My Blog

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    How Agencies Often Sabotage Themselves

    1024 574 Michael Kraabel

    I have always believed that an agency should function as a “teaching” organization just as much as a “thinking, doing, and making” organization. The agency should be viewed as a partner that prioritizes educating, comforting, and guiding clients through unfamiliar territory.  Clients don’t just hire agencies to execute tasks; they…

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    Navigating the Uncanny Valley in Brand Marketing

    1024 576 Michael Kraabel

    The concept of the uncanny valley isn’t new, but it’s never been more relevant. First coined by Japanese roboticist Masahiro Mori in 1970, the uncanny valley describes the unsettling feeling we experience when something, usually a robot or digital representation, becomes almost lifelike but not quite. The more human-like something…

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    Stop Calling It ‘Storytelling’ If There’s No Story

    1024 576 Michael Kraabel

    You know exactly the scenario I’m talking about. You’re sitting in a marketing meeting, eyes glazing over, while someone proudly declares their new strategy revolves around “storytelling.” Great. Except there’s one tiny problem: there’s no actual story.   [zoomsounds_player artistname=”Brand Noise Lecture Series” songname=”Stop Calling It ‘Storytelling’ If There’s No…

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    Why Most Brand Mission Statements Fail

    1024 574 Michael Kraabel

    I have seen too many companies waste time crafting mission statements that sound impressive but mean nothing. Words like innovation, integrity, and customer-centricity get polished, debated, and approved, then promptly ignored. A mission statement is supposed to define a company’s purpose, yet most are so generic they could belong to…

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