Guy Richards / Ordinary Life with a Brand Strategist

Free prerelease copy of my book, Talkable

As most of you know I have written my first book, Talkable, Building your brand from the inside out, which will be released in August (to the public). But for my avid readers and supporters, you can get it now.

There will not be a big ad campaign or an Oprah review. So I need you, your dog, friends, and second cousin’s nephew to read it, talk about it and then put it in the hands of someone it could help.

I will be giving away 200 copies of Talkable:

1. If you’re a subscriber of this blog

2. If you're in the United States (because of shipping), a blogger or have an active Twitter or Facebook account and would love to review the book

3. Will post a review of 200 words or more on your blog or tweet/post excepts from the book

4. Email me with your information and I will ship it free of charge!

PS. They are on a first-come, first-get-it basis.

Talkable Book Prerelease CLA / Guy Richards from Guy Richards on Vimeo.

What’s Needed / Relevant Brand Positioning

An insightful strategist will create a plan to stay relevant with the generations coming up the ranks (the youth) without losing the loyalty with the brand’s aging market.

It’s a fine balancing act to keep a support base while drawling younger generations into the sales funnel.

What’s needed is:

1. An external strategist who can see the whole picture. Inside perspective, outside perspective, breakdowns, the sweet spot, possible value propositions and how this brand compares to the competitive landscape.
2. A leadership team that can make quick decisions when asked.
3. A great design team that can translate the strategy to tangible pieces.
4. A management team that encourage excitement through the business shift.
5. Most importantly, an offering and experience that is “Positively Talkable.”

Less is best…as long as you have great content

Great Content + Short Delivery = Powerful Message

Great Content + Long Delivery = Soggy Message

In the day we live timing is everything. If a YouTube video is 30 seconds too long, I bounce off. If I’m on the phone with someone and they are rambling, I start clipping my toe nails (I got that one from Patrick Lencioni, CEO Forum, CLA, 2009).

Well, you get the point. Hone in on the main point you want to make and cut everything else out.

Bye, bye yellow pages

I found what looks like a mini phonebook on my porch today. It’s about 2/3 the size of a sheet of paper. They are disintegrating (to become reduced to components) right before our eyes.

Besides hearing my grandmother this week say she could find a number in the “yellow pages,” I rarely hear the word any more.

It won’t be much longer before our children will be talking about phonebooks they way we talk about A-Tracks.

The digital age is catching momentum and those who show up to the party late will have stand against the wall. Come on, jump in!

Hey Stupid!

“Hey you, yea you. Where do you think your going? Are you crazy? You will never succeed! You better get your head checked out.”

I have heard statements like this my whole life. I’m sure you have too.

Do you believe them? Or do you convince them they were conservative in their thinking?

Internal Breakdowns and bad Talkability!

What happens when employees don’t know the facts? It frustrates the buyers, creates negative word-of-mouth and creates a reputation of distrust.

My sister’s boyfriend just started a power washing business. He bought a truck, trailer and a power washer.

I was with my cousin and brother this morning. My cousin Jose said that Jason (my sister boy friend) was told by an employee at The Home Depot that the power washer he purchased from them had a 2 year warrantee on it…if something went wrong, they would replace the whole thing.

Well, it broke 32 days after it was purchased. He took it to The Home Depot to find that the power washer has a 30 replacement policy and a 2 year manufacture defect warrantee.

I’m not sure what The Home Depot employee communicated to Jason, but what I know is that today Home Depot was not being talked about in a good light.

A few weeks ago my credit card processing company did something similar. One employee told me I had a $10,000 cap per customer, per month. Then days later another employee told me it was set at $7,500.

Viral “Talkability”

Viral is another word for Talkability.

Talkability that moves…

Talkability that moves decisions either starts with exceeding what was expected or failing to deliver what was expected.

Talkable Legacy

Launch a great product and people say wow, stand for a great cause and people mention your name. But when you make it your brand character to do it repeatedly through the years, you create a loyal base of fans…and maybe even a legacy.

Talkability

One-time events cause overnight chatter. But by the morning it’s gone.

On the other hand, momentum created through a value driven service and/or product that out performs your competitors puts longevity on that chatter.