation, “The Future of Marketing,” shared several interesting insights based on her book, The Power of Insight. My key takeaway is that branding plays a much bigger role in the buyer’s journey than previously considered. A concept I’ll refer to as unconscious branding should be incorporated with greater focus as part of your overall marketing and analyst relations strategy.

Leslie’s theme was that many buyer decisions are based on subconscious rather than conscious thinking. This concept is enlightening and has major implications for marketing strategies. Marketers must rethink how they approach the buyer’s journey and decision-making process. Here are a few concepts that came to mind as I processed the findings of her presentation.

Thinking About Moving Your Business to Orange County? Smart!

Orange County is an attractive location for business owners. The combination of wonderful Southern California weather, proximity to airports and greater Los Angeles attractions, and access to high net-worth potential clients make it difficult to resist. As one example, GB Marketing & Communications is located in Orange County and has never regretted that choice!

Why Data Visualization Has a Tremendous Impact on Marketing

Even if you’ve developed an effective marketing strategy, it can be easy to fall into a rut. You post on social media. You run web ads. You incentivize word of mouth. What else can you do to refresh your marketing and reach new potential? Data visualization is a great way to revitalize your marketing efforts — and it’s one of the most versatile, too. Here are some tips and resources to demonstrate how data visualization can help you build a stronger connection with your existing clients while also gaining new clients.

How PR has Changed the Advertising Model

If the worlds of PR and marketing are set to further converge over the next five years, we should start to see evidence that this shift has begun (see related article). The viral sensation surrounding the recent Game of Thrones Starbucks coffee cup incident is a great data point that validates this transformation.

What struck me was what an amazing PR and awareness opportunity this became from a blurred, barely visible image shown for a split second on a television show. The way brands get promoted and recognized today certainly has changed!

5 Reasons to Build a Social Media Audience

It doesn’t matter if you are a social media expert or novice – we are all impressed when you hear about the amazing number of followers some brands and celebrities achieve on social media channels. Did you know that Selena Gomez had 139 million people following her on Instagram at the end of 2018? How did she do that? You might wonder how it is even possible to achieve this level of engagement. Your next question might be, “Who cares?” Does it even matter?

Yes, it does matter.

Likes and followers are a very quantifiable metric that provides insights into your brand’s popularity. Beyond simply being an emotional boost, having a large following translates into a stronger brand, greater awareness and more revenue opportunities.

Does Brand Value Live Beyond the Grave?

I was most amused when reading about a new Scotch whisky that now carries the Lehman Brothers name. The product is called “Ashes of Disaster,” so is clearly meant to evoke memories of the failed financial services company. As a reminder, some consider the failing of Lehman Brothers the catalyst that triggered the 2008 global financial meltdown.

According James Green, a 34-year-old London entrepreneur that is launching the whisky, “It has a contrite, bereft peatiness,” as quoted from the Wall Street Journal article. Mr. Green plans to offer his spirits online and has gotten orders from bars in London and New York.

Continue reading Does Brand Value Live Beyond the Grave?

How Much Content Should You Share?

In the world of content marketing, every marketer must make a decision on what information should be provided openly, and what should require registration to access. Traditionalists will argue that the concept is straightforward – information that is more valuable should be deemed “worthy” of registration to gain access. With registration, however, comes an expectation of future follow up, be it in the form of a call or email from the sponsoring party. This knowledge dissuades the reading of your material, working against your desired objective.

Today these lines are blurring, which is causing some angst for those of us involved in content marketing.