When Death Comes

Posted on January 28, 2026 by Rod Schwartz

Charlie Kirk awoke on the morning of September 10, 2025, not knowing that the next few hours would be his last on this earth.

24 years earlier, as Todd Beamer was boarding United Airlines flight 93 from Newark, he had no idea that in less than two hours he would be leading a charge to seize control of the hijacked plane, forcing it to crash land in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

None of us knows the time and manner of his death, but it will come.

The moment Charlie Kirk’s body died, his soul and spirit were fully alive and in the presence of His Creator and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Todd Beamer, same glorious entrance into eternity.

As Christians, they died “in Christ.” And all who die in Christ, in that instant, are transported into the presence of God.

Ever had a brush with death? It’s sobering. I’ve had bullets whiz over my head during deer season; I’ve escaped several close calls while behind the wheel. I had a cancerous kidney removed in 2011. Open heart surgery in 2020. Any of these things could have gone differently apart from divine intervention.

As I enter my 74th year, I’m fully aware that most of the years of my life are behind me. I don’t know how many more years God has ordained for me; His will be done.

When my time to die comes, like Charlie and Todd and every other person who has received God’s free gift of salvation, I will see my Redeemer face-to-face. Not because I deserve it, not because I’ve earned it, but because a compassionate God provided the means.

“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” (John 3:16-18)

“I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man comes to the father except by me.” (John 14:6)

“Neither is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12)

I thank God that one September evening in 1974, an advertising client presented the good news to my wife and me. Every sin I’d ever committed or would commit was poured out on Jesus Christ and judged. He who knew no sin was made sin for me, that I might become the righteousness of God in Him.

By grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. Full stop.

In our prosperous nation, many say, Who needs God?

You do. We do. All of us.

Our biggest problems confront us daily: self-centeredness, self-righteousness, preoccupation with ourselves, and just plain self-ish-ness. We desire the approbation of others, crave immediate gratification, and condemn the sins of others while ignoring our own.

But the Word of God pulls us up short.

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory (righteousness, justice, and truth) of God.” (Romans 3:23)

“All we like sheep have gone astray….” (Isaiah 53:6a)

“There is none righteous, no, not one.” (Romans 3:10)

You will one day face death. Sooner or later, one way or another.  And then what?

“For it is appointed unto man once to die, and then the judgment.” (Hebrews 9:27)

My heart’s desire, if you are reading this and are yet unsure of your eternal destiny after death, is that you will take time, in the privacy of your soul, to consider the simple proposition that God offers you, while you still have the golden opportunity to make the most consequential decision of your life. Your eternal future hangs in the balance.

“Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved.” (Acts 16:31)

Don’t be distracted by the sins of others, mine included. This is only between you and the God who loves you, not because of who and what you are but because of who and what He is.

“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” (Ephesians 2:4-9)

When Jesus Christ was hanging on the cross, being judged by God the Father while bearing the full penalty for every sin of every human being, He had you personally in mind.

He died in your place. He paid the penalty for your sins. In full. He did all the work.

This is why, at the final judgment of mankind at the Great White Throne (Revelation 20:7-15), your sins will not be brought up. You will stand or fall on the basis of the righteousness you claim as sufficient for eternal life in the presence of a holy God, your s or His. (Romans 3:21-26)

“For He [God the Father] made Him [Jesus Christ] who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” (II Corinthians 5:21)

There is no guarantee that you will live to see tomorrow. Death can come at any time, suddenly and unexpectedly, as it did on September 10th for Charlie Kirk.  

Then what?

The choice is yours. Right here, right now. 

“Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved.” (Acts 16:31)

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The Restless Heart and the Hope of Christmas

Posted on December 15, 2025 by Rod Schwartz

“Merry Christmas!” This universal Christmas greeting permeates our interactions with others during this season of comfort and joy, happiness and good cheer.

Here we are, living in the freest, most prosperous nation on earth, a fact made even more marvelous in view of our relative youth as a nation. Our people enjoy freedom, opportunity, physical comforts, and more avenues for personal fulfillment than any previous society in human history. If happiness were the product of prosperity, we should be the happiest people on earth.

But we’re not.

Despite our material wealth, countless Americans experience dissatisfaction, anxiety, loneliness, and a nagging sense of emptiness. Social critics have noticed this for decades. Perhaps you’ve experienced this yourself.

