Navigating the Constantly Changing Landscape as a Controller at CLM
In today’s fast-paced world, the role of a controller, especially in a small business like CLM, is more challenging than ever. Having been in this field for 30 years, with 18 of those years spent at CLM, I’ve seen firsthand how the job has evolved. With laws, technology, and procedures constantly changing, it’s a never-ending […]
Good Branding is More Than What Meets the Eye
When we think about branding, the first things that come to mind are logos, color schemes, and catchy taglines. While these elements are certainly important, good branding goes far beyond the visual aspects. Here’s why branding is a multifaceted strategy that impacts every aspect of a business: Building Trust and Credibility At its core, branding […]
The Four BEs of Business Development
In the fast-paced world of sales and marketing, the pursuit of an effective development process is never-ending. My journey began at Hewlett Packard and Extended Systems, where I first built a sales development strategy that I have used ever since. The process is ever evolving and adapting, and I have continued to use it in […]
Redefining Influencer Marketing: Hyper-Local Audience Authority Over Viral Flashiness
In today’s digital world, influencer marketing reigns supreme. But with countless brands vying for the attention of mega-influencers with millions of followers, local businesses often find themselves priced out or left behind. Enter the realm of hyper-local influencers: individuals with significant influence within a specific geographical area, often overlooked by traditional influencer marketing strategies. But […]
A Dynamic Duo: Organic Social Media and SEO
Navigating the digital landscape can be a complex task, but two powerful tools can help you reach your target audience: SEO and social media. While they may seem like different strategies, they actually complement each other perfectly. SEO: Your Guide and Map Think of SEO as your compass and map in the digital world. […]
Lost in Translation: Why Clear Communication Matters (and How to Get It Right)
The Case of the Missing Daycare Pickup Let’s rewind to yesterday morning. I’m sipping my coffee, scrolling through emails, and the kids happily giggling through their cartoons. Then, like a rogue plot twist in a sitcom, my husband strolled in, nonchalantly dropping a seemingly harmless bomb: ‘I have that meeting out of town today, I’ll […]
The Anticipatory Organization
As seen from the perspective of a 24-year-old MBA graduate. When I was 7, I heard the quote “The day I stop learning, bury me.” To this day, that quote has stuck, and I always remember the importance of continued education, both for personal development, and for simply keeping life interesting. Recently, I finished reading […]
Thinking Like Your Customers
By Bob Hiebeler Businesses that want to thrive in today’s hyper-connected world need to think like their customers. In the past, it was common for businesses to focus primarily on maximizing profits, and in some cases, this was done at the expense of customers. However, in light of the widespread availability of information thanks in […]
Flint & Steel Presents: “Calling your Shot: Secrets of the World’s Greatest Sales Teams.”
On Wednesday, March 8th, as part of our Flint & Steel series, CLM hosted award-winning Revenue Performance Coach Rob Jeppsen as he presented “Calling your Shot: Secrets of the World’s Greatest Sales Teams.” Owning or running any business is learning to create predictability in the midst of uncertainty and perhaps the most challenging place to […]
Flint & Steel Presents: Generation “Them” – Navigating a Multi-Generational Work Force
Part 3: Recruitment and Retention Welcome back to part 3 of our three-part series wrapping up our recent Flint & Steel live discussion with Kristin Scroggin looking at how generational diversity affects employee behavior within the workspace, and what managers and business owners need to know in order to support employee cohesiveness and maximize each […]
Flint & Steel Presents: Generation “Them” – Part 2: Bridging the gaps in a Multi-Generational Workforce
Welcome back to part 2 of our recap of the November 2nd Flint & Steel speaking opportunity we hosted with speaker Kristin Scroggin on generational diversity within the workforce. In part one we looked at the demographic breakdown of the different groups and what key characteristics defined each section. Now, in part two we will […]
Flint & Steel Presents: Generation “Them” – Navigating a Multi-Generational Work Force
Part 1: Identifying the Generational Demographics On Wednesday, November 2nd, we hosted another incredible speaker in our Flint & Steel series. We brought in Kristin Scroggin for a look at how generational diversity affects employee behavior within the workspace, and what managers need to know in order to support employee cohesiveness and maximize each group’s […]
Standing Out In A Moving World
With so many brands competing for attention on every channel, companies are under more pressure than ever to stand out. In a world where consumers are hit from every angle with options on how to spend their money and time, successful companies need to create unique value in order to find success. A quick study […]
Marshall McLuhan: Electric Age Prophet in a Post-Gutenberg Galaxy
“He was a pyromaniac of the imagination, starting prairie fires over our intellectual landscape.” — Patrick Wilson, Knowledge Organization Theorist The late 1960s saw mass media coming into its own. Radio waves had been transmitting for decades. Film had become an established entertainment source. Television had grown well beyond its gawky, teenager phase. And […]
How B-Team Superheroes Saved the Box Office Day
For more than a decade, the holidays and summer have been the season of the superhero with Disney’s Marvel Cinematic Universe consistently knocking it out of the galaxy. Before we arrived at this new golden age of superhero films, there was an endless run of really lame films and TV shows. If you’ve seen the […]
How to Ride Ahead of the Pack (Without Selling Your Soul)
In January 2019, Harley-Davidson marked an infamous anniversary, that of its 1969 sale to “leisure time and industrial products” giant AMF. Six months after the sale, on July 1969, “Easy Rider” debuted in movie theaters. The timing could not have been better for the H-D brand. The true stars of the counterculture classic are motorcycles […]
