Craig Markou

Writing a good press release involves restraint. It eschews bombast and presents information in a measured way that allows the announcement to speak for itself.  You need to top-load a good press release. Give all the pertinent information as close to the top as possible. This isn’t something where you need to keep the reader (journalist) in suspense. They’re going to make their decision within the first paragraph, so put all your important information high up and use the rest of the PR to flesh it out. #Copywriting #PressReleases #CorporateCommunications --- Need a content strategy? Let's talk. Need a ghostwriter? Tell me about your project. Want a free website audit? Ask me how.

Let's be clear. Most of this is not "Gen Z slang". It's not "TikTok slang" either. Most of it is AAVE (African American Vernacular English). AAVE roots run deep in our history, and was originated by the Black community in the USA (and to some extent, Canada). It was also looked down upon before becoming as popular as it is now. So let's start giving credit where credit is due. Video source: https://lnkd.in/gEChWwv7 #HistoryMatters #ContextMatters #LanguageMatters #JEDI #EDI #DEI #DEIA #InclusiveMarketing #InclusiveCommunications #InclusiveBranding #InclusiveAdvertising #InclusiveResearch #InclusionMatters

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I remember when Super Mario Bros. 3 came out way back in the ‘90s. It had these maps that you would walk around on between levels that showed you the larger Mario world and allowed you to choose which level you wanted to tackle next.  One of these maps, deep into the game, was completely blacked out except for a little spotlight around your character. All you could see was the immediate area around them with no indication of where anything else was. You just had to randomly choose a way to go and hope it was the right way.  This is what it’s like trying to conduct content marketing without a content strategy. If you just create and publish content randomly, or as a reaction to what your competitors are doing, you are blindly trundling along without any clue as to what direction you need to go.  Having a content strategy is akin to lighting up the whole map and seeing clearly which direction you should go to get to a particular destination.  Get clarity with your content by following a strategy.  And, if you require a strategy (or you just want to discuss strategy further), please contact me and we can arrange a meeting. #ContentMarketing #ContentStrategy

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Have you ever noticed how brands like Lexus and Toyota or Banana Republic and Old Navy cater to different audiences while still being part of the same family? Lexus offers luxury vehicles for the high-end market, while Toyota focuses on reliability and practicality for everyday drivers. Similarly, Banana Republic targets a more sophisticated, premium shopper, while Old Navy appeals to budget-conscious consumers. As a coach or expert, you can apply this same strategy to your product offerings. If you’re using an ascension model, think about how to position each offer visually and emotionally. Your entry-level product should be practical and accessible, drawing people in, while your high-end offer should exude exclusivity and premium quality. How do you differentiate your products to target different segments of your audience? Follow me for more tips on branding. #Branding #ProductStrategy #Coaches #Experts #Marketing #BusinessGrowth #ExpertSites #WeAreQuantum

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A brief explanation on how #brands can resonate with diverse audiences 🔊... You'll notice on the AndHumanity, Inclusive Marketing Agency team page that instead of traditional biographies, we share our lenses. (thank you Amil Reddy, CCIP!) A lens is defined by one's lived experience and more importantly, centers diversity of perspective. This is crucial because every aspect of our identities affects the way we view the world and how we operate in it. That's why your lived experience is your own and not something someone else can learn. However, sometimes brands try to check off their diverse audiences like a checkbox ☑️ and we're not afforded any diversity *within* our diversity. But I, like everyone else, am intersectional. And thus, I cannot be checked off in a box. So when a brand tries to appeal to me, they have to understand that there is no catch-all solution. A watered-down diversity-focused story that hits on unifying aspects of diverse audiences whilst ignoring intersectionality is not going to resonate. The solution is going deep. Telling deep, culturally nuanced stories that lean into intersectionality and nuance, countering the stereotypical generic stories based on generalizations that we see too much of from brands today. *That* is inclusive storytelling. And *that* is what will resonate with diverse audiences today. #InclusionMatters #NothingAboutUsWithoutUs #InterculturalCompetence #RepresentationMatters #CulturalCompetence #DiverseAudiences #JEDI #EDI #DEI #DEIA #InclusiveStorytelling #Lens #LivedExperience #InclusiveMarketing #InclusiveCommunications

