CPG: Food Market Research Pitfalls Early in my marketing career, at General Mills, we used to hold focus groups in a Minneapolis suburb called Eden Prairie. I once overheard a couple of our agency partners jokingly refer to this focus group ritual as going to see the “Oracles of Eden Prairie.” Whether new products, campaign strategy, or ad creative, the […] Tom Fishburne February 17, 2025February 17, 2025 4 min read Fun & HumorTechnology & InnovationAIThick DataSponsoredConsultingExecutivesData & InsightsDept. NonfoodGeneral MillsResults & InvestmentStrategyAgencies 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Department: Nonfood Digital Distractions and Finding Focus We need to find time for focus to do our best work. Ironically some of the tools we use to make us more productive are designed to steal focus. Distraction is the default setting. Some of this challenge relates to work norms. I love how Jeff Maurer joked about the “always on” expectations of Slack: […] Tom Fishburne February 10, 2025February 10, 2025 3 min read Fun & HumorSponsoredStrategyMarketing: UGCThick DataTechnology & InnovationHealth & WellnessDept. Nonfood 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
CPG: Food The Super Bowl Ad Formula The Super Bowl is the biggest high wire act in marketing. The media alone costs $7 million for a 30 second spot to reach an audience of more than 100 million people. So this is when marketers pull out all the stops. And yet they also tend to play it safe by following tried-and-true conventions. […] Tom Fishburne February 3, 2025February 3, 2025 4 min read Fun & HumorHoliday & EventsSponsoredTechnology & InnovationMars Inc.ExecutivesCrypto 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Channel: Ecommerce & Digital Agile Teams In 2001, a group of 17 software engineers famously drafted the Agile Manifesto at a ski resort in Utah. They were frustrated by the limitations of traditional “waterfall” software development and wanted a more flexible, iterative approach. The term “agile” evolved into a collection of methodologies that not only changed software development but started to […] Tom Fishburne January 20, 2025January 20, 2025 4 min read Fun & HumorSponsoredTechnology & InnovationStrategyAmazonExecutivesPredictions and ForecastsPodcastsDeliveryConsultingBrokers 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Partnerships & Alt Profit How we Brief Sir John Hegarty, founder of Bartle Bogle Hegarty, famously said: “Writing bad briefs is the most expensive way to write advertising.” The sentiment applies to any form of creative communication and any type of brief. How we brief creative partners is as important as the talent of those creative partners. Writing a truly great brief […] Tom Fishburne January 13, 2025January 13, 2025 4 min read Fun & HumorSponsoredPredictions and ForecastsPartnershipsHealth & WellnessAgencies 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Data & Insights AI Learning Curve It’s hard to make sense of the real promise of AI amidst the hype and noise. In 2023, Google CEO Sundar Pichai famously compared AI to the creation of fire and invention of electricity on an episode of 60 Minutes. By 2024, the hype cycle around AI gave way to the trough of disillusionment, as […] Tom Fishburne January 9, 2025January 9, 2025 4 min read Technology & InnovationAIFun & HumorSponsoredData & InsightsPredictions and ForecastsGoogleExecutivesBig DataResults & InvestmentPartnershipsESG and CSR 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Channel: Ecommerce & Digital Ho, Ho, Holiday Returns Over the last decade, “Free Returns” became the new “Free Shipping,” going from differentiator (for pioneers like Zappos) to table stakes (for everyone else). But the tide is turning. According to logistics provider goTRG, 49% of US retailers now think of Returns as a severe problem, especially during the holiday season. In just the last […] Tom Fishburne December 23, 2024December 23, 2024 4 min read Fun & HumorReturnsSponsoredHoliday & EventsData & InsightsShoppersOperations & Supply ChainConsumersDeliveryThick DataAmazonExecutivesDept. ApparelSustainabilityLegal & Criminal 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Partnerships & Alt Profit Product/Market Fit Product/Market Fit has emerged as a key threshold of success for startups, but the concept can apply to businesses of any size. First coined by Benchmark co-founder Andy Rachleff, Product/Market Fit was popularized by Marc Andreesen in 2007 in a famous essay titled “The Only Thing That Matters.” In the essay, Marc defined Product/Market Fit […] Tom Fishburne December 16, 2024December 16, 2024 3 min read Fun & HumorSponsoredShoppersPredictions and ForecastsPartnershipsMarketing: Social Media 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Agencies & Vendors Change Fatigue A few weeks ago, I drew a cartoon exploring the nonstop drumbeat of change in business, particularly from a marketing perspective. When everything is constantly changing, it’s easy to lose sight of the power of consistency. And yet the flip side of that dynamic is resistance to change, even when change is necessary. A couple […] Tom Fishburne December 2, 2024December 2, 2024 3 min read Fun & HumorSponsoredInsight ProvidersTechnology & InnovationChatGPTAI 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Department: Nonfood AI-Generated Homogeneity It’s still early days with AI Generation tools. We’re all still learning the potential and limitations. One watch-out is the bias toward homogeneity — the tendency for AI results to look alike. As AI predicts what to generate, the path of least resistance is an averaging of the content in its source material. Ian Whitworth […] Tom Fishburne November 25, 2024November 25, 2024 4 min read Fun & HumorAITechnology & InnovationSponsoredDept. PetDept. NonfoodPackagingPredictions and ForecastsChatGPT 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Department: Nonfood Herding Cats and Strategic Alignment A few weeks ago, I drew a cartoon about the “silo syndrome” that most organizations struggle to navigate. It got me thinking about the challenge of strategic alignment in general — how hard it is to get and keep the extended organization on the same page. A big part of the marketing job is learning […] Tom Fishburne October 28, 2024October 28, 2024 3 min read Fun & HumorDept. PetSponsoredStrategyAssociatesHoliday & EventsExecutives 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Corporate Strategy Levers of Growth I was