Ted Wright

DRAMATICALLY IMPACT YOUR BOTTOM LINE WITH A POWERFUL WOMM CAMPAIGN "Word of mouth marketing has always existed. We've just found a better and more efficient way to do it." -- Ted Wright It may not be the oldest profession, but word of mouth is the oldest form of marketing. It's also the most effective. Now, however, it's being executed in ways that are methodical, replicable, and consistent. In this groundbreaking guide, Ted Wright, WOMM pioneer and founder of the marketing firm Fizz, reveals everything you need to know to create, drive, measure, and leverage word of mouth for maximum impact on the bottom line. Learn how to: Develop and test your brand's stories for maximum word of mouth impact Build a reliable communications network to deliver your message Harness the incredible power of Big Data for profit-generating WOMM campaigns Find, engage, and train influencers to promote your brand Measure your campaign’s success with accurate analytics Along the way, you'll find out how Wright used the very same methods to breathe new life into what was once the tired old brand of Pabst Blue Ribbon. You'll discover how he dramatically expanded the market for Chocolate Milk. You'll read how he orchestrated the turnaround growth of Bissell. Best of all, you'll learn which techniques work for your needs, and you'll have the tools to begin a WOMM campaign right away. Today's consumer is too sophisticated to respond in a meaningful way to intrusive, interruptive, or TV-centric media models. A dispatch from the front lines of cutting-edge marketing, Fizz is a one-stop guide to making your brand the talk of the town. Your company's best friends are already out there. Use Fizz to find, engage, and leverage them. PRAISE FOR FIZZ: "Juicy, generous, and actionable, this one is a keeper. Tell your friends." -- Seth Godin, author of Unleashing the Ideavirus "A great read. Brand managers seeking both practical advice and insight on the realities of modern marketing need look no further than Fizz." -- James M. Kilts, former chairman and CEO of The Gillette Company "Ted's actionable truths ('for influencers, sharing stories is an expression of love') make this excellent book the guidebook for brand professionals interested in word of mouth marketing. Buy it today, and start growing your business faster tomorrow." -- Sam Calagione, president and founder of Dogfish Head Craft Brewery "Ted Wright is the foremost thought leader on word of mouth marketing, and Fizz is the bible in this area. . . . If you want to truly understand how to harness the power of people talking, this book better head up your musthave reading list." -- Dr. Americus Reed II, Whitney M. Young Jr. Professor of Marketing at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania "The best and most practical book about word of mouth marketing, ever. Fizz combines real-world case studies and smart counsel with discussion of the theories and research that build understanding of WOMM principles. It's effervescent!" -- Jay Baer, New York Times bestselling author of Youtility

Fizz: Harness the Power of Word of Mouth Marketing to Drive Brand Growth

Jacqueline Wilson

Annie Crawford

Tim McGuire

Jesse W. Baker

Donald W. Catchings, Jr.

Seth Myers

Annie Nardone

Karise Gililland

Jasmin Biggs

Sojourna Howfree

Kimberly Hyland

Erica Milecki McMillan

Brian Melton

Rebekah Valerius

Mystery: Detecting Truth in the Darkness A good mystery brings the reader into the mind of the detective: searching for clues, questioning suspects, and coming to conclusions. We like to play along, hoping to crack the case before the ultimate reveal. In a way, it feels like our real lives as we try to piece together the parts of our existence and discover what they mean. That is why mysteries are the perfect playground for the cultural apologist who seeks to explain what the facts about our world actually mean. Contributors “The Gospel of Murder” by Annie Nardone on Human Darkness “Serial, Healing and the Silence of God: The Hunger for Order and Truth in a Postmodern Mystery” by Erica Milecki McMillan on Seeking Truth “Light for the Seekers” by Sojourner Howfree on the Inquisitive Mind “An Elementary History of Deduction” by Seth Myers on the History of the Genre “The Secret of Father Brown” by G.K. Chesterton on Detective Methodology “The Inheritance of Hiram Percy Maxim” by Brian Melton on Consequences “Rationalism, Meaning, & Love: Sherlock’s Ethos as a Key to Unlock All Mysteries” by Jasmin Biggs on the Pursuit of Truth “What Mean These Stones? Archaeology, Poetry & Mystery” by Ted W. Wright on Excavating Humanity “Gizem Dagl” by Karise Gilliland on the Mountain of Mystery “Agatha Christie and Worshiping False Gods” by Jacqueline Wilson on Self-Examination “God as Revealer of Mysteries and Fountain of Love” by Jesse W. Baker on Divine Revelation “The Mystery of Our History: How Knowledge of the Church Fathers Can Strengthen the Church” by Kimberly Hyland on the Importance of the Past “The Mystery of Love” by Donald Catchings on Defining Love “Time Warping With God” by Tim Mcguire on Dreaming “Mystery and Meaning in the Multiverse: Everything Everywhere All at Once” by Seth Myers on Searching Through the Chaos “Book Review: The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency Series by Alexander McCall Smith” by Rebekah Valerius on a Wise Lady Detective Volume 6, Issue 1, Spring 2023 240 pages Cover illustration by Virginia de la Lastra

