A clean, modern wordmark. A three-word tagline. A product name. Why is it that the cleanest, clearest elements often require the most heavy lifting? These projects may look deceptively…

We’ve all got that person in our lives who sends an email with Hi in the subject line, or leaves a voicemail with just “call me back,” and you worry about responding because you’re pretty sure you’re in trouble. That’s the feeling trauma-informed communication aims to prevent. This has been on the FATFREE radar lately,  … Read more

Recently, I asked a client to help me understand their desired brand personality by likening it to a personality. I apologized for using such a time-worn approach—agency folk have done this…

Marketing has always been about connecting with someone’s heart. Whether you make them laugh, cry or feel a little smarter, an emotional reaction is gold. Now, as consumers seek more…

When you hear the brand name “Bed Bath & Beyond,” what’s the first thing you picture? Let me read your mind: Was it a coupon? If I got that right, it’s not because I have ESP. It’s because, for…

The question is no longer whether to use video, but how. Roughly 40 bazillion sources will tell you 85% of Americans with internet watch video and nearly 90% of brands use video in their…

Businesses today love to talk about company culture. The concept—which is defined as a codification of a business’s norms, values, and beliefs—was first introduced by social scientist…

It’s easy to imagine ways a consumer goods, apparel or tech brand might reduce its footprint. There are opportunities throughout the supply chain to green things up, from raw…

In the age of influencers and hypebeast culture, brand collaboration (or collab, as it’s often called in online parlance) has become a powerful marketing tactic. From the sensible to the…

If a picture says a thousand words, what does the same picture on three different trade show booth backwalls within two aisles say? To me, it says no budget, no research, and worse…