The philosopher Eric Hoffer, observing this paradox, wrote: “The search for happiness is one of the chief sources of unhappiness.” We chase pleasure, entertainment, stimulation, and possessions—yet the more frantically we pursue happiness, the more elusive it becomes.

Why is this?

St. Augustine recognized that human beings were never made to be satisfied by mere thrills, comforts, or even accomplishments. We were created, first and foremost, for personal relationship—with God Himself, and then with other humans. Friends may make a fine circle but are a poor center. When the vertical relationship (with God) is missing or deficient, nothing in the horizontal (human relationships) can take up the slack. Our deepest needs are met only through a right relationship with our Creator.

The Problem with Pleasure as a Path to Happiness

Our modern world sells pleasure as an attractive route to happiness. But pleasure is fleeting and temporary. It stimulates; it distracts; it excites for a while. But when that stimulation stops, we return to our original restlessness. King Solomon, the wisest man in history, described this recurring cycle in Ecclesiastes, as he recorded his own attempts to find happiness. With unlimited opportunities to enjoy wealth, entertainment, status, and sensual indulgence, Solomon remained unsatisfied: “Vanity of vanities… all is vanity” (Eccl. 1:2).

The Problem of Prosperity—Why It’s Never Enough

When John D. Rockefeller, at the time one of the richest men in the world, was asked, “How much money is enough?” he famously answered, “Just a little more.”  

Again, quoting Solomon, “The eyes of men are never satisfied.” (Proverbs 27:20)

The problem is not that we lack blessings, but that we look to those blessings for what they cannot provide and are left ultimately dissatisfied with them. Richard Cory was a fictional character, but how many times has his story been played out in the lives of otherwise rich and successful people who chose suicide as a way out of their pain? Sadly, today suicide is a leading cause of death in America.

Material prosperity cannot satisfy spiritual hunger. A full pantry cannot feed a starving soul. Nor can entertainment, wealth, social status, or career achievements provide the peace, security, meaning, or identity the heart of man desperately seeks.

We Need More

The human soul needs more; it longs for something that cannot be satisfied by the material realm. Our hunger is soul deep. When Jesus Christ said of Himself,“I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.” (John 6:35), He gave us the answer: Only He can fill the aching emptiness that fame, prosperity, social status, etc. cannot.

Which brings us back to Christmas, the season of happiness, the season of giving, the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ.

The Christ of Christmas Is the Key to Happiness

Of the four gospel writers, only Matthew and Luke provide the details surrounding Jesus Christ’s supernatural birth.  Mark opens gospel at the beginning of Christ’s public ministry, introduced by His forerunner and cousin, John the Baptist. But John’s gospel is unique, opening not with the humanity of Christ but with His deity, presenting God the Son in His pre-incarnate glory:

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

“There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. Thatwas the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world.

“He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:1-14 NKJV)

Some say He was a good man. Others say He was a great prophet. But Jesus said of Himself: “I am the way, the truth, and the life….” (John 14:6a)  Moreover, He said that our happiness would be inseparably connected to our life with and in Him. “These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.” (John 15:11)

So, as we celebrate another Christmas by giving and receiving gifts with those we love, let us give thought to the eternal significance of that first Christmas gift and the divine love behind it.

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” — John 3:16

I wish you a very Merry Christmas!

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On Thanksgiving

Posted on November 24, 2025 by Rod Schwartz

“In everything give thanks.…”

The apostle Paul’s simple exhortation is easy enough to understand but often found difficult to practice, especially when we’re faced with suffering or setbacks to our health, our finances, our work, or a relationship that’s become strained.

However, Paul’s exhortation is followed by a word of explanation: “for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” (I Thessalonians 5:18)

Preoccupation with ourselves and our problems, real or perceived, is perhaps the greatest obstacle we face in trying to maintain an attitude of gratitude. How can we possess a genuinely thankful spirit amidst the trials and adversity that come our way? If it’s God’s will that we be thankful in every circumstance we face, He must also provide the means for us to accomplish it.

And He has.

One of these means is found in the epistle to the Hebrews: “Let your conduct [manner of life] be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you.’” (Hebrews 13:5)

Contentment with what we have means that we refuse to capitulate to envy, jealousy, greed, or a host of other mental attitude sins that wreak havoc on our spiritual lives, keep us from enjoying our fellowship with God, and strain our enjoyment of the people and things with which He has provided us.

