Relevance Is The New Remarkable

Why Awards Don’t Matter My bio says I have won a few awards along the way, and that is true. […]

Marketing That Works Google recently introduced three consumer characteristics that their data reveals about consumer buying behaviors. They say buyers […]

Tristan Walker, CEO, and Founder of Walker & Company Brands talked about the role his upbringing added to the culture […]

Brian Solis, author of one of my favorite books, X: The Experience When Business Meets Design tells this story about […]

The average person today receives more information on a daily basis than the average person received in a lifetime in […]

It’s the same reason that Ferrari and Lamborghini are expensive. It’s the same reason why Rolex watches are expensive. It’s […]

Greg McKeown wrote a classic book called Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less. In it, he says: “You cannot overestimate […]

There’s no bigger dental chain for dental implants than Clear Choice. No bookstore can sell more books than Amazon. No […]

The reality is most leads you receive are not ready to buy. It gets less encouraging when you consider these […]

Michael Batnick, Director of Research at Ritholtz Wealth Management LLC said this about failure. “I suspect that people persist in […]

If you have a business, you want to be found. If you are serious about being found online, you likely […]

MasterCard recently revised their two-circle logo. I like it. The redesign goal for Michael Bierut and Luke Hayman of Pentagram […]

I spend time every day looking at data. Data informs me what is working. And that’s great. But data alone […]

Winning is hard. A former Houston Cougar player was describing what it will be like to play for Tom Herman, […]

[dropcap]A[/dropcap]s business owners, we invest in marketing to sell more. We push sales and staff to remember the products and […]

I used to get my haircut from Bob Ridge, a distinguished and much older man. Bob cut my hair for […]

[dropcap]R[/dropcap]arely a week goes by that someone doesn’t compliment me on my smile. I graciously respond by smiling and thanking […]

  I recently walked into one of my favorite department stores that I don’t frequent very often. I wanted to […]

For the time I’ve known Elaine she has lived out of her small two-door black Ford pickup in the parking […]

The reply from a “fan” to a recent email newsletter read: Jeff, Your newsletter is the best I have ever […]

The best marketing helps us see better versions of ourselves. Under Armour uses a story that motivates us to be […]

“OH MY GOSH!!!!……… Out of the blue this guy is placing and sending a very expensive order to QFD today […]

I remember several years ago being invited to meet with Fred Smith in his home. Fred was a celebrity, and […]

  How our customers invest their time: Print 4% Radio 13% TV 36% Internet 22% Mobile 25% It is evident […]

When asked to describe our product or service and why we are different from our competitors it’s easy to shift […]

Photo courtesy of Jeff Payne: Photo of the Dr Pepper Museum located just a block from my son’s condo in Waco, […]

Tom whom I’ve never met, said, “Jeff, I like your website. I also enjoyed learning about you from your About […]

A local dry cleaner spends thousands of dollars each month just to get attention and be found. I see his […]

Several years ago while attending student orientation at Baylor University with our son Ryan, we observed a bike rack with […]

Photo courtesy of Jeff Payne: I can assure you there is no shortcut getting to the very inside tip of […]

Remember when you were broke, what it took to gain traction in your business? The big leaps forward, doubt storms, […]

“Our Age of Anxiety is . . . the result of trying to do today’s job with yesterday’s tools,” said […]

If your business is going to exist, you have to win customers. One thing the Internet has revealed is people […]

Everywhere you look you see different businesses telling the same story. It’s much easier to conform than to stand out. […]

Donald Trump is playing the media like a fiddle. The media likes Donald Trump. He says the unthinkable; he boasts […]

The new lead arrived via the website on Saturday, January 16 at 10:15 AM. It was uncommon to receive a lead […]

Seth Godin says, “When everyone has access, no one does. The people you want most to reach are likely to […]

George makes cakes. His day begins at 4:00 AM and ends at 6:00 PM, Monday through Saturday. Something he’s been […]

You are more likely to add bacon to your pizza if you order online. According to Shlomo Benartzi, a behavioral […]

More than likely you are being ignored. Many have a fantasy that others care, but they don’t. Most are thinking […]

“Hello, Mr. Payne! Are we getting the usual today, a number one, no butter, no pickles, medium fry, a large […]

Today I received an email from a person I don’t know pretending to know me. They began with a small […]

The headline grabbed my attention. Netflix Knows the Exact Episode of a TV Show That Gets You Hooked In the […]

I’m on the verge of a sinus infection. Crusty, bloodshot, and watery eyes, slight cough, headache, congestion — you know […]

Advertising is what we do when there is nobody to see. In real life, when we meet with a friend […]

I shopped at Nordstrom this week. I went there to purchase a birthday gift for a friend. In my mind, […]

      I’m sure you provide great service. You probably have a product we all should buy. That new […]

I say it’s secret. It isn’t secret. It’s simple. It’s strategic. It’s hard work. I hear it often. How do […]

