Filed under: 2026, A Bit Of Inspiration, Advertising, Agency Culture, Attitude & Aptitude, Communication Strategy, Craft, Creative Development, Creativity, Marketing, Marketing Practice, Planners, Planners Making A Complete Tit Of Themselves And Bless, Planning, Process, Relationships, Relevance, Reputation, Research, Resonance, Rick Rubin, Rigor, RulesOfRubin, Standards, Strategy
When I spoke at the conference in Berlin, I talked about rigor.
The main reason for doing that was because while our discipline talks a lot about rigor, more often than not – it seems the emphasis is far more on the adoption of marketing science principals rather than putting in the time and effort to really get under the skin of our clients situation and the context and understanding of the audiences they need to embrace.
The obsession with ‘sprints’ is part of the problem …
Because it seems clients care more about having fast answers than they do right answers.
Oh, I know they claim to give us all the information we need to move forward, but – as Dan Lyons pointed out in his brilliant book, ‘Disrupted’ – too many companies don’t know ‘who they are, who they’re for and what they do’, so the result of that is we are encouraged to make work that appeals to who they wish they were, rather than who they are.
Hence the need for rigor.
To be given the time and space to understand what the hell is going on.
Now of course, I appreciate time is money … and what we do can cost a lot of it … but while you can definitely take too long to do things, you can also not take long enough, which is why briefs need to be more about what we need to change than what we want to say.
And while there’s more data out there than you could ever use, the reality is nothing – and I mean nothing – has the impact of spending time with the people who are deeply entrenched in the category/product/brand that you’ve talking about.
They’re the ones who know what’s going on.
They’re the ones who see the challenges and problems.
They’re the ones who evolve what and where things can go.
And while they may well be at the far edge of where the category is, more often than not – they’re also the people who bring the masses along with them.
Or said another way, they’re the ones who can help you listen and understand like a fan. An educated fan.
Because the more you do that, the more you are exposed to the textures and nuances that reveal the truth, power and possibilities of what you are dealing with. Truth, power and possibilities that – in the obsession with speed – often get overlooked or devalued in favor of quick wins and convenient answers.
It’s basically how Rick Rubin has always approaches his job …
Understanding the artist’s truth and pushing/elevating it, rather than simply having a singular format that he adopts regardless of who he is working with or the situation they are currently in.
And before you dismiss this, there’s 2 important things to remember:
1. What he is doing is basically strategy.
2. What he has achieved – by any criteria you want to measure him by – is beyond almost anything any strategist in our industry has.
Now it is important I point out that I don’t have a problem with marketing science …
It has a place in the strategic process and has lessons/considerations that are valuable and important.
My problem with it is far more about how it is presented, specifically by the people who have a vested interest in promoting their ‘methodology’ … because they suggest it is the only way to liberate a brand’s potential when that is not the case and – generally – it is designed to not go wrong, rather than to elevate how far you can go.
Which is why we need to stop confusing ‘marketing science’ as strategic rigor when it’s more strategic 101. Valuable, but foundational.
It’s also why, I have a sign in the Colenso ‘strat’ department that reminds everyone that true strategic rigor requires us to be …
Filed under: 2026, A Bit Of Inspiration, Agency Culture, Ambition, Aspiration, Attitude & Aptitude, Authenticity, Communication Strategy, Consultants, Creativity, Culture, Distinction, Emotion, Innovation, Insight, Planners, Planners Making A Complete Tit Of Themselves And Bless, Planning, Provocative, Reputation, Resonance, Respect, Strategy
Insights aren’t very fashionable these days.
Seen as outdated and derivative or increasingly reduced to nothing more than a basic observation of human behaviour, increasingly favored by creative teams who think it justifies whatever execution they are about to detail … despite the fact it often is not true, or addresses a totally different issue than the one that needs the focus of their attention and talent.
Put simply, what passes for an insight these days is a lot of ‘what’ when it needs to be a lot more about ‘why’.
No wonder insights are so out of favor … however while I agree they are hard to find and should not be limited to just one area of focus, I think they are still the most powerful way to make stuff people find powerful.
Of course, what you do with them is what matters most.
Having an execution that just dramatizes the insight is rarely good work – albeit better than creative that just executes the brief – but a great insight opens up possibilities, rather than closes them off.
Recently I saw this and immediately connected to it …
Now I appreciate this is more ‘what’ than ‘why’ …
I also get it’s more universal than personal …
But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t pierce a deeply held truth most people will feel.
