Authentic Brand serves growing organizations (generally $5M – $100M in revenue) who need increased marketing proficiency to drive sales, and who are ready to make marketing a sustained, strategic, sales-aligned aspect of their business. For these companies, we become an extension of the organization, providing services including: Fractional and Interim CMOs to Coaching and Flex Advisory support.
We help our clients develop their marketing positioning, processes, team, and tools so that they are well-equipped to drive sustainable growth well into the future. We do this through our unique approach, which is powered by: Marketers, Methodology & Mindshare.
OUR SERVICES
Marketing leadership that helps great businesses reach next-level growth
Fractional CMO
Coaching
Flex Advisory
Related Resources
How to strike a balance between innovation and perfection in marketing
There’s a delicate balance between progress and perfection in marketing. When businesses strive for perfection, decision-by-consensus slows or stalls efforts. Innovative products, campaigns, and services never make it to market or a competitor launches their offering first, diluting your offering and investments. On the flip side, there’s a risk of moving too quickly and promising something that the business can’t deliver on or launching something that doesn’t meet customers’ needs.
Focus, fear, and flexibility — why they matter to 2020 business growth
We’re halfway through 2020, one of the most multi-faceted years in our lifetimes. As businesses look to the second half of the year, they’re scrambling to adapt their go-to-market approach to navigate the disruptive economic environment. They’re asking tough questions about their relevance in this new market and whether their product or service needs to change. They’re looking for new opportunities to grow.
The lesson that businesses will learn this year is one that has always been true. Focus is critical for sustained growth.
Agility: an essential ingredient for brand relevance in a changing world
We are quickly approaching mid-year, and business leaders everywhere are thinking about how they move forward in an undefined new world. Whether a business has been booming, shuttered, or stalled, the second half of 2020 is going to be monumental in separating companies that will thrive from those that will merely survive.
Activating your service plan to genuinely support stakeholders [SERVE•ival Part 3]
The rapidly-evolving nature of a crisis requires marketing and communication teams to stay nimble by listening carefully to their key stakeholders, adapting quickly, and leaning more purposefully into the turns. Crises are a time when showing up in the service of your customers, employees, and communities matters. Businesses must consider how they can best serve their stakeholders during these times.
Allocating your resources in the right direction [SERVE•ival Part Two]
Crises often put businesses in one of two scenarios. They are either suddenly thrust into survival mode or, in some cases, the disruption of the crisis creates a growth opportunity. Regardless of how a crisis impacts a business, marketing and communication teams need to be ready to strategically allocate resources in the right direction, make quick decisions, and communicate clearly and frequently.
Assessing your brand’s opportunity to serve [SERVE•ival – Part One]
When crises hit that disrupt life for businesses and communities, marketing and communication teams must react quickly and strategically to determine the best path forward for the brand. If marketing teams choose the wrong path, they risk coming off as careless, disingenuous, and opportunistic.
Own your brand — Why you need to invest more in the marketing channels you control
Every business, no matter its size, type, or revenue, has limited resources to direct toward marketing. Unlimited marketing budgets don’t exist, and that’s especially the case for the small to midsize businesses we work with at Authentic Brand. When resources are limited, it’s critical that a company invests in creating brand value through its owned marketing assets (e.g., website, blog, content). These assets are essential to building marketing programs that deliver returns.
Podcast: Jennifer Zick featured on Twin Cities Wellness Collective
Jennifer Zick, CEO and Founder of Authentic Brand, joined Twin Cities Wellness Collective podcast host, Alex Morrall, to share her journey to starting Authentic Brand, how to eliminate random acts of marketing, and prioritize our best ideas.
Guiding your brand and stakeholders through times of uncertainty
We are living through unprecedented times as we face the COVID-19 crisis. Businesses of all types are experiencing significant disruptions that force them to re-think their entire go to market strategy and approach. Our CMOs came together to provide their best advice on what to do right now to guide your business and brand forward.
Beyond lead generation — marketing’s role as a strategic revenue partner across the customer lifecycle
Growing businesses often think new lead generation should be the primary — and sometimes only — objective of marketing. This mindset fails to recognize the strategic role marketing can play to generate revenue across the full customer lifecycle, particularly through nurturing and engaging existing customer accounts, and how important that is for driving growth.
Getting real about demand generation: Expectation vs. reality
Demand generation. These two words often cause anxiety for B2B marketers because they frequently come attached to unrealistic expectations. Business leaders tend to think that creating demand is solved by executing a few digital marketing tactics or implementing a marketing automation tool. In reality, demand generation is much more complex.
The mindshare power behind the Authentic Brand peer community
Clients have learned that they get more than a solo independent consultant when they hire an Authentic Brand Fractional CMO. They get the collective expertise of senior-level marketers with diverse experience across a variety of business models and industries. We call the power of this community our mindshare, and it’s part of everything we do.