Straight Talk Blog
Ted Rubin
In Honor of Female Entrepreneurs…
This past year, I have been blessed with so much from friends, family, clients and colleagues. One of my highlights has been a series of 10 videos I’ve done with branding expert David Brier. While he’s funny, smart and scratches beneath the surface to get at why stuff...
SXSW is here again… So Much to Do, So Little Time
You have been hearing about it for so long and finally the time has come… off to Austin for the “event” of events, SXSW. What will it be like, where do I go, what can’t I miss? It can be overwhelming. For me, and for many others, the most successful approach is to...
How the In-Store Experience is Evolving, Thanks to Mobile
If you have been shopping at a Banana Republic Factory store in the past year, you may have noticed something new. Banana Republic is working with “flok,” a third-party customer experience platform, to deliver a more tech-friendly shopping experience for loyal...
#JustBeNice Isn’t Always Easy
Just be nice. When you're working to build relationships, you can never go wrong by showing some basic respect, decency and empathy. It's pretty easy to be nice when the sun is shining, you're in a good mood, and you're surrounded by people whose company you enjoy....
Why You Need A Human Connection Over Technology—It’s Important For Your ROI ~via @TheLandGeek
In today’s episode of The Art of Passive Income, Mark and Scott talk to Ted Rubin. Ted is a Leading Social Marketing Strategist, Acting CMO of Brand Innovators and Co-Founder of Prevailing Path. He is a guy that says what he thinks and believes that being who you are...
Shopper and Brand Marketing Converge, Now What?
Do Shopper Marketing and Brand Marketing Still Need to Be Separate Functions? By John Andrews, Co-Founder Prevailing Path Current marketing structures were built for a time when the purchase funnel was predictable and the store was king. That time has passed. After...
Instead of “Creating” Viral Moments, Look for Real-Time Influence Opportunities
Look at big corporate brands, and you'll find plenty of businesses paying millions to cultivate influence by creating the next viral moment. Good luck. The impulse is understandable, but the tactics leave much to be desired. Obsessing over “the big one” all too often...
Engagement: How Making Meaningful Connections Leads to Brand Loyalty
Transactions, conversions, closing the deal. All good stuff in the grand scheme, but not what we should be focusing on when building sustainable relationships with customers. The problem is that when a transaction is the only goal, there's little focus on keeping the...
Don’t Blame Social Media for Less Face-to-Face Interaction
I've been reflecting for a while on an article from MediaPost, which outlines some of the ways social media and online culture have changed the way we interact face to face. The upshot, based on a study by the British government, is that we're making fewer in-person...
Hire for Passion, Train for Skills
Then... - Listen to them, and make sure you take actions that let them know you are listening. Every human being needs to feel that their contributions are appreciated and that their opinion matters. Otherwise work is a mindless drudge with no purpose (other than a...
B2B Marketers and Social Listening—Stop Making Excuses!
The excuses for shunning B2B social listening are familiar by now, and they are understandable even if they're ultimately misguided: B2B brands don't generate the same social chatter as B2C brands in popular niches B2B decision-makers don't use social to research...
Learning to Dance in the Rain | Ted Rubin ~via @siimonsander
My Guest is an industry leader in Social Marketing strategy and brand evangelism. Forbes Magazine ranked him among the top 15 social media influencers, he was listed number 2 on the LeadTail list of top 25 people most mentioned by digital marketers. He is the author...
Tell Your Story in a Way People Will Care… Return on Relationship
When you tell your story in a way that people will care, you create a relationship, a connection, a value that goes beyond immediate $'s and cents. It is what creates conversation, the content that creates trust, loyalty and advocacy. All of this will scale no matter...
Can You Have Too Many Online Friends?
You may have noticed that it's not terribly difficult to build up a huge list of connections on your favorite social platform, if volume is your goal. Volume doesn't necessarily translate to quality, but there are plenty of tactics to rack up big connections numbers...
Brand Loyalty… Why Every Online Interaction Matters
We spend a lot of time talking about the positive momentum you can build with social, simply by being present, engaging your audience in a meaningful way, and keeping the focus on building relationships with your connections instead of just blasting out as much...
