Big and complicated problems often generate big, complex solutions. Ken Segall puts it very well in his book, Think Simple, when he writes, “It’s in our DNA to prefer simpler things, yet we so often open the door to complexity. That’s because being complicated is easy. Making things simpler is the more challenging task.” If […]
Studies in Simplicity: Microgoals Continue Reading »
Jeanne walked out of the CEO’s office in a daze. Tom had just reviewed the results of the annual employee opinion survey with her. Scores had plummeted, and verbatim comments were harsh. Employees reported low morale as well as distrust of Jeanne and her senior leadership team. As the Chief Information Officer responsible for an
Communicate to Win: Three Traits Leaders Need to Get Started Continue Reading »
Millennials are rapidly becoming the largest demographic in the workforce. As a result, businesses must accommodate the needs of this important generation. While some companies already are changing their methods of communications, others are just maintaining the status quo. Join Jeff Corbin, CEO and Founder of APPrise Mobile, at the IABC Heritage Conference in Columbus,
In the highly segmented, complex world of digital media, results and analytical data can be obtained on a real-time basis. However, the challenge is being able to calculate the return on investment (ROI) of this never-ending stream of information and communicate it to those decision-makers who sign off on marketing budgets. When you have multi-faceted
Digital Media ROI: How to Determine Its Effectiveness Continue Reading »
He did it with mobile, with much success. Now, Mark Zuckerberg says, “Right now, the big theme and strategy that we’re executing is that we’re going to become video-first.” On track to becoming the most valuable company in the world, Facebook’s focus on video is not surprising. From a communication standpoint, the most powerful medium
Where is video going next? Continue Reading »
If you’re a marketing professional, by now you know that you’ll always be charged with the same basic concept: Get X group of people to do Y. Whether the Y is to buy a product, complete a task or endorse a service, there are many factors to consider. While working in corporate communications, I collaborated with people from different backgrounds. Together,
3 Lessons Learned from a Successful Change Communications Strategy Continue Reading »
Everywhere we turn we hear people talk about executive presence. From business to politics, people who lead look for a secret sauce to stand out in a crowd or take command of a room. This may be why, according to the Conference Board, developing presence is the top reason executives in the U.S. hire coaches.
Executives need more than presence to be present Continue Reading »
Why use plain language when there are so many big, impressive words out there waiting for their chance in your project? Plain language advocates say that simple words, direct phrases and short sentences are the keys to sharing information with all audiences. Writing clear and concise communications can be hard work, but it will get
Using Plain Language to Inspire Results Continue Reading »
My mentor once told me, “Running a business would be so much easier if we didn’t have to deal with customers and employees.” While I can empathize with the statement, it is not a realistic. Since your business will always have customers, statistically speaking, a subset of those customers will be unhappy. That reality drives
Discover The Secrets to Effective Online Reputation Management, Part 2 Continue Reading »
Experts from the Harvard Business Review to IBM to Forbes/Towers Watson agree that change programs are successful about 25 percent of the time. It follows that if you are doing what everyone else is doing, you can expect to fail 75 percent of the time. So what are some of the biggest misconceptions about change? Here are three
Three misconceptions about change Continue Reading »
Your brand is shaped by your customers online. Currently, 38 percent of customer complaints appear on review and social media sites. According to research by Harvard Business School, a single point increase in a Yelp five-star rating can increase revenue between five and nine percent. More importantly, brands can increase customer advocacy by up to
Discover The Secrets to Effective Online Reputation Management, Part 1 Continue Reading »
Discover the Possibilities: The 2016 IABC Heritage Conference student session Preparing for a career in communications, marketing or a related field? Set aside Sunday, Oct. 9, for the IABC Heritage Region’s special pre-conference student session. All students pursuing an undergraduate or graduate degree are welcome to attend. Activities take place at the Renaissance Downtown Columbus
Discover the Possibilities: 2016 IABC Heritage Conference student session Continue Reading »