“Talk to your customers” is one of the most common pieces of advice in marketing. And it’s not wrong. But it’s also not always realistic. Maybe you don’t have direct access or contact information for these folks. Maybe your team doesn’t prioritize customer interviews. Maybe you’re a founder wearing seven hats, or a marketer who
We’ve Launched a Brand New SparkToro Today with 10 (yes TEN) New Features
By It’s time for a new, screenshot-worthy look. It’s time to deliver those key features you’ve been asking us for. It’s time for better data, graphed over time. It’s time for an all-new version of SparkToro. Today, we’re releasing a massively upgraded, fully-overhauled version of our audience research platform. <Slaps roof of car> This baby’s got
Nobody Is Dying on Hills
By One massive hurdle for would-be creators is feeling that everything they say must represent a hill they’re willing to die on. Sure, if you’re publicly taking a stance, it should genuinely reflect your beliefs. But nobody is actually dying on these hills. It’s not that serious. There’s tremendous value in the philosophy of “strong beliefs,
No, I Will Not A/B Test That
By Marketers love to talk about A/B testing. Heck, I’ve said it too. It sounds prudent. Responsible. “Test before you commit! Don’t waste resources!” But the longer I work in marketing, the more I believe most A/B tests are a waste of time — at least for small and medium-sized businesses. More often than not, these
How to Find (Not Guess) Your Target Audience: A Data-Driven Approach
By We all know what a target audience is. Or at least we think we do. We’ve written “target audience” in strategy documents and nodded along in meetings when someone mentions “our ideal customer.” But if we’re trying to grow, we have to pause and ask ourselves: Are we really targeting the right people, or are
Demand-Creation vs. Demand-Converting Marketing
By One of the fundamental mistakes I see executives and marketing leaders make over and over is investing in the wrong part of the demand funnel. In this week’s 5-Minute Whiteboard, I’ll walk through an example of demand creation at the top vs. middle/bottom of the funnel, and explain why it’s critical to understand whether you
The Internet Needs Less Fighting, More Invisible Subtweets
By I guess we can’t really say “subtweets” anymore because Twitter is now X and tweets are now blandly called “posts.” But we all know in our bones what a subtweet is. It’s a unique description for the subtle shade thrown someone’s way on a text-based social media platform. Someone you know (or hate?) writes about
Getting Executive Buy-In: How to Tie Audience Research to Business Strategy
By It’s a tale as old as time, or uh… for as long as you’ve been doing digital marketing: You’ve uncovered powerful audience insights that you fully believe will transform your company’s approach, but when you try to share them beyond the marketing team, eyes glaze over. Executives nod politely before steering the conversation back to
How to Use Mental Jujitsu to Convince Your Boss/Team/Client to Make the Right Marketing Investments
By “How do I convince my boss/team/client to invest in my audience’s true sources of influence? Especially when those sources are so hard to prove attribution?” Friend, I hear you. So, for this week’s 5-Minute Whiteboard, how about we try a little mental jujitsu to get everyone aligned on the reality of how the modern web
How to Turn Audience Research Into Content Ideas
By If you’ve ever stared at a blank content calendar wondering what to create next, you’re not alone. Even the most prolific writers* sometimes feel like they’re running nonstop on the content creation hamster wheel… even after ideas dry up and writer’s block sets in. But while continuing your creation habit can build momentum, sometimes the