It is a slow day in the little Greek Village. The rain is beating down and the streets are deserted. Times are tough, everybody is in debt, and everybody lives on credit. A rich German tourist, name of Merkel, is …
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TBQ at the BBC, a cheeky little agency scam and other assorted hoots
Did I ever tell you about the time I was asked to join a BBC committee all about the future? It was all about predicting what was going to happen in the 21st century. Total wankfest, as you’d imagine. One …
Read MoreVery droll: another blinding glimpse of the obvious lurches out of the intellectual undergrowth – plus Ocado’s marketing madness
Friends accuse me of mock-modesty when I say that any success I have had has little to do with my abilities but is almost entirely due to the sloth of many if not most people in the marketing game. But …
Read MoreThis man was breathing money when I was on a mere $480,000. Here’s why
My friend James Hammond, the Brand Doctor, sent me this (he studies everything and often mortifies me by producing stuff I never heard of). It is written by Neil French. I don’t know how you make it big enough to …
Read MoreSome thoughts about banks – and how come people fall for all this second rate guff?
Over the years I have seen both sides of most of the big banks in this country. I’ve done work and had business or personal accounts with them and they are bloody useless in both areas. Lloyds Bank is deep …
Read MorePolitics and marketing: why I won’t shut up no matter how much it bores you
Two weeks ago one of the speakers at EADIM took me aside and made some helpful suggestions. One was that I should stop writing about politics – “I find it infuriating” he said. He said I should stick to marketing, …
Read MoreDoes this piss you off as much as it does me? Plus a great joke
I’ll explain what the picture’s about in a minute. First though, a moan and a warning. Dodgy sales people for years used a technique called bait and switch. They would offer you something free or very cheap to lure you …
Read MoreOne simple thing you can do now that will transform your business – I guarantee it
I’ll tell you what the simple thing is in a minute, but first some relevant thoughts. 25 years ago David Ogilvy sent me the notes for a speech he was to make at a direct marketers’ convention, asking for my …
Read MoreThoughts on India, the decline of the west and all that happy stuff
There’s a very interesting piece in today’s New York Times about the sudden interest in politics among the Indian middle class. They’ve finally got fed up with the astounding level of corruption in Indian politics – the problem being that …
Read MoreFishminster? Pissminster! How to lose a customer forever – even if you sell something superb. Plus the problem with big organisations – and a songbird
Yesterday, my stomach rumbling happily, I strolled into an excellent (if expensive) fish and chip joint near me called Fishminster. (Why the odd name? They belong to Pieminster, a highly successful pie makers that started up in Bedminster in Bristol). …
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