Reading is not a race.
8 months into 2023, I’ve read only 5 of my ambitious 50-book goal.
And I am ok with it. I also realize that I prefer “non-books” to books (for the same reason I like movies over long TV series). Here are the top “non-books” of 2023 with links:
JWT Planning Guide (A worthy re-read) - http://plannersphere.pbworks.com/f/JWTPlanningGuide.pdf
Alex Morrison's Stratscraps Newsletter - Can't get enough of his insights - sign up here
This intelligent article on ‘how to think’ mentioned on Stratscraps. I really connected with the part about problem formulation - https://metarationality.com/how-to-think
The entire Jeremy Bullmore Collection - https://www.wpp.com/the-bullmore-collection
These Cannes Lions decks on effectiveness from the IPA - https://ipa.co.uk/knowledge/videos-podcasts/the-3rd-age-of-effectiveness
Diving deep into the plethora of content in Baiba Matisones' Strategy Bank - https://baibamatisone.notion.site/Strategy-Link-Bank-d6ba878b49aa4c66a848a1d5f9efd6b1
This article on the Zappy.io blog on effectiveness that I found via Dan White’s LinkedIn - https://www.zappi.io/web/blog/predicting-advertising-success-combine-research-methods/
The riveting differentiation webinar (Parts 1 & 2) by Mark Ritson -
This deck on what strategy is, by Dr. Marc Sniukas: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/sniukas_what-is-strategy-4pdf-activity-7090961969540673536-MzC4?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop
I find these micro knowledge pieces are easier to absorb than books (that could be a ‘me’ thing)
Introduction to Systems Thinking - the first book I read on the subject.
Marketing Science and Behavioral Science can sound like too much science. At Fudge, we use both when we develop ads and content for our clients and so far, it has worked well.
250% spike in walk-ins for our bedding and mattress client
40% YoY revenue growth for our alcoholic beverages client
200,000+ app downloads at a CPI < $0.2
Here’s how we bring learnings from both domains without going overboard:
Diagnosis with Behavioral Science: Why aren’t people behaving the way we want them to? Developing insights is made easier and more effective by the use of behavioral science. Looking at problems through the lens of biases and heuristics shed light on problems in much more interesting ways.
Marketing Science helps us narrow down strategies and tactics that are better suited for specific business situations, sizes etc.
Ads and content production is guided by marketing science and tweaked to increase motivation (or reduce friction)
Ad buying is informed by marketing science**:** It determines where our funds go and with what objective.
And throughout, there's an undercurrent of experimentation. Because, in the end, results dictate whether we stay on course or pivot.
I am testing out Instagram as a space to share my thoughts.
^That carousel was this article before.
Will you propose on your first date?
Doing brand strategy too early in the company lifecycle should feel as weird.
This is my advice to the more agreeable start up founders who reach out to me to help them with their brand strategy.
Why?
You don’t know what you bring to the table. You don’t even know what to expect from the brand strategy. After a few months, you might realize that you have wasted your time and money.
Worse yet, it can mislead startup founders into thinking that their business doesn’t work when in reality the problem could be with the brand strategy - maybe your idea or positioning doesn’t really stick.
Like dating, the first step to take, even before you get out there, is to make sure you have something that people will buy.
Is there a good product market fit? Is the product useful? Does the business make financial sense? Is it scalable?
Once you have figured that out, get out there. Go on a few dates. See what clicks and what doesn’t. You will never know what you’re looking for, if you first don’t encounter the things that you don’t want.
Paid ads is a wonderful way to go about testing your ideas. You fail fast and you get behavioral data to make a solid decision, provided that you interpret the data right.
Once you have some certainty about who you are , what people are looking for, what you like and dislike, then a brand strategy makes sense.
It helps you to be remembered in the specific buying situations by being consistently associate with the same set of things.
My friend and business partner Dharini helps startups around the world develop and launch effective brands. Here’s her podcast. Check it out. It won’t disappoint.
And that’s all for this week. Stay brave. Stay bold.