The Chameleon - Adaptive Marketing Ideas For Your Business

JC Costarino

COO of Adaptive, Excellence in Relationship Management, Operations, Process Improvement
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Recent Posts

The Shepherd and Enviable Client Experiences

Posted by JC Costarino on May 5, 2015 7:30:00 AM

If you’ve followed me through LinkedIn, you may notice I find inspiration for some of my posts listening to the priest during his homily. While I promise I am paying attention, my mind always seems to make great connections in the peaceful envelopment of Father’s words. The Sunday before last proved no different and even though I was visiting a different church, the lightening still struck! The homily focused on the difference between the day worker, the shepherd, and their commitment to the sheep.

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Topics: Client Experience

Lose the Training Wheels & Ride Straight for a Great Client Experience

Posted by JC Costarino on Apr 13, 2015 6:37:13 PM

If, like me, you grew up before the days of balance bikes, you remember the sheer joy and elation felt when you finally graduated to a big girl/boy bike and the training wheels went into storage. You spent days or weeks practicing on the carpet or in the grass, so you had a soft place to land if you fell, then you took it to the streets.  At this point, you were still not alone for you had those all important training wheels, as well as the loving and patient hand of a parent jogging behind you shouting promises to never let go!  Once you succeeded in building this foundation of comfort on the road and on the bike, the training wheels came off, but mom or dad was still jogging behind. Then, the day came when you turned around in a panic and realized Mom was down the road and Dad was jogging alongside with the video camera.  Of course, realizing you were alone, you teetered, tottered, then splat…your first bike-related road rash!  

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Topics: Brand Management, Client Experience

The Crumbling Golden Rule

Posted by JC Costarino on Mar 31, 2015 7:00:00 AM

For those of you who didn’t grow up with my father, the golden rule simply states, “do onto others as you would have done onto you”. As I look around at companies today, all I see is the cracked foundation of the pedestal upon which the standard of client treatment once perched proudly. Sure, there are places you see patches where someone attempted to fix it and hold it together, but in the end the core continues to crumble as companies forget their clients are actual people, not cogs or numbers in a spreadsheet.

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Topics: social media marketing, Client Experience

Start Blogging Today with 3 Helpful Tips for Success

Posted by JC Costarino on Mar 16, 2015 5:26:33 PM

Recently, I find myself having a very similar conversation with many of our clients surrounding the topic of blogs so I figured, what better place to discuss the how-to’s of blogging, than in a blog!

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Topics: inbound marketing, Pro Tip

Understand the Building Blocks of Social

Posted by JC Costarino on Mar 3, 2015 7:00:00 AM

There are multiple social media platforms popping up every day and entering our vernacular, from Snap Chat to Vine to Secret, and I am sure just typing this a new one came onto the scene, so how do you know if you are successful in this new landscape? For the purpose of leveraging social for business, I am going to focus on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, and define what success looks like in each, as well as provide one key tip!

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Topics: inbound marketing, social media marketing

Catholic Contradictions and Social Media

Posted by JC Costarino on Feb 10, 2015 7:00:00 AM
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Topics: social media marketing

Jumping on the Super Bowl Brandwagon

Posted by JC Costarino on Jan 27, 2015 12:57:00 PM

Since posting this morning, GoDaddy pulled their puppy commercial from Sunday's rotation.  Click here for the full story.

If you’ve been living under a rock trying to recover from the chaos of the holidays, or if “Deflategate” is the only thing filling up your news feed these days, then let me bring you up to speed.  This weekend marks one of the biggest showdowns all year…the fight to see who reigns supreme until this time next year.  I am, of course, talking about the competition for best Super Bowl Commercial, which let’s be honest, is the only reason some people even tune in Sunday. This year, I am eagerly anticipating the debut of GoDaddy’s Puppy commercial, but not for reasons you may think.

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Topics: Pro Tip, Brand Management

The Tortoise vs. The Hare in Social Communication

Posted by JC Costarino on Jan 13, 2015 7:30:00 AM

Imagine this…you arrive at the airport, with just enough incredibly productive time before your next flight. You head off to your gate, only to receive a call from the airline letting you know your gate moved, so you keep on trekking.  You sit down, plug-in, and hone in on your to-do list.  Fingers flying across the keys, head softly nodding to the ever-present music in your headphones, when BOOM…everything around you goes dark and the dreaded battery low indicator starts flashing again! 

