The marketing that gets a company to one stage of growth isn't always the marketing that gets it to the next. Early on, a lot can work. A great product creates buzz. Founders open doors. Word of mouth drives customers. A few strong channels generate demand. Then growth gets harder. Customer acquisition slows. Competition increases. The company moves into new markets or targets larger customers. Sales needs more support. Marketing costs rise. The natural response is often to add more. More...

I’ve seen this pattern repeatedly in growth-stage companies. Marketing worked well enough to help the business get where it is. Then the company grows. The team expands. More money goes into marketing. More campaigns and channels are added. Yet growth gets harder, not easier. The CEO starts asking reasonable questions: Why aren’t we seeing more from our marketing investment? Are we spending in the right places? Do we have the right team? Often, none of those is the real problem. The company...

I recently wrote about a dangerous phrase "we've always done it that way," used when nobody has the will to change. Eric Shoars shared another dangerous phrase "We can't do that, it'll set a precedent." Why Leaders Resist Change Here's what "we can't do that, it'll set a precedent" actually means when a leader says it. It's not about the one decision in front of them. It's the fear of what happens after. If we make this exception once, we'll have to make it again. For everyone. Every time....