Reopening requires recalibrating expectations as brands and consumers seek ways to survive Searches for the phrase “when will the economy open” jumped 450% this week, according to Google Trends, a data point that should come as no surprise to consumers and businesses impatiently waiting to read the official roadmap for return that scientists, economists, and…
Author: Ethan Machado
Welcome to TapCool, the personal website of Ethan Machado. I’m a former Missouri Journalism award-winning writer turned UX designer (but you can call me a content designer or UX writer if it makes you feel better), who loves working at the intersection of technology, design, and content. If you’re looking for a strategic and dependable creative leader, I am the human you seek.
Marketing in the New World of Social Distancing: Part II
In today’s new abnormal, content strategies require authenticity, compassion and the agility to adjust tactics All the non-essentials are watching, tweeting or zooming about “The Tiger King”, Netflix’s newest hit docuseries about an eccentric, self-destructive zoo owner named Joe Exotic who ends up in Federal prison for, among other sordid transgressions, breeding and selling endangered…
Marketing in the New World of Social Distancing
When Sequoia Capital called coronavirus the Black Swan event of 2020, few foresaw the swiftness with which the hedge fund’s early March prediction would unfold across the United States. Two weeks later, in the face of a global pandemic, many Americans have radically shifted their behaviors to “flatten the curve” and, sometimes reluctantly, adopted social…
Resurrecting Retail at NRF 2020
While technologists and marketers gathered in Vegas at the 53th annual CES in Las Vegas to gawk at the latest and greatest in connected toilets, the retail industry gathered shortly thereafter in New York City from Jan. 12-14. But instead of looking for cool tech breakthroughs, attendees sought solid ground to re-build margins and keep…
Adobe Max 2019
A conference focused on creative and artistic authenticity adds in a dollop of AI After making big ticket acquisitions last year in marketing automation (Marketo, $4.75 billion) and e-commerce (Magento, $1.68 billion) to strengthen an expanding digital marketing portfolio, Adobe turned back to its core mission at Adobe Max 2019, an annual creative conference that…
Experiential Retail Trends
To push back against ‘coach potato’ commerce, brands go bold with in-store experiences. Starbuck’s newest and biggest Reserve Roastery opened this month on Chicago’s Magnificent Mile. A 35,000 square-foot, five-story tribute to coffee culture, the bustling location intends to be less about selling coffee and more about extolling the art and science behind it. The…
OOH Advertising Gets Cooler
New digital advertising units from Cooler Screens are helping to put the ohh! in OOH Out of Home Advertising (OOH), which includes billboards and “captive formats” like elevators, lobbies, and theaters, stands out as one of the few traditional channels to enjoy year-over-year growth. According to the Out of Home Advertising Association of America, OOH…
Brands Come to Their Senses
The wellness boom has brands embracing sensory-inspired ideas to deepen connections The $4.2 trillion wellness industry convened in Singapore this week for the 13th annual “Global Wellness Summit” to explore, among other things, how businesses can tap into the full spectrum of human senses to unleash new growth opportunities and make deeper, more memorable connections…