Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Apple, Attitude & Aptitude, Comment, Corporate Evil, Crap Campaigns In History, Creative Development, Creativity, Culture, Technology
Years ago – 2006 to be precise – Apple did an iconic set of ads about Mac vs PC.
Here’s some of them. Because they were so unbelievably good at what they were designed to do – that is make Microsoft look a well-intentioned, but ultimately out of touch, out of date, faceless corporate monolith – they made loads of them.
In many ways, these ads cemented Apple’s persona into societies mind, presenting technology as something we could use for life, not just work … which sounds mad to say now, but was a big deal back then.
Anyway, recently when I was in the US, I saw this …
Yep, that’s the Mac vs PC guys except they aren’t promoting Apple, they’re advertising – drumroll please – Ozempic!
FUCKING OZEMPIC!
And while I can imagine there is some research that states people who can remember the Mac vs PC ads are now at an age where they have the money to help with their weight control, the reality is this all just felt tragic as fuck.
Not just because it’s the most borrowed of borrowed equity.
Not just because it feels they think this makes them ‘just like Apple’.
Not just because they’re using characters from TWENTY FUCKING YEARS AGO.
But because when you look at the ads, you don’t just think of Apple more than Ozempic … but when your brain finally gets around to working out these people are being used to promote a weight control drug, all you think is ‘Ozempic may help you lose weight but it sure as fuck doesn’t stop you looking old or desperate for cash’.
Filed under: 2026, A Bit Of Inspiration, Agency Culture, Aspiration, Attitude & Aptitude, Authenticity, Content, Craft, Creative Development, Creativity, Culture, Innovation, Management
Early in my career – albeit I’d been doing it for quite a while by then – I was given the book Eating The Big Fish.
I cannot tell you how much is spoke to me. A mixture of feeling seen, taught and inspired.
Even now – 12,000 years later – it is still one of the only marketing books I rate as highly today as I did when I first read it. But then books from Adam Morgan – the author – tend to do that.
Adam is – to me – one of my professional hero’s. I do not say that lightly. Or often. But he has not only done it all, he’s also done it in a way that helps others learn how to do it without ego, self-interest or arrogance.
I mean … what sort of idiot does that? Hahaha.
While I’ve interacted with Adam over email over the years, I recently got to meet him – and Olivia, his equally brilliant colleague – in the US.
I got to hear him talk.
I got to be part of one of his workshops.
And I got to spend some time with him and Olivia just chatting and getting to know each other.
They say don’t meet your heroes but I did and they were everything I hoped for and more – even when their talk featured similar themes and a few specific examples that I had planned to use in mine.
[Fortunately I had the chance to change them as my talk was the day after Adam and Liv’s – though my motivation for changing them wasn’t duplication, but the knowledge I would have come across as a Temu Adam]
The point of this post is five-fold.
First …
Follow people who have made great things rather than just talk about it or – worse – just talk about what others have done.
Second …
Don’t get so lost in theory you forget it’s all meaningless unless you do something great with it.
Third …
Put effort into continually exposing yourself to the best in the world, not just what’s best – or easy – in your World.
Fourth …
Always judge the creativity, not the age or background of who is behind it.
Fifth …
Read everything from Adam and the Eat Big Fish crew. It will not just change your life, the lessons with help and last your whole career. Even if/when you change industry
Bloody hell, I may have written a useful post for once.
Or should I say, Adam and Liv have helped me write one.
Either way, have a great weekend – and if you read any of their stuff, I assure you it will be.
Filed under: 2026, A Bit Of Inspiration, Aspiration, Attitude & Aptitude, Creativity, Culture, Emotion, Gaming, Luxury, Management, Marketing
I’ve written a lot about AI over the years.
I’ve questioned the rationale behind many companies adoption of it.
I’ve challenged the level of trust we should be placing in it.
I’ve criticized the people who are behind so much of it.
And I’ve enquired what the future of capitalism can be if they keep outsourcing jobs to it.
But even then, I am not against AI.
I think it is incredible and powerful tool that can have a truly positive effect for society if used and legislated for, properly.
For example, its impact on medical research has already been huge … and we’re still in the early days of the technology.
But that doesn’t mean I think all companies and categories are using it well.
Or using it for any other reason that [often misplaced] financial benefit.
It’s partly why I believe/hope we will see greater value and aspiration given to companies who invest in craft rather than self-serving convenience. It’s also why I am happy-as-hell the guys at Rockstar will make an absolute fortune from their latest masterpiece.
Not just because of what it is, but – as explained in the image at the top of this page – because of how they made it.
Though, I should admit, one of the other reasons I wish them so well is because I know one of R*’s founders and hope it means he’ll pay for our next dinner together rather than what happened last time when he ‘forgot his credit card’.
👋🏻 Sam.
Filed under: 2026, Advertising, Cannes, Colenso, Colleagues, Communication Strategy, Creativity, Culture, Cunning, EvilGenius, London, Mischief, New Zealand, Si Vicars
The CCO of Colenso is Si Vicars.
I’ve waxed lyrical about him over the years.
His talent.
His overfamiliarity.
His evil genius bastardness.
His Chicken Parmesan abilities.
But one thing I’ve not talked about is his physique.
There’s many reasons for this.
It’s objectifying.
It’s an HR violation.
It’s not much to write home about.
Put simply, for all the talent that bursts out his body like an overload of steroids, his actual body resembles a twig.
I say this, despite the fact he’s some sort of martial artist master … even though he’s such a nice human, he’s more likely to drink tea with you than to karate chop the shit-out-of-you.
But maybe it’s the fact his hands are a dangerous weapon – and I don’t mean in terms of writing some Cannes Grand Prix idea – that on a recent trip to London, his hosts were confused with the person standing in-front of them. To the point one of them said TO HIS FACE:
“You don’t look like I thought you did. I thought you were ripped”.
To which another person in the room apparently looked up and said, “So did I”
And despite their rudeness legitimately allowing Si to snap their neck he, of course, did nothing and instead casually mentioned it to me on his return to NZ … while wondering out loud, where this rumour has come from.
Hmmmmmn, I wonder …
Happy Monday.
Filed under: 2026, A Bit Of Inspiration, Advertising, Attitude & Aptitude, Comment, Communication Strategy, Creativity, Culture, Marketing, Marketing Fail, Nike, Sport
Look I get our job is to help companies be successful.
I get that tends to mean encouraging people to choose spending their money with one brand over another.
I also appreciate a lot of people have given up trying to be financially responsible, because not only do they not have much hope for what their future holds, but they believe that if they try to save up for the things they want, by the time they have got the money – everything will be even more expensive than it is today.
But … but … even that doesn’t excuse this shit, does it?
I believe in our industry.
I believe in the talent of our industry.
But this shit is the worst of everything we are and do.
I get some people will point to some evidence that states this is what people already do.
I get in these competitive times, you have to look for every advantage you can get.
But when do we hold ourselves responsible to standards and values?
Are we now at the point that anything goes?
If that’s the case, when will we start using data to blackmail people into buying?
Saying that if they don’t buy [insert product X] we will publish embarrassing data/photographs/information on people.
I get NIKE are so fucked right now they will do anything to get their numbers up. And I appreciate JD are all about trying to run at the speed of culture. But there’s a fine-line between representing that generation and exploiting them and right now, I feel this shit means we’re no longer representing society, we’re enemies of it.
And that’s shit, because we’re not just better than that, we’re smarter.
Or at least we used to be. Before everyone was run by people who only see the money, not the implications.