Bruce Prokopets

21/03/2023

Your brand is NOT what you say about yourself.

Your is brand IS what others say about you.

Any mission statement, "about us" page, marketing collateral, paid media, etc. authored by the brand will, of course, speak highly of itself. But that's not how you build a brand.

Even the restaurant full of roaches and foul-mouthed staff will say something pithy and complementary of itself on its own menu.

Furthermore, your logo is NOT your brand.

I hear it all the time. "We developed this 'brand' to appeal to X market. We chose the colors, logo, and typeface with intention and ensure all of our creative assets match."

Congratulations. You made a style guide. So what?

Let's continue with the restaurant example:

The logo is professional. They integrated the specialty food they serve right into he logo and the name. The interior has "atmosphere". The menu is printed on quality paper. The "chef" has a resume he won't stop talking about. The photos of the dishes used in the ads are well-lit.

But the food is just "ok". And more than one customer has seen roaches.

Even worse, customers aren't shy and share their experiences on Yelp, etc.

In this example, how would the "brand" be described?

The logo wouldn't matter. The chef wouldn't matter. The excuses wouldn't matter. Even that nice little write up in the local newspaper wouldn't matter.

The brand would be what regular people are saying about it. In this case, the logo might as well be a laughing roach holding a spatula.

There is powerful and proven way to solve this: an intervention. More commonly referred to as...

"UNDER NEW MANAGEMENT"

It's more than a temporary sign you post outside the business. It's a declaration!

It sends a signal to the market that coming improvements are MORE than just a facelift. It indicates a transformation at the SOURCE of the problem.

Now, the business can get on with true branding. Where design choices amplify and reinforce the promises made and kept by the brand.

Your brand is NOT a logo.

Your brand is NOT what you say about yourself.

Your brand is what others say about you.

And it's more fragile than you think. Protect it.

14/03/2023

Are you looking for an experienced copywriter with a track record?

19 years in the trenches writing emails, sales letters, Facebook/Google ads, VSL scripts, and blog posts.

Reach out if you need help from a results-driven writer.

28/02/2023

Different is better than better.

Too many advertisers fall into the trap of "same, just better" when positioning against competitors.

It's ironic to copy the latest fad then try to stand out simply by proclaiming you are "better".

The audience can't define "better" overall, anyway. They don't understand the nuanced improvements you made over a competitor.

But the audience can recognize what's *better for them*.

Here's a tip:

1. Identify the market leader in your space.

2. Figure out where their product has a flaw and *who* they are underserving because of this.

3. Seize market share from the leader by serving that audience better by promoting how you are *different* from the market leader.

Different is better than better.

27/02/2023

Do NOT Hire A Marketing Manager/Executive Until You Read This!

I've seen it happen so many times...

Company hires a "marketing" person who talked a good game only to discover they *can't* deliver.

What went wrong? How can you prevent this from happening again? How do you find the right person?

Here are the best tips I can give you:

❌ Avoid the mistake of hiring on prestige alone. I see this happen A LOT: Marketer is hired because the last organization they worked at was doing very well. That's great -- but what was their contribution, if any? Can they quantify it? Major red flag is when every thing they tell you about their tenure is "gum drop rainbows and marshmallow clouds" -- there's no such thing as perfect. Can they reveal any challenges they faced or mistakes made? Can they admit what they would have done differently? What lessons they learned? This type of honesty shows character and willingness to adapt.

❌ Avoid the mistake of re-inventing the wheel. Can they identify what is already working and help you scale it? Or are they always imagining new things to try and chasing "shiny objects" like trendy new marketing tactics. Great marketing is built on timeless simple human truths, not chasing new trends all the time.

❌ Avoid the mistake of hiring a "busy body". Busyness is not business. Activity is not action. Is your candidate looking to achieve something or simply get by on "time served"?

I've managed millions of dollars in ad spend. I've worked in leadership and technical roles at corporate settings and start-ups and freelanced. I've seen it all over the past 20 years in marketing. I know it can be hard to find trustworthy marketers. Now that I covered what to avoid, here's what to look for in a competent marketing executive:

💰 1. Focus On Fundamentals - Are they metrics-driven? Do they know how to test campaigns before scaling them? Can they handle responsibility and be accountable? Do they try to establish key performance indicators (KPIs)? Can they establish an attribution model (so you know what's working and what's not)? Do they understand how persuasion, advertising, and reporting all work together? Can they develop a long term strategy is stick to it? Can they adapt to a shifting market and new competitors? Can they admit mistakes and self-correct?

💰 2. Identify "Low Hanging Fruit" and "Easy Wins" - Can they identify where you might earn some immediate gains vs. what strategies might only pan out long term? Can they project return on investment (ROI) on campaigns while "hedging their bet" to limit the potential downside? Can they identify what is already working in your marketing to scale it while identifying what is not working to save you money?

💰 3. Growth Mindset - Do they have long-term strategy to compliment the short-term strategy? Can they say with confidence what they hope to achieve in 6 months, 12 months, 3+ years? Can they adapt to a quickly changing market and economy? Do they have a career pathology or do they intend to stay in the same role hoping to get raises forever?

Are you looking for a capable marketer with a track record?

Maybe someone to coach your team?

Perhaps someone to consult about candidates before you hire them?

Reach out. I can help.

06/05/2021

I'm proud of the work and what I accomplished with Stefan Aarnio and Blackcard School of The Future. Here is my tribute to Stefan and our work:

I handled most of Stefan's marketing since 2014. Here's the true story of how we met and what happened.

05/05/2021

05/05/2021

TIME FLIES! Been doing this a long time. This image was on my site in 2018.

05/05/2021

NEW to online business? Or have a local business launching a new website? Watch this first...

05/05/2021

Read my blog here:

The truth about marketing your business online.