3 Disruption-Time Trends That Became Future Facts
In March of 2020, as the pandemic was just beginning, my banker recommended a book to me: The Anticipatory Organization: Turn Disruption and Change into Opportunity and Advantage by Daniel Burrus. I read, highlighted, and took notes in the columns of this incredibly timely information. We were entering a time that felt like it would […]
As the Wheel Turns: 4 Key Insights from a Serial Entrepreneur with Consistent Success
To begin the 2021 Fall edition of Dog Eat Hog, Geoff Surkamer reminisced about his first job out of college with a startup company and how his boss and founder of the company, Scott Wald, impressed upon him the values of running a successful business. Geoff’s job was as a salesman for Scott’s burgeoning software […]
3 Tips to Break the News from BoiseDev’s Don Day
Of the 14 commercial news outlets serving this city and valley, BoiseDev is the only one that’s locally owned. Dedicated to growth, business, and general local news, BoiseDev is the brainchild of Don Day, a Stanford University John S. Knight Fellow who’s now often first to get the behind-the-scenes scoop on breaking local news. He […]
Creativity in Captivity: Tips for Staying Sharp While Staying at Home
It’s no secret that the era of COVID-19 has been rough on content creators. Gigs are way down. Patrons and clients are tightening their belts, making it hard to find work. Plus, the mental and emotional impact of social isolation in the midst of a devastating pandemic is enough to weigh down even the most […]
4 Tips to Innovate and Grow – BIG
“You’re three times more likely to make an NFL roster than to go from zero to a billion in value,” Chris Elmore, AvidXchange & startup evangelist, noted at Dog Eat Hog: Unleashed, the first virtual event in CLM’s speaker series from challenger brands who crush it. “And about 50% of these zero-to-a-billions are located in […]
5 Tips to Be a Status Quo-Busting Solutioneer
On June 17th, Dog Eat Hog touched down at the “first of its kind” Autovol pre-fab building factory in Nampa to hear tips on how to crush it from the visionary CEO and cofounder, Rick Murdock. Rick gave us a field guide to being a game-changing solutioneer—as seen through the lens of his work in […]
5 Tips on How to Power Up People with Gravity
People. They make up the beating heart and lifeblood of any business. Their drive to stay productive, motivated, and inspired turns into bottom lines and future ROIs in big, almost indefinable ways. When Bobby Powers—the Head of Learning & Development and People Analytics at the legendary Gravity Payments—stepped into the Dog Eat Hog spotlight on […]
10 Ways to Rise up from out of Nowhere
Daren Nordhagen, co-founder of Foundant Technologies, is from the middle of nowhere. Well, a small suburb of the middle of nowhere, a designation once mathematically granted to Glasgow, Montana by the Washington Post. On November 14th, Daren demonstrated the power of coming from out of nowhere during Dog Eat Hog IV, our quarterly speaker series […]
5 Breakthrough Tips from Cradlepoint’s CMO
From humble origins in Idaho, Cradlepoint is now the global leader in cloud-based 4G LTE network solutions. So how did they get there? At our last Dog Eat Hog—part III in the CLM speaker series on how to compete and win—Todd Krautkremer, the Chief Marketing Officer at Cradlepoint, took us behind the scenes and let […]
4 Components of an Effective Landing Page
Digital advertising has become more and more sophisticated and effective over the years. From a digital marketing perspective, a campaign should be looked at from the top down. This means everything from the strategic planning, targeting, and copy needs to be examined and reexamined to ensure the right mix and delivery. But a digital advertising […]
Is Your Company Brandfishing?
If you’re single, you’ve probably waded into the pool of online dating. Popular apps like Tinder and Bumble have changed the way people meet each other. With this change comes the realization that individuals are constantly marketing themselves. They are analyzing what they look like and asking themselves if their current profile pictures are good […]
Finding the Why in Marketing
Maybe it’s my maternity leave quickly approaching that’s setting my mind on thoughts about what’s important and the reasons why I do what I do. Or maybe it’s the months I’ve been spending in the trenches with some of our clients thinking through tough strategic decisions ranging anywhere from messaging, to audiences, to internal operations. […]
Social Media Marketing World Recap
Social Media Marketing World takes place every year in beautiful San Diego, California. Started by Michael Stelzner, the CEO and founder of Social Media Examiner, as the worldwide hub for thought leadership concerning the future of social media marketing. I’ve had the privilege of attending for the past two years and would like to share […]
4 Necessary Elements of Content Marketing
When we think of digital marketing, there are numerous tactics, strategies, and applications that businesses of all sizes can employ to become more successful. The bare minimum digital marketing actions include having a website or a Facebook page. But since the digital industry has evolved, the bare minimum is no longer a viable way for […]
Going Hog Wild in Event Branding
Branding an event—like CLM did recently with our first speaker in a series on challenger companies—means putting a distinctive stamp on every aspect of a real-life experience. Weaving consistency and excitement into each detail along the way turned out to be quite an experience in itself. We started with the name, Dog Eat Hog. It’s […]
5 Benefits of Marketing Automation
Businesses are always looking for ways to become smarter, faster, and more precise in their actions. Figuring out the right cadence and steps to take regarding certain processes is challenging. How often should certain actions be performed? Are the actions being performed actually affecting the company’s bottom line? Which actions are actually contributing a net […]
Is Traditional Media Dead?
In advertising there are several mediums to reach an intended audience; now more than ever. As technology has evolved, so has the way we consume media. The days where the only options to reach the masses were through print or broadcast are long gone. Even though print and broadcast are tools of the past, they […]
