Brian Kennett

I had the chance to join AdFed Minnesota's session on AI, advertising, and the law this morning. A timely discussion led by Courtney Thompson and Steve Helland highlighted how agencies and brands can use AI with eyes wide open based on the laws today... Key takeaways: --There is no single U.S. law governing AI today, but state-level rules like Colorado’s 2026 AI Act are shaping what’s to come. --Trade secrets and client data can be compromised when fed into free AI tools. --Paid or enterprise versions offer stronger protections. --Copyright protection requires meaningful human authorship. AI-generated elements may not be transferable in contracts. --Publicity rights and deepfakes are a growing area of legal risk, with federal legislation on the horizon. --The FTC has made clear that AI is no excuse for deception. Fake reviews, testimonials, or synthetic influencers carry real penalties. Don't be stupid. --AI is accelerating creativity and efficiency, but the fundamentals remain the same: Do not mislead, do not misuse identities, and always protect client IP. Thanks to AdFed for facilitating the session. It was certainly worth paying $31 for less than two hours in a downtown Minneapolis parking garage. Maybe AI can find a way to fix that? 😎 #ai #generativeai #futureofcreativity #ailaw #adfed #minnesota

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Webinar = Boring...If you are not testing an alternate name you are leaving a massive variable on the table. (more...) "But, webinars and live events are not the same thing" - What are you the content police? You can keep calling them Webinars all you want and I will do whatever I can to increase registration rates and show-up rates by trying to move away from the stain that is the word webinar. The tests we ran... So we took 100+ webinars and ran head-to-head tests with all the same content, timing, creative, everything! and we did an A/B split only changing the name of the format (i.e. Webinar vs. Live Event) and that is how we arrived at all of these metrics. "But that is not statistically relevant and you did this test all wrong" - Cool. Don't care. HERE is the takeaway - imo - If you are not testing the 'format name' you are not testing one of the biggest movers in registration rates for webinars.

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[PODCAST] AI in B2B Marketing Success in 2024 In this episode of Digital Transformation Success, we chat with Lillian Pierson, a fractional CMO with extensive experience in the B2B tech space. Lillian shares insights into digital transformation success, product-led growth, and the impact of data and AI in B2B marketing strategies. From influencer marketing to product validation and building communities, Lillian's expertise sheds light on the dynamic landscape of modern marketing. Join us for a deep dive into strategies for exponential growth and the importance of aligning product and marketing efforts. Whether you're a founder, leader, or marketing enthusiast, Lillian's insights are sure to inspire and inform. Tune in and gain valuable insights from a seasoned marketing professional.   3 Knowledge Bombs on AI in B2B Marketing in 2024 Generative AI's Transformative Impact: Generative AI technologies, such as those capable of producing text, images, and videos, are revolutionizing marketing and content creation by enabling rapid, high-quality output and personalized customer READ THE FULL POST HERE 🔗: https://lnkd.in/gYvaM9-u #StartupMarketing #ProductMarketing #GrowthMarketing

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Loyalty program Frustration Reduction Plan. As I dive into the 13th edition and 2025 For Love or Money™ customer loyalty and loyalty program research, I reflect on the gift this research keeps on giving. I looked through the 2024 report and reflected on the section - Loyalty Program Friction. Face up to 21 member frustrations. In the research, we identified 21 loyalty program friction points. Members of programs ranked their most frustrating friction points. # 1 was earn-rate - how long it takes to earn rewards #2 was expiry of rewards - when rewards/benefits expire before members can use them The rest are in the full report. As an added value to this research I created a framework - The Frustration Reduction Plan (see an example in the image provided) To resolve loyalty program pain points, loyalty program marketers can develop their own ‘Frustration Reduction Plan’ with actions to improve the relevant outcomes. Step 1: Ask your members to identify their most frustrating friction points of your loyalty program. (you can use the 21 identified here and add more as needed) Step 2: From the results develop a Frustration Reduction Plan based on the impact of the point of friction and the downstream consequences. (you can use the template here to get you going) It's a powerful and proven process and one that makes a loyalty program more valuable to members and more profitable for the business. #loyalty #loyaltyprograms #friction

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Most media mix modeling RFPs are focused on the wrong things: Feature checklists and integrations instead of what matters: can the model help you make better decisions? One way to assess this is with a proper bakeoff. This requires objective testing, not selecting vendors whose results match your preferences or confirm your biases about which channels should perform well. To do this, you create tests with known answers: Option 1: Parameter Recovery Exercise 1️⃣ Take your actual marketing spend data 2️⃣ Simulate sales data with patterns you define (e.g., TV ROI declining then rebounding) 3️⃣ Give vendors only the spend data and your simulated sales 4️⃣ See which model best recovers the "truth" you built in but didn't reveal Option 2: Forecasting Exercise 1️⃣ Take your real data but cut off the most recent period (last 3 months) 2️⃣ Have vendors build models on older data 3️⃣ Give them only the marketing spend for the holdout period 4️⃣ Ask them to forecast results for that period 5️⃣ Compare forecasts to what actually happened Feature checklists might feel productive to compare, but only objective testing will show you the models that can actually drive profit for your business.

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I’ve often written about the vital importance of local journalism, and today brings encouraging news: the Chicago Reader, our city’s 54-year-old publication, is being acquired by Noisy Creek — the media company that recently revitalized alternative weeklies in Seattle and Portland. Leading Noisy Creek is Brady Walkinshaw, a former Washington State legislator and CEO of the climate news platform Grist.org. After several financially challenging years, this acquisition opens the door to new opportunities — from streamlined back-office and ticketing operations to synergies across the Noisy Creek network. Most importantly, it enables the Chicago Reader to double down on its core mission: independent local reporting with a strong focus on Chicago’s arts and culture. Over the past years, Clayco has continued to be a strong supporter of local journalism, including supporting the Chicago Reader. I’m especially thrilled that three leaders I deeply respect — Clayco’s own Marilynn Rubio as a Chicago Reader Board member; Ellen Kaulig, Chief of Staff at the Reader; and Ximena N. Beltran Quan Kiu, one of Chicago’s most respected strategic communications gurus— played key roles in securing this brighter future. Congratulations to them and to everyone who helped make this possible! Read here the excellent coverage by Chicago Tribune's Darcel R.ockett: https://lnkd.in/gEGD77gN

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