Backlist confusion

The backlist are the products already in the marketplace. Built earlier, still sold. The frontlist is the new. Restaurants have regulars (backlist) and new patrons. Broadway shows are attended by people who see three to ten shows a year, as well as folks going to their very first production. Supermarkets sell staples (like milk and

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The generic headline and the lazy slogan

If you can swap your slogan with a competitor’s without changing the meaning of either brand, then your slogan is meaningless. For example, “You belong here” is not a positioning statement for a college seeking new students. It’s just noise. It also doesn’t help to mix weasel words with more weasel words and then add

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Seeking a complement

One of the nicest thing you can do for someone you care about is point them to an idea, a book, a talk or a tool that will amplify their work and help them get to where they’re going. It’s not easy. It means you understand their goals, see them for who they are and

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