Before we had children, I didn’t care much about them. It’s not that I abhorred children (I understood the concept of keeping our species going, after all), it’s just that because me and my wife didn’t have any, they weren’t important. Other people had kids. We had a dog. But then one thing lead to another and yadda yadda yadda now we’re the parents of two daughters who are 12 and 14. And surprisingly, being a father is great. I…
It’s been about a year since I published my novel, Minor King. I’m grateful to all of my friends who have read it. And, as an independent publisher of a minor work, I’m truly grateful that so many people have publicly endorsed it. Because it’s not an easy story to swallow. In fact, that’s why I decided to write this post—to set a few things straight. If you have not read the book, but intend to, I urge you to…
My wife wasn’t feeling well this morning, and so she took the day off. Then she started feeling better around lunch, and decided to run a few errands. I joined her. We went to the usual places in Midtown, and ended up at Chipotle to pick up lunch. All the tables were empty, but the line to order was all the way to the door. It was weird. “I guess we’re between rushes,” I said. Ten minutes later we ordered our food, and…
Video. If you listen to any of the marketing experts today, you’ll hear them preach how video is the “next big thing.” Even though it’s pretty much been a big thing since the advent of television. Video is important to marketing for a couple of reasons. First, it’s the shortest route to storytelling. You can say what you need to say in :30 seconds, whereas it might take considerably more time for someone to read the same content. Time is the most valuable…
I once heard a Donald Trump quote that I believed to be true: “If I were to run for President, I’d run as a Republican. They’re the dumbest group of voters in the country.” It turns out that this quote isn’t actually true, but man, it sure sounds like something he’d say. Especially when you consider how Donald Trump plays to his constituency, “I have total net worth of $8.73 billion. I’m not saying that to brag. I’m saying that to show…
Six hundred billion dollars. That’s how much brands around the world spent on advertising in 2014. $600,000,000,000 to get people to notice, engage, and, ultimately, buy things. It’s particularly interesting when you consider that at its core, advertising is propaganda designed to get people to do what you want them to do. And boy are there a lot of ways to advertise. Print will tell you that it’s as strong as ever. Radio too. And outdoor. The direct mail guys…