I know I do …
Sending Sarah Holtham my first ever Valentines day card [aged 6]. Going down the ‘big slide’ at Greenhorn Drive park. Lying at the very end of a row of my mates as someone jumps over us on their BMX bike via a badly constructed ‘ramp’ that consists of some flimsy piece of wood and bricks we found lying around the new build housing estate. Going for my first band audition. Driving to Scotland in a convoy then driving all the way back. Going to North Korea. Trying different foods. Moving overseas to be close to a girl I’d met in the UK.
So much of my life – the big stuff and the small – is down to one of my mates giving me a countdown to courage.
And while those days are far more my history than my present, their impact remains.
So while I appreciate age means you’re more aware of what could go wrong … the reality is most of the things you did because of a friends encouragement turned out to be OK. Great even. And even if they went wrong, it wasn’t the end of the world and you have it as both a lesson for what to do next time and a story to remember a life well lived.
Because for all the people selling their ‘for profit’ systems and processes on how to do things ‘right’ … the reality is most of them are designed to kill the possibility and excitement of our curiosity, discovery and inventiveness. Or said another way, they leave you where you already are rather than take you to where you could be … which is why I’m still a disciple of the insight, because they open the door to what could be next rather than nailing it closed under the guise of ‘protecting you from things that could go wrong’.
We need more friends giving us a ‘countdown to courage’ rather than guru’s telling us to be sensible with where we are. Not because I am a commercially irresponsible, but because we’re all in danger of going to the same place that everyone else is going. Which means the winners will be the ones who are the biggest, rather than the ones who want to do things in better ways.
And like in life, the things that define us came from those who pushed and challenged us.
Not because they wanted us to fail, but because they wanted us to live, experience and grow.
Talking of growing …
I’m in NY all next week doing some stuff that will stretch my experience, knowledge – and most probably – a bunch of other people’s patience [haha] so enjoy the silence and see you in 8 days. Make the most of it …
Filed under: 2026, A Bit Of Inspiration, Attitude & Aptitude, Collaboration, Comment, Communication Strategy, Confidence, Context, Craft, Creativity, Culture, Effectiveness, Emotion, Empathy, Focus Groups, Interviews, Leadership, Planners, Planners Making A Complete Tit Of Themselves And Bless, Planning, Resonance, Respect
One of the things that has always bugged me about some strategists is their desire to be academically victorious in every conversation.
To not just be ‘right’, but to be the ‘rightest of right’.
And then expect wild applause for their proclamations and declarations of self-appointed brilliance.
Putting aside the problematic nature of this behaviour, the irony is it stands in the way of them being able to properly understand – and connect to – how others feel, think, believe or behave … because they’re too busy telling others what they ‘really mean or think’.
And here’s the kicker …
The reality is people often do know what they want, think or think … they just don’t know how to express it clearly.
Which is why the key is the ability to listen rather than to judge. Or explain.
And by listen, I mean listen ‘hard’ …
Not just what is said, but how it is expressed … verbally, visually, contextually.
And while I appreciate we’re in a time poor, distraction rich world … the benefit of doing this is that not only will you have a greater appreciation of how they see the world, they will often reveal opportunities that ‘intellectual logic’ may never see, let alone get to.
Maybe that’s why I love that Lucille Ball quote so much … because in a few words, she articulates the difference between clever and smart.
And where strategy is concerned, smart trumps clever.
That doesn’t mean you don’t care about facts, details, knowledge or academic accuracy, it just means you appreciate that being emotionally resonant with others can achieve more than being academically victorious.
Or as my Dad used to say:
“If you need to show how clever you are, you’re probably not”
I say all this because I saw a brief interview with the singer Billy Idol.
In it, he demonstrates the importance – and craft – of emotional resonance.
The act of understanding what others need to be able to give them the space and place to express.
Not manipulation.
Not exaggeration.
But emotional consideration.
Which is why if a true Rockstar – who has lived the equivalent of 100 lives – can do it, then us poxy strategists should be able to, too.
Watch it, you’ll be a better person for it.
Filed under: 2026, A Bit Of Inspiration, Advertising, Agency Culture, Attitude & Aptitude, Complicity, Confidence, Conformity, Creative Brief, Creative Development, Creativity, Culture, Frameworks, Marketing, Marketing Fail, Marketing Science, Relevance, Reputation, Resonance, Respect
The last 2 posts of this week have been pretty heavy … or, even angry.
And I make no apologies for that when I see how the talent in our industry are being undermined by people who only care about themselves than elevating the real value of what we do.
But even I need a rest from it, which is why I thought I’d talk about this …
This is the window display of a shop near the Colenso office.
Now I know they say New Zealand is 20 years behind the rest of the world but even then, it’s mind-blowing this is still up.
I mean, look at it?
It’s to even the overly sexualized image, it’s how fucking rubbish it is.