  When I first started working with online marketing over a decade ago, I realized pretty quick the value of […]

When I first started experimenting with online marketing over a decade ago, there was a lot less competition. It was […]

It was Thursday morning. Mark, a sales and business executive who works with small to large businesses, was excited to […]

Are you in the market to purchase a bottle of water? Which brand will you choose? How will you decide? […]

If you haven’t noticed, transactional-level business is evaporating. We don’t need to settle for average when we have access to just […]

Who is your customer? Does he wake up in the morning and read his email over a cup of coffee? […]

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Wliquam magna leo, suscipit eget dictum eget, dapibus id leo. Fusce eu tortor vel urna aliquam egestas sed euismod tortor. […]

The real trick to marketing is to reinvent the norm. We all recognize normal — it’s boring, expected, mundane, average, […]

The sign on top of the counter read, “Buy by the slice.” I glanced over to the lady with a […]

Purpose. The one word that changes everything. It either comforts or confronts. Comforts It comforts when I’m weary, confused, uncertain, […]

  “The Few. The Proud. The Marines.” is the Marine Corps’ advertising slogan. It won a place on Madison Avenue’s […]

Which is best for your business — delivering the real thing or just getting the order or your foot in […]

We measure open and clicks, Facebook likes, Twitter followers, Google pluses, and number of subscribers. It’s easy to advocate for […]

Every Whataburger sells the same burgers and fries. What can a Whataburger franchise do that their competitors down the road […]

You will not find an online application for this offering. You will not know the exact benefits you’ll get. But […]

It’s true we have easy access to all the information we want to help us with solving a problem or […]

It is surprisingly easy to forget sometimes the basic fact that people are the most important inspiration for everything we […]

As a thought experiment, ask yourself, “How does my brand bring new perspective and life into being for other people?” […]

We all face the same problem. Our email is just one among many from people who are trying to cut through […]

Earlier this month I received an email that captured my attention. The email contained an inviting image of a book […]

Derek Sivers makes a great point in his book Anything You Want: Start by teaching someone something this week. That’s […]

In business, we usually begin with a plan. A plan provides the details to our idea. It brings together the […]

My wife reminded me of this song this evening. I just had to listen to it. I remember when I […]

The value of attention is decreasing day by day. We have marketing channels galore that contribute to fleeting attention. There […]

  I remember coming home from college during the summers, and my dad would always take me to get a […]

  Does anyone read the newspaper anymore? I was waiting for my lunch appointment in the lobby of an Austin […]

[featured-image link_single=”null” single_newwindow=”false” alt=”Jeff Payne | Card from Castlerock Pet Hospital”] Success is not just an achievement of some data […]

It is early on a Saturday morning and a line is already forming at an ordinary looking run-of-the-mill restaurant. In […]

When you enter an IKEA store you find the entire store dedicated to helping you see the possibilities. The store […]

I am often asked about what tools I use in my personal and professional life. I thought I would list […]

Today business and sales professionals are trying desperately to understand how to maintain their value as professionals in an increasingly […]

Let’s face it, we’re all consumers. We all buy. We’re scanning, swiping, clicking, liking, and sometimes sharing and tweeting. We […]

It’s a 102 degrees in Austin right now and very humid! On days like this, which are common in Texas, […]

In his book, Return on Influence, Mark Schaefer shares an interesting fact. He says most people abandon a business book after […]

Where would I be without my iPad mini, my smartphone, my MacBook Air, or my 27 inch iMac? I honestly […]

What do people internalize when they interact with you? Recently I had the opportunity to go on a sales call […]

My favorite restaurant in Dallas is Al Biernat’s. There’s something special about that place. Linda our server, always makes sure we are taken […]

So how do you make an impact with an idea you have and make it spread? Start! Build a list (name and email). […]

In his book, Start With Why, Simon Sinek tells a story of a group of American car executives who went […]

Let’s face it, many invest a lot of time, money, and talent to produce, publish, and distribute content marketing. Therefore it […]

I am seated in a plush red lounge chair in a cramped but cozy hip Austin coffee and wine bar […]

More Right or Less Right The ultimate goal of your marketing is – and always has been – to grow your business. Jay Baer, […]

Today buyers have become so adept at doing the initial purchase research that they no longer need or have the […]

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What is “Value” to your customer? Value is the rapid checkout and a cool shopping bag. Value is an elegant […]

The need for vigilance in your business never goes away. It is now more imperative than ever for business owners […]

New products and services are appearing daily. You see them everywhere, Twitgift, Cupcake ATM, Me Undies, Skillshare, Stripe, and thousands more! Likewise new business models […]

It’s Not About the Cupcake I sat in my car in the parking lot of a plush retail shopping center […]

Each year, Hollywood produces and distributes 400 to 500 films (stories), more than a film a day. A few are […]

When I was six or seven years old I was struck in the head with a large rock thrown by […]