Paul taught his disciple Timothy, who would himself be in the position of teaching other Christians, about the importance of contentment, when he wrote: “But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.And having food and raiment let us be therewith content. But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.” (I Timothy 6:6-10)

Sometimes, great suffering can produce great words of comfort. For most of the 44 years of his life, the author Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-1894) lived with chronic pain and illness. Yet his famous novels, like Treasure Island and Kidnapped, along with the poems he penned for children, have delighted countless millions over the past century and a half. Despite the misery he faced—or maybe because of it— Stevenson was able to offer the following words of advice.

How to Be Happy

  • Make up your mind to be happy. Learn to find pleasure in simple things.
  • Make the best of your circumstances. No one has everything, and everyone has something of sorrow intermingled with gladness of life. The trick is to make the laughter outweigh the tears.
  • Don’t take yourself too seriously. Don’t think that somehow you should be protected from misfortune that befalls other people.
  • You can’t please everybody. Don’t let criticism worry you.
  • Don’t let your neighbor set your standards. Be yourself.
  • Do the things you enjoy doing but stay out of debt.
  • Never borrow trouble. Imaginary things are harder to bear than real ones.
  • Since hate poisons the soul, do not cherish jealousy, enmity, grudges. Avoid people who make you unhappy.
  • Have many interests. If you can’t travel, read about new places.
  • Don’t hold post-mortems. Don’t spend your time brooding over sorrows or mistakes. Don’t be one who never gets over things.
  • Do what you can for those less fortunate than yourself.
  • Keep busy at something. A busy person never has time to be unhappy.

A contemporary of Stevenson’s, a Methodist minister named Johnson Oatman, Jr. (1856-1922), is credited with writing over 5000 hymns, among them one that is often sung in the church I attend, Count Your Blessings. It offers some great practical advice for the individual faced with adversity or suffering:

  1.  When upon life’s billows you are tempest tossed,
    When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
    Count your many blessings name them one by one,
    And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.

(CHORUS) Count your blessings, name them one by one;
Count your blessings, see what God hath done;
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
      And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.

  •  Are you ever burdened with a load of care?
    Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?
    Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly,
    And you will be singing as the days go by.
  •  When you look at others with their lands and gold,
    Think that Christ has promised you His wealth untold.
    Count your many blessings, money cannot buy
    Your reward in heaven, nor your Lord on high.
  •  So amid the conflict, whether great or small,
    Do not be discouraged, God is over all;
    Count your many blessings, angels will attend,
    Help and comfort give you to your journey’s end.

For many years, I have found it helpful to keep a prayer list, so that I’m not having to rely solely on my memory. There are more people and issues on that list than I could readily summon to mind without it. At some point, I decided to transfer my paper list to the Notes app on my phone, which makes it easier to update and add to it as needed.  There are categories for family, friends, my pastor and fellow believers, the sick, those with special needs, our nation and leaders, first responders, etc., etc.  It’s grown into a very long list, but even longer is the section that follows the people and things I pray about; it reads: “Answers,” and it contains the date and a short description of the answer. After all, it’s these answers we receive that give meaning to our prayers and provide additional encouragement and motivation to continue to pray. I don’t review this last section as often as I should, but when I do take the time to review all the answers the Lord has graciously provided—not always congruent with my petition at the time, but always perfect in the end—it makes me deeply thankful for what God has done.

And remembering what God has done is really the essence of thanksgiving. Eucharistia, the Koine Greek word translated as “thanksgiving” in our English Bibles, is closely related to one of the synonyms we use for the Lord’s Supper, eucharist. Ordained by our Lord on the night before His crucifixion, as He celebrated the last Passover feast with His disciples, this ordinance has been observed by Christians ever since, to commemorate the impeccable Person and atoning sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross, as He paid the penalty for the sins of all mankind past, present, and future. As He said, “This do in remembrance of Me.”

As Christians, we have so much to be thankful for every day, every hour, every moment. And if we pause the merry-go-round of our daily lives long enough to turn our attention toward God and all that He has done for us (and continues to do for us) we will find it much easier to send up a prayer of genuine thanksgiving.

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,

And into His courts with praise.

Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.

