“Hello Lynn-zee, would you like an espresso? How about you Tsach? Would you like one too?”

I think it’s fair to say that Starbucks baristas are pretty lousy at spelling names. I’m sure many of us have had one of these moments.

I wouldn’t think I have a “tough” name, but it wouldn’t surprise me if the Starbucks employee got it wrong the first time around. So, when they write “Nite-ish” or “Nutish” on my cup, it leaves me unfazed.

But what always perplexed me is when they got the names wrong for most of my friends. Trust me, they have extremely “common” names and the Starbucks employees would still get it wrong. Seriously? …

As a kid, I was always moving cities every three years. This mobility was not really by choice, but that’s just how things are when your dad was part of the army. In all those heady years, I made many friends spanning across different cities. Luckily, I was a social kid and didn’t necessarily have a tough time finding and making friends in the city I shifted to.

Was this social trait in me natural or had it developed over time? An answer to a question I still seek even today. I’d managed to stumble across some really cool people along the way and honestly, it still surprises me that they willingly chose to hang out with this short, squeaky-toned kid. …

If you have had the chance to open Instagram in the last few days, you may have noticed a new trend of people posting stories of themselves in different situations, as requested by their loyal followers.

You’ve probably seen the kind of pictures I’m referring to.

It’s like a New Year’s resolution — every year there’s a bunch of them. This year was no different. We saw video-form content take precedence over photo content, only until the rise of the “Post a picture of” trend. The trend has really taken the social media world by storm.

The Challenge

The Instagram Story challenge starts by using the “Ask me a question” button, which can be found in your stickers tab. All you have to do is replace the question with “Post a picture of” and your friends will then respond with anything they want to see a photo of, ranging from your most embarrassing moments, extravagant vacations, to personal highlights. …

I get it. Selling can be hard.

Having worked in sales for a few years, I learned this lesson the hard way. I quickly realized that most people typically don’t care what you have to say unless it adds something of value to them.

However, “value” is a tricky word. I don’t like to use it a lot, since it means different things to different people. For example, you may value a product’s price more than the actual benefit it offers, while I may value the benefit more by willingly paying an extra sum for the same product or vice-versa.

It only seems fitting to start with value as my first reason for why customers refrain from purchasing your product. …

Fine.

I’ll admit it, I do enjoy going out.

The aspect of meeting new people and enjoying conversations over a quick drink has a whole different charm to it. I have been invited to a few late-night company gatherings and networking events at bars. And some of the greatest lessons I’ve learned about marketing have originated from some of the most unexpected places, like bars and bartenders.

Yes, you read right. I quickly discovered that there are a lot of similarities between marketers and bartenders. If you’re looking to learn a little bit about marketing and customer relationships, grab a seat at the bar. …

If 2020 couldn’t get any stranger, on November 18, while carrying out a routine wildlife survey, state biologists discovered a strange metal monolith in a remote part of Utah. It appeared out of nowhere. For those of you new to the term, monoliths are long vertical slabs of metal, each between ten to 12 feet tall.

So, what’s the big deal?

The monolith vanished on November 27, without leaving any trace of being physically taken down.

Spooked yet? It only gets worse.

The Monolith Timeline

Ever since the discovery of the first monolith by a helicopter crew flying over a remote part of Utah, there have been a few more unexplained incidents. …

What?

No way.

We generally run into the phrase ‘free shipping’ while shopping online. It can be enticing to see the ‘free shipping’ tag while checking out, which is half the reason behind companies offering it in the first place. But, here’s the real story behind it.

Hidden Agenda

Based on a survey conducted by Walker Sands, free shipping was the top reason behind customers ordering from e-commerce sites. Out of which, 88% of them stated that free shipping is more persuasive than easy returns or same-day shipping. The popular phrase can present itself in various forms. Here are a few examples:

1. If you spend $40 dollars on a shirt, while checking out you may be prompted to spend another $20 more for free shipping. …

I can eat a ridiculous amount of Chips Ahoy cookies in one sitting. Most kids can do the same with Cadbury Creme Eggs. We all love spreading Philadelphia cream cheese on our bagels. But, Humaning just leaves a bad taste in your mouth. So much, that even a pack of Trident mint can’t save it.

Mondelēz doesn’t agree with me, or the entire world to be honest. It’s almost like a bot came up with this term and they decided to run it as a marketing campaign. Clearly enough, being a big firm doesn’t save you from being ridiculously stupid.

Like where this is going? …