Kari Pollert

When a business reaches the point where marketing needs more attention, the instinct is often: We need to hire a marketing person. But before opening a full-time position, it’s worth asking what you actually need. Do you need one employee who can do a few marketing tasks? Or do you need someone who can lead the entire marketing function? For many small and growing businesses, a Fractional CMO offers significantly more capability for less than the true cost of even an entry-level marketing...

Brené Brown often says, “Clear is kind. Unclear is unkind.” I did not fully understand how true that was until I lived it. A Lesson I Learned the Hard Way Many years ago, I was offered a promotion. At the time, it felt like recognition. A sign that I was doing good at my job and being trusted with more responsibility. What I did not know at the time was that this promotion was part of a broader strategic change within the organization, one that resulted in other people in my department losing...

When I started this business, it was something extra. I built quickly and made decisions fast. At the time, it was created to fill an unexpected gap. I had left my role at Sea Foam International to open a boutique, and a change in location delayed the opening by several months. In that season, the brand did exactly what it needed to do.