Our Two Cents.

We’ve learned a few things in the last 20 years. And we’re not stingy with our knowledge. Here you’ll find a collection of our musings on all things marketing. Browse, download, and feel free to share. Then let us know if you have any topics you’d like to see added.

Revisions Run Amok

Revisions Run Amok

When revision overkill kills your project, and how to avoid it.

Just Keep Spending

Just Keep Spending

Resist the urge to slash your marketing budget during a recession. Here’s why.

Show Us the Budget

Show Us the Budget

Reasons to reveal your budget when shopping for an agency.

Slow Your Rollout

Slow Your Rollout

Our New Year’s resolution? Slow it down.

How It All Started

How It All Started

If Cruella De Vil can have an origin story, so can Copy & Design. Here’s ours.

Dipping Your Toe in Digital Media

Dipping Your Toe in Digital Media

Digital media marketing is entirely doable for small businesses. Here’s a great place to start.

What the Pandemic Has Taught Us (Other than How to Wash Groceries)

What the Pandemic Has Taught Us (Other than How to Wash Groceries)

With all the pandemic has taken from us, is there something we can take from it?

Here’s Looking at UX

Here’s Looking at UX

Make sure your website visitors have a great user experience with these useful tips.

Open for Online Business

Open for Online Business

Instead of waiting this crisis out, maybe it’s time to take your business online.

Self-Care: It’s Not Just for People Anymore

Self-Care: It’s Not Just for People Anymore

How’s your business coping during Covid-19? Here are some ideas to help you get through.

Work It (From Home)

Work It (From Home)

Easing the transition from working at an office to working at home.

What’s the word?

What’s the word?

When it comes to copy, should you be writing your own? Or using a professional?

Shoe-String Social Media

Shoe-String Social Media

Social media tips for nonprofits with non-existing budgets.

You Oughta Be in Pictures

You Oughta Be in Pictures

Can small businesses afford to advertise on TV? And should they? Find out here.

WEBSITES 101: Website Hosting

WEBSITES 101: Website Hosting

Here’s everything you need to know about hosting for your website.

When Brands Take a Stand

When Brands Take a Stand

Is brand activism attracting more customers, or turning them off? In this post, we discuss the pros and cons and brand-standing.

Don’t Market Without a Strategy

Don’t Market Without a Strategy

What’s missing from your marketing? It just might be a strategy.

WEBSITES 101: The Importance of Copywriting

WEBSITES 101: The Importance of Copywriting

Headlines. Paragraphs. Text. They’re the most overlooked aspects of a website’s success. In this post, we look at why hiring a copywriter is essential.

Show Your Logo Some Love

Show Your Logo Some Love

The best logos are simple. Creating a logo? Not so simple. Here’s what to look for in your logo design.

WEBSITES 101: How to Evaluate a Potential Web Designer

WEBSITES 101: How to Evaluate a Potential Web Designer

Tips for wading your way through web design firms to find the one that’ll work best for you.

WEBSITES 101: Do It Yourself or Hire a Professional?

WEBSITES 101: Do It Yourself or Hire a Professional?

A look at the very first decision you’ll need to make when starting a website project.

The Benefits of Static Websites

The Benefits of Static Websites

Static sites cost less, run fast, and are quicker to build. Read on to discover if they’d work for your business.

C&D’s 2017 Top Ten

C&D’s 2017 Top Ten

2017 was a great year for some very woke — and some very funny — advertising campaigns. Here are our top 10 picks.

Ho-ho-holiday Emails

Ho-ho-holiday Emails

If all you want for Christmas is an effective holiday email campaign, then here’s a post you’ll want to read.

Making the List

Making the List

Crafting great emails is one thing. But having someone to send them to, that’s quite another. Get some tips on building your email list.

Get Down with Markdown

Get Down with Markdown

Free yourself from the shackles of word processors and rediscover the elegance of plain text.

To Tagline or Not to Tagline

To Tagline or Not to Tagline

Do brands still use taglines? And should yours? We answer these and other tagline-related questions here.

Help Us Help You

Help Us Help You

We’re pretty clear about what clients should expect from us. Now let’s talk a bit about what we need from clients to help us do the best work possible.

