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WHAT MARKETING’S NOT TELLING YOU: VOL 1
Lots of CEOs and industry leaders have a sneaking suspicion that their marketing departments (those shadowy magicians) are keeping some secrets from them. And they’re not wrong. Marketing is keeping things from you. We start with the first secret of marketing departments: no one is paying attention.
Content is easy and other lies
In the late-stage digital marketing landscape, content is king. Brands everywhere have begun to realize that they will need to provide content to their customers to keep them engaged and generate revenue. But marketing gurus and ad agencies seem to talk about content like it’s easy. Like anyone can do it. So why is it so hard then? The answers, and ways to produce better content, inside.
Why Does Everything look like canva?
Like many other new tech solutions, Canva seems poised to revolutionize brand design and marketing with simplicity. But is it actually doing the work design should be doing? What should CEOs, conscience of every penny they’re spending, do to maximize their design?
Does This work?
A few months back we stumbled across a series of ads for the state of Nebraska, that we hated. We thought they sucked and were going to write a piece about that. Until we found out that the ad was an unmitigated success. What did we get wrong, that the state of Nebraska got right?
Dear marketing, what have you been telling the leads? love, sales.
Marketing departments and sales departments are famously at odds. But for this piece, we wanted to highlight why marketing has to do a better job of setting sales up for success, and sales has to understand that it’s job is marketing too.
Dear sales, where are all the leads? Love marketing
It’s just another day at a company like yours. And like any other day, shots get fired between marketing and sales.
Mixtape!
There’s nothing quite like the past to provoke both feelings of joy and nostalgia. But for these 6 old marketing tools, updated for the emerging economy, there’s no time like the present. We talk through how each marketing tool has been updated to resonate with modern audiences, and how you can use them right now, today.
How Web 2.0 Destroyed the World
TRUST, it's the hardest thing to find these days. Turns out the way we use the old WWW has a whole lot to do with it, particularly a revolution that is now in its twilight called Web 2.0. If your business is on the hunt for trust, read more.
The Trend Giveth and the Trend Taketh Away
We’ve watched a number of high-profile brands take hits to their reputation, customer retention, and bottom line this past year. And the reason for it? Trend-chasing. We’ll give you 3 reasons trend chasing is a bad idea, especially as a primary strategy. And 1 thing you can actually learn from trends.
Is Marketing Doing The Wrong Job?
Many marketers and marketing departments are doing the wrong job, and have been for awhile now. What’s a CEO to do? Get clear on marketing’s real job, and how to track whether it’s succeeding. You can find ideas on both right here.
Stand Out
In the emerging economy, how brands attract attention has fundamentally changed (for the better). Now, instead of all-out advertising grabs, brands are learning to create something healthier, and more customer-focused. But what that looks like, and the strategy that governs its use is dependant on your industry and your brand’s place in it. We break it all down!
Follow The Leader
2021 saw the demise of attribution, rise of D2C to an epic scale, and a reinvention of what a transparent brand should look like if it wants to reach customers. Now 2022 promises even more change, and the need for brave brand leaders has never been more necessary. We lay out the case for courage and risk taking - the only way to stay competitive in 2022.
Scrubbed
When cosmetics-giant Lush walked away from Social Media last week, they chose an uncertain future over one that could potentially hurt their customer. The catalyst was social media, but the choice had been made long ago. We break down a few of the lessons for brands in Lush’s decision, as well as whether brands should continue to engage with social media and how to navigate the murky waters.
Brands Go Back Outside To Play
No matter how accessible digital spaces become for consumers, the truth is that there will always be a need and desire for brand interactions in the real world. Which should your brand be focusing on?
5 Questions Your Content Should Be Able To Answer
There’s a lot of bad content marketing out there. Wouldn’t it be nice if there were a simple, visual reference you could have to create and evaluate content more effectively? Yeah, we thought that too. So we made you one.
The Future Of Marketing Is Mercantile
The old methods of transactional marketing, widely used and abused for the past 20 years, have died a slow and painful death. In their ashes, something new in marketing is growing - something timeless, with roots in the era of face-to-face interaction, when reputation, community, and care were king and authentic relationships were a teaser of the future.
More Than A Feeling
So many companies and leaders are looking for a fast route to growth or higher revenue. And many see the word “brand” as a placeholder for all their hopes, dreams, aspirations, and alchemy. But there are a great many misconceptions when it comes to brand and how it works. So we’re setting the record straight.
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