Are Younger Generations Dictating the Path of Influencer Marketing?
No matter how you slice the demographics, young people hold a lot of sway on social media. They influence social conversation, establish trends, and tend to help social sites thrive when they show up in large numbers. Part of this is the power of numbers. According to...
No Matter Where Tech Takes Us, Customers Still Need a Human Touch
If you’re aiming for omni-channel excellence, or simply looking to thrive on your channels of choice, don’t forget about the human side. In fact, it should be your first priority. With every new trend and communication channel comes new opportunities to connect, so...
#RetailRelevancy… Expectations, Engagement, and Customer Experience
Retail Relevancy has never been more... relevant. In part one of my conversation with my friend and business partner John Andrews, we touched on Alexa, Amazon, and the evolving way that consumers experience retail. In part two, we’re continuing that conversation, and...
I Have Been Very Lucky in Friendship
I have been very lucky in friendship. I may not have the wealth or success that some can claim, but I know what it is to have people in my life who know me well, like me just as I am (well, most of the time), listen to me, make me laugh, support me always, and who...
Good Things in 2016
I have heard a lot of complaining about 2016, what a difficult year it has been for so many, and I totally get that, and concur on many levels. So I thought it important, and have been inspired by a number of friends who have posted to Facebook asking friends to...
Biggest Content Marketing Trend Heading into 2017: Live Streaming
What I see being huge heading into 2017 is live streaming, and the ability to share all video, AND "all content," in so many more ways, via more apps, with story-telling and engagement at the core. You need to try these platforms. You need to jump in. You need to see...
Seize the Day: Why 2017 Should Be a Year of Embracing the Present
The time is now. Not next year, or six months from now, or at the conclusion of a five-year plan. Success won't come with the next marketing conference, the new social channel around the corner, or the next piece of “game-changing” tech that's just waiting to be...
Find Your Sweet Spot for Inspiration
This Holiday Season is the Perfect Time to Start There's nothing quite like the feeling of that eureka moment. You're going through your day, handling a task that leaves your mind free to wander, then boom – a big, creative idea bursts into being. It might be a...
Right Place, Right Time: Capitalizing on the Micro Moment of Truth
Stare at a wall of similar products with your phone in your hand, and you'll quickly rule out a big chunk based on product reviews. Once you land on a few similarly well-reviewed products, something as simple as a well-placed tweet or a brief, positive interaction...
Tasty Burger and Fasten — Breaking in to Crowded Markets
The demand for ride-share apps is through the roof, with Uber and Lyft already cashing in on growing global markets. Trying to break into the ride-share market is a tall task for new, regional competitors, but the demand and potential payoff are more than strong...
Millennials… What You Need to Know
If I had one piece of advice to give marketers who are beginning a career in 2016, it would be this: Millennials are not a new species. Keep that in mind the next time someone tells you they have the “secret” of marketing to Millennials, Gen Z, or whatever generation...
120 Seconds with Ted Rubin and David Brier… Truth about Social Media
The Truth about Social Media in less than 2 minutes! Social marketing strategist Ted Rubin and brand specialist David Brier are at it again. This time for every CEO, entrepreneur, CMO and startup that has only 120 seconds to get an insight they can use right now. Take...
Anger and Influence… Not Good Bedfellows
You’ve heard me say before that everybody has influence because we all have an influence on the people around us. However, this can be a double-edged sword, especially if we let negative emotions rule us. Negativity (and anger in particular) is not only an emotional...
Brands: Focus More on Experience than Campaigns
If I were to write a newspaper article for brands that encompasses what they need to be doing in 2016 and beyond, it would have the title: Stand Out by "Liking" Them Before They "Like" You. Why? Because social media success does not come down to a mere numbers game,...
Don’t Let Your Relationships Languish, They’re Worth The Effort
A professional network is more than just a list of well-placed contacts. It’s a collection of relationships, built on a foundation of time, energy and emotional investment. The people that you see every day, at work or in any social group, are in the best position to...