Upstream blog

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Marketing

SURPRISE!! It’s a strategy.

by Craig Gagnon on August 21, 2010

Imagine it’s a chilly Sunday afternoon in April.  What are you apt to do? Take a nap? Watch a basketball game. Have the inlaws over for dinner? Attending the opening ceremonies for a hospital expansion probably wouldn’t make the top ten. Maybe not even the top 100. And yet nearly ten thousand people did just [...]

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What do YOU think about market research?

by Craig Gagnon on July 29, 2010

Some people like research, others don’t. What about you? And why, if it’s such a small part of your budget, is it so often the expendable expense?

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Spend your way to profitability in a tough economy

by Craig Gagnon on July 22, 2010

Advertising Age recently posted an article (http://ow.ly/2f2pa) about several bold marketers that actually raised their advertising budgets in the teeth of the current recession – with very positive results. According to the article, they enjoyed “double the success rate of those whose spending rate declined.” These companies come from a broad variety of industries, from [...]

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Why social media doesn’t work for hospitals

by Craig Gagnon on February 26, 2010

More hospitals are getting into social media, but few are finding that it “works.” Make it relevant and work on building your following and wonderful things can happen.

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It’s February. Do you know where your plan is?

by Craig Gagnon on February 2, 2010

You’re one of us. You believe that a carefully crafted plan is critical to success in the marketplace. You’ve convinced the authorities that you can’t simply start implementing marketing campaigns without understanding the audience, examining the competitive environment, defining the overriding brand promise, creating a compelling strategy, efficient tactics and a tight budget. You’ve even [...]

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Planning for the "bad bounce"

by Craig Gagnon on January 8, 2010

Ever since the days of Bud Grant and Fran Tarkenton, I’ve been a fan of the Minnesota Vikings.  I’ve watched them through ups and downs and, for the first time in awhile, I’m optimistic about the post season. So, like many of you, I’ll be watching a lot of football over the next few weeks. [...]

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