Like an outtake from this old Hagen Diaz ice cream ad by BBH, putting aside the production quality of this spot FROM 1992, is still better than this suntanning bullshit …
On one hand I’m almost impressed, because it takes a lot of delusional confidence to use this image, and while I get that I ‘noticed it’, that doesn’t mean it’s smart. And that’s where a lot of people go wrong with creativity – thinking that anything that stands out means it’s justifiable. Because while there are moments where ‘shock’ has a strategic rationale, it loses its value when [1] it’s for something no one gives a fuck about because it’s pure superficiality and [2] when every other fucker is adopting the same approach, because then you’re not standing out – just blending in.
Creativity is far more about smartness and sharpness than blatant attempts at shock value … but in the hands of those who don’t know or care what creativity can do – or be – for them, you end up with shit like this.
Or the Heinz/Heineken bullshit collab.
The thing they marketed as ‘the collab you’ve been waiting for’ – hahahahahaha, yeah right.
Of course I appreciate some people will read this and say I don’t know what I’m talking about, to which I will ask who is saying that.
Because I am pretty certain the majority of them will be people who’ve never made any actual creative work, let alone anything of note.
Work can be powerful, differentiated and impactful in a whole host of ways … starting with knowing the people you’re specifically talking to.
And that’s the problem, too many companies have no idea who they’re talking to, so try to talk to everyone.
Which is why you end up with that ketchup beer bullshit – or worse – that Maxwell House disaster.
Don’t get me wrong, I love causing mischief as much as the next guy. Probably more.
And I have probably done more of it than most … including some utter disasters, including the infamous ‘KitKat Royal Break’ nightmare.
But as I said, great creativity is inherently smart, sharp and surprising – rather than just playing the ‘superficial shock’ card – which is why whenever I am in this situation, I always remember something the great Rupert Howell – no slouch in provocative approaches – once said to me:
“Robert. One of the most important lessons to learn is ‘just because you can, doesn’t mean you should”.
Reinforcing why we need more people educating the industry on ‘taste and trouble’ rather than how to blindly follow a framework that has zero nuance, understanding or space for context, category or audience.
Filed under: 2026, A Bit Of Inspiration, Advertising, Apathy, Attitude & Aptitude, Creative Development, Creativity, Germany, Insight, Relevance, Resonance, Strategy
This is my last post for a couple of weeks as I head off on a stupid trip around the World.
Los Angeles.
London.
Milan.
Amsterdam.
And finally … Berlin.
While I’m excited for all the places I’m going – even more so, the people I’m meeting – I am especially excited about going to Berlin.
Part of that is because it’s one of my favourite cities.
Part of that is because I get to see some friends I’ve not seen for years.
Part of that is because I’ve been kindly invited to speak at the GWA/Strategy Collective ‘Strat Con’ conference.
The topic of the conference is basically a discussion around the future of strategy … which is appropriate given I think if we carry on the way we’re going, there won’t be one. Or at least a bright one.
And why do I say this?
Well, it should be obvious, but if I had to sum it up it’s this:
Everyone thinks they’re different. Everyone is exactly the same.
Of course, a lot of this is because we all use the same tools, systems, models and approaches.
Where the goal is less about impact and change and far more about ‘packaging efficiency’, all reinforced by ‘for profit’ gurus who flog their systems – and themselves – as business superchargers when they’re insurance salesmen enforcing a self-interest driven definition of category convention.
Add to this the increasing amount of clients who want anything relating to their business, their audience or their competitors sanitized or erased from the ‘planning process’ to ensure their ego remains unharmed, and you can see why it’s not just strategy fighting for its relevance, but marketing as a whole.
It’s kind-of why I also find it hilarious we’re so worried about AI when the real problem is us.
Our complicity to formats and systems means innovation, invention and originality is literally being filtered out of our process and thinking so how they hell can we complain about AI when we’re making it so easy to duplicate us.
If you think this means my talk at Strat Con is going to be depressing, you’re right … it is.
Or should I say the first half is …
The second half will hopefully leave the attendees feeling a bit more hopeful.
Maybe excited even.
We’ll see … I hope so, I want the discipline and the industry to win.
And the good news is we have the talent, the brains and the creativity to do it … we just need to step out of the ‘brain jail’ we’ve all slowly walked our way into, encouraged and pushed by certain individuals who have a vested financial interest in taking us there and then keeping us there.
So see you in a couple of weeks, because while I’ll be back from my trip much shorter than that, I think we all could do with a rest from me.
Including me.
Besides, any bruises I end up with after my speech will need some time to recover.
Ta-ra. See you on Monday 13th July.