The original “Choose Your Own Adventure” book was created by Edward Packard called the “Adventures of You.” Between 1978 and 1998, it was a phenomenon for kids (and adults), because it was the first time the reader was given control over the outcome. With so many options to end the story, the unexpected twists brought the reader back to try it again and again.

If this behavior sounds familiar, it’s because it also describes today’s customers. With so many choices …

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Posted on May 08, 2013 by Bryan Kramer

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Our global, collaborative marketplace is driving innovation faster than ever before. Small companies are leveraging the power of social and automated marketing, appearing larger and making it harder to differentiate between small and big businesses. This increased lack of differentiation means it’s getting harder to get noticed.

Disruption in the marketing world is not a new idea – in fact, it’s one of its founding principles. But there are two sides to disruption – dark and delightful. How many times …

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Posted on April 09, 2013 by Bryan Kramer

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We are getting closer than ever before to achieving the highest level of “social intelligence” – meaning understanding the real time information we have access to that powers smarter decisions faster, and with more accuracy. Social media has both set the platform for us to become more intelligent and nimble and address the rising expectations of today’s customer. And, new tools continue to multiply exponentially to help us wrangle this platform/medium/channel. The question is… how do we get smarter about …

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Posted on February 21, 2013 by Bryan Kramer

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The Law of Attraction, one of the seven Laws of the Universe, explains that “like” matter is attracted to other “like” matter, whether positively or negatively. Magnets are scientific evidence of this, and although there’s no specific evidence to prove this Law in humans, I can say that I am a firm believer. We’re all coming up with great ideas on how to expand our reach, develop our business, or market our personal or professional brands differently – all in …

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Posted on February 04, 2013 by Bryan Kramer

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I don’t care what language you speak, who your brand is or what message you’re trying to send, we all need to speak more human (tweet this). Often enough we complicate what we’re trying to say. Ironically, as our world becomes more customer-owned and socially-enabled, we continue to see complicated, redundant, over-technical, and over-thought mass messages getting pushed out – and lost – in the ether. Is it really getting harder to stand out, with so much data and information …

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Posted on January 24, 2013 by Bryan Kramer

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I was honored to sit down for this one-on-one interview with Todd Wilms, Global Social Media Director for SAP. We’ll be posting all 5 parts of the series over the next few weeks, each done with one question in mind to make it quick and easy for you. Enjoy!

What’s your method for keeping the context of your content understood globally?

Full Script:

Bryan: We’re here with Todd Wilms from SAP. Thank you for coming. Todd, you are an executive …

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Posted on January 22, 2013 by Bryan Kramer

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It doesn’t matter what kind of work you do, the best storytellers are the most successful (tweetable). I’ve been in awe my entire life and followed brands and people who make it look so effortless. What’s really fascinating to me is how a story comes together. I think its what first drew me into advertising. The great ones know how to deliver something that speaks directly to you and make you feel like you are a part of it. And …

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Posted on January 15, 2013 by Bryan Kramer

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As we all end our holiday run of nights filled with parties and long, lazy days to recover, I must admit there’s a part of me that doesn’t want it to end. Although it can be expensive and exhausting, there’s something about connecting with others, sharing stories, laughs and great conversation that feeds the soul.

That got me thinking about why I love social media so much, and I realized that in essence, social is the world’s best cocktail party. …

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Posted on January 07, 2013 by Bryan Kramer

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A company’s digital body language is an assessment of the collective behavior across the Internet, including marketing initiatives and user interactions in the earned, owned and paid sectors online. As opportunities to interact socially are growing leaps and bounds, paying attention to your personal digital body language – as a representative of both your personal brand and your company brand – is becoming critical. Is it consistent? Is it thoughtful? Is it in line with your company’s brand tone… or …

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Posted on December 17, 2012 by Bryan Kramer

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Anything successful has context. Remember this. You’re going to need it as we move in to 2013 because, let me tell you now, stuff’s about to get real.

We’ve spent the past few years as marketers wrapping our brains around the changing landscape. Social media has given consumers a voice, and finally many of us are starting to listen (though they’ve been listening to each other for quite some time now).

It’s also given brands and businesses a platform from …

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Posted on November 27, 2012 by Bryan Kramer

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