Al first rose to fame in 1972 when a series of three articles on a new concept called “Positioning” authored by Al Ries & Jack Trout appeared in Advertising Age. The positioning idea took the ad world by storm and was voted by AdAge as one of the 75 most important advertising ideas of the past 75 years.

In 1981, the Positioning book was published and has since sold well over 1.5 million copies. The book has sold over 400,000 copies in China alone. The two authors also wrote Marketing Warfare, Bottom-Up Marketing, Horse Sense and The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing.

More recently, Al & Laura have written six books together and have continued to rattle the establishment by breaking with traditional conventions.

Al Ries

Al is a legendary advertising, marketing and branding strategist and the bestselling author (or co-author) of 11 books which have sold over 3 million copies worldwide. Including: Positioning, Marketing Warfare, Focus, The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding, The Fall of Advertising & the Rise of PR and War in the Boardroom.

After graduating from DePauw University, Al worked in the advertising department of General Electric before founding his own advertising agency in New York City, Ries Cappiello Colwell in 1963. The agency later changed to marketing strategy firm, Trout & Ries.

The concept of positioning revolutionized how people viewed advertising and marketing. Marketing was traditionally thought of as communications, but successful brands are those that find an open hole in the mind and then become the first to fill the hole with their brand name.

When Advertising Age magazine choose the 75 most important ad moments of the last 75 years celebrating the publication’s 75^th anniversary, the emergence of positioning came in at number #56. Ad Age commented on how the concept remains just as relevant in today’s environment, “The positioning era doesn’t end. What became a part of the marketing lexicon in the early ‘70’s holds its own in the textbooks of today.”

Al was president of the Association of Industrial Advertisers (now the Business Marketing Association) and the Advertising Club of New York. He was also chairman of the Club’s Andy Awards. In 1989, Sales & Marketing Executives International gave him its “Tops in Marketing” award. In 1999, PR Week magazine named him one of the 100 most influential PR people of the 20^th century.

Al currently writes a monthly marketing column for AdAge.com and appears on the RiesReport.com. Al’s favorite activities include snorkeling, horseback riding and driving with the top down. He resides in Atlanta, Georgia, with his wife, Mary Lou.

Laura Ries

Laura Ries is a leading marketing strategist, bestselling author and television personality.

In 1994, Laura founded Ries & Ries, a consulting firm with her father and partner Al Ries, the legendary Positioning-pioneer. Together they consult with companies around the world on brand strategy. In addition, they have traveled to over 60 countries from Chile to China and India to Indonesia teaching the fundamental principles of marketing. With Al, Laura is the co-author of five books on branding that have been worldwide bestsellers. Her first solo book was Visual Hammer. Her latest book Battlecry was published in September 2015.

Laura is a frequent marketing analyst on major news programs from the O’Reilly Factor to Squawk Box. She regularly appears on Fox News, Fox Business, CNBC, CNN, HLN, and is frequently quoted by the Associated Press, Bloomberg, The Wall Street Journal and other news outlets. In addition, Laura writes her own popular blog RiesPieces.com.

A graduate of Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois Laura earned her degree “with highest distinction” from Northwestern’s School of Speech, finishing in the top 2% of her class.

Her first job was at TBWA Advertising in New York City in account management for brands like Woolite and Evian. But her lifelong dream was realized when she partnered with her father to form Ries & Ries.

In 2008, the Atlanta Business Chronicle named Laura a top 40 under 40. In 2009, the readers of Advertising Age voted The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding as the third most important marketing book of all time. (The number one book was Positioning written by her father.) In 2002, Business 2.0 magazine named Laura a “management guru” and issued trading cards with her picture and statistics on them.

A resident of Atlanta, Georgia, Laura enjoys many outdoor activities such as horseback riding, swimming, triathlons, snow skiing and more.