Max Goldberg
President, Max Goldberg & AssociatesMax is president of Max Goldberg & Associates (MGA), a consultancy that assists companies from the Fortune 500 to start-ups, formulate branding and business strategies, create marketing plans and build promotional alliances. Clients include: Paramount Pictures, DreamWorks, Walt Disney, Warner Bros., New Line Cinema, MBNA, Music Choice Europe, Mommy & Me, New Line Home Entertainment, Vivendi Universal Interactive, and other companies in North America, Europe and Japan.
Prior to forming MGA, Max was Vice President, Integrated Marketing for Walt Disney Internet Group, where he was responsible for branding DIG, database marketing, media, research, e-commerce enhancements, promotional alliances, loyalty programs, sponsorships affiliate programs and e-commerce strategies.
He moved to Disney Internet Group from Walt Disney Home Entertainment where spent six years as Vice President, Promotions. At WDHE he directed consumer and account specific retail tie-ins for new Walt Disney Company home entertainment releases, as well as the company’s extensive DVD/video library. Additionally, he originated WDHE’s presence on the Internet, creating both its consumer and business-to-business websites.
Prior to joining Disney, he served as Vice President, Corporate Sponsorship and Promotion for Universal Studios Hollywood and Senior Vice President, Sales and Marketing for Ice Capades.
Max began his career in marketing as Regional Marketing Director for Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus and then served as Director of Marketing for The American Freedom Train and Western Manager for the Arbitron Ratings Company.
Max is a past Chairman of the Promotion Marketing Association. He founded PMA’s Star Power Entertainment Marketing Conference and served two terms as chairman of both its Southern California Chapter and Entertainment Council. He chaired PMA’s national marketing conference. He has been honored as Marketing Professional of the Year by The Marketing Agencies Association Worldwide. Max has served on numerous corporate advisory boards and the advisory council of George Washington University’s School of Media and Public Affairs.
He is a wish grantor for the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Los Angeles, a mentor to small businesses and a volunteer in other community service activities.
He and wife, Lisa, live in Los Angeles with their daughter, Hannah and son, Jacob.
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- Posted on: 04/12/2018
No site comes close to Amazon for Gen Z
Teens, like most demographic groups, like shopping on Amazon. The retail giant has made the shopping experience easy and has backed it with great customer service. Sephora and Nike have attracted teens through brand messages that resonate, an attractive selection of products and stores that reinforce those brand images. Ease of use, brand image, selection, and customer service set these brands apart from their competition. - Posted on: 04/11/2018
Death Wish Coffee goes from small roastery to Amazon’s ‘most wished for’ brand
A new brand needs to be different from other products offered in the marketplace, and it needs to have a creative way to explain that differentiation to consumers. With retailers becoming more formulaic, new brands need to perfect their own ways to reach consumers. There's a reason why more than 90 percent of all food start-ups fail. - Posted on: 04/11/2018
Walmart slows push to add third-party sellers to its online marketplace
My recent experience with Walmart's third-party sellers is that many are companies from Asia that I don't trust or wouldn't buy from. This differs greatly from Amazon. Most of Amazon's third-party sellers are U.S. based and Amazon customers are protected by Amazon's customer service policies. Walmart.com has become a mish-mash of sellers -- it has grown seemingly without a strategy for sellers or consumers. - Posted on: 04/09/2018
Is Walmart building a tower of power with its expanding in-store pickup network?
Walmart has committed to doing what's necessary to deliver goods to customers. It made most of these moves in an effort to stay competitive with Amazon and lead its other competitors. The criticism about the placement of the towers is valid. Hopefully Walmart will listen and adjust accordingly. - Posted on: 04/09/2018
Retailers face criticism for failure to protect customer data
Retailers ignore or pay lip service to customer data security at their own peril. With the Facebook data scandal in the news, the heat of the spotlight will focus on all data collection. Retailers, as much as they would prefer otherwise, need to protect consumer data, and that may mean shouldering the expense of moving from chip and signature credit cards to chip and pin. - Posted on: 04/06/2018
Can MoviePass help revive America’s malls?
MoviePass reminds me of the old joke about a retailer who loses money on each sale and claims he will make it up in volume. Theaters are happy to take the company's money, and so far are refusing to share any other revenue sources. Over time it will be interesting to see how much MoviePass can move the needle on dwindling theater attendance. Certainly any positive change in mall traffic has the potential to increase sales for all merchants. Theater owners have their heads firmly planted in the sand. They spurn studio offers to share higher revenues in exchange for day and date release on streaming services. They spurn sharing revenue with companies like MoviePass that have the potential to bring in more customers. And many offer a movie-going experience that is far from optimal. All the while, their customer base shrinks. - Posted on: 04/06/2018
Thrive Market wants to change the world with new organic meat and seafood line
Subscription models are the rage in e-commerce, with numerous companies trying to establish a toehold with consumers. The question is whether consumers will accept large quantities of frozen meats and seafood and order frequently enough to warrant the subscription fee. - Posted on: 04/05/2018
Retailers push to onboard tech talent
Most retailers are behind the tech curve and it's not going to get better. Retail is not viewed as being sexy. It's not a springboard for techies into better jobs, unless the retailer one is working for is Amazon. - Posted on: 04/05/2018
Will Amazon or Walmart win the clash of the retail titans?
Both retail giants have strengths. Both will continue to grow. Other than the public's love of a good battle, does there really need to be a winner and a loser? I like watching them compete. - Posted on: 04/04/2018
Should retailers lower expectations around last-mile delivery?
Amazon sets a pace, but all retailers do not have to keep up. Consumers want free shipping and returns. Beyond that, a reasonable delivery date will be satisfactory for many orders. It's important for retailers to be precise with setting customers' shipping expectations. Once set, the retailer needs to meet them. - Posted on: 04/03/2018
Why are there so many employees in a cashier-less store?
Amazon Go is a testing lab, a potentially viable concept, and a publicity magnet. Through this store, Amazon will learn more about how consumers interact with various technologies, consumer preferences, inventory control and replenishment, and much more. Some of these learnings will be discarded, while others will become retail standards in the years ahead. Amazon has never been afraid to invest in innovation, something other companies should emulate. - Posted on: 04/03/2018
Walmart is focused on expanding its digital brand portfolio
Walmart has been running hard to try to catch Amazon. These acquisitions, some of which will work and others which will not, are a key part of that effort. Realizing that it was not innovating fast or effectively enough in-house, Walmart turned to Mr. Lore, former head of Quidsi, which was bought by Amazon, for answers and leadership. The over-arching strategy has been to grow more nimble and develop an effective online presence. Time will tell how effective these efforts will be. - Posted on: 03/30/2018
Microsoft, Walmart and other brands play content police
In the current world of hyper-awareness, consumers expect brands to take sides. Brands do this at their own peril, because every move to placate one side of a political discussion may anger the other side. So, brand management must be careful about their choices. - Posted on: 03/30/2018
Former Walmart U.S. CEO raises prospect of breaking up Amazon
It's ironic that Walmart, the mom-and-pop buster from Bentonville, wants to break up Amazon. I doubt we would hear a peep from them if Amazon was not a major competitor. Retailers come and retailers go. Leave Amazon alone. - Posted on: 03/29/2018
KB Toys plans a Christmas comeback
Toys, like electronics, have become a commodity business, one dominated by a handful of brick-and-mortar and online players. Without proprietary and exclusive products, I don't see how KB Toys can make it during the holiday season.
