MATT HIGGINS · I build brands that lead

  • making it work

    “We are everywhere on social. We’re spending a ton of money. We’re doing email. Why isn’t it working?” Why do brands who value marketing and are thus willing to commit a budget to marketing fail to see the expected results? There are a variety of reasons, of course, but a…

  • that’s not ugc

    “4x ROAS, 33% drop in CPA, and a 20% increase in AOV – Why finding the right UGC is so crucial” That’s an actual subject line of an email I received. Four acronyms packed in one sentence is impressive. You can decode that mess here. While I got a chuckle…

  • stop saying scale

    “We want to scale.” That’s great . . . but scale is also one of the most overused and misused buzzwords in marketing right now. Scale is not interchangeable with grow. If you spend $100 to produce products resulting in $200 in revenue and then double your production at a…

  • icon: david ogilvy

    David Ogilvy is considered the “Father of Advertising,” but he is, in truth, an absolute icon of marketing. Born in England in 1911, after failing out of the prestigious Oxford University, he turned to selling ovens door-to-door. He was a natural and so successful that he was asked to write…

  • lifestyle brands

    Lifestyle is a term that gets thrown around a lot in marketing. We hear it so often it’s hard not to wonder if every brand claiming to be or looking to be a lifestyle brand really is a lifestyle brand? The obvious answer is no. Traditional Definition In marketing classes,…

  • the actual audience

    You’re selling something. Whether it’s a new energy drink, a SUV, or SaaS for doing inventory, if you’re in marketing, you’re selling something. The question is: who are you selling it to? Most people instinctively do the basics of audience identification. If they’re selling a new energy drink that’s all-natural…

  • trendjacking

    At its worst, trendjacking is jumping on a crowded bandwagon. At best, when it’s well executed, it’s being part of the buzz of a viral moment. So, what is trendjacking? By definition it’s inserting your brand into a trend, but it wouldn’t be marketing if there weren’t a few slightly…

  • funnels, flywheels, & ecosystems

    Everybody’s heard of the conversion funnel concept. Lately, it’s had some company. The first new term in the customer acquisition conversation was flywheel. As you’d expect, it got a lot of buzz. Next came ecosystem. Here’s what they mean, in terms of definition, and what they mean to marketing, as…

  • brand equity vs brand affinity

    Whether you consider it a discipline, philosophy, or strategy, brand marketing simply isn’t an option. If you’re going to have a brand name, you absolutely have to decide what that brand means. This includes the obvious like logo, colors, fonts, taglines, but it also includes the persona of the brand.…

  • ai in marketing

    AI is one of the hottest topics, not just in marketing, but in business, government, and personal lives. It’s impacting everything, and at times AI is amazing and at times it’s undeniably controversial. So where does AI fit in with marketing? Is it the answer for everything or is marketing…

  • 5 ways to communicate like a leader

    Everybody wants to be the boss, to be in charge. That’s ambition, but what ambition doesn’t tell you is leading is hard work, and for some people it just doesn’t come naturally. Or maybe all they’ve been shown is bad examples. I frequently say good leadership starts with leading by…

  • marketing disciplines

    There are some marketing disciplines or philosophies that are simply hot right now. Which one is right for your brand and product and what do these terms even mean? 360 Marketing: with the goal of creating the widest possible reach, a 360 approach uses every marketing channel. It’s all inclusive.…

  • marketing alphabet soup

    The business world has always been plagued with jargon. Marketing seems especially inundated with the buzzword of the week as old concepts get rebranded or terms get invented for the sake of naming everything. Some terms and acronyms make sense and are helpful, but unfortunately many of these buzzwords, which…

  • avoid gtm fails

    The big reveal. The unveiling. Go to Market, and specifically the launch, is probably one of the most exciting aspects of marketing. It’s a thrill. What makes the building anticipation so palpable is partly all the work that goes into the GTM process and partly the fun of watching the…

  • influencers as media

    Whether every self-identified social media influencer is actually influential is debatable. What’s undeniable is that influencers have become a significant part of modern digital marketing. In my experience, when marketing special interest products to enthusiast audiences, the right influencers can deliver a tremendous lift in awareness for new products. Awareness…