Jack Trout and Al Ries

Jack Trout was the founder of Trout and Partners, an international marketing strategy company. He was the author or co-author of several best-selling books including five with Al Ries.

As a pioneer of positioning theory, Trout has worked with an array of clients ranging from General Electric to Papa Johns. He worked with the United States Department of State to develop the Brand America campaign during the Iraq war. Trout died in 2017, aged 82. 

Al Ries is the co-founder of Ries & Ries, an Atlanta-based consulting company. He has co-authored nine books, five of them with Jack Trout. He has been named one of the Top 10 Business Gurus by the Marketing Executives Networking Groups and in 2016, he was inducted into the Marketing Hall of Fame.