Why food banks should BOGOF
Food banks have been in the news a lot. As has the bad guy of supermarket marketing tactics, the Buy One Get One Free deal. It’s time the two walked down the aisle together.
Meet the hermit crabs of branding
Hermit crabs are remarkable – and famous for their use of shells that once belonged to other creatures. Some brands are similarly inclined, taking on what others have left behind – and sometimes making better use of discarded ideas than the original owner.
Do you know who your customer isn’t?
Someone's review of an app I wanted was scathing. The app was pointless. The app was a con. The app made their life more difficult, not easier. The app should be avoided at all costs. I read the review, smiled and happily installed the app, even more certain it was the right one for me.
Trick or tree?
It’s said that the Inuit people have 50 different words for snow, and the Sami have 1,000 words for reindeer. This abundance allows subtlety and precision – something lacking in our culture where trees are concerned…
Horseless carriages and engineless cars
In a way, Uriah Smith was the Elon Musk of his day. In 1899 he launched the Horsey Horseless: a motorised carriage with a life-sized model of a horse’s head attached to the front. Over a century later, it seems Tesla had the same train of thought…
RIP Bob Gill
Legendary designer, illustrator, writer, teacher – and one of my heroes – Bob Gill passed away on 9 November, aged 90. Bob co-founded Fletcher Forbes Gill back in the ’60s, which went on to become the internationally respected agency Pentagram.
Fireworks vs bonfires
As anyone who celebrates 5 November knows, fireworks can be an impressive and varied (but often brief) spectacle, while bonfires provide a longer-lasting (but less dramatic) attraction. Brands can be very similar.
Numbers count
We rely on and trust calculations done by computers, such as adding up the cost of the items in an online shopping cart. But it's important to know when the numbers in front of us don't feel right, figure out why they might be wrong, and what the brand in question is trying to do (or get away with).
Confounded and cursed!
5km into a 15km bike ride in an unfamiliar forest in the North Pennines, the waymarkers that had been regular and reliable suddenly deserted me. The outcome was two important factors to consider when planning communication.
Where’s your courtesy car?
Some car dealers and workshops see courtesy cars a necessary but unwelcome cost. But enlightened garages see them as a potentially wonderful marketing opportunity. And therein lies a lesson for us all.