Story Power Blog
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Hello and welcome. We’ve introduced new security protocols here at Story Power Marketing. So before you read any further, you must complete a “simple” CAPTCHA puzzle to prove that you are not a robot, alien, aardvark, or orangutan. And by “simple,” I mean:“Isn’t it amazing how SIMPLE it is to turn a perfectly calm human being…
How to Make Your Content More Readable
Notice anything different? A quick story to help you solve the riddle… Last night, I was going through my inbox when I came across an email from a talented coach named Kim. I wanted to read Kim’s email but I didn’t… …because the font was too small. My aging eyes struggled to read it —…
Friendly PR Guy or Satan? You Decide…
I met a “PR guy” named Mark at an online networking event last month. He seemed like a nice guy. (Spoiler-Hint: Remember Al Pacino in The Devil’s Advocate, Robert De Nero in Angel Heart, or Jack Nicholson in The Witches of Eastwick? At first, they seemed like nice guys, too). So I was happy to hear from Mark…
How to Identify Ideal Prospects? Here’s a Hint…
A curious subscriber named Cynthia asked me last week: “If I want to create a business based on my expertise, how do I begin to identify my prospects?” Great question… …because most business people think they’ve identified their prospects well, but most get it (somewhat or totally) wrong. So most waste time and money on marketing…
Monday Mash-Up ~ 2022.06.20
InvitationAsk Tom Anything You’re invited to a special live Zoom event called “Ask Tom Anything.” When: This Wednesday, June 22, 4 p.m. EDT, 3 p.m. CDT. Where: Zoom. Registration: Click the blue button below Anything on your mind now? Ask away asap. If you reply to this email and ask a question right away, I’ll answer it at the beginning…
Avoid This Storytelling Advice at All Costs
A few weeks back, I stumbled across an article by a so-called “storytelling expert” who droned on and on about something called Freytag’s Storytelling Pyramid. Freytag was a 19th-century German playwright. And, unless you’re a glutton for punishment, I have good news for you: You don’t have to know anything about Freytag or his pyramid…
Any Questions?
Next week, I’m going to host a special live Zoom event called “Ask Tom Anything.” You’ll be invited (keep an eye out for an email with the details). Anything on your mind now? Ask away asap. If you reply to this email and ask a question right away, I’ll answer it at the beginning of…
Don’t Market Like This Booger-eating Blowhard
Back in the early 1970s, I was still a wee lad playing kick ball on the blacktop at Conway School… …when I heard the rumor. Cathy Summers eats her own boogers. (GASP!) I don’t remember who started the rumor, and I have no idea if it was true. But I know the booger-rumor stuck. And…
Are You Stuffing Chocolates Down Your Shirt Like Lucy Ricardo?
A few days ago, I watched the old I Love Lucy episode where Lucy and Ethel take a job at the chocolate factory… …and can’t keep pace with the assembly line. It might be the funniest scene in television history. Classic slapstick comedy… …that also has me thinking about business systems. Assembly lines and other automations are…
Monday Mash-Up ~ 2022.06.13
Recommended ListeningRichard Koch on the Tim Ferriss Show Richard Koch is an entrepreneur, investor, former strategy consultant, and author of several books on business and ideas, including four on how to apply the 80/20 principle in all walks of life. In September 2020, Koch was a guest on Tim Ferriss’ podcast. This conversation is a beauty…
Dave Letterman Dissed Us, But We’re Not Gonna Take It
A few days ago, I was watching David Letterman on the living room flat screen. He was interviewing the singer/songwriter Billie Eilish, and he said this: “I have seen your concerts…And the commanding power that emanates from you and the music is stunning. Do you remember the first time you recognized…” Dave paused for a…
If This is Your Mindset, Get a Job at Amazon
Every so often, I hear from a sad-sack marketer who plays the “easy for you to say” card… …as in “Write story-powered emails that captivate prospects? Easy for you to say, Tom. You’re a storytelling genius.” (Sigh!) I heard from someone yesterday who griped about my list-building advice. In yesterday’s email, I encouraged you to…
