I reinstalled Instagram on my mobile phone the other day. My friend Beth Schillaci shamed me into it. She's going to a Capitals playoff game (count me officially envious), and she's posting pics on Instagram. And she told me, "You really need to get on Instagram." I...
The Twitterverse was all atwitter a few years ago over the idea that one consultant was charging a day rate of $22,000. I had no problem with it. I thought about this the other day following a conversation with a colleague about billing strategies and hourly rates,...
In a 24/7, customer-centric world, you have to be present to be part of the conversation. Snooze, and you will lose. A recent consumer poll found that 47 percent of customers value speed in responding to questions or complaints. Dig into the data and several more...
You can't tell the story if you don't know what the story is. Too often, companies talk about themselves without having a clear idea who they are or where they want to go. Let alone what anyone else thinks about them. You have to ask the right questions. I had the...
What if your business had thousands of brand evangelists who live and die by every move you make? People who create fan pages, hold meetups, and forge friendships over you. People who will stand in line for hours for your latest product. People who will...
Heard the phrase "reading is dead" lately? Yup. Me too. Now I recognize the irony of writing a blog post about whether you're going to read ... this blog post. But what's my alternative? I was at a meeting the other day in which a couple of people talked about how no...
I’m using the phrase “productivity hacks” because it sounds a lot sexier than saying “tools I found online to help me do my job a little better or a little easier.” And, yes, my best hacking days (such that they exist) are ahead of me. Here are three new tools...
I received a Lollipop upgrade. An Android Lollipop upgrade. While I liked the Jelly Bean operating system, I love what Google is doing here. While most system upgrades are strictly under the hood, this one is different. I could see the impact immediately as there is...
I received an email pitch the other day about monetizing my influence. This was the crux of the pitch: “We’re an influencer marketing marketplace that helps connect companies with influential people online that can help promote their brands. We’re looking for people...
Ian Gertler and I were having a conversation about swag. Swag or schwag--it's the cool stuff companies compete to put into Oscar gift bags. The pens, phone chargers, paperweights, and the like that show up in the average conference tote. Like this. As you can see, the...