For the Lord is good;

His mercy is everlasting,

And His truth endures to all generations.  (Psalm 100:4-5)

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The Problem with A.I. “Humans”

Posted on August 18, 2025 by Rod Schwartz

I’ve been noticing a trait common to all the AI-generated “humans” in the video ads I see online—and they’re ubiquitous these days—including those made using the images and audio of real people: they all come across to me as being soul-less.

That divine spark that makes us genuinely human is largely missing from all these fake talking heads.

As a media professional, I’ve created hundreds of audio and video messages derived from in-person interviews, all of them having in common an authenticity based on their unique human personalities, quirks, and vulnerabilities.

None of those genuine attributes appear in the eyes, facial expressions, and speech of today’s AI bots.

This reminds me of something I learned decades ago about Treasury agents who learned to spot counterfeit currency, not by examining all the various counterfeits but by knowing the genuine article so well that they’re able to spot a counterfeit immediately.

I’m curious. Are you spotting the fakes, too?

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Sam Dial’s Thanksgiving Commercial

Posted on November 8, 2024 by Rod Schwartz

My jewelry store client kicks off the holiday season—which accounts for up to a third of his annual sales—with a special commercial that he runs the week leading up to Thanksgiving.

Are you thanking your customers—publicly? In your own voice?

Your local radio station is ready to help you do this now. Give ’em a call.

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An Email from a Listener About the Commercials

Posted on November 27, 2023 by Rod Schwartz

The email read, in part:

Was listening to the local news this morning…which is always informative and entertaining…. and just wanted to say that two relatively new commercials have broken into my Top 5.

#1. Moscow & Pullman Eye Care.  Those two ladies doing the ads have the cutest “girl next door” voices, and the ad gives me warm fuzzies every time I hear it.

#2.  Dr. Jonny Fisher Dental Care – Angus McMolar Cracks me up.

#3.  Sam Dial Jewelry – Sam’s voice is great for ad work as are the ladies who converse with him.  Appreciate the changeup with new ads every few months as well. 

#4.  Garlinghouse Memorial ads are always very good and empathetic to those listening. 

#5.  Ken Paulson Plumbing, good voice, good background music, good jingle. 

When I shared this in the small market radio group on Facebook, a member messaged me, asking if he could hear the commercials in question. So, here they are.

The first three clients were/are mine; the last two are served by another individual. Most have been daily advertisers for many years.

MOSCOW/PULLMAN FAMILY EYE CARE

JONNY FISHER, DDS

SAM DIAL JEWELERS

COLFAX MONUMENT/GARLINGHOUISE MEMORIALS

KEN PAULSON PLUMBING (Disclaimer: “…for all your HVAC needs” was not my idea. 🙂

Posted in Advertising (General), Branding, Client-voiced commercials, Communication, Copy, Copywriting, Radio Advertising, Radio Commercials, Radio Copywriting, Radio Production, Slogans and taglines, Storytelling, Voiceover | Leave a comment

Inexpensive Tools to Help Grow Your Sales or Business—Introducing AppSumo

Posted on August 29, 2023 by Rod Schwartz

If you’re an entrepreneurial salesperson, marketer, or business operator, you’re going to love this!

AppSumo is a clearinghouse for a ton of inexpensive and highly useful digital tools for sales and marketing, to help you expand your effectiveness!

Here are 5 of my personal favorites:

1:  WiseStamp is an email signature creator. It enables users to quickly design and deploy attractive signatures that embed automatically into all major email clients. Because I have several different email accounts (one for my local radio sales position, one for my advertising consultancy, one for GBS, even one for my photography hobby), it’s been a great tool to have.

Here’s a screen shot from my WiseStamp account; on the left are the details I entered by filling in the blanks and on the right, the signature as it appears on my emails.

I was able to score a lifetime subscription to WiseStamp with a one-time deal on AppSumo, a big savings over WiseStamp’s monthly subscription, and I use it regularly on several different email accounts. Changes can be made in a flash and add-ons (like the YouTube video plug-in I’m currently using, which embeds a YouTube video right into my signature) make it even more versatile. Although WiseStamp isn’t currently offered there, alternative programs are available. 

