Masonry Blog

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    Navigating the Uncanny Valley in Brand Marketing
     1024 576 Michael Kraabel
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    The concept of the uncanny valley isn’t new, but it’s never been more relevant. First coined by Japanese roboticist Masahiro Mori in 1970, the uncanny valley describes the unsettling feeling we experience when something, usually a robot or digital representation,…

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    Stop Calling It ‘Storytelling’ If There’s No Story
     1024 576 Michael Kraabel
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    You know exactly the scenario I’m talking about. You’re sitting in a marketing meeting, eyes glazing over, while someone proudly declares their new strategy revolves around “storytelling.” Great. Except there’s one tiny problem: there’s no actual story.   [zoomsounds_player artistname=”Brand…

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    Why Most Brand Mission Statements Fail
     1024 574 Michael Kraabel
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    I have seen too many companies waste time crafting mission statements that sound impressive but mean nothing. Words like innovation, integrity, and customer-centricity get polished, debated, and approved, then promptly ignored. A mission statement is supposed to define a company’s…

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    Your AI Content Sucks – Reverse Engineering Prompts in 2025
     1024 576 Michael Kraabel
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    For decades, I managed creative and marketing teams, and the hardest part of the job was never the creative work itself. It was getting useful feedback. Clients, executives, and even internal teams struggled to articulate what they wanted. Most people…

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    Perfect Films (Part 1)
     1024 576 Michael Kraabel
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    Everyone has a favorite movie. Or at least that’s what they say. “This is my top five,” “That’s my all-time favorite,” “This one changed my life.” But me? I can’t narrow it down like that. There are too many. Some…

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    8D Audio Experiment
    Crafting Immersive Storytelling for Relaxation
     1024 574 Michael Kraabel
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    Binaural and 8D audio aren’t new. They’ve been floating around in the ASMR and lo-fi music worlds for years, usually with labels like “brain-tingling” or “mind-melting.” But I’m not here for gimmicks. I’m here to see if immersive audio can…

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    Make Those Five Seconds Count
     1024 576 Michael Kraabel
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    I’ve written brand strategy documents that no one reads. Detailed creative briefs that get skimmed at best, ignored at worst. Spent hours crafting messaging frameworks, only to have someone ask, “So… what’s the takeaway here?” after flipping past 30 pages.…

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    Controversial Takes on Brand Marketing in 2025
     1024 576 Michael Kraabel
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    Marketing is always evolving, but not every shift is a step forward. Some trends are driven by data, some by fear, and others by industry groupthink. Looking ahead to 2025, here are a few marketing shifts I see happening—whether they’re…

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    Marketing Trends Coming in 2025
     1024 576 Michael Kraabel
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    Marketing keeps shifting, and 2025 looks like a year where the gaps between companies that adapt and those that don’t will grow even wider. I’ve been watching a few trends closely—some exciting, some concerning. Here’s where my head’s at right…

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    DeepSeek vs. ChatGPT – From Their Perspectives
     1024 576 Michael Kraabel
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    What happens when you ask two AI platforms to analyze each other? Curiosity got the best of me, so I decided to see how ChatGPT and DeepSeek would describe one another. The results were fascinating. The Experiment I asked ChatGPT…

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