image © Reuters

Why would anyone bet their company’s future on something that nobody has ever seen?

That’s exactly what’s happening with Apple’s iPad as publishers scramble to prepare for the introduction of the iPad in just a matter of days…
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My friend and fellow copywriter Kevin Rogers was born one day after I was, on Feb. 23rd.

He sent me a funny happy birthday message that said, “40… is the new 39.”

Now, Kevin’s a riot – and he oughta be. Like many of the best storytellers and wordsmiths, he was a professional stand-up comic in a previous life.

But something struck me about what he said.

It was the way the numbers LOOKED to me… Read the rest of this entry

Quick 15 minute interview with Ben Mack where he asks me about Direct Response TV (DRTV) and the popularity of the hit Discovery Network show, Pitchmen.

Listen To The Call Below:

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Wanted Four Emails That DON'T Sell

I keed, I keed…

They suffer from what I call “Marketingitus”… and it’s a disease.

Somehow, they believe that there has to be a line in the sand between delivering “content” to build a “relationship” with their prospect… and then eventually getting around to clobbering them over the head with a nuclear-powered, mind-altering sales message the prospect will be powerless to resist.

As if once their dear reader, whom the merchant is now in a “relationship” with, has consumed the gooey richness of their “content”, they will just lay down for the sale… Read the rest of this entry

FTC Clamps Down On Testimonials & Endorsements

By now you’ve surely heard about the FTC’s new guidelines for testimonials and endorsements in advertising and marketing.

It’s a hot topic to be sure…

Some view it as the living, breathing embodiment of government run amok.

Others feel it’s long overdue and welcome these guidelines in hopes of better legitimizing an industry that is rife with misrepresentation and fraud.

My take is probably somewhere in between.

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Just got this in from Compete.com but I had a completely different thought about the data than the author.

Where they see popularity on slowing down, I see the possibility of Twitter getting serious in their efforts to battle spam and follow bots. I also see the possibilities of lots of new and enthusiastic Tweeps finding out that automation doesn’t always work as well as advertised…

From Compete.com’s email:

Twitter Visitors Put on the Brakes

It had to happen eventually, and May was the month that traffic to Twitter.com started to show signs of fatigue (up 1% to 19.7 Million Unique Visitors). While this is not the whole story behind the emerging Social site, it is a sign that new user growth in the U.S. may be flattening. Stay tuned for more on this one going forward.

Work may be a four letter word, but so is life.

Just read a fantastic guest post by Sir David Garfinkle on John Carlton’s blog.

Sometimes we all need a good kick into ACTION

Given the big ole brains that read this blog and John Carlton’s,  my take may not be all that revelatory to you… but I truly believe this to be true and if it helps kick some of you into motion, then it’s well worth repeating (my clients and colleagues have surely heard me spout this before…)

Creating your own reality is scary business. Many entrepreneurs allow their head to float up into the clouds, dreaming of the possibilities, but they leave one foot firmly planted in “reality” – to be safe, grounded.

What we get out of life is what we most want at any given moment. Too often, what we most want is the security and safety of the familar.

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