Seems the big "aha!" has finally occurred. Jim Lentz, executive vice president for Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A., told industry leaders gathered in Traverse City for the annual Management Briefing Seminars that auto companies must do more to improve the customer experience in " in this . The big Consumers dread ... more

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As if being a parent weren't already laden with worries and Parental controls on the television and internet don't hold a candle to this summarizing a massive recall by Mattel toys. They recalled almost 1 million Chinese-made toys because they may contain lead. Eighty-three types of toys are on the ... more

Early this month, another CEO bit the dust. The forced of Commerce Bancorp Vernon Hill were the business arrangements between various members of the Hill family and the company. Bank regulators caught up with those various interests and decided that enough was enough. If you think that these considerations are ... more

We marketing and business consultants provide our clients lots of smart advice, and when they use that advice we brag on their intelligence. When they don't, we predict their failure. This past weekend I spent some time thinking about that and decided to check myself and my marketing firm out. ... more

I read an interesting about how South Africa is attempting to curb the spread of AIDS by making condoms available to students. On the surface, the plan appears to be working, as the condoms are very popular with the intended But there's a twist, as many of the students aren't ... more

Now, it's a given that there has been a tremendous amount of buzz around social networking in the recent past. Among all other social media sites and components, social networking is not only the fastest-growing but is being touted by analysts as the "future of the portal" (via a Bear ... more

"It's not the car but the people I meet along the journey that I remember," Thomas Frank, creative director at MaxMedia said to me a few nights ago. We were party chatting at 's welcome-to-Atlanta bash. His words resonated with me. It was a flash of an idea that captured ... more

We all love social media ... we love the way that it connects us, the way we can interact with people both near and far, and to an extent, we even love the gadgety effects of the technology that drives it We have profiles all over the place, pictures, links, ... more

Afrer a brief respite, I write today on the Huffington Post about marketing in the Age of Conversation, as well as about, well... The Age of ." Bottom It's time to let consumers dig your brand -- or not -- on their own Wander on over and leave a comment, ... more

"It's party time! This Thursday's online seminar is a cause for celebration around here, because it's going to be the 100th added to our library. To mark the occasion, we've got an important topic, a very special presenter, and a surprise for you at the end of the That was ... more

More men are buying female-targeted skincare, beauty products and treatments, according to . These guys are the brave They need to be bold enough to stand at the department store make-up counter or peruse the night creams in the drugstore aisles - both very female So, what's a guy to ... more

I heard a statistic today that the average consumer only visits seven Web sites on a regular basis.  So the prevailing "venture capital wisdom" (an oxymoron) dictates that if you have a Web site, you need to be one of those seven.  Evidently, we all have a #3300ff;" handful of ... more

As a design consultant with deep roots in the toy and entertainment biz, I'm always interested in studying new business launches by industry wunderkinds. –a new toy retail and entertainment concept all in one enables boys to build do-it-yourself, customized model cars–is one of those businesses that are well worth ... more

What is the most important asset in your organization? Your infrastructure? Your highly trained people? A specialized tool you've created? While any of these things might be your most important asset, it's important not to overlook the value of data in helping you create and achieve competitive Now I must ... more

Are old-world retailers keeping up? You know, the ones that existed since the beginning of time? Like at almost 150 years old. Have they adapted to today's market demands and I can't speak from experience for all these older retailers, but I can share a Macy's experience from this week. ... more

Royal Canin Canada puts an enormous budget behind creating customized, breed-specific pet food. But many pet owners don't realize how much their dog or cat could benefit from a specially formulated food. By creating a loyalty email program targeted with information on specific breeds, Royal Canin was able to earn ... more

Answer these questions convincingly, and emerging media enters the big leagues of advertising. Writing in Ad Age last , Steve Rubel, Senior VP at Edelman's Me2Revolution practice and a thought-leading blogger and media strategist, writes that a metric to track "influence" is the holy grail for advertisers who are monitoring ... more

Last week, I carried on a conversation that began with Joe announcing he would exchange sponsorship on his podcast for an iPod, about which Mack wrote a thorough examination of monetization vs. Today, I take a different view on the subject. One that should not be controversial but it might ... more

As a marketing professional for more than two decades, I have seen the value that strategic marketing brings to a I have been very fortunate to work with many great product and professional service companies during my career from Apple Computer and Intel to Levi Strauss, Mayfield Fund, Goldman Sachs ... more

Dear Now that the dust has settled a bit on Jet 's ill-fated flirtation with Yearly , let's all reflect on the lessons learned so we don't have to go down this path on our own. I wrote about over at Note to , but the comments -- both online ... more

There are so many hotels to choose from today, how do we differentiate the overall experience? Is it the customer service, esthetics of the environment, amenities and services, or all of the above? What makes a 5-star hotel worth its I recently spent four nights at the Mandarin Oriental in ... more

Functionality and usefulness are far more important to the success of your Web site than how nice and elegant it The first time I saw the Grand Canyon was a truly memorable experience. The depth, distance and hazy rainbow of colors were like nothing I had ever seen before. The ... more

Here's Part Five of my six-part conversation about professional services firms and social networking, with Tim Gilchrist and Steve In many professions, there is almost a procurement mentality, where potential clients issue RFPs and firms respond. Will social networking change the way professional or business-to-business services are It doesn't have ... more

Talk about a 180-degree shift. A month ago, I wrote about a company that was bypassing their and instead, holding a contest so consumers could compete to name their new product. But apparently, those same Average Joes and Janes who are more than qualified to create the name for the ... more