It must be nice to be a dentist. They are an example of what we might call a “downside industry”, whereby people hire them not so much to achieve something good, as to avoid something...
Read moreI have been guilty, I realise, of giving brands two conflicting pieces of advice: You should stand out You should fit in You should stand out, of course, in order to lower competitive...
Read moreTwo households, both alike in dignity, In fair Verona, where we lay our scene Romeo & Juliet __ Human beings are copying machines. This is the central idea of “mimetic...
Read moreEveryone agrees, apparently, that it’s good for a brand to be “authentic”. So much so that it’s become one of those overused words which people are increasingly embarrassed to use:...
Read moreMany projects I work on begin with this rough scenario: Company launches product - sales grow - sales start to plateau - company doesn’t know what to do next The most obvious solution in...
Read moreA couple of days ago I came across a great anecdote. It concerned the skirmish that broke out in the early 1750s between an Englishman called Jonas Hanway, and the hansom cab drivers of...
Read moreSomething is wrong with marketing. Looking back across my clients, I struggle to think of any that have a wholly positive relationship with it. For example: For those who invest heavily...
Read moreOccasionally I’ve seen it noted that the more normal, safe, and suburban someone’s life, the more gruesome and unpleasant the novels they like to read. There’s a great line in the sitcom...
Read moreA rotting lion carcass, being devoured by bees. I was surprised to learn the other day that this is what is depicted on the logo of Lyle’s Golden Syrup. Not exactly what most would...
Read moreWhy most brands fail to get brand positioning right If I was going to recommend just one piece of research to my clients - or indeed any business - without hesitation, it would be this: Find...
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