The Park Group

15/10/2026

So this morning I tried posting something about how ridiculous our obsession with algorithms has become.

Facebook wouldn't let me post it.

You really can't make this stuff up.

Somewhere along the way, businesses started letting algorithms dictate how they market themselves. What to post. When to post. How often. What works. What doesn't.

And every time the rules change, everybody scrambles to keep up.

I'm not suggesting we abandon digital marketing. Far from it. But maybe it's time to stop letting the technology dictate the strategy.

**The goal hasn't changed. Get known. Stay known. Be remembered.**

Everything else is just a tool.

Maybe it's time for a second opinion.

**Contact us to see what you might be missing.**

14/10/2026

Leave it to Apple to advertise the future with something from the past.

Have you seen their latest promotional video?
https://www.apple.com/newsroom/in-the-loop/2026/10/welcome-home/

While everybody else is trying to figure out how to make more content with AI, Apple hired two artists to hand-stitch its old rainbow logo from 1977.

With an actual needle and thread.

I love this for a couple of reasons. First, that old logo is still so recognizable after all these years. That's some pretty impressive brand equity.

But I also love that Apple went in the complete opposite direction of what you might expect from a technology company.

No fancy computer graphics. Just something handmade that actually makes you want to stop and watch.

Makes me wonder if we're going to start seeing more of this as people get tired of looking at AI-generated everything.

Sometimes the smartest way to stand out is to do what nobody else is doing.

And who would have thought that in 2026, that might involve an embroidery hoop? 😂

Pretty clever, Apple.

06/10/2026

Target has a new advertising campaign out.

And one of the stars of it is a red shopping bag.

That's it.

A red bag with a Target logo on it.

But here's what's interesting.

They don't have to explain what it is. They don't have to introduce the brand. They don't have to convince you that you've seen it before.

You already know it.

Years and years of consistent advertising, stores, signs, commercials, bags and that red bullseye have done the heavy lifting.

Target has bought a piece of your mental shelf space.

That's what businesses sometimes miss when they judge every advertising dollar by what happened immediately after the ad ran.

Not every impression produces a click.

Not every billboard produces a phone call.

Not every video produces a lead.

Some of them are simply making your business a little more familiar today than it was yesterday.

And familiarity has value.

Because when the day comes that someone actually needs what you sell, there's a huge advantage to being the name they already know.

That's brand equity.

And you don't build it when somebody starts looking for you.

You build it long before they need you.

Visibility isn't just an expense.

It's an investment.

14/09/2026

09/09/2026

The times-they are a changing. . .again!

27/08/2026

Jif got it right. . Cracker Barrel not so much.

It’s a reminder that oftentimes the best rebrands are about restraint.

24/08/2026

A great website is only as good as the people that see it.

20/08/2026

Don't sleep on Nostalgia! Here comes another example. .
They say you can't go home again. . Pizza Hut is. And it may be one of the smartest things they've done in years.
They're bringing back the old Pizza Hut. Red cups, checkerboard tables, salad bars, those stained-glass lamps and the whole sit-down Pizza Hut experience a lot of us remember from the 80s and 90s. According to a story I read on Fox News, people are loving it. They're taking pictures, making videos and some of the content from these locations has gone viral.
I find this really interesting, especially after watching Burger King lean back into flame grilling, the Whopper and some of the things that made Burger King distinctive in the first place.
We're constantly told that businesses have to reinvent themselves. New look. New message. New strategy. Keep up with the times.
Maybe not always.
Sometimes people don't want you to become something new. They want back the things they loved about you in the first place.
There's a lot of psychology wrapped up in nostalgia. A red Pizza Hut cup isn't really worth anything, but the memory attached to it might be. It reminds somebody of Friday night pizza with their parents, playing Pac-Man while they waited on the pizza, or cashing in that BOOK IT! certificate they earned at school.
You can't manufacture 30 years of memories with a new logo.
Maybe that's the lesson in all of this. Before completely reinventing a business, it might be worth figuring out what people already love about it.
Sometimes Plan B isn't a completely new idea.
Sometimes it's going back and getting the parts of Plan A that never should have been left behind.
In the end it's about giving people a piece of their past.

Retro appeal has turned a small-town Pizza Hut into a destination for customers seeking a nostalgic dining experience, with its franchise operator planning to add even more throwback touches.