The Surprisingly Simple Way to Build Your Email List
How can I build my email list? That was the question I got yesterday from a member of my Content Transformation Academy during our weekly group meeting. He has transformed his emails from boring to brilliant. Now he wants to share his content with a larger audience and reap the rewards. My answer: Just ask. …
Why Your “Why” May Miss The Mark — And What You Can do About It
I touched a nerve yesterday. In my Monday Mash-Up yesterday, I shared an article that called “B.S.” on Simon Sinek’s “start with why.” I received lots of replies from subscribers who agreed. No one defended Sinek. Sinek’s big idea from his 2010 TED talk, “People don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it.” That…
Monday Mash-Up ~ 2022.06.06
Recommended ReadingWhy ‘Know Your Why’ Isn’t Great Content Marketing Advice I say this often: Storytelling for business is not about fashioning your origin story. It’s about discovering your prospects’ stories. That’s why I love this article by Robert Rose. So many marketers “start with why,” thanks to Simon Sinek who touted the idea in his TED talk…
Do Toddlers Write Better Emails? You may be Surprised…
Yesterday, while I was walking Moose around the block (actually, Moose was walking me) I heard this gem from marketing master Justin Blackman: “Want your writing to sound more natural? Make zero effort to sound smart. That’s it…Sentences are short, and my vocabulary is on par with a toddler. And no big words. I just…
Today’s Email From Me
Quick question: Why did you open this email? Really, it’s not a trick question. Please shoot me a quick reply and let me know. You can do that now (the rest of this email can wait). … … … So…back to the question at hand… Why’d you open the email? It couldn’t have been the…
Why I Called B.S. on my Friend Who Said All Marketers are Liars
I met yesterday with a friend who’s feeling down in the dumps. His business is struggling and so is he. And even though he’s a brilliant mindset coach, he now questions everything he’s doing – including all things marketing. “I don’t like marketing,” he told me. “It’s the use of psychology to deceive people into…
Invitation: Stand Out Above the Trash-generating Crowd
The email from longtime subscriber “Scott H” landed in my inbox last week with a “thud” It flashed as a notification on my iPhone’s home screen, revealing just the first line… “I have a problem with your…emails…” “Uh-oh!” I thought. I took a deep breath, sat up straight, and clicked the notification to open the…
Monday Mash-Up ~ 2022.05.30
Memorial Day ViewingHonoring Soldiers on Both Sides of the Battlefield Memorial Day. Every year around this time, I re-watch Flags of Our Fathers and Letters from Iwo Jima — a pair of films directed by Clint Eastwood and released in 2006. Both tell the story of the Battle of Iwo Jima — “Flags…” from the perspective of the Americans and…
Storytelling Lessons From a Good Song by Taylor Swift
Driving yesterday from St. Louis to Kansas City, Melissa and I listened to one of my favorite podcasts called “Good Songs.” The singer/songwriter Peter Himmelman and his son Isaac pick a song they love and discuss it briefly. As we drove through Kingdom City, MO, we listened to the episode about Taylor Swift’s song “Tis…
How to Rise Above The Dime-a-dozen
I got a GREAT email last week from world-class marketer Dave Dee. Dave told about a conversation he had with a lawyer who thought creative, personalized marketing was below him. “I didn’t go to law school to be seen as a celebrity,” the lawyer told Dave. I hear the same from some coaches, consultants, and…
The Difference Between “Motion” and “Action” — and Why it Matters
In the Mastermind Book Club this month, we’re discussing Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones, by James Clear. You’re invited to join us tomorrow for our monthly meeting (Thursday 5/26, 1 p.m. EDT, 10 a.m. PDT). You can join the Club here (it’s free). Club members will discuss lessons learned…
I Wanted to “Murder” the Prosecutor in This Murder Trial. Here’s the Story…