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Topics: Pro Tip, Marketing 101

Rockbottom, Resolutions, and the 80/20 of Relationship Building

Posted by JC Costarino on Jan 8, 2015 7:52:58 AM

If you are like me, all you see flashing across your TV during commercial time, splashing through your various news feeds, or inundating your inbox is advertisements for gym memberships, top-of-the-line juicers, and a multitude of other items targeted at all those resolving to get healthy and lose weight this year.  These companies are brilliant because they know each January 1st the gym fills up with well-intentioned first-timers.  By February 1st, however, when the free personal training sessions end, or that top-of-the line juicer begins to collect dust, all the energy those companies spent on marketing is for not.

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Topics: inbound marketing, Small Business

Your '12 days' of Inbound Marketing Success

Posted by JC Costarino on Dec 18, 2014 8:26:40 AM

Last Friday morning I showed up to my 5:15 am workout not quite sure what to expect.  The “Q” or leader for the morning posted a tease the night before mentioning a “12 Days of Christmas” style workout.  Since I am in North Carolina, the geese are in high supply, but they are currently not laying eggs, and I haven’t seen any cows recently in downtown Charlotte. Needless to say I was perplexed, but prepared.  As we jogged to our workout location, the Q covered the concept of the workout:  we would do X number of reps for each exercise based on which “day” of Christmas it represented, so while 2 tricep dips didn’t sound daunting, it certainly added up after 12 rounds!

How does my affection for working out before the sun apply to your inbound marketing success…simple…cumulative consistency makes for effective results.

Each exercise on its own was easily accomplished, although not super effective to get the desired burn, but all together, the workout was not only complete, but incredibly productive.  Since dips, push-ups, and squats are NOT what you need for successful inbound marketing, I’ve take creative liberties to give you a “12 day” guide to success for your inbound marketing campaign.

  • A Partridge in a Pear Tree:  Quite simply, this is your product/service—the reason for the eleven other “days”
  • Two Turtle doves:  Your sales and marketing team, for without one, the other's success does not matter.
  • Three French hens:  The coop is full of hens, and while they have similar traits, they are also different. So too are people! Identify the “personas” you want to reach with your product/service, and then tailor your message accordingly.
  • Four Calling birds:  You notice calling birds, even if you try to ignore them you hear them, and you want your clients/potential clients to hear your calls…calls-to-action, that is, so make sure you give them a reason to go to your site, or interact with you on social media.
  • Five Golden rings:  The golden opportunities for your clients and potential clients in the form of offers, whether they are free guides, whitepapers, or eBooks. 
  • Six Geese-a-Laying:  These geese happen to represent drip campaigns:  timely placed messages to your clients/potential clients based on where they are in the sales funnel or existing relationship.
  • Seven Swans-a-Swimming: Swans tend to travel as a pair or a small bevy, whereas other birds travel in sky-darkening flocks.  Since they are large and loud, though, you tend to notice them even if they are fewer in number.  Email is the same way! You may not send as many as you used to, but when they receive them, your clients/potential clients certainly notice.
  • Eight Maids-a-Milking:  Your sales team nurturing the leads coming their way from all the great marketing.
  • Nine Ladies dancing and Ten Lords a leaping:  Inbound marketing is fun, so take a few moments to grab the lads and lassies around the office to celebrate how well everything is going. Then dive right back in!
  • Eleven Pipers piping:  Your delighted clients spreading the word.
  • Twelve Drummers drumming:  The massive hoards who want to be your client!

Notice how you start seeing great results in the last few “days”.  This is a result of the key to success:  consistency! You build upon your great foundation over and over again, and clients, both new and existing, notice.

Once you stop singing the jingle, get on out there and start implementing.  Wishing you great success and a delightful holiday season!

Feeling inspired? Grab your free checklist below, and run your next campaign like a pro!

DIY Inbound Marketing Guide

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Topics: inbound marketing