All Blog Posts - Schaefer Marketing Solutions: We Help Businesses {grow}

The Introvert’s Guide to Twitter

Johnny Spence has been one of the most consistent and entertaining contributors to {grow} over the past year so it only makes sense that I feature our favorite dude in […]

Small business? THIS is how to work the social web!

Over the past year, some of the most powerful marketing lessons I’ve learned haven’t come from a book, a guru or a webinar. They’ve come from Chandra Michaels. Chandra is […]

The Spirituality of Social Media

Sure the social web is filled with rants and quacks, but I’ve also been thinking about how the science and technology of this channel lifts people up, and perhaps even […]

Approach the social web with authentic helpfulness and good things happen

I don’t make a habit of putting my life on display on the blog but I wanted to pass along some news that I’m excited about — and it’s a […]

The most powerful leadership lesson I’ve learned

In graduate school I took a class on “Leaders and Leadership” that I hoped would give me respite from the grind of finance and economics. It turned out to be […]

Social Media Overload — Thoughts on Hitting the Wall.

Sometimes it feels like my social media presence is about to fall off a cliff. Over the past months I’ve shared my journey as I’ve slowly figured things out. How […]

Foursquare case study: Are “swarm parties” in your company’s future?

I’ve been a skeptic about Foursquare but this guest post from small business-owner Helen Wilkinson (above) describes a new perspective on a monetization activity with benefits for all. Enjoy! At […]

Snooping on Facebook: Not just for stalkers any more

I have one of the world’s best points of brand differentiation — I’m the only business blogger you know old enough to have a daughter-blogger! Lauren is entering her senior […]

Can’t find work? Maybe you’re part of the “Unserviced Workforce”

I would like to introduce Stuart Mease of Virginia Tech University to all of you. Stuart is a member of the {grow} community and flat-out one of the brightest guys […]

Ten social media and technology mega-trends to watch

I just read a fascinating (and lengthy!) report from McKinsey on tech-enabled business trends to watch and thought it was important enough to summarize for our community. Here are some […]

Can you answer the most painful question in marketing?

The other night I was having a beer with a friend who is a beginner blogger. He was lamenting that he was not attracting many new readers or comments. I […]

The Douchebag Manifesto

You probably know by now that I like to shake it up with something light-hearted on Fridays but I think today’s video sends {grow} into an entirely new orbit. A […]

The Anatomy of a Blog Post

I frequently receive questions about how I blog. Where do I get the ideas? How long does it take? Where do I come up with the graphics? The process I […]

Should you write your blog or engineer it?

I think I figured out why nearly every social media blogger sounds exactly the same — commonly referred to as the “echo chamber.” I’m learning that copying and pasting can be profitable. […]

The clash of the social media know-nothings

The know-nothings. You know who I’m talking about right? Social media “marketers” who have never practiced marketing. Maybe have never even had a sales job or a college-level marketing class. […]