As jury selection entered its second hour, with no end in sight, the prosecutor strolled slowly to his table, grabbed his notes, paged through them, paused, paged through them some more, took a deep breath, and then asked, “Have any of you ever had a negative encounter with a prosecutor that would prevent you from…
Monday Mash-Up ~ 2022.05.23
Recommended ReadingSeth Godin on Quality vs. Quantity Here’s another short blog post from Seth Godin that packs a big punch. Here’s a bit from the post… “The media and our culture push us to build something for everyone, to sand off the edges and to invest in infrastructure toward scale. But it turns out that quality, magic…
Entertainment vs. Sales — Which Matters More? (Hint: It’s a Trick Question)
I was up past my bedtime last night watching the NHL playoffs (St. Louis Blues 4, Colorado Avalanche 1. Woo-hoo!) And I had to rush downtown this morning to report for jury duty. So I’m sitting here, sleep-deprived, in the St. Louis Municipal Courts jury waiting room (quite possibly the dreariest place in the galaxy). The…
How to Know if You’re Sending Too Many Emails
After sending my daily email yesterday (subject line: “I didn’t punch Chad in the face, but his email tempted me” — which you can read here) I received a reply from a surprised-to-be-happy subscriber named Kimberly. When she signed up for my list earlier this month, she was hesitant. Daily emails? Not her thing, she thought. …
I Didn’t Punch Chad in The Face, But his Email Tempted Me
I woke this morning to an email from a guy named Chad who claimed his appointment-setting firm could add “an extra 20K to 40K” to my monthly recurring revenue. Wow! What a promise. The email contained a video. And in the video, Chad said this: “We have a system that allows us to harvest anywhere…
The tragic Tale of Sweetie and The Prince of Joy
Sana met “Prince of Joy” in an online chat room after she grew tired of her husband, Adnan. She called herself “Sweetie” in the chat room, and she poured her heart out to Prince of Joy. Prince poured back. They had so much in common. Both from Bosnia. Both in loveless marriages. Both looking for…
Monday Mash-Up ~ 2022.05.16
Recommended ReadingCreative Thinking – What’s Holding You Back? Brian Clark was serving up great, creative content before “content marketing” was a thing. He created Copyblogger, one of my favorite sites for marketing tips. Here’s a post by Brian from last year that I especially like. I say this often: Every one can deliver content that…
Ripped From the Headlines: Wacky News Stories that Make Great Emails
Every so often, my buddy Adam sends me a link with a challenge to “email this.” Sometimes it’s a link to a crazy discussion thread on Reddit. Often, it’s a random, funny news story. My favorite “email this” challenge was a news story about status-hungry Chinese big-shots and strippers (more on that in a moment). …
The Power of Scratch-between-the-ears Marketing
Moose is jealous. For those of you just tuning in, Moose is my dog (Melissa claims him, too). He’s big and brown, with floppy ears, like a moose, and he’s usually the only dog around. But there’s a new dog in town. His name is Cooper, named after a place called Cooper’s Landing in Alaska…
How I Broke my Monstrous Cookie Habit
Three days after the Girl Scout cookies arrived, I couldn’t find them. I searched all over the kitchen. In the snack cabinet? Nope. The freezer? Not there. That tiny never-used space above the fridge that requires a step ladder to reach? Not there, either. As I stepped down from the ladder, I yelled for my…
This Braggy Bigshot is Full of BS, so I Dumped Him
A few months back, I saw a video on Facebook by a marketer named Victory. The video begins with a camera panning across his well-appointed bedroom. Victory strolls into the frame, sits on his king size bed, ties his fashionable shoes, and then marches from his room down the stairs and out the front-door of…
Monday Mash-Up ~ 2022.05.09
Free WorkshopMonday Morning Live Event Starting Soon Here’s a good way to start the week: Discover… How to Build Emotional Bondswith Prospects So They’llChoose to Buy from You That’s the title of the one-hour workshop I’m hosting today… …and it starts soon — 10:30 a.m. CDT, 8:30 a.m. PDT. You may still have time to…
