First published in The HuffingtonPost, November 18, 2011.

Quick.  What do you think of when you hear the term “cause marketing”?  If I were to venture a guess, I’d say your mind went right to the color pink … Read on >

We are at an interesting crossroads in consumer culture.  Where luxury purchases used to be the ultimate sign of affluence or, at least, aspiring affluence, more consumers now may be driven to make conspicuously conscious purchases.  According to research co-authored by Aronte Bennett and mentioned in her MediaPost article, … Read on >

I just read of a very smart move by the Chipotle restaurant chain to sponsor free screenings of the newly released documentary film, Food Inc.  By doing this, the company is supporting the broader education of consumers … Read on >

It’s a human condition as well as a marketer’s condition: we tend to be a little freaked out by blank spaces.  Be they pauses in conversation or copy-less ad inches, it is our instinct as social beings to fill it already (yikes)!  And yet,  the best way to actually invite … Read on >

Just a quick news byte as a follow up to my blog post from late 2004 (wow, I’ve been doing this that long?) on the Innocent smoothie drink brand.  I loved it then for its humanizing approach.  Can/will its new owner, Coke, maintain that “social focus?”  Read Aaron O. … Read on >

What makes you buy?  Which ad campaigns have caught your attention lately, and why?  What is it about the American Express “My Life. My Card“, Kleenex “Let It Out” or recently launched Rockport “Choose To Walk” campaign (as critiqued by Stuart Elliott in the New York … Read on >

Yes, we can.  What was it about that phrase that so engaged and inspired voters this past fall?  And, will that attitude be something they bring to their consuming habits in 2009?

Andrea Gardner interviewed me recently on this topic for public radio’s Marketplace Morning Report, and it got me … Read on >

My eBrandMarketing post on the new book by Lisa Witter and Lisa Chen just went up. Whether you THINK “social change” concerns your brand or not, it does. Mark my words – and read The She … Read on >

I spy a clever ad campaign and a brand that is taking the lead in addressing an industry-wide problem. Sony Electronics is re-using images from the 1970s, of quaint products like turntables and Beta video … Read on >

It is with much sadness that I report on the passing of the earth-friendly outdoor/fitness wear retailer, Nau. Just a year ago I posted about their pledge to give back a whopping 5% of sales to charitable organizations (and to let the customers choose those!), their realization that … Read on >