You probably take a rest from the tyranny of the internet on Saturdays, but as a helpless motor-mouth I often find something to talk to thin air about. Such was the case two days ago. There was a big brouhaha …
Read MoreAuthor: Drayton
Big Price Drop = Big Share Drop: Tesco’s three mistakes – all to do with marketing, and pretty ghastly, too
I have always been interested in Tesco. Back in 1962 in my first big job at Leo Burnett, London one of my accounts was The Supermarket Association, and we were given a tour of a Tesco branch by the founder, …
Read MoreWill this kind of short-sighted behaviour grow in the recession? Plus some advice from Dale Carnegie
I’m sorry, but it is not enough to have messages that sell. You need to know what makes them sell, otherwise you’re never in true control of your marketing. A friend whose agency suffers from having me as chairman told …
Read MoreInteresting new development in corporate waffle – plus a free offer
I have noticed lately a slight change in marketing bullshit. For quite a few years marketers have been passionate. Passionate about all manner of stuff, it seems, except the thing normal people associate with passion, which from memory I seem …
Read MoreThis put me in a good mood for the year ahead
I had quite forgotten how hilarious Private Eye can be. Ever since they started they’ve run poems by E. J. Thribb (17½) but the current one is the funniest I can recall. In Memoriam Kim Jong-Il, North Korean Leader So. …
Read MoreWhat’s in store in 2012? Odd language leads to pretty useless advice – and my touchingly generous offer expires today
One of the most profitable lines ever written was to sell the Kiplinger Letter. It ran for a good twenty years and read “Will there be more BOOM and more INFLATION ahead?” It worked because we all want to know …
Read MoreHow to have a Happy New Year: two options – plus thoughts on Special Relationships and General Folly
If you follow politics in the same bemused way as I do you may find yourself chortling from time to time at how British politicians harp on about a special relationship between the U.S. and the U.K. This certainly existed …
Read MoreShooting cows and sparing milkmaids, or how to put the cart before the horse: an expert demonstrates. And why I’m ending this blog shortly
Years ago when I whizzed around the world telling people what to do (a role for which I was astoundingly unfitted) I arrived one sunny morning at a Canadian airport. The office head met me and drove me into town. …
Read MoreA gorgeous lady reveals why some people will be having a Merry Christmas – at your expense. Plus a funnier European joke
As all but the blind and stupid know, the news is increasingly brought to us by glamorous lady newsreaders. The reason may lie in research I saw 40 odd years ago into what attracts the eye. This may well help …
Read MorePutin would applaud the way America is going – and a tale about the joys of equality
While you were out celebrating, the fires of liberty were being extinguished, no doubt on the principle of “yes we can”. The U.S. Congress, abetted by Obama, has passed a Bill that means you can be arrested, thrown in jail, …
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