Lessons From a World-class Marketer Who Loved my Email
I got lots of great feedback from subscribers after sending an email yesterday about my humiliating Cinco de Mayo mishap. My favorite response came from the great Michael DeLon — America’s Foremost Authority on Credibility Marketing — who said: “Well done! I could just picture being at the table, drinking margaritas with you… and telling you, ‘You have salsa on…
Ai yi yi! This was Embarrassing…
When Dr. Ruth Allan asked me during a podcast interview to, “tell us about an embarrassing thing that happened to you,” I didn’t hesitate. I’ve deposited piles of embarrassments in my memory bank. But Ruth was interviewing me during the first week in May, so I had to trot out the story of… My humiliating Cinco…
A Simpler Way to Ensure the (Storytelling) Force Is With You
Yo! It’s Star Wars Day. May the fourth be with you! (Get it!?) So dust off your Chewbacca costume. Fire up your lightsaber. And let the celebration begin! One thing… …I won’t be joining you. I have nothing against the Star Wars movies. It’s not my favorite sci-fi (that honor goes to Battlestar Galactica, the 2004-09 edition), but…
How Richard Transformed an Email from Boring to Brilliant
Here’s a content transformation story starring my client Richard Terry. Richard runs Accolade Kitchen and Bath in my hometown, St. Louis, MO, USA. Richard’s promise: Help clients take their outdated kitchens, bathrooms, and closets and transform them into Gourmet Playgrounds, Spa-Like Retreats, and Personal Sanctuaries. Promise kept for Melissa and me. Richard transformed our kitchen…
Monday Mash-Up ~ 2022.05.02
Les “The Time Lord” Watson + How to Outsource to a Virtual Assistant + Dan Ariely re: Irrational Humans and Pricing Strategy + The Marketoonist re: Loyalty Programs + DaVinci re: the “Urgency of Doing”
Why I Died of Boredom and How to Keep from Killing Your Prospects
Yesterday, I was minding my own business, scrolling through a news feed, when I came across an article that preached storytelling. And, mercy me, that article was…. …BORING! I read the first sentence and quickly began to tune out. My eyelids were heavy. My head began to bob. Then I got to the part that…
You’re Invited…
Tomorrow, I’m hosting a live workshop (on Zoom) called… How to Harness the Power of Storytelling to Boost Sales — without Pitching and Prodding When: Friday, 4/29, 11:30-12:30 p.m. EDT, 10:30-11:30 a.m. CDT. Where: Zoom. Click the button below to reserve your spot Here’s a sneak peek… I’ll share the story of a business owner who was…
? Why I’m Focused on Habit-formation
A few days back, I was seeing double. Not in the metaphorical, mad-as-hell kind of way. No, I was literally seeing double. On Saturday, I began wearing glasses with progressive lenses. I’ve used reading glasses for the last few years. But I can’t wear those while driving or at a hockey game or watching…
A Marketing Legend’s Wise Take on Storytelling
I love it when the legends praise “story power.” It happened again yesterday. An email from Drayton Bird. He’s a living legend – among the most influential and successful marketers and copywriters alive. And in his email he broke down a century old ad for a mail-order business course. The ad tells “the story of…
Monday Mash-Up ~ 2022.04.25
A Customer Support Horror Story + A Unique Way to Deal with a Writing Deadline + Aretha Reinvents a Legendary Song + Two Comedy Greats Discuss Great Comedians + re: Babe Ruth’s Homruns and Strikeouts
Why The Wrong Way is Often The Right Way to Persuade and Teach
Once in a while, I share with you stories about the wrong way to market your business. Like this story about a marketer who pretended she’d sent me a personal note when it was, actually, a message sent to everyone on her list. Or this story about a marketer who sent me a sales pitch disguised as a…
The Most Important Holiday You’ve Never Heard Of
Happy Get to Know Your Customers Day. Let the confetti fly! Do you have any big celebrations planned? A confession: I didn’t know there was such a holiday until a few days back when I consulted my calendar of strange holidays. Strange holidays make great hooks for emails so I check the calendar often. Some are…
The Wreck Wasn’t My Fault, But This Was…