2:  Another app that I use regularly is Stencil, an easy-to-use graphics creator that lets me whip up display ads, memes, posters, etc. for blogs, brochures, website display ads, social media posts, etc.  Saves me a ton of time and the results are amazing. Tons of ready-made templates you can customize and over five million royalty-free photos, searchable by keyword(s). Stencil offers a free version and a couple of paid options starting at $9/month.  When AppSumo offered a lifetime license for it, I snagged it.

3:  Video creation apps.  I’ve purchased several from AppSumo and found them easy to use with great results. New deals crop up all the time. I just typed “video” into the Search bar and 44 results popped up, including one tantalizingly called Animazer, with a lifetime deal currently available at $25.

4:  Email Marketing. We use an app called Send Fox to send out our monthly RSC Newsletters. It’s similar to Constant Contact or Mail Chimp. You can get a lifetime license for just $49; if you’re thinking about creating a periodic sales newsletter to send to your clients and prospects, it’s a great way to stay top of mind as a marketing expert.  You might combine this with a lifetime license to UnlimPhotos, a growing collection of 12+ million stock photos you can use in print and online.

5:  Audio transcription.  Oh, man, has this one come in handy for me! I like creating commercials from unscripted interviews. (Here’s why they’re often better than scripted ads.) But a single interview can mean 45-60 minutes’ or more worth of audio to navigate back and forth, to locate the bits I want to use in the spot. That used to be a tedious, time-consuming process. But then I found an app called Happy Scribe, which creates printed transcripts from the audio files I upload to it. My lifetime license from AppSumo gives me two hours’ worth of transcription every month at no charge; additional hours (if needed) are just $6.00 each.

For podcasters and broadcasters, various audio apps are available. At one time, they even offered an app that would help one create and manage an online radio station, called Radiolize.

I’ve been buying from AppSumo for years now, and their apps have saved me a lot of time and money, while improving my output. Try a few and I think you’ll enjoy them, too.

____________________

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The 100 Most Valuable Brands

Posted on July 24, 2023 by Rod Schwartz

From Visual Capitalist, the top 100 brands in 2023, ranked according to value. Amazon, Apple, and Alphabet’s Google lead the pack, and U.S. companies comprise half of this year’s top brands. According to VC:

Amazon ranks number one globally with its brand valued at $299 billion. As a market leader in online retail, it has strong brand loyalty in its B2C segment which generates its largest share of revenue, and is a key player in cloud services for its B2B platforms.

Apple is in close second with a $298 billion brand. It’s important to note that both tech giants brands fell in value from last year, as supply chain disruptions, labor market constraints, and slower forecasted revenue impacted their brands.

Other big tech brands Google (#3) and Microsoft (#4) were next in the ranking. Korean conglomerate Samsung (#6) was the highest-ranking firm based outside of America.

The top 5 economic sectors: Tech, Retail, Media, Banking, and Automobiles.

VC’s Source: Brand Finance Global 500 Report

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On Creativity – lessons from LA Gear, Jesse Stone, James Bond, and the Bible)

Posted on July 27, 2022 by Rod Schwartz

“That’s really creative—I like it!”

For an ad writer, getting that kind of reaction to a new spot or campaign idea brings joy-joy feelings.

But what makes someone creative? Is it innate or learned behavior?

What exactly is creativity?

I Googled it and this is what popped up:

cre·a·tiv·i·ty

/ˌkrēāˈtivədē/

noun

  1. the use of the imagination or original ideas, especially in the production of an artistic work.

Original ideas? How original? If we start (as I do—) with the existence of God, who has always known everything about everything and who created all things including us, then really, He alone has truly “original” ideas. Human creativity is derivative. Whatever we may create follows from our having been created in His image.

So-called “artificial intelligence” (AI) is a construct of the human intelligence upon which it is built. The Metaverse is accessible only through a virtual reality headset, a product of human invention. And Marvel’s bizarre Multiverse owes its existence entirely to human imagination—uncoupled from logic, reason, and the restraining order of the physical laws of the universe.

The definition of creativity that informs my own work is this: the combining of existing ideas, resources, or materials in new or surprising ways. So, I believe creativity is aided by curiosity, attention to details, and willingness to try something new—or at least to repurpose something old.

Let me illustrate.

In 2003, I wrote and produced for Keeney Bros. Music Centers in Moscow, Idaho, this commercial, which generated so much buzz for the client that I decided for the first time in my career to enter the spot into a national competition. It ended up winning the 2004 Radio Mercury Award for best station-produced commercial. Joy-joy feelings through the roof!

