Soporte

Last week, I discussed the new brick-and-mortar Amazon entry: a big box store with a large helping of Amazon logistics, data mining, and merchandise expertise. As part of that Amazon discussion, two brand stumbling blocks came under scrutiny. One: Amazon’s continued lack of understanding of customers in brick-and-mortar grocery stores. Two, Amazon’s lack of designing and articulating brand-relevant differentiation. The latest news is that Amazon is closing all of its Amazon Fresh and Amazon Go...

This past weekend, more than sixty Minnesota-based CEOs signed an open letter calling for “immediate de-escalation” and cooperation after unrest connected to federal immigration enforcement operations and two fatal shootings. The letter is restrained. It doesn’t perform moral certainty. It doesn’t posture as a conscience. It doesn’t sound like the world can be solved in a paragraph. It reads more like an attempt to hold the center of the room while everyone in it is...

A recent furor over Tottenham Hotspur’s use of “Can’t Smile Without You” is, on the surface, an easy story. A songwriter, who happens to support Arsenal, objects to Spurs playing ‘his’ song. Lawyers mutter about licenses. Fans roll their eyes. Tabloids sharpen the rivalry angle. Case closed. Except it isn’t. Because beneath the banter sits a far more interesting and unresolved question: when does licensed use become cultural appropriation, and when does a brand’s legal...

Picture a golf course at dawn. Traditionally, you’d hear the rumble of diesel engines as heavy mowers lumber across fairways, compacting soil and guzzling fuel. At Royal Porthcawl in South Wales, site of the 2024 Women’s British Open, something different happened. The fairways were cut overnight by a fleet of small, silent robots — the first time a major championship has been maintained this way. This wasn’t a startup’s moonshot. It was the culmination of...

Once again, Amazon is startling the retail landscape. Now, it is the arrival of a big brick-and-mortar store: 230,000 square feet. The reporters say this square footage is about the size of two Target stores and larger than an average Walmart. This new Amazon megastore is headed for an exurb of Chicago, IL. For almost 10 years, Amazon has been educating itself and experimenting with brick-and-mortar, non-online retail establishments, grocery, and non-grocery. Not all of...

B2B marketers have been through a lot in recent years: Covid, the push for profitable growth, layoffs, and…

Every year, branding trends promise something new. In 2026, they’re not starting over. The trends we identified in…

From all my years in research and consulting, I think I’ve learned a thing or two about marketing worth sharing. Enduring fundamentals, mostly yet often overlooked. So, this year, I’m sharing some for your consideration. I hope they’re helpful. This week’s thought: Marketing is the conscience of business. Business leaders are one of the least trusted groups in America. This has long been true. There are many reasons why, but the constantly refreshed rogue’s gallery...

New Year. Same tendencies for trouble. Not a surprise. The lack of understanding of brands and the disregard for brand-building growth and maintenance principles continue to plague organizations, leading to unprofitable, short-term performance. Forget, for the moment, the amazing digital, technical, and AI disruptions and innovations: there are basic brand principles that must not only be observed but also acted upon at your peril to enduring profitable growth. There are overarching problems that happen when...

In December 2024, Omnicom merged with IPG, eliminating approximately 4,000 jobs. Among those displaced were hundreds of brand strategists who had spent their entire careers honing the art of positioning, differentiation, and cultural resonance. They didn’t lose their jobs because they weren’t talented or dedicated. They lost them because the infrastructure they relied on—the promise-making apparatus of the advertising age—collapsed from obsolescence. This wasn’t a cyclical downturn. It was structural. And understanding why requires an...