Detecting Truth in the Darkness

An Unexpected Journal: Mystery

Louis Markos

Zak Schmoll

Jason M. Smith

C.M. Alvarez

Douglas LeBlanc

Cherish Nelson

Alex Markos

Riz Cresini

Joshua S. Fullman

Iris Zamora

Celebrating the Ancients From before the time of Christ, pagan philosophers and storytellers have been influencing thought and shaping culture. In this issue dedicated to the ancient philosophers that formed the foundation of Western culture, we examine the way Christian thought was influenced by and engaged with those early writers and how the Jewish Messiah fulfilled the best hopes raised by what C.S. Lewis referred to as the "good dreams of the pagans." Contributors C.M. Alvarez: "The Power of the Storyteller: Jesus and Aesop" on the ancient tales that changed the world. Jesse W. Baker: "Listening to the Past" on the value of the Ancients. Donald W. Catchings, Jr.: "The Chain-Breaker in Plato's Allegory" on escaping the cave, and an excerpt from the novelette, Strength in Weakness, a retelling of Theseus. Annie Crawford: "Wisdom Became Flesh and Dwelt Among Us: Pagan Dreams of the King of Kings" on Christian virtues and philosopher-kings. Riz Crescini: "The Imaginative Strategy of Boethius" on the apologetic power of the imagination. Joshua S. Fullman: "A Galatian Marriage / Nasoni" on pagan morals and aesthetics. Karise Gililland: "Sede Vacante" on the Fall of Man. Douglas LeBlanc: "Vengeance is Mine, Saith Everyone" on societal and personal judgment. Alex Markos: "The Return of the Kings: Comparing the Homecoming of Odysseus and the Two Comings of Christ" on the tension between love and wrath, and "Persephone" on Christian re-imagination. Louis Markos: "In Defense of Hospitality and Storytelling" on the rules of xenia. Seth Myers: "Till They Have Faces: Lewis's Psyche Meets the Modern Helen of Troy and Circe" on different perspectives on ancient stories. Cherish Nelson: "The Nicomachean Ethics and the Enemy Within" on horror, power, and self-control. Annie Nardone: "Oh Brother: A Bluegrass Odyssey" on ancient morality, values, and spirituality. Zak Schmoll: "Pius Samwise: Roman Heroism in The Lord of the Rings" on Virgil and Tolkien's chief heroes. Jason M. Smith: "Worth Reading: The Ancients" with a list of suggestions on where to begin to read the ancient philosophers, and a review of After Humanity by Michael Ward. Ted Wright: "Drinking from the Well of the Past: A Reflection on the Role of History in Literature & Philosophy for the Modern World" on the function of history. Iris Zamora: "Ancients of Old," a poem celebrating the thinkers of days gone by. Fall 2021 Volume 4, Issue 3 280 pages Cover illustration by Virginia De La Lastra

Reflections on Ancient Philosophy, Culture, and Influences

An Unexpected Journal: The Ancients

Holly Ordway

Sandra G. Hicks

Korine Martinez

Jacqueline Medcalf

A Garden of Medieval Minds The medieval period was a time of greats: great courage, great words, great light, and great darkness. The writers, philosophers, and artists of the time still touch and influence our lives today. This volume celebrates these masterpieces that merged the physical and the spiritual into meaningful, incandescent truth. Contributors: C.M. Alvarez: “Death, Grief, & Hope in Pearl” on progressing through grief as illustrated in the Gawain poet’s medieval poem Pearl. Donald W. Catchings, Jr.: “The Dream of the Crown,” a medieval inspired poem on the piercing of Christ’s brow and “Chronological Snobbery: In Reply to Contemporary Petrarchs” on valuing the past. Annie Crawford: “Hogwarts in History: The Neo-Medieval Vision of Harry Potter” on our love of the medieval and “Cosmos” on holy wonder. Alison Delong: “A Call to Lament: An Apologetic Study of the Anglo-Saxon Elegies” on comprehending struggle and responding to it. Karise Gililland: “Wearing One’s Habits: Aristotle, Aquinas, and the Making of a Virtuous Man” on the ancient and medieval views on cultivating goodness and “The Quest of the Golden Queen,” a heroic poem on the Lady and the dragon. Sandra G. Hicks: “Death and Redemption for the Modern Heart: What We Can Learn from the Anglo-Saxon Elegy” on Christ, the Warrior-King illustrated in the medieval elegy, “The Wanderer.” Alex Markos: “Christ, Our Hero at Calvary: Meaning and Metaphor in Beowulf and ‘The Dream of the Rood’” on understanding the resurrection. Korine Martinez: “An Unlikely Witness” on the perspective of the cross illustrated in The Dream of the Rood. Jacqueline Medcalf: “The Book of Kells,” a medieval influenced poem on seeing a wonder. Seth Myers: “Dante for Moderns” on serving our fellow man and “Francis of Assisi” on medieval relevance. Annie Nardone: “The Venerable Bede: Following the Medieval Christian Footpath” on preserving history and “Thomas Aquinas: Understanding Evil” on darkness and life. Cherish Nelson: “The Gravity of Sin: Truth in the Grotesque in Dante’s Inferno” on the depths of evil. Holly Ordway: “Memento Mori: A Reflection on ‘The Ruin’” on the question of progress. Ted Wright: “Hagia Sophia and the Evidential Power of Beauty: Divine Architecture as Apologetics” on truth in stone. About the Cover Our cover illustration was provided by Chilean artist, apologist, and physician Virginia De La Lastra depicting the vibrant imagery of medieval illuminations. Vigorous and verdant green life battles against the dragons symbolizing evil, while the peacocks give the promise of the hope and power of the resurrection. Fall 2020 Volume 3, Issue 3 310 pages

Exploring the Mind and Imagination of the Medieval World

An Unexpected Journal: Medieval Minds

Ted Wright

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