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These articles were written by Tom Barnes for M/H Media Strategies and remain hosted on the original publication site. Links open in a new tab.
The ROI of Altruism: How Josh Scott’s Anti-Competitive Philosophy Built An Empire
A look at how generosity, shared knowledge, and benefit-led storytelling can become sources of strategic advantage.
Read article (opens in a new tab)7 Marketing Trends We’re Watching for 2026
Seven forces reshaping brand communication, including agentic AI, changing discovery behavior, and a renewed premium on trust.
Read article (opens in a new tab)5 Surprising Truths About Online Reviews That Will Change How You Think About Your Business
A practical reframing of online reviews and the choices businesses can make to build trust without treating every comment as a crisis.
Read article (opens in a new tab)Consolidation Redux: The New Big Three
An argument that today’s search, platform, and AI gatekeepers echo earlier eras of media and distribution consolidation.
Read article (opens in a new tab)Why Your Google Business Profile Might Be Costing You Customers and How to Fix It
A field guide to the profile details that shape local visibility, confidence, and the path from search result to customer.
Read article (opens in a new tab)How SEO and Website KPIs Are Changing in the Age of AI (And What Small Businesses Should Do About It)
A measurement-focused examination of zero-click discovery and why AI-mediated search requires a broader view of website performance.
Read article (opens in a new tab)Branding as Risk Reduction: The Modern Business Imperative
A case for treating branding as a system of truthful, consistent signals that reduces uncertainty at the moment of purchase.
Read article (opens in a new tab)5 Ways to Strengthen Your Website
Five foundational considerations for making a business website safer, more usable, and more dependable.
Read article (opens in a new tab)Super Bowl Advertising: A Bonfire of the Vanities?
An assessment of when the Super Bowl’s enormous awareness buy can be a strategic investment—and when it is simply spectacle.
Read article (opens in a new tab)7 Major Marketing and Media Trends We’re Watching in 2025
A forward-looking survey of video, responsible AI, retail media, voice discovery, and the changing expectations placed on brands.
Read article (opens in a new tab)Preserved writing
From the Mediathink archive
Original publication dates and paths are preserved while the writing is reviewed for public re-release.
5 Ways You Will Market Better in 2013
Now that were well into 2013, I thought it might be useful to review some ways (5 to be precise) you can commit to improving your marketing this year. New year’s resolutions are so “last month”. 1.) You will improve search…
Read the preserved articleTrends I’m Watching 2014
Note: Every year we use this space to look at what is happening now that gives us insight into where things are going . I hope you’ll check out the great work at the other ends of these hyper-links. Evolving Skeuomorphism UI…
Read the preserved articleTrends We’re Watching 2013
Our Year Preview was a little delayed this year. Hope it still counts. Death Widely Exaggerated People like to talk about the death of media channels. Heck, I’ve done it . Death makes for great link bait, so there is bound to be a…
Read the preserved articleContent Engineering Is The New Marketing
Sick of it yet? The endless repetitive recurring death of marketing meme. Marketing is always changing so we’re always going to hear “marketing is dead–long live marketing”. It’s a dramatic way of confirming how fickle and…
Read the preserved articleDeath And Authenticity Revisited
What does Amy Winehouse have to do with the Norway terror besides sad timing? Authenticity. Extreme authenticity. When people read my book they go right to this section and blast me: “those deaths are in no way connected” they…
Read the preserved articleThe Empire Strikes Back
There is a fundamental debate about processing and UI with the arrival of Windows 8 . I’m an unapologetic APPL Fan Boy from way back, and I’ll never forgive MSFT for losing Ray Ozzie . Never the less, I’m willing to give MSFT the…
Read the preserved articleTrends I’m Watching 2011
1. Facebook’s Temporary Web Dominance This is the Big Trend next year as the new-new Facebook rolls out. The Olds will protest, while the kids couldn’t care less. In the middle though, a notable number of regular people will love…
Read the preserved article3 Reasons Why You Might Think The New Gap Logo Sucks, and 7 Ways It Can Help You Communicate With Designers
I’m not a designer. So there’s that. I work with them a lot, though– most of them for longer than 10 years. We still like each other too. I know this because after all these years I still don’t have to pay the a-hole rate. The Gap…
Read the preserved articleTrends I’m Watching in 2010
Small is the new big– The Artisan Movement In an attempt to get “authentic” Starbucks is “de-branding “. consumers want artisanal zeal from their brands. Wall mart has the price position– every other brand position up for grabs…
Read the preserved article