The script and production details were mine, but the idea for it came from something I’d heard 13 years earlier, a commercial for LA Gear, entitled “Fantasies of a Single Girl.”

I don’t know what inspired the writers of the LA Gear spot back in 1991 but something did. And many years later their spot inspired me.

The late Robert B. Parker created the character of Jesse Stone in his novels and subsequent made-for-TV movies starring Tom Selleck in the title role. His creation worked so well that Parker later gave the world a female version of Jesse Stone, former Boston cop-turned-private detective, Sunny Randall. Jesse and Sunny have similar flaws: they’re both attractive and either divorced or separated, and float through a series of casual relationships for the sex; they both drink to excess; both see therapists, etc. They even appear occasionally in each other’s stories.

Parker’s signature writing style—short chapters, frequent scene changes, clipped dialogue, all easily transferrable to a screen play—is similar in both series. The only difference (so far) is that nine Jesse Stone movies were made but none of Sunny Randall—despite the fact that Parker wrote the original book at the request of actress Helen Hunt, who aspired to play the character.

I ran across another example of repurposing an older idea recently, following news of the death (7/11/22) of Monty Norman, best known for having composed the legendary James Bond theme. As I learned at MontyNorman.com, the Bond theme was derived from an earlier composition he’d written for a stage musical that never got off the ground, A House For Mr. Biswas. The song was called Bad Sign, Good Sign. Listen for a few seconds and you’ll recognize the signature.

Norman wrote, “With a heavy heart, I did what all composers do with their obsolete songs, I put all my melodies from Biswas, including Bad Sign, Good Sign, into my bottom drawer hoping one day to resurrect one or two of them in some other context.”

That context would appear years later when Norman was hired to write the music for Dr. No.

He split the notes, lost the sitar and singer, and reimagined the melody for an electric guitar, accompanied by strings and brass—giving birth to one of the world’s most iconic and enduring movie themes.

There was some dispute over how much of the successful theme was Monty Norman’s idea and how much was John Barry’s, who embellished it in creating the soundtracks for the Sean Connery Bond movies. According to the ABC News write-up:

Producers hired composer John Barry to rearrange the theme, and Barry was widely assumed to have written it — to Norman’s chagrin. Barry, who died in 2011, went on to compose scores for almost a dozen Bond films, including “Goldfinger” and “You Only Live Twice.”

Norman went to court to assert his authorship, suing the Sunday Times newspaper for libel over a 1997 article asserting the theme was composed by Barry. He won in 2001 and was awarded 30,000 pounds in damages.

There are zillions of books out there on the subject: Unlocking Creativity. Unleashing Your Creativity. Understanding Creativity. Et cetera. I’ve ready many books on advertising, copywriting, sales, and marketing, but don’t recall having read anything with Creativity in the title. But I’m convinced that practical creativity is within reach of anyone willing to take the time to observe, think about what he’s observing, and be a little curious as to why things work the way they do.

“I wonder…” is a great way to start.

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“Make Us Famous”

Posted on July 4, 2022 by Rod Schwartz

Early in his snarky, whip-smart analysis of what advertising can and cannot do for a business or brand, veteran adman Bob Hoffman asks:

Bob Hoffman

 – Why do some actors get million dollar fees for appearing in movies while other equally good actors get nothing?

  – Why do some people get the best tables at fancy restaurants while nicer people can’t even get in?

  – Why do some people become President of the United States while there are millions who are smarter and more decent?

Right, because they’re famous. Fame is a massive advantage in business and in life.

* * *

Simple ideas like “fame” are anathema to the marketing industry.

We advertising and marketing professionals make our living by convincing business people that marketing communication is a deeply specialized practice that requires particular knowledge and acumen. So we do our best to complicate the shit out of it.

(Source:  The Three-Word Brief by Bob Hoffman. Highly recommended.)

What about your advertising? Do you see it as an expense or as an investment? It’s either one or the other.

Effective advertising not only yields positive returns, but the longer you do it, the better it works. I’ve seen it happen again and again in my nearly five decades of working with local advertisers. And here’s a funny thing: the simple principle you need to succeed in business is the very same one that will make your advertising successful: just keep showing up!

