Mike D. Merrill Blog

Selling on Value: What Does the Solution Allow You to Do?

Mike D. Merrill (@mikedmerrill) — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 01:21:23 +0000

It’s Not About the Features Best Buy has been running a series of new commercials that showcase how technology gifts have helped customers create or invent something unique. While I recognize the business challenges of Best Buy, I like their approach to these ads. By focusing on the outcome of using the product and not [...]

How to Identify and Leverage Local Influencers

Mike D. Merrill (@mikedmerrill) — Fri, 02 Nov 2012 20:40:56 +0000

I had the pleasure of speaking at the Driving Sales Executive Summit last week about how car dealerships can identify and leverage local influencers to build word of mouth. Having participated in several of these extended test drives, I think it’s a great opportunity to reach a new audience. Additionally, I believe often times small [...]

Uncertainty and Its Impact on Creative Success

Mike D. Merrill (@mikedmerrill) — Sun, 10 Jun 2012 02:31:12 +0000

I was sent a copy of Uncertainty: Turning Fear and Doubt into Fuel for Brilliance by Jonathan Fields a while back from his PR agency and finally got around to reading it. Having just attended T. Harv Eker’s Millionaire Mind Intensive Workshop in Dallas I was curious to read more about conquering the power of your thoughts [...]

Thoughts on Startup Weekend Dallas and Bookedd Wins

Mike D. Merrill (@mikedmerrill) — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 02:52:59 +0000

The weekend before Thanksgiving I participated in my first Startup Weekend here in Dallas and wanted to share a few thoughts about the experience. It was the 5th event to date in Dallas and I’m kicking myself for not making the commitment to get engaged earlier. I was impressed with how many solid ideas folks pitched [...]

Zaarly First Experience

Mike D. Merrill (@mikedmerrill) — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 00:19:47 +0000

Last week Zaarly reported stellar news raising $14 millon in funding and that Meg Whitman has joined their board. Now I was familiar with Zaarly as I’ve followed this company since following the Startup Weekend movement. So I was curious to figure out a way to use the application but couldn’t figure out what to ask [...]

How To: LinkedIn Video Series

Mike D. Merrill (@mikedmerrill) — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 14:22:18 +0000

I had the pleasure of joining WebBeat.TV recently to talk with Pelpina Trip about LinkedIn in a three part video series. I’ve long felt that LinkedIn is misunderstood as a valuable tool for networking, recruiting, prospecting and job search. My goal was to discuss some details of LinkedIn in hopes of getting more folks to take [...]

@GameStop Overreacts to Employee Planking By Firing Them

Mike D. Merrill (@mikedmerrill) — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 13:45:23 +0000

GameStop has recently received quite a bit of press for firing employee John Mazzocchi for planking in a GameStop retail store and posting photos and comments on Twitter. While I don’t doubt they have the authority to terminate employees for violating their existing social media policy, the question is should they have. For a gaming company [...]

Fortune Magazine Profile – Reinventing Your Career

Mike D. Merrill (@mikedmerrill) — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 13:21:45 +0000

The last few weeks have been purely humbling. Last week I was thrilled to participate in an interview on NBC here in DFW. This week, the July 4th edition of Fortune magazine features an interview providing a brief glimpse into my transition from IT sales and marketing to social media and online marketing. I’ve been [...]

Social Media and Cheating Interview on NBC

Mike D. Merrill (@mikedmerrill) — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 13:30:03 +0000

There is no hiding the fact that I am passionate about the power of social media to transform how businesses and consumers communicate. That’s why I was pretty excited Friday night to participate in NBC 5′s Nightly News Nonstop Nightly show at 6:30pm with Jane McGarry. It was great to see “how the sausage gets made” inside [...]

Mobile Opportunities for Entrepreneurs – Smarter Mobile Ecosystem

Mike D. Merrill (@mikedmerrill) — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 01:58:33 +0000

One of the sessions I was looking forward to attending at SXSW Interactive was on Mobile Opportunities for Entrepreneurs in 2011 with Raj Singh as part of the Future15 track. Raj Singh is an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Stanford Research Institute and a long-time entrepreneur with eleven years experience in mobile. Raj spoke about several themes relative [...]