Yesterday, our founder and CEO, Jeff Snyder, was published in The Marketing Insider. In this piece, "Your Branding Secret Weapon: User-Generated Content,” Jeff shares his expertise and a number of tips for brands to employ to get consumers talking — and posting — on their behalf.

We’ve all heard about the death of retail. Malls have turned into ghost-towns as iconic department stores are slowly withering away. This year alone, almost 4,500 U.S. store closures have been announced, while only about half that have opened. Analysts attribute retail’s downfall to a number of factors: the effects of the Great Recession, technology (mobile and the rise in e-commerce), increased competition from Amazon, and a shift in consumer spending habits - primarily, investing in experiences over goods.

As a lifelong hockey fan, I’ve always felt a tinge of jealousy about the NHL being less popular than the NFL, NBA, and MLB. Why don’t people love my sport?

Recently, Blue Apron announced a series of pop-up events that will be happening nationwide. These include a retail location in New York with cooking classes and panels, mobile activations in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Seattle, and culinary-inspired movie nights in Minneapolis, Dallas, and Austin.

What do Cadillac, Old Spice, and Lego all have in common? They each have had to make a significant business decision that would change the future of their respective brands and put them back into the hearts and minds of consumers.

As marketers have found more channels and means to communicate their message, the number of branded messages that consumers are exposed to on a given day has ballooned to nearly 5,000. The residual effect has left consumers largely immune to marketing messages, allowing only 100 or so to permeate through their attention wall.

Retail brand Life is Good, whose goal is to spread positivity through its happy face logo and charitable missions, is known for its proprietary events like the Life is Good Festival held in its home state of Massachusetts. But this past fall, the brand shifted gears, going back to its roots by taking its message on the road.

To promote its new Artesano bread and celebrate National Grilled Cheese Month, Sara Lee hosted a "snow day" in warm weather.

Life insurance company John Hancock promoted its HealthyFood program with a pop-up marketplace in New York's Grand Central Terminal.

There are pet owners and then there are pet parents, those whose pets have a seat at the table and are served food scrutinized for the source of its ingredients. To reach these discerning consumers and drive trial of its all-natural, Made in the U.S.A. home-style dog treats, Milo's Kitchen is traveling to dog-friendly events and company offices on the Milo's Treat Truck Tour, a sampling activation for dogs. The tour launched at Marina Green Park in San Francisco June 27 and wraps Sept. 7 at Adoptapalooza in New York City.