Adam Olenn Adam Olenn

Seven Minute Guide to Leadership

Leadership is always challenging, but these core principles can see you through.

Why is leadership hard and difficult?

How should i handle mistakes as a leader?

How do I get my team to trust me?

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Adam Olenn Adam Olenn

Siblings, Not Twins

Many schools struggle to align their Advancement and Admissions messaging. Brand can unify their approach, but there are important differences that must be honored if the message is to resonate with its intended audience.

What’s the difference between admissions and development?

How do I align Admissions and Advancement messaging?

How do I get my enrollment and advancement teams to collaborate?

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Adam Olenn Adam Olenn

Diagnosing the independent-school admissions funnel

There are a lot of points between advertising and realized revenue where the independent school sales cycle can break down. There’s a simple way to figure out where the problem is—and what can be done to fix it.

How do I know where the problems are in admissions?

How do I know what to fix in admissions?

What are the danger signals for admissions?

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Adam Olenn Adam Olenn

Give me the same, only different.

Every successful campaign is a kind of theme-and-variations.

What makes marketing campaigns successful?

How do I make a successful marketing campaign?

How do I keep people interested in my marketing campaign?

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Adam Olenn Adam Olenn

Lights, camera, reaction!

To make your videos come alive, spend less time with a camera and more time with a pencil.

How do I produce video on a budget?

How do I keep people interested in my video?

Why should I make video content?

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Adam Olenn Adam Olenn

Get yourself a problem!

The decision-making part of the brain is in league with our emotions – market accordingly.

How do I tell a good story?

Why do companies fail to tell good stories?

How do I know if a customer is ready to buy?

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Adam Olenn Adam Olenn

Feeling beats thinking.

The decision-making part of the brain is in league with our emotions – market accordingly.

What drives decisions?

How does the brain make decisions?

What’s more important, feelings or logic?

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Adam Olenn Adam Olenn

Let the booth do the work.

Before you go to the trade show, make sure your booth will pull its weight.

How can my trade show booth drive sales?

Does the design of our trade show booth matter?

How should I prepare for a trade show?

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Adam Olenn Adam Olenn

Less really is more.

“Omit needless words.” This timeless advice is more important than ever in the age of shortened attention spans.

How do I edit my writing?

Does writing still matter?

How do I write better?

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Adam Olenn Adam Olenn

Say again? Repetition is your friend.

We know what we like—and we like what we know.

How can I repeat without getting boring?

How do I keep people interested?

How could this principle of repetition apply to a marketing or branding campaign?

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Adam Olenn Adam Olenn

The best word is a picture.

For your writing to connect, it must activate readers’ senses.

How do I make stories come alive?

How do I write better?

How can I be more interesting?

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Adam Olenn Adam Olenn

Focus on this.

For your marketing to be effective, it must focus on one idea.

How do I make marketing more effective?

Why doesn’t my marketing work?

How do I get people to pay attention to my marketing?

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Adam Olenn Adam Olenn

Surprisium: the element of surprise

Interest is the professional cousin of curiosity – and they both come from surprise.

How do I get people’s attention?

How do I get people to notice?

What makes people pay attention?

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Adam Olenn Adam Olenn

For effective marketing, be quick about it.

The key to effective marketing is to know when the brain works quickly and when it takes its time – and communicate accordingly.

Why do people ignore my marketing?

How do I get people to pay attention?

How can I persuade people?

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