Story Power Blog
Ben Franklin Effect
When Ben Franklin was a young man, he turned a rival into a fan with a brilliant, counterintuitive move. Ben had co-founded a literary and debate society and served as clerk. When he ran for reelection as clerk, the rival ripped Ben in a long, hateful speech. Rather than counterpunch, Ben asked the hater for…
Frozen in The Cereal Aisle
I nearly had a nervous breakdown in Aisle 8 at the grocery store on Sunday. There I stood, in the cereal aisle, reading the shopping list my wife created. Item 15 on the list: âHealthy Cereal.â I marched up and down the aisle, scanning the shelves. Should I buy the Kashi or the Kelloggâs? Barbaraâs…
Tim Dean Life Coach
When I asked Tim Dean to describe his ideal client for me, his answer blew me away. Tim is a life coach whom I ran into at a networking event. His ideal client: âParents of a millenial son or daughter who is living at home.â Weâve all heard the old adage about finding a niche…
Niagara Falls
In 1911, Bobby Leach went over Niagara Falls in a barrel. On purpose. He broke a few bones and spent a few months in the hospital. But that was OK with him. He survived⌠…and then he cashed in on his fame. He wasnât the first person to survive that fall. A woman named Annie…
Ear Doctor Normalizes Waiting
I caught a radio ad recently for an ear doctor who encouraged listeners to get their hearing checked. She said most people will rush to the eye doctor if they have fuzzy vision. But when people notice their hearing get fuzzy, many will put off a checkup. Sometimes theyâll wait for years. Donât wait, she…
Jacob and United Airlines
I got a call last month from my son, Jacob, who declared, âIâm never flying United Airlines again!â Hereâs why he was so upset⌠Jacob was at the Denver airport, at one of those self-serve check-in kiosks. It was crowded and hectic. There was a long line to get through security. He was frazzled. He…
The #1 Reason Albert Pujols and Your Customers Break Up With You
Baseball great Albert Pujols got his 3,000th hit earlier this month. Iâve rooted all my life for the St. Louis Cardinals. So it broke my heart when Pujols broke up with the Cardinals in 2012 to join the Anaheim Angels. The heartache reminded me of my ninth-grade girlfriend, Susie Wallace. Susie and I had just…
Job Seeker Nukes Urine
WARNING: You may never microwave a convenience store burrito again after reading this kinda-gross, but kinda-funny(?) story!!! A job-seeker in Aurora, CO prepped for an interview and drug test by taking a cup of urine to a 7-11 near her prospective employerâs office. She popped the urine in the oven, set it to “High,” pressed start…
Lots of Women’s Emails From Nordstrom’s
This is a tale about how to annoy email subscribers and encourage them to opt-out. I signed up for Nordstrom Rackâs email list last year after I bought a couple of shirts from them. Menâs shirts (Iâm a man). Since then, Iâve received almost-daily emails from Nordstromâs. Eighty percent of the emails peddle womenâs products.…
Curb: Larry Passes on Lunch
I watched a rerun of Curb Your Enthusiasm yesterday in which Larry David gets into it with a guy who asks him to lunch. Larry and this guy are both from LA, but they run into each other in New York. The guy suggests that he and Larry grab lunch the next day. Larry refuses. âSo let…
Wisdom Teeth Dummy
When I was a dumb kid, I feared my IQ would drop if I had my wisdom teeth pulled. I was over that by the time I was 19 and dating Kathy. She had her wisdom teeth pulled the summer we dated. She couldnât stand the pain. I suggested she rinse with warm salt water.…
Borrowing Email Lists Greitens Etc.