Yesterday, I shared the story of how a hit-and-run driver wrecked my car. I was stopped at an intersection. The truck driver cut a left turn too tightly and slammed their trailer into my car. I didn’t get the driver’s license plate. No company logos or other identifying info on the truck or trailer. No recording…
Why I Won’t Treat You How This Truck Driver Treated Me…
A few hours before leaving on my family vacation last week, I was running errands around town when this happened… I was in my car, idling in the intersection turn lane, waiting for the left-turn arrow, turning the radio to another station. Not a care in the world… …and then the airbag exploded in my…
Monday Mash-Up ~ 2022.04.18
Rewriting the Stories We Tell Ourselves + Is This Syndrome Sinking Your Sales? + Picking the Brain of an Egyptian Scientist + A Deep Track by The Monkees + Conan O’Brien on Worst Fears Realized
Why Home is Better Than Oz to Build Your Business
Last weekend, I watched The Wizard of Oz for the zillionth time. The first time I watched it, I was terrified. You know, the flying monkeys and all. But this time I wasn’t scared. I was inspired. Dorothy dished out some inspiring wisdom right before she clicked her heels and returned to Kansas. “If I ever go…
Opening Day Marketing Wisdom From Yogi
Major League Baseball opening day… …makes me think of Yogi Berra… …and something he once said: “If people don’t want to come to the ballpark, how are you gonna stop them?” Yogi was a Hall-of-Fame catcher for the New York Yankees – not a marketing genius. But those words are loaded with profound marketing wisdom. …
The One Word That Can Make You More Persuasive
Here’s a quick story that reveals how a single word can make you more persuasive. That word: Because A Harvard social psychologist Ellen Langer sent researchers to a copy store near campus to study how powerful that word can be. Researchers, posing as customers, visited the store multiple times and asked if they could skip…
How to Captivate an Audience — the Zelensky Way
On March 8, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky appeared on video before the British House of Commons. He delivered a defiant, confident speech that included these words: “We will not give up, and we will not lose. We will fight to the end, at sea, in the air, we will continue fighting for our land, whatever…
Monday Mash-Up ~ 2022.04.04
Organize All Your Shift + Brian Kurtz’s Tribute to Joe Sugarman + The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey + “Coming Home” by Drew and Ellie Holcomb + re: Procrastination
How to Consistently Create Never-boring Content
In case you missed, I sent an email yesterday that was bursting with dick jokes. Vance Morris dared me to do it (“…use “oversize reproductive assemblage” in an email to your audience,” he said). And I rose to the challenge. There’s a big lesson in that email (you can read the archived email for that)… …but there’s…
R-rated Lessons Enclosed. I Dare You to Read On.
It’s not every day that someone triple-dog-dares you… …but that’s exactly what my friend Vance Morris did yesterday. I’ll get to that story in a moment. But first, a warning: When I turn this email into a movie, The Motion Picture Association of America will give it an R rating. So if you’re the G…
A Cautionary Tale About a Marketer’s Trust-busting Email…
I got an eye-roll-inducing email yesterday from a marketer named Stephanie. I signed up for her list a few months ago. So technically, this wasn’t SPAM… …but it sure felt like it. Here’s what it said: Hi there Tom, I wanted to send you a special note, but I don’t have your mailing address 🙂…
You’re Invited (Today)…
If you’re free today at 3 p.m. CENTRAL, here’s an idea… Be my guest as I reveal… 9 secrets to write client-attracting, story-powered content (the Joe Sugarman way). Here’s what you’ll learn… Eight “magic” words that transform readers from tuned-out do-nothings to turned-on buyers The single, most important thing your copy needs to keep prospects’…
Monday Mash-Up ~ 2022.03.28
Joe+Joe — Polish Interviews Sugarman + You’re Invited… + The Implied Trade-Off with Loyalty Programs + Is Persuasion Legal? Ethical? Where Do You Draw the Line + The Medicine Man by Keb’ Mo’ + Tom Peters Says “Think Small!”
