Mindful Marketing

Ordinarily, calling someone narrow minded would seem like an insult (in certain circles anyway). However, at the last E3 conference in Toronto, Tim Williams, author of “Take a Stand for Your Brand,” talked about how agencies should narrow their focus in order gain traction as sought-after specialists.

“Narrow is not the same as small,” Williams said, as he challenged E3 Network agencies at the meeting to do for themselves what they all do every day for their clients: Create compelling brand stories.

Too many agencies have marketing pitches that sound the same, Williams said. They are strewn with catch-all words like “integrated,” “full service,” and “responsive”. (Yes, he means you).

Agencies sometimes make the mistake of offering a list of services as long as a Chinese take-out menu. Is that a good thing? It might work for short-order cooks, but the most expensive Bistros usually have a…