Smart College Emails, Part 2

Smart College Emails, Part 2

Bring your email campaigns up to speed with simple changes to layout and voice.

Smart College Emails, Part 1

Smart College Emails, Part 1

Try these simple fixes to clarify and empower your student email marketing.

How Important Is A Mobile-Friendly Website?

How Important Is A Mobile-Friendly Website?

Having a mobile-friendly website is no longer an option. Learn why.

The Spec-tacular Truth

The Spec-tacular Truth

Most creative professionals decry the evils of spec (aka uncompensated) work. Here’s why clients should too.

Ergo Email

Ergo Email

How to keep your emails out of the junk folder, and a closer look at our favorite email automation service MailChimp.

The Power of A Brand

The Power of A Brand

When faced with a perception crisis, UM-Flint knew it had a powerful story to tell. The question was: How to tell it?

The Skinny on Infographics

The Skinny on Infographics

Who doesn’t love a good infographic? Get tips on turning cold, hard data into a visual story any human can understand.

Keeping Our Accountant Happy

Keeping Our Accountant Happy

A look at one of our favorite tools for one of our least favorite tasks—accounting.

Client, Meet Your Customer - Part 2

Client, Meet Your Customer - Part 2

In our second installment of this post, we discuss how to go about doing market research on your own or with the help of a professional.

Client, Meet Your Customer - Part 1

Client, Meet Your Customer - Part 1

How well do you really know your customers? Chances are, not as well as you think. That’s where market research comes in.

Confound This Hashtaggery

Confound This Hashtaggery

What’s the deal with all these hashtags? And as a business, should you be using them? The short answer: yes. Here’s why — and how.

Can We Talk, Human to Human?

Can We Talk, Human to Human?

Your business needs a voice. And it needs to sound more human. Here’s why.

What’s Your Story?

What’s Your Story?

Stop selling. And start telling your story. How storytelling becomes a powerful marketing strategy.

Hand-coded Perch site vs WordPress

Hand-coded Perch site vs WordPress

A cautionary tale (for clients) of how a bloated WordPress-powered site can hurt the visitor experience.

Branding: It’s Not Just For Nike Anymore

Branding: It’s Not Just For Nike Anymore

You don’t need to be a huge company with a massive budget to have a brand. Small businesses can see big returns from branding too.

You’re Going to Need a Bigger Budget

You’re Going to Need a Bigger Budget

Skimping on certain creative services could hurt your marketing efforts. It pays to hire professionals. Here’s why.

Own Your Publishing Workflow

Own Your Publishing Workflow

Shiny tools aren’t always what they seem. Make the right choice for your website’s publishing platform.

Consider the Creative Collective

Consider the Creative Collective

Walls are overrated. Find out how partnering with a virtual agency can lead to better creative work for a whole lot less money.

Pleading the case for print

Pleading the case for print

Don’t let digital do all the work. Here’s why print deserves a more prominent role in your marketing efforts.

Find Your Marketing Soul-Mate

Find Your Marketing Soul-Mate

Rip up that 20-page RFP. There’s a better way to find the right creative agency.

Visitor stats made simple

Visitor stats made simple

Here’s how we stay sane viewing visitor statistics.

Pinterest & Snapchat & Tumblr — Oh My

Pinterest & Snapchat & Tumblr — Oh My

So many social media options. So what’s a small business to do? Here are some tips to help you get started.

X-ray Your Website

X-ray Your Website

Use hidden browser tools to speed up your website.

Stop Sweating Social Media, Part 2

Stop Sweating Social Media, Part 2

Our 2nd installation on social media for small business focuses on crafting your content and expanding your circle.

Stop Sweating Social Media, Part 1

Stop Sweating Social Media, Part 1

Does social media really work?

Project Dashboards

Project Dashboards

A project site helps us handle complicated projects and keep clients happy.

HTTPS: The S stands for secure

HTTPS: The S stands for secure

Thanks to a push from Google, it’s time to secure your website’s traffic.

SEO Schmeseo

SEO Schmeseo

It’s time for an effective, common-sense approach to SEO.