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Articles from Geoff Ficke | Selfgrowth.com
- 5 Examples of Remora Fish Marketing That Can Jump Start Your Product’s Sales & Marketing - by Submitted on Jun 26, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke 5 Examples of Remora Fish Marketing That Can Jump Start Your Product’s Sales & Marketing Everyone is fascinated by sharks. They are so dangerous, explosive and mysterious. Television documentaries detailing their habits, hunting techniques and brutality are ubiquitous, As ...
Views: 1977(1 vote) - Weave a “Freemium” Business Model Element Into Your Consumer Product Marketing Strategy - by Submitted on Jun 26, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke Weave a “Freemium” Business Model Element Into Your Consumer Product Marketing Strategy A 21st century term applied to a decades old Marketing Concept, Freemium has become one of the most popular vehicles for Consumer Product entrepreneurs, Software designers and Marketers ...
Views: 1736(1 vote) - 6 Things You Need to Know In Order to License Your Product - by Submitted on Jun 26, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke 6 Things You Need to Know In Order to License Your Product My Marketing Consulting, Branding and Product Development firm receives numerous queries on Licensing Consumer Products, Services and Concepts every week. Most inquiries are of no value as the hopeful Licensor has ...
Views: 1385(1 vote) - How to Self-Analyze Your Consumer Product Idea To Facilitate Bringing It to Life - by Submitted on Jun 26, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke How to Self-Analyze Your Consumer Product Idea To Facilitate Bringing It to Life Today I was approached by a person with an interesting Consumer Product concept they hoped to bring to market. The idea potentially has considerable utility. I say “potentially” because it is ...
Views: 1042(1 vote) - The 5 Most Important Items to Fully Address For Entrepreneurs When Writing Business Plans - by Submitted on Jun 26, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke The 5 Most Important Items to Fully Address For Entrepreneurs When Writing Business Plans A good portion of my work is devoted to writing and reading Business Plans. My Consumer Product Development and Marketing Consulting firm works extensively with small businesses, ...
Views: 836(1 vote) - The Importance of “Instant Gratification” When Marketing Consumer Products - by Submitted on Jun 22, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke The Importance of “Instant Gratification” When Marketing Consumer Products I remember as a little boy the excitement of shopping for a new car with my father. Dad was a Chevrolet man. He always bought cars from the same dealership and the same salesman. We would walk the ...
Views: 3664(2 votes) - An Old Mustard Brand Teaches the Power of Marketing Exclusivity - by Submitted on Jun 22, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke An Old Mustard Brand Teaches the Power of Marketing Exclusivity The practice of Brand Exclusivity is one that consumers associate with Luxury Goods categories such as Cosmetics, Perfumery, Jewelry, Fashion or Automobiles. The Marketing Strategy utilized to keep product ...
Views: 1173(2 votes) - Thel Importance of Crude Prototypes in Launching And Marketing New Consumer Products - by Submitted on Jun 22, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke The Importance of Crude Prototypes in Launching And Marketing New Consumer Products The most spectacular example of stunning product design extant in the world today must surely be on display in Marinello, Italy at the Ferrari Auto works. Ferrari is the apex of beauty; ...
Views: 1580(1 vote) - How to Fail at Launching a Clever, Novel Consumer Product! - by Submitted on Jun 19, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke How to Fail at Launching a Clever, Novel Consumer Product! The current economic malaise has created a surprising level of interest from entrepreneurs keen to launch a bevy of assorted consumer products. Our Marketing Consulting and Product Development firm is reviewing more ...
Views: 950(1 vote) - The Rarest Most Exclusive Garment Wool in the World is Not for Sale - by Submitted on Jun 19, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke The Rarest Most Exclusive Garment Wool in the World is Not for Sale For centuries the famous weavers of Kashmir have gathered and produced shawls from the rarest fiber in the world, Shahtoosh. These fabulous, prized shawls are so exclusive that the name Shahtoosh, meaning ...
Views: 2273(1 vote) - Did a Fragrance Really Trigger the Events That Led to the Infamous Beheading of Marie Antoinette? - by Submitted on Jun 19, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke Did a Fragrance Really Trigger the Events That Led to the Infamous Beheading of Marie Antoinette? Jean-Francois Houbigant launched his famous Perfume atelier and shop on the Fauborg St. Honore in Paris in 1775. This was during the gilded age of French royalty and of the ...
Views: 1110(1 vote) - How One of the Fashion World’s Earliest Great Innovators Lost Everything by Lack of Innovation - by Submitted on Jun 18, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke How One of the Fashion World’s Earliest Great Innovators Lost Everything by Lack of Innovation It is startling to study an empires crumble, decline and ultimately perishing on the ash heap of history. It happened to ancient states such as Egypt, Rome, Athens and ...
