As we move toward recovering from the pandemic, we’re seeing businesses opening again, business hiring again and marketing teams pivoting to adapt to the ever-changing needs of their customers. With a fresh mindset carrying us through the first fifty days of the 2021, let’s dive into some trends to keep an eye out for—and consider hopping on—this year.
In the work-from-home era, Zoom is our new office, and happy hour bar, and maybe even that place to catch a magic show when we’re all a bit tipsy afterward. But we don’t need to tell you that Zoom falls short at capturing the nuances of in-person communication. It’s still pretty tricky to have a satisfying group conversation in Zoom, let alone collaborate on important projects.
These words generally diminish and minimize, at a time when speaking purposefully is key, says author and leadership coach Terre Short.
It’s probably safe to say that few people were sad to leave the “unprecedented” 2020 behind. While it provided a new perspective on life in general, it also left a lasting impact on many of the words we chose in our communications.
We are all used to loud TV ads, music-accompanied sales announcements in shopping malls, and sound notifications on our smartphones. However, not all brands have yet discovered the possibilities that voice commerce and audio integration give them when integrated into projects and communication. This is especially easy today with the availability of royalty-free sound effects on stock photography platforms.
Hot off the heels of Burger King’s bold, illustration-led rebrand last month, McDonald’s has unveiled a redesign of its own – and it’s very, well, bold and illustration-led. Favouring bright graphics and prominent typography, the new look sees its entire packaging receive a playful makeover that’s fun, celebratory and retro – just like its rival’s.
The decision of furniture retailer Heal’s to invest in a live chat function was based primarily on improving the customer experience rather than any explicit commercial expectations, but it has proved hugely successful in generating leads and driving conversions.
Keith Richey, Sr. director of global marketing at LinkedIn, joins me to talk about the importance of corporate culture, the changes CMOs have experienced in 2020, and the 4Ss of marketing. We also talk libraries, liquor laws, learning, and more—it’s a jam-packed half hour!
When your team is tasked with generating ideas to solve a problem, suggesting a brainstorming session is a natural reaction. But does that approach actually work?
Although the term “brainstorming” is now used as a generic term for having groups develop ideas, it began as the name of a specific technique proposed by advertising executive Alex Osborn in the 1950s.
In this episode, we discuss how to write simply, succinctly, and with relevance.
“The reader is impatient,” says Glenn Kramon, Stanford GSB lecturer in management and editor at the New York Times. “Start with the most important conclusion and then explain how you got there.”
In Making Money Moral: How a New Wave of Visionaries Is Linking Purpose and Profit, authors Judith Rodin and Saadia Madsbjerg explore a rapidly growing movement of bold innovators unlocking private-sector investments in new ways to solve global problems. They are attempting to tackle environmental challenges, social issues, poverty, and inequality, among others, reimagining capitalism in the process.
