A long time ago, humans started telling stories. Our first stories were drawn on cave walls. We started sharing stories even before we developed language. Humans have been obsessed with stories ever since. Stories teach us. They bring order to our lives. In many ways, story define who...
How do the worldās top brands create loyal customers? Itās a question our small firm has invested long hours to answer. Deciphering the code to undying, raving fan customer loyalty unlocks powerful strategies for market domination and long-term profitability. Cult brands are businesses that have communities of customers...
Tobacco. It'sĀ one of the most addictive substances on the planet. Back in 1987, smokers were first told that it isĀ easier to give up heroin than cigarettes. Today, the CDC reports that nearly 20% of American adults smoke. Nearly one in five. That's pretty bad. In Thailand, the numbers...
The contemporary art world was buzzing about an announced collaboration between UBS Wealth Management and the Guggenheim Museum. Itās easy to see what the excitement was about, especially from a creative perspective. The five year initiative is going to chart creative activity and contemporary art...
Weāve always been fascinated by the phenomenon of popularity. What causes customers to flock to one brand while remaining coldly indifferent to anotherāeven when the offerings of the companies in question are similar? Years of consumer research have revealed that the single most important factor that...
Cults are all around us. Iām not talking about destructive cults that damage peopleās lives. Iām referring to benign, even life-supportive groups that give people more meaning. Raving-fan groups of Star Trek, Lady Gaga, Jimmy Buffett, Harry Potter, Oprah, American Girl, Jay-Z, Apple, Barbie, and Harley...
Abraham Maslow, one of the founding fathers of humanistic psychology, taught us that human beings have a higher, transcendent nature, which he visualized most eloquently in his Hierarchy of Human Needs. This simple pyramid gives us a framework from which to understand the essence of Cult...
Perhaps the most important thing to take away from Maslowās Hierarchy of Human Needs is his realization that all human beings start fulfilling their needs at the bottom levels of the pyramid. In short, we fill our lower physiological needs first. Needs like safety, esteem, and...
As Peter Drucker noted, marketing and innovation are the two primary drivers of any business. Developing marketing intelligence is vital for organizational leadership. Knowing the various marketing weapons at your disposal will help you explore new ways to approach your customers. We put together a list of...
In our visit to the National Retail Federationās Big Show last month, we had the opportunity to hear Ginni Rometty, the CEO of IBM, discuss the technological trends that are shaping the future of retail. Thanks to the explosion of new data, the business landscape is...