Views: 1286(1 vote) - A Baby’s Illness Was Responsible for One of the World’s Most Revered and Iconic Brands - by Submitted on Jun 18, 2011 from Geoff FickeA Baby’s Illness Was Responsible for One of the World’s Most Revered and Iconic Brands There is barely a household anywhere in the world that is home to a baby that does not have a supply of Gerber Baby Food in the cupboard. The product is ubiquitous. The label is one of the most ...
Views: 1042(1 vote) - Seek Out Honest Criticism of Your Business Plan And Learn to Accept and Act on It! - by Submitted on Jun 18, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke Seek Out Honest Criticism of Your Business Plan And Learn to Accept and Act on It! Four decades ago I studied a college course in English Literature. W. Somerset Maugham’s famous novel “Of Human Bondage” was required reading. It was a bit of a slow go, but one line has ...
Views: 1163(1 vote) - Using Trade Shows to Launch or License Your Novel Consumer Product Is Key - by Submitted on Jun 18, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke Using Trade Shows to Launch or License Your Novel Consumer Product Is Key Each business day we are approached by entrepreneurs, small businesses, and inventors from all over the world seeking guidance and asking how best to launch and successfully commercialize their ...
Views: 1157(1 vote) - Entrepreneurial Creativity Is Still Rife in the Fashion Jewelry and Cosmetic World - by Submitted on Jun 18, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke Entrepreneurial Creativity Is Still Rife in the Fashion Jewelry and Cosmetic World My Product Development and Marketing Consulting firm has had a busy spring introducing a slew of new products in international cosmetic and jewelry industry trade shows. We participated in ...
Views: 1262(1 vote) - Securing Professional Help - How to Market a New Consumer Product Idea - by Submitted on Jun 18, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke Securing Professional Help - How to Market a New Consumer Product Idea The last article in this series considered the mindset and attitudes required to be a successful marketer of consumer products and services. We discussed whether to utilize professional Consulting ...
Views: 798(1 vote) - How to Market a New Consumer Product Idea-The Mindset Required - by Submitted on Jun 18, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke How to Market a New Consumer Product Idea-The Mindset Required This will be the first in a series of self-help articles that will be of use to aspiring entrepreneurs, inventors and small businesses who seek to market a consumer product, idea or service that they have ...
Views: 997(1 vote) - The Challenge for Big Companies Is Not to Be Slow! That Is the Opportunity for Entrepreneurs - by Submitted on Jun 18, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke The Challenge for Big Companies Is Not to Be Slow! That Is the Opportunity for Entrepreneurs Louis B. Gerstner, the famous business executive who ran International Business Machines (IBM) once famously quipped, “I’ve never seen a small company that did not want to be a big ...
Views: 1073(1 vote) - You Can Only Succeed at Life or Business If You Keep Moving - by Submitted on Jun 18, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke You Can Only Succeed at Life or Business If You Keep Moving Robert Goizueta, the former Chief-Executive of Coca-Cola was once quoted in Fortune Magazine, saying: “The moment you let avoiding failure become your motivator, you are down the path of inactivity. You can stumble ...
Views: 1281(1 vote) - Successfully Approaching Marketing Professionals - How to Market a New Consumer Product or Idea - by Submitted on Jun 13, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke Successfully Approaching Marketing Professionals - How to Market a New Consumer Product or Idea Many inventors and entrepreneurs are so excited about their concept that they neglect to learn, or practice proper business etiquette when soliciting marketing or investment ...
Views: 1022(1 vote) - For 100 Years Women Have Enjoyed the Luxury of Jean Patou’s Joy Fragrance - by Submitted on May 28, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke For 100 Years Women Have Enjoyed the Luxury of Jean Patou’s Joy Fragrance French furrier and tanner Jean Patou moved from Normandy to Paris in 1910 intent on building an eponymous fashion house. He opened Maison Parry and sold his entire collection in 1914 to a single ...
Views: 1963(1 vote) - Competition Is to Successful Marketing As Fertilizer Is to Fruitful Agriculture - by Submitted on May 28, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke Competition Is to Successful Marketing As Fertilizer Is to Fruitful Agriculture Many believe that marketing a consumer product or service would be so much easier if we could have the field of commerce solely to our project. It only seems logical that if your business ...
Views: 1673(1 vote) - For Seven Generations a Unique Business Has Brought Happiness and Beauty to Millions Each Spring - by Submitted on May 28, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke For Seven Generations a Unique Business Has Brought Happiness and Beauty to Millions Each Spring Newark, New York does not spring to mind as a base for horticultural genius. Not to be confused with tough, rough hewn Newark, New Jersey, this small farming area became the ...
Views: 1005(1 vote) - London Offers the World’s Most Exciting And Historic Retail Shopping Scene - by Submitted on May 24, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke London Offers the World’s Most Exciting And Historic Retail Shopping Scene Recently I had the opportunity to take a quick business trip to London. As always, I made sure to save some extra time to enjoy the street life and unique shopping opportunities that abound in this ...
