Sometimes I am reminded why I have the best job in the world. This past week was one of those times. The marketing team of The A Group presented Metro Ministries in Brooklyn, NY with our proposed marketing and branding campaigns. While we had immersed ourselves in learning about the ministry, nothing truly prepared us to being in the middle of it all. Metro Ministries started over 30 years ago by the remarkable Bill Wilson, who after being abandoned by his mother on a street corner at a young age, felt the call to go back to the streets of one the nation’s most dangerous neighborhoods and share the gospel with at-risk-children.  Metro Ministries claims the largest Sunday school in the world with over 42,000 children in NYC, the Philippines and now an exploding number in Africa. But numbers often fail to tell the story of the people they represent.…

With the return of the skinny tie to men’s fashion, I’m often asked what’s the best knot for it. Lately I have helped friends, family, and even a men’s apparel store salesman with their tie tying issues (he had trouble with a bow tie, however). Personally I like to use either the four-in-hand or the Half Windsor knot for the skinny tie. The Full Windsor is too bulky and looks out of proportion on a thin tie. Also, I would not recommend the Full Windsor unless you are wearing a spread collar shirt that allows for the larger, bulkier knot. Here are a couple of videos on how to tie two of the most popular knots.   What’s your favorite knot? How do you feel about the skinny tie come back?

“I would like to become a consultant. How do I get there?” I get that question quite often. While the answer might not be a simple one, I can tell you it’s more than the proverbial “guy with a PowerPoint presentation from out of town.”  While there’s no ultimate consultant’s manual, here are guidelines I have followed in consulting that have served me well : You must genuinely like people, or you’ll hate consulting. Know your stuff. People’s future depends on that. Listen more than you talk. You first priority is to solve a problem, not to sell a product. You must understand the pain of the leader  before you can help him fix the organization. Be truthful, be firm, but be kind. Some people respond to the potential loss they want to avoid, others to the opportunity they can seize. You better know which one you’re talking to. You…

Successful marketing campaigns sell a lot of product, or move people into action.  While messaging and graphics are all over the spectrum from amusing to powerful, these campaigns usually cover the four basic foundations for success. They trust. If the consumer doesn’t trust the brand or the fact that the company can deliver on its promise, the campaign will fail. They respect. Guilt and shame don’t compel people into action. Treat your audience with respect and they will respond. Talk down to them and they will ignore you. They are relevant. Even the right message to the right  people at the wrong time will not bring results. Make sure you answer the bottom line question we all ask when faced with an ad: “Why should I bother?” They compel. Make the case for you. Even after you have covered the “why should I bother?” question, you still have another important…

“How do you sleep at night knowing that so many people are dependent on you for their livelihoods?” Asked a friend I hadn’t seen since The A Group was in its infancy. As a young entrepreneur he is quite aware of his responsibilities for those whom he hired. The question prompted a few realizations: The A Group has currently the largest overhead in its 10-year history Our projects are larger and more complex than ever before I sleep more soundly now than ever before By all accounts, my level of anxiety and stress should be proportional to the growth of my company. But the opposite is true. It’s not that my work has gotten easier with the growth of the company; it has, however, become more strategic. While there might be a number of factors that have contributed to my being in such professional place, I can think of one…

Facial hair has made a come back in the past decade as a fashion statement for the guys. Sorry ladies, not so much for you.  Interestingly a recent study in the Journal of Marketing Communications found that men with beards were deemed more credible than those who were clean-shaven. The study showed participants pictures of men endorsing certain products. In some photos, the men were clean-shaven. In others, the same men had beards. Participants thought the men with beards had greater expertise and were significantly more trustworthy when they were endorsing products like cell phones and toothpaste. Take a look at these trustworthy and famous bearded: But before you decide to grow a beard, take a look at the chart below because not all beard styles are created equal and while some might deem you trustworthy, others might make you not only un-appealing, but downright threatening. Since I first posted…