Blog
TOM DOUGHERTY’S OPINIONS
The top 4 reasons to rebrand – quick checklist
The top 4 reasons to rebrand – or why you’re losing If we’re being bluntly honest, most companies have many reasons to rebrand. That’s because most brands simply don’t take advantage of the opportunities staring right at them. Most brands are meaningless. Often...
Why are local TV stations still called by a number?
Why are local TV stations still branded by a number? There are many reasons why local TV stations are falling behind. But here’s one to consider. Why do they continue to brand themselves with an outdated number? I’ll give you an example. Here in North Carolina, the...
Brand loyalty: Grape Nuts, Burger King
Brand loyalty: Grape Nuts, Burger King You’d have trouble finding two brands as dissimilar as Grape Nuts and Burger King. But both serve as interesting test cases in brand loyalty. Post announced that Grape-Nuts will be back on the shelves next month. Bringing cheers...
Text marketing: It’s still about beliefs
Text marketing: It’s still about beliefs At Stealing Share, we continually track consumer behavior, including the effects of COVID-19 on decision making. Lately, we’ve found that text marketing is becoming a better avenue for brands to reach consumers than email,...
T-Mobile TV ad: Missing an opportunity
T-Mobile TV ad: Missing an opportunity I wish I could say the publicist-driven T-Mobile not-quite Super Bowl ad deserves its social media popularity. But like all but one of this year’s Super Bowl ads, it ruined its opportunity. The phone carrier promoted a spot with...
The mystery of great advertising: The Amazon Super Bowl spot
The mystery of great advertising: The Amazon Super Bowl spot Ever have watched a TV ad you intuitively understand to be great advertising but don’t know why. That’s the great mystery you may feel about Amazon’s upcoming Super Bowl ad. "Few are driven by...
A case study in marketing research strategy: Old Spice
A case study in marketing research strategy: Old Spice In the upcoming Old Spice TV spot, owner Proctor & Game employs a marketing research strategy few actually try. Let alone accomplish. Most, even Old Spice, miss the point entirely. P&G’s research found...
Why the GameStop brand: The stock breaking the short sellers
Why the GameStop brand: The stock breaking the short-sellers I won’t go deep into the stock-buying frenzy around the GameStop brand currently pushed by those angry with Wall Street and posting on Reddit. Here’s a good explainer from the Associated Press, if you want...
News media and Larry King: How times have worsened
News media and Larry King: How times have changed When hearing of Larry King’s death at the age of 87, my first thought was: My, how things have changed. I was thinking of the state of current news media. Especially among the cable news networks. When King reigned on...
The Snickers brand: Does humor really work?
The Snickers brand: Does humor really work? Have any of you ever thought about the Snickers brand name? It suggests humor. A snicker at some joke or comment. In reality, it was named by the Mars family after a beloved horse in 1930. Who knew? But Snickers brings up an...
Car commercials: Why are they always the same?
Car commercials: Why are they always the same? It often amazes me how some brands live in the dark when it comes to knowing their competition. Nowhere does that situation exist more than in car commercials. How can you tell the difference? Let me explain. Hyundai is...
The Coca-Cola brand: Meaning dictating action
The Coca-Cola brand: Meaning dictating action The year 2020 has produced many challenges for brands, reacting to new trends. But really, they were trends that already existed but just became more intensive. Take the Coca-Cola brand, for example. One of the greatest...
The simplest marketing strategy: Simplicity itself
The simplest marketing strategy: Simplicity itself I could pick on just about any category. But I’m harping on the medical devices category because few segments fall so short in developing the best marketing strategy. Just make it simple, stupid. Medical devices...
Authentic marketing emerges – or has it?
Authentic marketing emerges – or has it? We’ve seen many marketers adapt to the pandemic, with varying results. One strategy that’s emerged is the rise of authentic marketing. What do I mean by that? Well, consider this. A study by the State of Customer Marketing says...
Successful brands leverage scarcity and exclusivity
Successful brands leverage scarcity and exclusivity It’s a simple fact. Successful brands are the ones that are seemingly exclusive. As though you’re part of a club with only a few select members. A kind of scarcity exists. As Groucho Marx says, “I refuse to join any...
Cereal marketing takes a step back
Cereal marketing takes a step back Woe is the brand that buys into a trend, thinking it guarantees long-term success. Look at breakfast cereals, a category struggling. Or at least until now. With COVID-19 forcing many of us to work from home, cereal marketing is...
Effective marketing: How to be noticed
Effective marketing: How to be noticed Mars, the maker of so many products it could go toe to toe with giant P&G, conducted a study that found marketers have about two seconds to grab someone’s attention. If that’s true, then how can you develop effective...
Fast food marketing: Avoid inside-out thinking
Fast food marketing: Avoid inside-out thinking This is going to sound like a slam on White Castle, but it’s not. It’s just that the fast food chain is promoting an element that’s representative of what ails most fast food marketing. Most of it looks inside-out. Rather...
Pharma marketing: How to be heard above the noise
Pharma marketing: How to be heard above the noise We love our pharmaceuticals – and Big Pharma knows it. That’s why more than $6 billion are spent in pharma marketing, just in the US alone. What other industry spends so much? We all have seen the litany of insurance...
Forget the breweries, only beer branding works
Forget the breweries, only beer branding works Having worked with many craft beer brands, we at Stealing Share know many have one hang-up when it comes to stealing market share. They believe their breweries – not their beer branding - is the key to success. Oh, many...