The story-powered Ad That Launched an Eyeglasses Empire
We lost a legend this week — Joe Sugarman, a copywriting great, who taught me (and countless others) tons about marketing. He wrote many great books, including The Adweek Copywriting Handbook. I pulled that book from my shelf yesterday and flung it open to the place I dog-eared long ago: Page 178. The section about storytelling.…
Ben Franklin’s Wily Way to Turn Foes to Friends
Want to turn an enemy into an ally? Here’s a story I got from chapter 18 of “Yes!” by Robert Cialdini – this month’s selection in the Mastermind Book Club (more on that below). Back in colonial times, long before he graced the $100-bill, Benjamin Franklin was running for reelection as an officer for a literary and…
I Missed the Holiday. Here’s a Pot o’ Gold to Make up For It…
Happy Belated World Storytelling Day. The big day was Sunday. I can’t believe I missed it. 🙁 I usually round up a bunch of my storytelling pals, head down to the corner tavern, and get drunk on green beer… …um…check that… Different holiday. World Storytelling Day? I don’t have any special alcohol-soaked traditions. In fact, I…
How my Client Overcame a Dreaded, Business-Crushing Disease
“I don’t have an interesting story,” Elizabeth said. Her shoulders slumped. She stared at her shoes. Elizabeth was a client. We’d discussed how storytelling captivates prospects and inspires them to act. She understood and agreed. But then she told me she didn’t have what it takes. “There’s nothing about me worth telling. My story is…
Monday Mash-Up ~ 2022.-03.21
How to Make Your Business Grow Without Being a Braggy, Bigshot Bro + How Content Marketing Has Evolved + Is Persuasion Legal? + 9 Strategies To Make Content Creation Effective And Enjoyable + Prepare for the BEST
The Great Peanut Fiasco and What it Reveals for Your Business
All I wanted was a friggin’ bag of peanuts! Last night, at the NHL hockey game between (my beloved) St. Louis Blues and the Pittsburgh Penguins, I had a hankering for some salt and crunch. Peanuts in the shell. Some water to wash ‘em down. It was between the first and second periods so the…
How to Turn “Yawns” to “Yeses” When You Ask for Email Signups
Want to know one of the best ways to inspire more qualified prospects to join your email list? Sell them on the idea of subscribing. Seems kind of obvious, doesn’t it? Yet so many business people undersell their emails. They put a little form on their site with a headline “Join our email list” (or…
How to Build Your Email List with the Right Prospects
I’m hosting a free workshop tomorrow (Thursday, March 17) at 3 p.m. EST, 2 p.m. CST) called: 5 Ways to Build Your Email List with the Right Prospects. This is a 5in25 presentation – five tips in 25 minutes – followed by discussion and Q&A. If you want to join us, sign up here.
Mastermind Book Club is live. Join now…
The Mastermind Book Club is live. And You’re invited… Go to MasterMindBook.club to join. Ted Prodromou and I started the club to help ourselves (and YOU) turn all those books we read into business-advancing action. Here’s how it works… Ted and I will choose a book every month. We will share insights they draw from the books. Community…
Monday Mash-Up ~ 2022.03.14
Goodreads is a Great Resource for Book Lovers + How the Chandlers Built Goodreads + How to Accomplish More in Less Time + Setting the Table + …from Albert Einstein
This Book Proves the Power of Rapport-Building
When I make a new connection on LinkedIn, I usually send a direct message ice-breaker to build rapport with the person. Often I’ll say, “Please tell me something about you that I wouldn’t know by reading your profile…” and then I share something about myself. I got that idea from Ted Prodromou (America’s Leading LinkedIn…