Here in my small corner of the world—Pullman, Washington and Moscow, Idaho—thanks to the two land-grant universities that have been shaping our communities for the past 133 years or so, our market is constantly changing.  Hundreds of businesses that were around when I began working for the Pullman radio stations in 1979 have disappeared.  The reasons are many but a few worth noting include:

  • Population turnover. 25% of our student population turns over each year. Thousands of graduating students leave the market and thousands of new students enter it.  That’s thousands of lost customers and thousands of potential new ones.
  • Changing business landscape. One month after I started working for the Pullman radio stations, the Palouse Empire Mall opened, immediately and dramatically changing shopping habits. Pullman merchants waved their white handkerchiefs at the edge of town to bid a literal farewell to the throngs of customers and their dollars sailing eastward.
  • New direct competitors. If you have a unique offering and it succeeds, it won’t be long before somebody enters the market to compete for a share of your market. Count on it. The two or three brands at the top of a category get the lion’s share of the business, leaving all the rest to fight for WLO. This is why books on advertising strategy, positioning, differentiation, etc. continue to sell.
  • Life changes.  Marriages and divorces, births and deaths, illnesses and injuries, employment and career changes, life changes affect consumer behavior, sometimes leading previously loyal customers to start shopping elsewhere.
  • Outside interference.  The last 36 months have been replete with outside interference, as overweening governors, lawmakers, and medical “experts” bullied their way into making decisions about your family, business, church, and school with disastrous consequences. At the time, the legitimacy of their incursions into these institutions may have seemed expedient, if not prudent. In hindsight, more and more of us today are realizing (too late) that the cure was worse than the disease. My wife and I were discussing the big disappointment that COVID-19 vaccines have been. Yet billions of dollars were poured into advertising their efficacy; some states and cities even took to bribing citizens with special lottery prizes, free drinks and meals, etc., in an effort to persuade the masses to get vaccinated.  Looking back, I’m reminded of all the money that once was poured into ads like these, intended to convince the masses of cigarette smokers that medical experts could be trusted to have their best interests at heart. As it turned out, they were just blowing smoke.

 

Medical “Experts” Blowing Smoke

There are, of course, problems that advertising can’t solve.  If you run your business poorly, advertising won’t make things better. In fact, advertising might even put you out of business faster, because good advertising accelerates the inevitable. So, if your business poised to succeed, a great advertising campaign can help you achieve success sooner.

Here are some other things good advertising can accomplish for you:

Control over your messaging. As many businesses have learned the hard way, social media can be very fickle. You have little to no control over what is said about you in online reviews and social media posts, or in coffee-shop conversations for that matter. But you have complete control over your advertising. And unlike in print media, for example, where your ad may compete with others on the same page for a reader’s attention, radio advertising provides an exclusive showcase for your message.

Mass media means mass reach. Everyone knows that word-of-mouth is powerful, but it’s also slow to provide any momentum. Radio advertising multiplies your word-of-mouth messaging exponentially and instantaneously.

Radio + Website is a powerful combination.  Use radio advertising to drive traffic to your website, where you can further engage customers at their convenience and on their schedule.

Your share of voice can be purchased. Share of market must be earned.  How can you increase both? Here’s some help for you.

Advertising increases your familiarity with consumers.  Customers prefer to buy from people they know and like. Want to be the brand that people think about first and feel the best about when the need arises?  Advertise!

Businesses that advertise regularly attract the best employees.  Job applicants prefer to apply for jobs at companies they know and like. (On a related note, radio advertising can help fill job openings faster, with better-qualified applicants.  Here’s why.)

These are just a few of the many things good advertising can do for your business.

Most business owners are not advertising experts. Working in and on their business leaves them precious little time to work on their marketing and advertising. Therefore, it behooves the business owner to find someone he or she can rely upon to develop an advertising strategy likely to succeed, and to create advertising messages and campaigns that will execute that strategy effectively.  David Ogilvy, one of the advertising giants of the 20th century, wrote in his Confessions of an Advertising Man (in chapter five, How to Build Great Campaigns):

I once asked Sir Hugh Rigby, Sergeant Surgeon to King George V, “What makes a great surgeon?”

Sir Hugh replied, “There isn’t much to choose between surgeons in manual dexterity. What distinguishes the great surgeon is that he knows more than other surgeons.”  It is the same with advertising agents. The good ones know their craft.

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