Terra L. Fletcher was recently featured in The New Business Review, a quarterly publication from The Business News that highlights ideas, problem-solving, and leadership perspectives from Wisconsin’s business community. Her article, “Your Company’s Reputation Is Hiring,” explores a question more
Industrial Marketing Has to Work Beyond the Marketing Department
I've yet to meet a manufacturing leader who wakes up in the morning excited to talk about marketing. Growth? Absolutely. New customers, stronger recruiting, increased market share, a successful acquisition, a healthier sales pipeline? Those conversations get attention. Marketing, on the other
The Questions You’re Not Asking Your CMO
You can learn a lot about a company from the questions they ask a marketing leader. You can learn even more from the questions they don’t. Because while many companies say they want growth, visibility, stronger recruiting, better positioning, and more leads… the actual conversations often
SEO Isn’t Enough Anymore: How AI Search Is Changing Marketing Visibility
For years, businesses treated SEO as the visibility game. Rank well. Get clicks. Drive traffic. Done. Not anymore. In a recent conversation with Sara Timm, we discussed how much marketing has changed and why organizations need to rethink what visibility looks like today. Search is no longer
Hidden Value Drivers in an Acquisition: What Leadership Teams Should Strengthen Before a Deal
Most owners know the obvious value drivers in a merger or acquisition: revenue, profitability, equipment, customer contracts, and assets. Those matter. Of course they do. But during a recent conversation with Christopher Riegg, CFA, CPA, co-founder of Promontory Point Capital and founder of
What Judging a Communications Contest Taught Me About Better Marketing Content
Serving as a judge for a communications contest each year is a useful reminder of something many teams forget: good communication is not just about filling space. It is about making the right message easier to understand, trust, and act on. Reviewing a wide range of entries gave me a front-row
How to Set Up a Marketing Intern for Success
Hiring a marketing intern can be a smart move. It can bring fresh energy, new ideas, and extra support to your team. It can also go sideways fast. I’ve seen companies hire an intern with good intentions, then hand them vague assignments, little direction, and a password to the social media
Digital Assets as Deal Value: What Business Owners Overlook in a Sale or Merger
In my experience, digital assets are almost always handled too late, described too vaguely, or treated like a side quest someone will “clean up later.” Sometimes I get pulled in at the last minute, when the deal is moving fast, and everyone is already stretched thin. And sometimes it’s worse: a