This Club Will Break All The Rules — in a Good Way
Every few months my wife, Melissa, leaves me. It’s not the pack-her-bags, move-back-to-her-mom’s, and call-a-lawyer kind of leave me. It’s the Book-Club-in-four-days kind of leave me. And it goes like this… Tom: It’s a Wonderful Life is on TV tonight. You love that movie. Wanna watch it? Melissa (with 3-inch thick Toni Morrison novel propped on her…
Monday Mash-Up ~ 2022.03.07
My Birthday and My Dad + Remembering “Bloody Sunday” + The Go-Giver Marriage + Tim Ferriss Interviews Neil Gaiman + …from John Lewis
Why I Should Have Dumped That Rotten Client Sooner…
I fired a client last month. It felt great. I should have done it several months ago, but I balked. This client didn’t return emails, voicemails or texts. Didn’t complete work they promised. Didn’t meet deadlines for work they delivered. Then, they would pop up out of the blue and bark some command at me,…
Why That Email Signup Raffle Will Backfire
I spotted the following this morning on one of my favorite online marketing forums: “I have a trade show coming up. I want to take advantage of the traffic and grow my email list. The best thing I can think of is an email sign up raffle…What is the best way to approach this?” …
Monday Mash-Up ~ 2022.02.28
Before It Happened + Donna Loughlin on the Story Power Marketing Show + Sleep Better with Light-Blocking Stickers + 6 Grammar Rules You Can Break + …from John Steinbeck
The Dirty Little Secret About the “Best Content Money Can Buy”
A couple of days ago, I told you about a sad-sack business owner who decided “email doesn’t work” because it hasn’t worked for her. She was hunting for a content delivery channel that works. I wrote to her and said the problem might be her content, not the delivery channel. I’ve been doing this for…
Why Hunting For a Better Marketing Tool is a Waste of Time
Breaking news: If you want to convert leads to clients… Email doesn’t work. Neither does text. Same goes for video So says a frustrated consultant who posted a cry for help on Facebook “20 years in business, I don’t remember ever it being this hard to connect with prospects. Text and email, videos, and articles…
Monday Mash-Up ~ 2022.02.21
Four Leadership Lessons from Abraham Lincoln + The Go-Giver Marriage + Maxine Cunningham and I Discuss the Power of One-to-Ones + Six Strategies To Stop Procrastinating + Abraham Lincoln
The Mindset You Need to Build a Gold-Medal Business
Last night, I stayed up late to watch women’s Olympic hockey – the gold medal match between the USA and Canada. Canada won 3-2, powered by two goals from captain Marie-Philip Poulin. This was Poulin’s fourth Olympic gold-medal game. She’s the only hockey player ever (woman or man) to score in four Olympic gold-medal games.…
Master Copywriters’ Simple Formula to Captivate Prospects…
I read some great advice last week from my friend Jack Turk, “The World’s Fastest Copywriter.” If you want prospects to pay attention to you — your webinar, your sales letter, your landing page, your emails — you must do as the great Dan Kennedy does… Say interesting things in interesting ways. That sums up…
Monday Mash-Up ~ 2022.02.14
How a Hotel Owner Discovered the Story to Skyrocket Sales + How to Build a Bliss Station + How to Communicate with Humans + A Book About Cults & More + Frederick Douglass
Marketing Lessons From the Prince of Denmark
Picture this: Your dad, the King, is sleeping in the castle garden. His brother creeps into the garden, kills Dad by pouring poison in his ear, marries the Queen, and takes the throne. So it went for Prince Hamlet of Denmark – at least in William Shakespeare’s version of the story. At first, Hamlet thought…
You Know The One About “the company you keep?” What do you think?