Views: 1007 - What Lesson Can Entrepreneurs Learn from a Bespoke Suit Maker and M&M’s Candy? - by Submitted on May 24, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke What Lesson Can Entrepreneurs Learn from a Bespoke Suit Maker and M&M’s Candy? Recently I read a profile of a relatively new business, Astor & Black that makes bespoke tailored gentlemen’s suits. The Company sends salesmen direct to their clients home or office and custom ...
Views: 1488(1 vote) - How We React to Failure Defines How Much Success Most People Can Attain - by Submitted on May 24, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke How We React to Failure Defines How Much Success Most People Can Attain In 1954 the manager of The Grand Ole Opry told Elvis Presley, “You ain’t going nowhere son. Go back to driving a truck”. After his first audition the great actor Sidney Poitier was told by the ...
Views: 2970(1 vote) - Marketing a Product Is Most Effective When Presented Through Story Telling - by Submitted on May 21, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke Marketing a Product Is Most Effective When Presented Through Story Telling Many years ago, when I was just a young rookie salesman I was fortunate to fall under sway of a wonderful veteran sales manager. His name was Milton Lupow and he became a mentor, teacher and coach ...
Views: 1001 - An Eccentric Lifestyle Popular in the Early 19th Century Has Left Us the Simple Graham Cracker and More! - by Submitted on May 21, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke An Eccentric Lifestyle Popular in the Early 19th Century Has Left Us the Simple Graham Cracker and More! The Presbyterian Reverend Sylvester Graham, an early 19th century proponent of an extreme, aesthetic lifestyle, is largely forgotten today. During his life, however, ...
Views: 1355 - How a Long Forgotten Shipping Magnate Removed His Name from Restaurant Menus around the World - by Submitted on May 21, 2011 from Geoff FickeHow a Long Forgotten Shipping Magnate Removed His Name from Restaurant Menus around the World Ever enjoyed a meal of Lobster Wenberg? You will not find the dish on any fine restaurants or diner’s menu today. In fact, the dish existed as Lobster Wenberg for less than a month at Delmonico’s in ...
Views: 999 - Two Centuries Ago “The King of Chefs, the Chef of Kings” - by Submitted on May 21, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke Two Centuries Ago “The King of Chefs, the Chef of Kings” Created the Modern Gourmet Cooking We Know Today We live in an age of plenty, when food is consumed and pursued as much for entertainment as for sustenance. Haute cuisine foodie magazines abound. There are television ...
Views: 3474 - Multi-Tasking Now Is the Crucial Difference Between Success and Failure for Entrepreneurs - by Submitted on May 06, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke Multi-Tasking Now Is the Crucial Difference Between Success and Failure for Entrepreneurs The early 20th century British politician James Maxton once famously quipped, “If you cannot ride two horses you have no right in the circus”. The same is true for aspiring ...
Views: 908 - How Modern Gastronomy Has Been Influenced by The Commercialization of Ancient Condiments - by Submitted on May 03, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke How Modern Gastronomy Has Been Influenced by The Commercialization of Ancient Condiments Several years ago I had the good fortune to re-visit the ruins at Pompeii near Naples, Italy with my family. I had been to the ancient site some 30 years before, but the excavation of ...
Views: 1415 - The Great Department Store Visionaries Created Much More Than Vast Retail Palaces - by Submitted on May 03, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke The Great Department Store Visionaries Created Much More Than Vast Retail Palaces Before the middle of the 19th century retailing was a disorganized, semi-professional business. Small general merchandise stores carried minimal stock levels and were often limited to local ...
Views: 1363 - The Classic Toy “Mr. Potato Head” Would Never Become a Success in Today's Overprotective Society - by Submitted on May 03, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke The Classic Toy “Mr. Potato Head” Would Never Become a Success in Today’s Overprotective Society In the late 1940’s a Brooklyn-based inventor named George Lerner began to attempt to license a toy concept he had developed. The idea was to take pieces of fruit and vegetables ...
Views: 1754 - How to Change a Product Negative into a Positive - by Submitted on May 03, 2011 from Geoff FickeHow to Change a Product Negative into a Positive Virtually every consumer product comes to market with an Achilles heel. There is an inherent limitation, design shortcoming or performance kerfuffle that is almost always present. Nevertheless, many of these products become very successful ...
Views: 813 - The Simple, Ubiquitous Modern Screw Created Fortunes and Enabled Mass Production to Flourish - by Submitted on May 03, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke The Simple, Ubiquitous Modern Screw Created Fortunes and Enabled Mass Production to Flourish Every human seems to have screws lying around our homes and offices. They tend to accumulate like dust particles. Open a drawer or a utility box and there will be a jumble of screws ...
