You have approval to launch a new brand campaign and everyone on your team is so excited. But now you ask, “What should we say?” So many of us get captivated by fancy designs, new ads, and empty promises. But the real work of great marketers and communicators today lies in their ability to connect and care, or what we are advising our clients to focus on the 5 Cs of great communications. What makes someone stop endless scrolling? Why does one ad make you laugh or cry and the other to take a bathroom break? How can we figure out what makes us purchase that product a month later after several online campaigns? I’m going to give you a sneak peek into the art and science of great branding and explore why focusing on the Top 5 Cs will help you create a winning strategy.

Whether you're stepping behind the glass for the first time or revisiting the experience, the benefits of being in a research venue with your team are extensive. There's a ritual to conducting research in-person, a commitment that transcends observation. If you're a road warrior, you know the feeling. Your body is almost programmed to these moments. When you’re sitting on the airplane with your own thoughts, there's a profound connection between the researcher and the journey of discovery. These moments can lead to unique ideas and directions. When you’re in-person, your attention is dialed in, focused on what's happening on the other side of the glass – fewer distractions, more clarity – something that only being in an environment designed for insights can allow for. Discover how to maximize your in-person research.

Ever wonder how a company gets started, why a consumer chooses to spend their money or where a store chooses to first open its doors? Figuring out the motivation behind your actions can be a powerful exercise. Purpose isn’t driven by a company, it starts with passionate employees, managers and leaders. Coming together to serve each other, a mission, values, and common goals can’t happen without each other. So how to you reach the next generation when it comes to talking about your core purpose and workplace culture?

Have you ever taken a survey and quickly answered the last few questions just to get it over with? Or have you been chasing data and updating dashboards with little thought on what to do with it? With so much data and so little time these days, we have prioritized speed over quality and we are often left paralyzed as a result. Our recent conversations with marketing leaders indicate a need for solving some of the toughest questions business leaders have faced in years. But is there really an “easy” button?

It is well known the role of the manager has been evolving over the past few years. Managers have always been responsible for achieving goals, fostering teamwork, and managing priorities, but Conversate Labs has found that many managers describe themselves much differently. Taking on more roles during the pandemic like problem solvers, therapists, strategists, and much more, all while leading virtual teams, the role can seem like a daunting task. So we thought we would ask, “What do employees want from their managers in 2023?”

We all have a bit of stress these days when confronted with new social situations. Stemming from the pandemic, most of us are transitioning to more in-person events and find it difficult to speak freely or feel heard by those closest to us. Do our new social fears have any relation to what’s causing American workers to quit their jobs at alarming rates today? Conversate Labs recently spoke with professionals all across the country about their work experiences in the hopes of answering why it seems like the only option is to quit their job.

In the summer of 2020, when we were fully immersed in quarantine life, I got the good news that our Club’s course was opening up again and my friend wanted to make a tee time. We agreed to meet on the course, promising each other a safe distance or whatever we had to do to play the game. Little did I know that the game of golf that day would help me and so many others heal from one of the most difficult times in our life.

There has been a lot written about The Great Resignation. We have analyzed, surveyed, and hypothesized at length, but something is still missing. After talking with so many colleagues, leaders, and friends in the business community, it was clear to us at Conversate Labs an in-depth conversation just might be the key to finding out what’s really going on.

We recently hosted two focus groups where we talked to professionals across the country who changed their jobs in the past two years. There is no survey alone that could get to the real answers of why people are leaving their jobs, and therein lies the problem. What we are now calling “The Great Disconnect” is a multi-faceted issue that requires intense understanding and listening with the people impacted the most so we can begin to work together on solutions for retaining talent and improving the work experience.

New insights through meaningful conversations is what Conversate Labs does best. Read this week's blog to find out how you can have more "aha" moments this year.

The reality of our online world is that we like to create a space where we can control what we see and read. But in our professional or personal life, we can’t dismiss others when they disagree with us. We have to interact with people every day, whether we like them or not. This is why conversations matter more today than ever before.