Practical guides on marketing strategy, measurement and growth.

Written for founders and marketing leads who want to know what’s working in their marketing, and what to fix first. New here? Start with the marketing audit guide.

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All guides

Every guide, newest first.

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B2B Marketing Strategy and the 95:5 Rule

Only a small share of business buyers are shopping at any moment. What the 95:5 rule means for B2B marketing strategy, and how to plan for the other 95%.
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Joann Brand Check-up: Fixing the Debt, Not the Shelves

Joann cut its debt in a 2024 bankruptcy but kept every store and could not keep shelves full. Our check-up on the craft chain as it heads into liquidation.
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Choosing a Target Market: Why Narrow Wins

Serving everyone sounds safe but often grows slowest. How to choose a target market for your strategy, and why you should still reach beyond it with your media.
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Zellers Brand Check-up: Nostalgia Without a Front Door

Zellers came back in 2023 inside Hudson's Bay stores. A Leger poll found 56% of Canadians knew, but only 9% had shopped or browsed. Our diagnosis, January 2025.
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Brand Messaging Framework: Say One Thing Clearly

When sales, marketing and the website all describe you differently, buyers get confused. How to build a brand messaging framework your whole team can use.
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Party City Brand Check-up: The Party Moved to Other Aisles

Party City is closing nearly 700 stores after a second Chapter 11. We diagnose the debt, rivals, helium shortage and fading Halloween behind the collapse.
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How to Write a One-Page Marketing Plan

Long plans hide weak thinking. How to fit your marketing plan on one page: the diagnosis, the audience, the message, the channels and the measures.
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Jaguar Brand Check-up: The Rebrand That Came Before the Car

Jaguar's Copy Nothing rebrand, the Type 00 concept and the end of new U.K. sales, checked against JLR volume data and the Tata Motors share price on Dec. 3.
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Sears Brand Check-up: Harvested for Cash, Starved of Stores

Sears Holdings went from $53.0 billion in revenue to Chapter 11 in 2018. We trace the asset sales, thin store investment and what the brand lost on the way.
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Marketing Budget Planning: Where the Money Should Go

Last year plus ten percent is not a plan. What Gartner found about marketing budgets in 2024, and a five-step way to build yours from goals and evidence.
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Big Lots Brand Check-up: The Bargain Promise It Let Slip

Big Lots filed for Chapter 11 on Sept. 9, 2024, after years of falling sales. We diagnose how it drifted from bargains and what growing companies can learn.
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Pricing Strategy: The Profit Lever Most Marketers Ignore

A small price change often moves profit more than a big campaign. What the research found, why discounting bleeds margin, and how to test a price change safely.
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