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𝗖𝗔𝗦𝗘 𝗦𝗧𝗨𝗗𝗬: I ran a four-week, $500 Meta ads campaign and here's what I learned from basic, manual testing. (Results at the end) Here's a shot list of the photos I took at the store and ran each image with a caption for just under $2/day for 6 days to find the top ads (total $8/ad). Top ads are starred. *Ad Image 1: WIX filter list in table form (a boring image but surprisingly effective!) *Ad Image 2: In-store - products only - close up; multiple Ad Image 3: In-store - products only - shelving *Ad Image 4: In-store - multiple products with staff member Ad Image 5: In-store - single product with staff member 2 Ad Image 6: In-store - hand holding a filter *Ad Image 7: In-store - Harley filter 𝗖𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗱: - functionality - the image of the list of filters caught the attention of customers who already had something in mind - specificity - the image of a generic filter underperformed, but when highlighting that the store had Harley filters, it received high interest (21 link clicks at $8 testing = $0.38 CPC) - simplicity - real, regular photos without any graphics or text overlay performed well as it has familiarity and authenticity 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘀: Sales Results No social media advertising = $10,039 With social media advertising = $35,659   $ 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲 = $25,620 % 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲 = $25,620/10,039 𝘅 100 = 255%   Meta Ads Results Facebook Page Reach = 13.3K Paid Reach = 11.7K Paid Impressions = 23.6K Link Clicks - 258 Total ad spend = $502.58 *includes $40 of post boosts unrelated to the filter sale. Total reach from additional boosts was 1800.  Average cost per click based on the above = $502.58 / 258 = $1.95

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For #Marketers and #Communicators... Here is question 16 of my #FrequentlyAskedQuestionSeries ✋🏻✋🏼✋🏽✋🏾✋🏿: Q: "I'm trying to be inclusive in our upcoming campaign TV ad. How can I tell if the commercial is tokenizing or not?" A: "Although there are a lot more layers and nuance to it, a simple way to test if your commercial script is tokenizing underrepresented communities or not is as follows; replace all the underrepresented individuals in your script with people from the dominant culture. If you do that and your script still "makes sense" ie. the story doesn't change, then likely you're tokenizing these individuals. Why? Well, people with different lived experience should experience your script's story in a different way. If they don't, likely, the inclusion of these individuals is very surface-level, and doesn't have the deep cultural nuance required to be authentically inclusive. Remember, diversity =/= inclusion" What are your thoughts? I invite you to discuss and ask more questions in the comments! --- Follow me next week for question 17 of my #FrequentlyAskedQuestionSeries! What is the #FrequentlyAskedQuestionSeries? Every week I'll answer common questions that we receive at AndHumanity, Inclusive Marketing Agency on #InclusiveMarketing and #InclusiveCommunications. --- #JEDI #EDI #InclusionMatters #InclusiveBusiness #InclusiveLeadership 

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Here's an article on how we at One23West transform brands for our clients. https://lnkd.in/gwJm4KZr

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When's the last time your brand had its crown jewels polished? Professional, playful, polished, or preposterous—all brands need to maintain their sparkle. Helix Design: Refreshing! #logodesign hashtag #branding hashtag #corporateidentity hashtag #logos

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Last August, Kleenex blew this place. The popular tissue brand disappeared from Canadian shelves. Yet Canadians like me will keep asking for a “Kleenex” while grabbing for Scotties, Royale, or whatever other tissue is around. Think about that. The brand that’s been synonymous with facial tissue in Canada since the 1920s... gone. It joins other fascinating examples of brands that became the category name: • Taking “un Kodak” (a photo, in French) • Xeroxing a document • Googling something • Getting on the Escalator (originally a brand name) • Sipping from your Thermos • Doing up your Zipper (originally a B.F. Goodrich trademark) For product makers, it‘s a sobering reminder: Even category dominance – to that absolute pinnacle where your brand name becomes the generic term – doesn't guarantee continued prosperity. Markets change. Consumer preferences evolve. Distribution challenges arise. The biggest irony? Your brand could live on in language long after your product has been squeezed out of the market. Link to full story in comments. 👇 What did I miss? What other generic terms started as brand names? #ProductStrategy #Marketing #BrandEvolution #Innovation