The meeting went off the rails when I asked, âHow are you going to build your email list?â The nonprofit executive director replied, âWeâre going to borrow lists from some other nonprofits we partner with.â âI recommend against that,â I said. âBut we do that all the time with direct (postal) mail,â she said. I…
Red Delicious Apple
The last time I ate a Red Delicious apple, I thought, âHmmm. âRed Delicious?â Thatâs half-true. Red? Yes. Delicious? Not so muchâ?â Bad texture. Bland taste. All beauty. No substance. How can something so pretty and shiny be so terrible? I discovered the nasty secret in this great article in The Atlantic. Reds used to be delicious.…
Left-Handed Whopper
On April Foolâs Day 1998, Burger King ran a full-page advertisement in USA Today to introduce the new âLeft-Handed Whopperâ The ad proclaimed: âFinally, after years of neglect, left-handed eaters will no longer need to conform to traditional right-handed eating methods when enjoying Americaâs favorite burger.â Highlights: âWhopper rotated a full 180-degrees to ensure better grip on bunâŚâ âRearranged orientation of…
Girlfriend Flowers
Back in high school, I had a crush on Amanda, but she had a boyfriend named Cam. A few days before her 16th birthday, she was flirting with me, bad-mouthing Cam, hinting that he was toast. So I made my move. During the birthday party at her house, I snuck up to her room with…
Pedestrian Bridge Marketing Failure
The following story discusses one company’s marketing failure related to the pedestrian bridge collapse in Florida. I hesitated before sharing this story. I didn’t want to make light of the tragedy or dishonor the six people who died in Florida. I’ve chosen to proceed with the email because I think it contains a valuable marketing…
Dude Checks Gas Leak With Match
I ran across an article the other day about a dumb dude in Michigan who smelled gas coming from his newly installed water heater. He checked for the leak by lighting a match. He shoulda died, but he got off easy⌠…with singed eyebrows. Mixing fire and gas leak — that wasn’t his first mistake. …
Ketchup and Hardcore Porn
Did you hear the one about the ketchup bottle and the hardcore pornography site? Whoh! Settle down now. Itâs not what you think. This is a G-rated story that is super-pertinent for anyone marketing a business. Turns out that the good folks at Heinz sold ketchup bottles in Germany that promoted a contest website. But…
Foot Powder Elected
This is the story of how a bottle of foot powder was elected Mayor of a town in Ecuador. Iâm not kidding. During the 1967 mayoral election in PicoazĂ (population 4,000), a foot powder company launched an ad campaign with this slogan: âVote for any candidate, but if you want well-being and hygiene, vote for…
Toilet Instructions
I recently spent a couple of weeks in New Zealand. Beautiful country. One of the most memorable things I saw there: Signs illustrating the right way to pooh. This is not B.S. These signs were as common as fart jokes in a boys locker room. On the right⌠a drawing of a person sitting on…
Groundhog Day
I hope you had a joyous Groundhog Day! (It was last Tuesday, in case you missed it). Truth be told, I can live without the holiday. But I love the movie. Weatherman Phil Connor (Bill Murray) wakes each morning in Punxsutawney, PA for a Groundhog Day do-over. On each of these days, Phil runs into an…
Leonardo’s Perfection Problem
In Monday’s email, I recommended the new biography Leonardo DaVinci (by Walter Isaacson). Great read. Lots of interesting stories. Many business lessons. Here’s one: In 1480, monks hired Leo to create a painting of the Adoration of the Magi. Leo started the project, but he stopped before finishing. Leo imagined the perfect painting, but he couldnât achieve that perfection.…
Dump the Grammar Guide
Back in high school I had a basketball coach who didnât win any spelling bees or grammar contests. Once, after we failed to run the play he called during practice, he stormed onto the court, screaming: âJeez, yous guys! Donât you know the American language!?â Smart-ass kids that we were, we used to mock Coach…
Fastest Surgeon
Iâm not a surgeon. And I donât play one on TV. But I know this much: If youâre operating on ONE patient, and THREE people die, youâve botched the job. That really happened — to Dr. Robert Liston, who was famous in the 19th century for being the fastest surgeon around. In those days, before…
Bubblegum Broccoli
Here’s what McDonald’s CEO Don Thompson said when describing bubblegum-flavored broccoli that the company developed a few years ago: âIt wasnât all that.â Huh!? Put yourself in the shoes of those poor kids who tasted this Frankenstein “food.” Imagine what you might have said if you sampled the stuff. Itâs gotta be more (lots more) than, âIt wasnât…
- « Previous
- 1
- …
- 9
- 10
- 11