I love it when high-quality people call B.S. on me… …hold me accountable… …get me out of my rut… …share a perspective I hadn’t considered… …inspire me to implement, not dawdle… …encourage me to be my best… …and then guide me to be even better. And I love to offer peers all of the above. …
Monday Mash-Up ~ 2022.02.07
The Hidden Danger in Copying Successful People + Do You Talk At or Converse With Your Prospects + The Art, Drama and Power of Olympic Competition + Why I Noodle, Doodle, and Jot + re: Creativity
A Unique Chance to Create Dangerously Entertaining Content
My favorite Alfred Hitchcock movie is The Trouble With Harry. It’s not a thriller or murder mystery… …although there is a dead body. The dead guy is Harry. He’s lying flat on his back in the woods in Vermont, with a bullet hole in his head, dead as a bug on a windshield. The movie is…
Ashamed to Sell? Nuh-uh. Here’s the Key…
There’s this bloke down under named Daniel Throssell who fills my inbox with entertaining (and informative) story-powered emails every day. I’d like to tell you about a pair of emails he sent last month… …because they’re so spot on… …and so relevant to anyone who has ever struggled with selling their services. Last month, Daniel…
Monday Mash-Up 2022.01.31
Train Your Brain To Become a Learning Machine + PickMyBrain.world + Doreen Downing on the Story Power Marketing Show + The Giant Hand Of Vyrnwy + The Voyage of Discovery
Willie Nelson and The Power of Creative Content
A few days ago, I began reading a book called Keep Going by Austin Kleon. On the very first page, Kleon shares a quote from Willie Nelson. The quote keeps rattling around in my brain: “I think I need to keep being creative, not to prove anything but because it makes me happy just to do it……
My Shameful Trip Down the Social Media Rabbit Hole
I read a GREAT thing yesterday. It’s from Austin Kleon’s book Steal Like an Artist… “You’re going to see a lot of stupid stuff out there and you’re going to feel like you need to correct it. One time I was up late on my laptop and my wife yelled at me, ‘Quit picking fights on…
Monday Mash-Up ~ 2022.01.24
Show, Don’t Tell + InnovaBuzz with Jürgen Strauss + Jon Keel on the Story Power Marketing Show + A Book to Keep You From Getting Spread Too Thin + From Essentialism…
The Second-Greatest Thing I’ve Ever Done in the Shower…
Remember that time you were in the shower… …and a great idea popped into your head… …and by the time you stepped out of the shower… …the idea was GONE! That used to happen to me all the time. But no longer. Earlier this week, I got me some AquaNotes! (Thanks, Todd Cherches, for telling…
When Content Inspiration Strikes, Will You be Ready?
Paul McCartney says his song “Yesterday” came to him in a dream. Shazam! The song popped into his head while he was sleeping. He wrote it down when he woke. I’ve never had a song, email, or anything else I create appear to me in a dream. Bad luck for me, I guess. But that…
Monday Mash-Up – 2022.01.17
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. + The Power of Visual Thinking + My Favorite New Podcast: Storytime with Seth Rogen + The Sales-Generating Power of Being Helpful + The Courier
Why the World Needs Another Friggin Podcast
A few weeks before I launched my podcast, The Story Power Marketing Show, I shared some of the details with my pal Adam and asked for his feedback. He liked the podcast graphic, introduction, and other details. And then he wrote (with a wink and a smile), “Because…just what the world needs…another friggin’ podcast!” Yeah, I used…
So Many Stories to Create. So Few Ideas. How to Fix That…
Yesterday, I heard “storytelling expert” on a podcast say, “businesses need to get their STORY right.” I hear that a lot. Story. Singular. As in ONE story. As if storytelling for business is about getting ONE story right, and then you’re done. But that’s not how it works. If you want to break through the…
Monday Mash-Up ~ 2022.02.10
John Carlton on Quality vs. Quantity + How to Get Paid What You Deserve + The Author of Overdeliver Reflects on the Value He Brings + The Art of Noticing + re: The Thrill of Noticing
How to Generate Great Content Ideas Without Hurting Yourself
Beth subscribes to my email list, and yesterday she signed up for my upcoming How-to-Generate-Content-Ideas workshop. She wants some help. When she registered for the workshop, I asked, “How do you come up with content ideas now?” Beth’s reply: LOL… is this a trick question?!?!? I sprint from a dead stop into a chain link…
Quick Question
No story today. Just a quick heads-up and question… I’m planning to host a free, hour-long workshop later this month (date TBD) to reveal how to create more interesting and entertaining content (emails, blogs, social posts, etc.) without getting stuck. I’ll focus on how to generate a flood of great ideas so you can kiss…
There’s a Holiday for THIS!? It’s True
In case it slipped your mind, a reminder: Today is National Spaghetti Day Yes, today! You didn’t know? Me neither, until I consulted HolidaysCalendar.com. Because of that site, I never miss a big holiday like this one. More on that in a moment, but first… …in honor of the big day, I’d like to…