PROGRAM
Let’s explore new territory together.
In-depth, in-person, and invaluable.
On the other side of the pandemic, it’s clear we live in an era of uncertainty and accelerated change. So don’t let last year’s thinking thwart this year’s chance to grow and thrive. Instead, learn leading-edge branding and marketing strategies and tactics to move people from prospects to customers, from customers to loyalists, and from loyalists to evangelists. Discover how to rebuild a ‘next-generation’ customer experience . . . and fast.
Program Overview




We’ll begin by exploring your total customer experience. We’ll delve deep into the various paths within your customer journey—identifying the obstacles in your customers’ paths to purchase and learning how to eliminate them.
You’ll discover how a single embellishment on a package, a label, or a piece of mail can drastically impact the purchasing intent of your audience, and why one memorable moment can be the key to creating emotional connections with customers.
Along the way, we’ll review relevant case studies across a range of vertical markets, and use our comprehensive course workbook to identify design tools and analyze branding strategies that can be applied in both B2B and B2C models.
We’ll map current and unexplored touch points along a journey and learn why physical touch points and sensory elements enhance digital marketing strategies, rather than compete with them.
We’ll explain how direct mail and e-blasts use similar strategies and tools, and how different forms and levels of personalization in customer experiences can boost your sales and customer loyalty.
You’ll meet fellow designers, marketers and, entrepreneurs and join a supportive alumni community of thought leaders—and you’ll leave with actionable tools for putting these marketing and design strategies to work in your organization immediately.
Syllabus
Class is in session! Depending on who is attending (we love to customize), the exact schedule will vary from class to class. But this syllabus will give you a good idea of what to expect.
For virtual classes, we split the content into segments over multiple days, while we teach in-person classes over one full day.
Check-in, meet your instructors and classmates, agenda, and format:
· Presentations
· Chat, discussions
· Polls
· Q&A
Brand Economics™
MONEY ISN'T THE ONLY CURRENCY WE SPEND
The first step in developing loyal and engaged customers is understanding what people spend. In this section, learn about the currencies people spend with a brand, the value of those currencies, and how to design marketing touchpoints so that customers and prospects will allocate more of their resources to your brand.
· Money
· Time
· Energy
· Social
Building Trust
THE ULTIMATE BRAND INVESTMENT
Did you know that for brands, trust matters more than love? In this chapter, learn three distinct strategies to earn trust in marketing campaigns. Learn how each tactic directly correlates to people spending the aforementioned ‘currencies’ in Chapter 1.
Strong brands build trust by:
· Being authentic in advocacy & cause marketing campaigns
· Committing to sustainable business practices toward a circular economy
· Embracing diversity, equity, & inclusion in their marketing & design
The Myth of Normal™
UNIQUE CUSTOMERS. UNIQUE JOURNEYS.
‘I am unique.’ ‘I am my own person.’ ‘I am special.’ That’s what every customer wants to feel, so the notion of any one person as ‘normal’ is so yesterday. Instead, identify each customer’s unique traits of WHO they are, WHEN they are interacting with your brand, and WHERE they are within their customer journey. By the end of this chapter, you’ll understand why balancing online touch points with real-world experiences is essential to creating emotional connections with your customers and prospects.
This chapter covers:
· Multi-Generational Marketing
· Cultural Philosophies
· The Moments of truth
· Customer journeys
Brand Chemistry™
REVEALING THE SCIENCE IN MARKETING, DESIGN & BRANDING
Most creatives understand intimately the art of designing a touch point—type, colors, imagery, et al.—all the fun parts that make them creative. But to supercharge marketing campaigns and touch points, mix in the latest technologies in printing, messaging, and personalization to create memorable emotional connections with customers.
This chapter evolves the strategic topics of WHY in previous chapters to practical techniques of HOW to connect with customers by teaching:
· The 7 Emotional Message Drivers
· Personalization & Customization
· Interactive Formats
· Sensory Marketing & Tactile Printing Techniques
· Connected Print & Packaging
Design for Business™
THE 6 BUSINESS TERMS THAT WILL EXPAND YOUR IMPACT
Creative professionals are accustomed to fielding questions about color palettes, fonts, pixels, and UX, but is your team versed in The Language of Business™? Conversing in business terminology with clients and stakeholders reshapes conversations from subjective to objective by connecting a touch point’s design to specific business goals.
Understanding and synthesizing these terms—The Business 6™—expands credibility and impact:
· Revenue
· Margin
· Marketshare
· De-commoditize
· CLV
· ROI
Winning Formulas
BRINGING IT ALL TOGETHER IN POWERFUL WAYS
Through previous chapters, you’ve acquired an MBA’s worth of information. This culmination takes you, step by step, through the entire process showing examples of how brands are:
· Encouraging consumers to spend their currencies
· Building Trust
· Addressing Different Audiences
· Navigating the entire customer journey
· Balancing customer experiences between online and real life
· Achieving business goals
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30 MIN
BUILD YOUR ROI DASHBOARD
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20 min
HOW WILL YOU FORTIFY YOUR BRAND, CAREER & COMMUNITY?
Wrap-up, Q&A, Office hours, and an alumni group, plus 3 Types of Takeaways
REACH: What strategies & techniques will you execute immediately? What will you share with your team tomorrow?
STRETCH: What will you implement in the next 3 months?
LEAP: What strategies, techniques, & tools will benefit the long-range marketing vision for your company over the next 6 to 12 months, & how will you build them into next year’s planning & budget?
Key Course Takeaways







MarketWise Alumni Benefits
The Learning Doesn’t End

Toolkit
While working on your branding, marketing, and seasonal campaigns, refer to your toolkit—the notebook, Brand Chemistry™ cards, inspiring samples, and other swag—for reminders of the strategies, technologies, techniques, and metrics you learned.

Community
Join our MarketWise Alumni Peer Group, to meet fellow design, marketing, and entrepreneurial leaders. Network, ask questions, and share tips and resources.

Office hours
Need advice on a specific project? Schedule office hours with our instructors.
Ready to give your team a creative edge?
Need more?
Let’s connect.
Still curious about how Fast. Forward. can fit your goals and objectives? Interested in partnering with us or hosting a private class? Just feel like saying "Hi"? We love ideas and connecting with people.