How good are you at identifying and working on THE critical thing?

Last week, my rant about GOOD clients going really LAME struck a big chord with my readers. I received multiple e-mails and private messages on social media applauding the article and offering me support for my position.  

My mentor Dan Kennedy had a saying that I’m trying really damned hard not to adopt as my own: They ALL go lame.

I was on a consulting call with one of my MSP clients — a rare breed who actually understands and can execute on great marketing. He had a shiny new lead generation campaign all set up: solid offer, qualified list, great copy, a follow-up plan, and of course, a little AI design work sprinkled in like trendy tech glitter. It was all looking delicious.

Back in 2023, a crew of MSPs and I spent a day with Navy SEAL vet and Discovery TV show star Joel Lambert, on his farm here in Tennessee.

Even though most of you reading this are dudes, you are still likely familiar with the CEO and founder of Spanx, Sara Blakely. She built her business into a $400+ million brand before selling it for $1.2 billion, making her one of the wealthiest and most influential entrepreneurs in the world. 

WeightWatchers, an iconic brand that has been around for 62 years and had reached a peak of $1.5 billion in sales in 2018, recently filed for bankruptcy due to escalating debt, citing competitive pressure as the reason for its failure. 

UPS recently announced it was laying off 20,000 employees and shutting down an estimated 73 leased and owned buildings, citing changes in the global trade policy and new or increased tariffs under the Trump administration. 

Last week we held our annual “all members” event that had 1,332 MSPs registered in person, over 950 attending virtually, plus another 350+ sponsor attendees. It’s a BIG show, with a LOT of moving parts.

Back in November there was much weeping and wailing when Trump won the election by a landslide with the usual gang of celebrities declaring they were leaving the country in protest just like they promised back in 2016. In response one Realtor created a billboard with a giant picture of Trump on it that said “Thinking of leaving the country? I can help you sell your house.” Yeah, save the e-mail, it’s funny AND a good marketing campaign.