Views: 1055 - Why Trade Shows Are Crucial When Introducing A New Product or Service-Make Expo’s Work for You! - by Submitted on Apr 01, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke Our consumer product marketing and product development group just returned from launching two new products at a large trade show in Bologna, Italy. This was a cosmetic-beauty product show, the largest in the world. There were over 3000 vendors displaying their wares, from the ...
Views: 1003(3 votes) - “Fortune Is Not on the Side of the Faint-Hearted”: Sophocles, 5th Century B.C. Greek Philosopher - by Submitted on Mar 28, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke What was true when written in Sophocles revered 5th Century B.C. text Phaedra, is ever-more true in the 21st century. Other than the lightning struck few who win a lottery prize, fortune, and success in life is not given easily, and certainly not to the faint hearted. The ...
Views: 2346 - Fear Is a Key Driver of Success - by Submitted on Mar 28, 2011 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke Ayrton Senna, the great Brazilian Gran Prix driver, once famously was quoted: “To survive Gran Prix racing, you need to be afraid. Fear is an important feeling. It helps you to race longer and live longer”. Fear is an element that each of us face in different ways, and at ...
Views: 2596 - How Not to Choose a Professional Consultant - by Submitted on Jul 29, 2010 from Geoff FickeSeveral years ago I wrote an article entitled “How Do You Choose the Best Marketing Consultant”. The article was posted on my website - www.DuquesaMarketing.com - and on numerous print and internet links. The content was written to advise layman of the many options and obstacles that should be ...
Views: 1078(6 votes) - A Simple Lesson from Aristotle On the Value of Finishing What You Start - by Submitted on Jul 12, 2010 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke The greatest Greek philosopher, Aristotle, is widely studied and discussed to this very day for his keen observations on the human condition. For almost 2400-years Aristotle’s numerous writings, philosophical tracts and pithy comments on men and their relations toward each ...
Views: 1369(3 votes) - If When - Two Often Crippling Words - by Submitted on May 14, 2010 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke Words matter. How we express ourselves is the most important indicator of the type of person we are and the type of life we lead. In my work as a marketing consultant I have the opportunity to meet hundreds of people each year. They are usually attempting to bring a product, ...
Views: 1536(3 votes) - The Lesson of “I, Pencil” An Essay on Economic Freedom for the Ages - by Submitted on Oct 27, 2009 from Geoff FickeThe Lesson of “I, Pencil” An Essay on Economic Freedom for the Ages As a young college student studying economics in the 1960’s I was exposed to the writings and philosophy of Leonard Read while researching a paper on Adam Smith’s enlightened principle of the “Invisible Hand”. Mr. Read had ...
Views: 9268(3 votes) - The Invention of Interchangeable Parts Terrified Government 200 Years Ago-and Today - by Submitted on Sep 28, 2009 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke Since the beginning of time, until the middle of the 19th century the production of goods was conducted on an artisan, piece by piece basis. Over these many centuries the center of the individual’s universe was the local environ where commerce and enterprise were conducted on ...
Views: 2117(2 votes) - There Is Always Money to Fund Start-ups - Just Be Focused and Creative-It’s Never Easy - by Submitted on Sep 28, 2009 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke We live in perilous financial times. As the markets have imploded, home prices cratered, jobs lost and incomes uncertain many people have become very risk averse. Very understandable! Many of us are more focused on maintaining our resources than expanding them in the face of ...
Views: 962 - How To Assure Failure In a New Venture - by Submitted on Sep 11, 2009 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke One of the great benefits we enjoy about the consulting work we do is having the opportunity to review the inventiveness of hundreds of entrepreneurs each year. It truly is amazing how many of these creative talents push the envelope of novelty. There is no such reality as the ...
Views: 1307 - The Historic Link Between Tulips and The Sub-Prime Mortgage Debacle - by Submitted on Sep 11, 2009 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke Almost every living individual is being effected adversely in some way by the international economic meltdown we are experiencing today. The genesis of this severe financial downturn is attributed to the United States government encouraging the expansion of homeownership to ...
Views: 1892 - Many Aspects of Modern Travel Were Pioneered By the Ancient Romans - by Submitted on Sep 11, 2009 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke Modern travelers take the open road for granted. We can hop into exquisitely engineered modern vehicles, pop onto smooth, straight freeways, well lit, with excellent signage and many roadside conveniences. We can cover as much ground as we might like in any direction, in ...
Views: 1945 - The World’s Most Successful Board Game Was Created As A Metaphor for Hard Times - by Submitted on Sep 11, 2009 from Geoff Fickeby: Geoff Ficke Successful entrepreneurs are people that always see opportunity in any situation. By nature they are positive and constantly seek innovations that address wants and needs that they identify in their contemporary environment. Currently we are in a dark economic period, and this ...
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