By Guest Blogger, Mary Schmidt Marketing Troubleshooter Hey, it's Friday - let's talk a little mindless fun. Yes, me and about a million teenagers. So, here I am. A woman of a certain age blowing the viewer demographics once again. Or am I? Now that I've TOTALLY blown my cred... Read more →

By Guest Blogger Mary Schmidt, Marketing Troubleshooter (Title of NYT article, 10/17/11) Yay! Us! But, hey on second look...The target reader is age 24-34. And, it's all about fashion...and Katie Holmes is on the cover...with an exclusive "Behind The Scenes at Katie's Day Job." Oh. Well. 'Cuse me. Gotta go... Read more →

By Guest Blogger, Mary Schmidt Marketing Troubleshooter I don't see many commercials, since I don't own a television (and I go do something else while the online ones play.) I had read about the Summer's Eve "Hail The V" campaign, however, and thought it sounded both offensive and stupid. I... Read more →

By Guest Blogger, Mary Schmidt, Marketing Troubleshooter BBC: Nobel Peace Prize Recognises Women Rights Activists This year's Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded jointly to three women - Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Liberian Leymah Gbowee and Tawakul Karman of Yemen. Hmmm...Liberia and Yemen. Not exactly easy places to live,... Read more →

By Guest Blogger, Mary Schmidt, Marketing Troubleshooter I mean really. The "real housewife" of DC has been hogging MY google juice for far too long. Even with the show cancelled, she's STILL there. Grump, grumble...humpff! At one time, I had the entire first page of Google search results all to... Read more →

By Guest Blogger, Mary Schmidt, Marketing Troubleshooter When was the last time you heard that when someone was justifying a decision? I'm betting never. Ah, but the "logical thing" is to be commended and everyone nods sagely. Logic will never lead us astray, will it? (Us old trekkies know better,... Read more →

By Mary Schmidt, Marketing Troubleshooter I admit, I LOVED Borders last, last days. 80% and 90% off? That meant I got some really great reads for all of forty cents. But why did the Big Box Bookstore fail? In addition to over-expansion and under-innovation (Hello? Web sites?), I'd submit the... Read more →

By Mary Schmidt, Marketing Troubleshooter Clean restrooms. Wide, uncluttered aisles. Spotless silverware. Pleasing color combinations. Intuitive web site navigation. Employee benefits. What do all these have in common? They're all things women notice - and that will incent us to buy, again and again. Employee benefits? Really? Yes, really. If... Read more →

By Guest Blogger, Mary Schmidt Marketing Troubleshooter NYT: Maybe It's Time For Plan C Low pay, long hours, no benefits: Plan B careers aren't always the dreams people hope for. RONA ECONOMOU was a lawyer at a large Manhattan law firm, making a comfortable salary and enjoying nights on the... Read more →

By Guest Blogger, Mary Schmidt, Marketing Troubleshooter Checkpoint #1: Before you type anything, what outcome are you hoping to achieve? Checkpoint #2: Are you comfortable with a facebook comment, tweet or blog post being the first and only impression you make? You really can't separate biz from personal on da... Read more →