andrewdod

Forum role	Member since	Last activity	Topics created	Replies created
Member	Oct 22, 2010 (14 years)	-	1	1

Forum role: Member
Member since: Oct 22, 2010 (14 years)
Last activity: -
Topics created: 1
Replies created: 1

Bio

Hello and welcome. When I'm not working with clients to hone their strategies and improve their marketing, I spend time here writing about strategy and marketing. Sometimes, I stray into other arenas to spout off...eh...discuss what's happening in the world. Intense curiosity drives me. Coupled with a feverish imagination, I like to think it makes for a poignant mix. I hope you'll agree. So why should you or anyone else care what I have to say? I have no pat answer to that excellent question other than to invite you and others who love exploring new topics to come stay for a while or, as my friends in the South say, "set a spell." Who am I? I'm Andrew. If you call me Andy, my Mom might punch you. A client conceived the nickname Dodfather about 20 years ago and it's stuck since. Frankly, I much prefer it to my previous moniker of Fatboy despite the fact that Leonardo da Vinci, one of my intellectual and creative heroes, was called that for a period of time. True story. I read it on the Internet. The basics: Strategy, marketing and communications executive, chief marketing officer, five-time entrepreneur, agency owner, brand and innovation consultant, storyteller, two-time author, columnist...you get the drift. I have been around more blocks than I can remember both with large global organizations and emerging companies. I helped launch more than four dozen technology companies and hundreds of products and services over the past 33 years. Some actually killed it. For those that didn't, I codified lessons in a hard bound notebook that I keep nearby at all times. I refer to it often. I thrive helping companies shape narratives, position brands and steal share from better-known competitors. That's what makes my blood pump. A student of politics since the early 70s (I watched the Watergate hearings), I have advised two presidential candidates on messaging, communications and debate preparation. It was a great experience...well, except that both of my guys lost. I recently asked what would happen if businesses sought customers the way politicians seek voters. That would be a game changer. I am the co-author of Richard Nixon: A Psychobiography (Columbia University Press, 1997), which, while it was lauded by academics for its perspectives on the former president, sold a grand total of...let's see...in round numbers...including digital versions...and rounded up...about 13 copies. And that includes immediate family who I shamed into buying it. I stopped checking its rank on Amazon many years ago but would imagine it's holding strong at 38 billion by now. I jest, though it is fun to receive my royalty statement every April and discover that I no longer owe Columbia for book returns. Regardless of financial results, it was a powerful experience to write a book, and I encourage everyone to try at least once. I also ghost authored Driving Business Performance Through Strategic Sourcing, (Vanity Press, 2005). Why? Because I convinced a client that it would make for a great lead generation tool for their business. It worked. Big time. In addition to books, I have penned several hundred articles and thought leadership pieces for various executives and been a contributing editor to various marketing, brand and communications related publications, including Business to Business Magazine, Catalyst Magazine and Small Business Matters. I write. Some days more than others. But I write. As noted above, I am enormously curious. I am a magna cum laude graduate in Politics from Princeton University which basically means I spent four years of my life in the basement of a library in New Jersey reading, studying and trying to learn how to write effectively. You know those people who manage to get great grades without having to study? Yeah, that wasn't me. I served as president of my class, chairman of the Honor Committee and Brooke Shield's geology lab partner. Seriously, we studied rocks together. I also threw the hammer on the track and field team and only nearly killed myself in the throwing circle three times. After Princeton, I was immensely honored to have been the recipient of the Annenberg Fellowship at Eton College in England. I taught American Politics and Economics while wearing a white bow tie and long black academic gown for an entire year. I miss the school, but not the dress code. At home, I spend time in the kitchen experimenting with new recipes. Sometimes, they're even edible. In truth, my cooking concoction batting average is north of the Mendoza line, especially when it involves a straight down the pipe Italian meal. If anyone wants to challenge me to a meatball throw down, better bring money. You'll lose. If you've read this far, thanks for your interest. Market well. Respectfully, Andrew