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The #PWHL recently launched the team names and logos for all six franchises, including the team names: ✅ Boston Fleet ✅ Minnesota Frost ✅ Montréal Victoire ✅ New York Sirens ✅ Ottawa Charge ✅ Toronto Sceptres Each design captures the essence of their city, with trends like minimalist shapes, bold colors, and geometric forms making these logos not only striking, but also modern. In branding, simplicity and clarity are key trends, and these logos reflect that perfectly. Much like in video animation, clean lines, bold colour choices, and dynamic storytelling through design can help a brand stand out while resonating with its audience. The animation industry can take cues from these trends, ensuring that videos tell engaging stories while keeping the visuals simple and impactful. Whether it’s through motion graphics or animated logos, design plays a crucial role in enhancing brand identity. What do you think of these Team Names and Logos? #BrandDesign #SportsBranding #LogoDesign #BrandIdentity #VisualStorytelling #SportsMarketing #HockeyBranding

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Great teams build great products. At DanAds we work with the biggest names in publishing and media: McClatchy, Rogers Sports & Media, Outside, and more. That’s why we employ world-class talent to build our platforms, serve our clients, and grow our business. So what do we look for? Curiosity, creativity, and accountability. Curious: we’re building the future of self-serve advertising. Our team is curious about new ways to give publishers and advertisers the best possible expertise and ROI. We stay open to new ideas and tools. Creative: we look at challenges as opportunities and get creative about solving them. We work with our talented partners to create new features that keep our solutions ahead of the curve. Accountable: we earn the trust of our clients and each other. We communicate directly and respectfully, and we get the job done - with no bullshit. Does this sound like you? Check out open positions or recommend someone you know.https://careers.danads.com/jobs

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Two Great Charts that Go Great Together In this installment, two charts that illustrate the power of standing out. The first is the Von Restorff effect which shows that in a sea of sameness, incongruous elements are the most memorable ones. The second chart, from Peter Field, shows that a rational (i.e. boring) ad campaign costs considerably more than an emotional campaign to drive the same results. Together they make a strong case for creativity. At a time when advertisers are more risk-averse than ever, these two charts are a reminder that being different is actually the best way to play it safe.

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In a world filled with corporate jargon and endless acronyms, here’s what I actually do:

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What is Jaguar thinking? A minimalist logo redesign that walks away from decades of brand equity. A spot that creates buzz and conversation but fails to even show the car - auto advertising 101. It is Bud Light - Part Deux. Creative for the sake of creativity that doesn’t connect with the loyal Jaguar customer demo. Applaud the DEI initiatives but this execution is an epic fail. The brand folks need to go back in the past and see how Infiniti walked away from the “show the car” playbook and failed miserably in the 90’s. No wonder the Jaguar stock is down today as the brand craters on many fronts. I’m hard pressed as to what these spots accomplish other than negative buzz. Maybe I’m too old or past my ad agency prime, but I can’t see any upside, only massive downside.

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📱 Let’s Talk Plot Twist: We've Hit Peak Screen Time 🤯 I read some fascinating new data from Insider Intelligence/Emarketer that had me doing a double-take.  While we marketers all buzzing about AI and digital transformation, there's another story quietly unfolding: 📉For the first time EVER, global media consumption is actually declining across almost all channels.  Even mobile usage has flatlined. Here's the tea ☕ - this isn't a crisis, it's actually our moment to get smarter about how we show up online! Think of this as a clarion call for smarter strategy. In an era where Platforms have become the foundation of our communication world, understanding where and how to reach your audience has never been more critical. 🎯 Key takeaways from Emarketer's November 2024 "We've reached peak media consumption" report: - Media fragmentation is accelerating - Single-channel marketing is becoming less effective - Smart TV adoption is rising globally (hello, streaming wars!) - Gen Z is heavily leaning into influencer content - Regional patterns are converging worldwide  The opportunity? This isn't about channels becoming less effective - it's about consumers becoming more selective. They're not just consuming less media; they're consuming it differently. 💡 The Strategy Shift: Instead of chasing attention across every platform, focus on creating meaningful touchpoints where your audience is most receptive. Quality over quantity has never been more relevant.  Screen time is more precious than ever, yep. 🙋🏽 This is precisely why I've been advocating for "P for Platforms" as a crucial addition to traditional 4P’s marketing fundamentals. When media consumption plateaus to more notifiable levels, success lies not in reaching everywhere, but in strategically leveraging platforms to enable engagement and experiences that truly matter. Your turn: Have you noticed changes in your own media consumption lately? Any digital detox for you? Are you becoming more selective about where and how you spend your screen time? I'd love to hear how you're adapting both personally and professionally to this shift in digital media consumption. #MarketingStrategy #DigitalMarketing #SmallBusiness #BusinessTrends2024 #mediahabits

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