BROWSE BY TOPIC
ALL | BRAND STRATEGY | MARKETING & GROWTH | LEADERSHIP & MANAGEMENT | SELF EMPLOYMENT & PRODUCTIVITY | IMPACT & RESULTS | NEWS
NEWSLETTERS
In 1998, a direct ultimatum from a freelance client forced a choice: stay in a stable corporate job or bet on self-employment. A lunch with a cousin who’d built his own law practice from nothing delivered the advice that’s held true ever since, that owning a business means running just ahead of a sinkhole that never stops expanding.
As businesses grow, their brands often lag behind. Positioning becomes less clear, messaging grows inconsistent, and marketing stops reflecting who the business has become. When your brand no longer aligns with reality, the hidden costs quietly affect marketing, decision-making, and future growth.
More marketing usually isn’t the fix. Most businesses aren’t short on activity, they’re short on clarity. Here’s why brand strategy, not another campaign, is what actually moves growth forward.
Clarity is a competitive advantage, not a luxury. By integrating a Vivid Vision and Brand Positioning into your organizational culture, you move the board from reactive problem-solving to a proactive system of alignment that ensures every decision moves the needle toward a shared future.
Most prospects ask the same root question: how do I grow? Here’s a plain look at the seven ways we help founders and leaders build the brand clarity that growth is actually built on.
Mission, vision, values, and positioning statements are the most widely recognized strategic tools used to define a company’s business, strategic objectives, and overall approach to reach those objectives. Another less frequently recognized strategic statement that many companies neglect to employ is the Purpose statement.
Think about marketing as planting trees. The trees of brand marketing you plant today will guarantee business growth tomorrow. What you are communicating today is to help potential customers make the buy decision in the future when they need what you are offering.
A referral may introduce you, but AI is increasingly making the first impression. As more prospects turn to ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and other AI tools to evaluate people and businesses, your reputation depends on more than search rankings, it depends on the body of work you’ve published over time.
Most businesses don’t need more marketing. They need clarity on what’s on-brand and what’s off-brand. Introducing On-Brand/Off-Brand, the newsletter formerly known as The Creative Brief.
Before we get into today’s piece, a quick note. Before we get into today’s piece, a quick note. I’m intentionally pressing pause on Solo(ish) on LinkedIn for now. This isn’t a goodbye, and it’s not a change in who I’m writing for. It’s a consolidation of how I share...
Pricing isn’t just a number, it’s a signal shaped by context. When your positioning is unclear, buyers define your value for you, often leading to price resistance. The issue usually isn’t your pricing—it’s how you’re being perceived.
Most businesses don’t need more ideas. They need clearer direction. In this article I explain the difference between brand strategy and creative strategy, and why clarity leads to better decisions, stronger marketing, and more consistent growth.
Clarity is a competitive advantage, not a luxury. By integrating a Vivid Vision and Brand Positioning into your organizational culture, you move the board from reactive problem-solving to a proactive system of alignment that ensures every decision moves the needle toward a shared future.
You can’t stick to the plan unless you make one. Why planning—not tactics—is the missing link between goals, strategy, and real momentum.
When your brand or marketing starts to feel scattered, clarity matters more than new tactics. A Start, Stop, Continue list is a simple three-step tool to help you decide what to focus on, what to let go of, and what’s already working.
Success in branding and business isn’t about big breakthroughs — it’s about showing up, day after day, and doing the work that builds momentum. From sales and networking to marketing and referrals, consistency beats complexity every time. Here’s how small, steady habits create big results for solopreneurs and small businesses.
Going solo is one of the scariest things you’ll ever do—not because of failure, but because of freedom. I’ve done it twice: once by choice, and once by circumstance. Each time taught me something new about fear, resilience, and what it really means to bet on yourself.
Paid, earned, shared, and owned media make up the core mix of modern brand marketing. When these four channels work together, they create visibility, credibility, and long-term growth—helping small businesses and solopreneurs build stronger brands.
Most business challenges aren’t caused by a lack of effort. They’re caused by a lack of clarity. Discover five ways strategic clarity helps organizations align decisions, improve performance, and create sustainable growth.