If the ship is already sinking, you probably can’t get it fixed…

As someone who has owned and run a business for the past six(ish) years, there is nothing that makes me sadder than to see a business close its doors. No matter whose fault it is, how stupid the decisions were, or how incompetent people have been, it still makes me feel a bit sick to [...]

I say potato, you say pot-ahhhh-to, dahling…

I love meeting people in marketing. Particularly ones who, with a great deal of self importance, introduce themselves as someone who is an expert because they are a fellow of something, studied somewhere or have some letters after their name. If you can add the three little beauties ‘MBA’ as well, chances are I’ll have [...]

I’m just going outside and I may be some time…

It’s been a while since I had the time to sit down and write. Too long. Things have been pretty hectic here at Designate HQ, and most of it is falling on my shoulders. I have a new team of people starting up in the next couple of weeks but, until then, it’s crunch time [...]

Sometimes it’s my job to tell you that you look fat in that dress.

I was sitting down for coffee with a fellow marketing man the other day. To be fair, I try not to do that too often, but every once in a while it’s ok, right? Anyway, there was a bit of a sales pitch on his side of the table, but he was a nice guy [...]

You got to know when to hold them, know when to fold them. Know when to walk away, and know when to run….

I know what you’re thinking, but trust me, this isn’t really a post about Kenny Rogers (as much as I might wish it to be). Quick back story. I was actually walking to the train station this morning and I pressed the play button on my iPhone. It randomly selected some Kenny Rogers. Me being [...]

I’ll show you mine if you show me yours.

The other day someone asked me a question I get asked a lot: “How do I  measure the return on social media for my business?” To be honest, I couldn’t answer them. Or at least not completely. The truth is I didn’t know enough about their business or their activities to give a meaningful answer. [...]

Last I checked, you and Tesco didn’t have a lot in common…

Last week I was asked to speak to a small group of business owners who are currently in the (torturous?) process of trying to grow their own businesses. They were covering marketing that week, and I was brought in for a couple reasons (eye candy,? Ability to creatively curse?), but the primary one was to [...]

Quick thought: Sooner or later, you’ve got to sh*t or get off the pot…

This may sound like a weird sentiment come from a guy who writes strategy for a living, but sooner or later the time for planning needs to end and the time for action needs to begin. I’ve seen it too often, and it’s normally driven by people in my industry. Why? In my opinion that’s [...]

Just because your mother thinks you’re handsome doesn’t make it true…

There are times (I can say with only a small hint of sarcasm) where my mouth gets me into trouble. I’ll pause now for you all to stop laughing. Anyway the point is  I’ve decided to self-censor the title of this post a bit. It’s normally a little more crude, and I have a habit [...]

I call it simple for a reason…

It’s all in the title, right? It’s been a nice time away, but I’m back now, and that means that I’m back to putting my thoughts down on a (semi) regular basis. To kick off 2011, I thought I’d do a little bit of the old ‘back to basics’ routine. It’s time, I thought to [...]