I first met actor, writer and comedian John Cleese when he keynoted Content Marketing World 2015 (see image above). First off, the man is tall. I mean extremely tall. I felt like a small child standing next to him. Second, he’s brilliant. Last week my friend JK gave me John Cleese’s new book Creativity: a […]
Two Creative Strategies from John Cleese Read More »
As you know, I’m big on exit strategies. I found an excellent example of one in the Reed Hastings and Erin Meyer book, No Rules Rules: Netflix and the Culture of Reinvention. Except this time, it was a failed exit strategy that made Netflix successful. In the year 2000, Netflix was a tiny two-year-old startup
Netflix and the Best Failed Exit Strategy Ever Read More »
Last week I turned in the final manuscript for Content Inc. (version two). I’m really excited about it, mostly because the interviews were amazing and I feel the model is correct now (I thought the last one was correct as well…this one is just better). Also, The Wall Street Journal found that there are more
Content Marketing: How Long to Get to Five-Million-Dollars? Read More »
Until putting this newsletter together, I had never heard of Nipsey Hussle (aka Ermias Joseph Asghedom). Shame on me. I found that Nipsey wasn’t just an amazing rapper, but a strategic entrepreneur. Among other things, he opened one of his “Marathon Clothing” stores in the Crenshaw commercial district because he wanted to invest in his
You Need an Exit Strategy…Pronto Read More »
In the early 2000s I worked at a business media company called Penton Media in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. For about a two-year stint, I reported to Mr. Bill Donohue. Bill was both a salesperson and entrepreneur. He snagged a nice exit when his magazines were purchased by Penton. Once acquired, he was given the title
Hope Is Not a Strategy Read More »
In an interview last week, there was a question about consistency. For years, I’ve talked about consistency in frequency as being the most important thing to building a content-first business. For example, this enewsletter goes out every other Thursday and has for almost two years now. But in actuality, there are two parts of consistency.
Two Forms of Consistency and the Facebook Problem Read More »
I began my publishing career in 2000, reporting to a 30+ year publishing wizard named Jim McDermott. Jim taught me an incredible amount, both about publishing and about navigating internal politics. A few years later Jim was promoted to a new position. Before he left, he gave me an assignment. “Go see Don Schultz,” he
It’s About the Relationship, Not the Product Read More »