struck by an observation from J. Walker Smith, Chief Knowledge Officer at Kantar: “The foundational prerequisite of growth is the courage to grow. Impediments to growth sit within a company itself. Growth is rarely hostage to the marketplace.” I like the idea that a brand is not “hostage to the marketplace” — that […] Tom Fishburne October 21, 2024October 21, 2024 3 min read Fun & HumorInsight ProvidersSponsoredData & InsightsTechnology & InnovationStrategyShoppersMarketing: In StoreMarketing: Brand 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Channel: Ecommerce & Digital The Silo Syndrome One of my favorite marketing observations comes from HP founder David Packard: “Marketing is too important to be left to the marketing department.” Our customers don’t care about our org charts. They don’t care which department is responsible for what. When they interact with different parts of a business, all they see is one brand. […] Tom Fishburne October 7, 2024October 7, 2024 3 min read Fun & HumorSponsoredShoppersAmazonDept. NonfoodInternational - UKConsumersOperations & Supply Chain 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Channel: Mass Brand Planning Mike Tyson was asked his thoughts on Evander Holyfield’s fight plan before a WBA Heavyweight Title bout and famously responded: “Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.” As we shift from Q3 to Q4 this week, brand planning season is in full swing for 2025, even as final 2024 numbers come […] Tom Fishburne September 30, 2024September 30, 2024 3 min read Fun & HumorStrategySponsoredTargetPredictions and Forecasts 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Media & Marketing Creative Review by Committee A few month ago, I heard Adam Morgan from eatbigfish and Jon Evans from System1 give a talk on the Extraordinary Cost of Being Dull at the Cannes advertising festival. Adam and Jon shared analysis from Peter Field who found that a “dull” advertising campaign has to spend £10m more a year in media on […] Tom Fishburne September 23, 2024September 23, 2024 3 min read Fun & HumorSponsoredMarketing: UGC 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Department: Food Sales-Focused Advertising Peter Drucker wrote this in his 1973 book on management: “You have to produce results in the short term. But you also have to produce results in the long term. And the long term is not simply the adding up of short terms.” Business carries a bias toward short-termism in general, but particularly in marketing […] Tom Fishburne September 16, 2024September 16, 2024 3 min read Fun & HumorSponsoredDept. PerimeterDept. FreshMarketing: Brand 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
CPG: HBC Customer Journeys to Nowhere Earlier this year an editorial in the New York Times wondered: “When did everything become a ‘journey’? Changing our hair, getting divorced, taking spa vacations — they’re not just things we do; they’re ‘journeys.’” And of course, to marketers, there’s the “customer journey.” The customer journey is a handy metaphor to help us consider all […] Tom Fishburne September 2, 2024September 2, 2024 3 min read Fun & HumorShoppersSponsoredTechnology & InnovationRestaurantsTikTokHealth & WellnessMarketing: ShopperMarketing: Social MediaOwned Brands (Private Label)Procter & GambleStreamingDept. BakeryBOPIS 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Channel: Ecommerce & Digital Thinking Outside the Box Conventional wisdom holds that creativity comes from “thinking outside the box”, but constraints are actually one of its key ingredients. One of Google’s principles of innovation is “creativity loves constraints,” as Marissa Mayer once recounted: “People think of creativity as this sort of unbridled thing, but engineers thrive on constraints. They love to think their […] Tom Fishburne August 26, 2024August 26, 2024 3 min read Fun & HumorTechnology & InnovationSponsoredGoogleHealth & WellnessAmazon 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
CPG & FMCG Playing it Safe is Risky I’ve always liked this insight from Seth Godin: “If failure is not an option, then neither is success.” Organizations can spot the risks of a new idea a mile away. But there’s a curious blind spot when it comes to the risks of not taking those risks. The path of least resistance is to play […] Tom Fishburne August 19, 2024August 19, 2024 3 min read Fun & HumorSponsoredLegal & CriminalTechnology & InnovationExecutivesUnilever 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Corporate Strategy Thought Leadership In 2008, I brought my team to see Seth Godin speak at an event in London. There was a Q&A at the end, and someone asked Seth how he found time to do all the things he did — write so many books, keep a daily blog, and personally respond to every email he receives. […] Tom Fishburne August 12, 2024August 12, 2024 4 min read Fun & HumorTechnology & InnovationAISponsoredStrategyTwitterMarketing: Social MediaInternational - UK 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Channel: Delivery Corporate Apology The recent CrowdStrike debacle gives lessons for all of us in how to (and how not to) communicate in a crisis. The initial tweeted response from CEO George Kurtz fell flat, as panned by comms expert Davia Temin: “This is a response scrubbed by a legal team with lawsuits in mind. It holds little to […] Tom Fishburne July 29, 2024July 29, 2024 3 min read Fun & HumorTechnology & InnovationAISponsoredPartnershipsExecutivesUbereatsMarketing: Social MediaLegal & CriminalChatGPTAssociates 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Brand Storytelling, Showmanship, and Salesmanship Brand storytelling is one of the most wildly overused (and least understood) buzzwords of marketing. It’s often casually used without discretion to describe just about any type of marketing communication. Years ago, I visited the Portland studio of Character, which helped pioneer storytelling as a framework for brands, and chatted with Jim Hardison and […] Tom Fishburne July 22, 2024July 22, 2024 3 min read Fun & HumorSponsored 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Corporate Strategy Idea Killers Labeling an idea polarizing can be the quickest way to kill an idea. Businesses usually avoid ideas that are polarizing, whether new products or campaigns. It’s always easier to launch the next flavor of vanilla. But there’s power in polarization. By trying to appeal to everyone, you won’t necessarily appeal to anyone in particular. In […] Tom Fishburne July 8, 2024July 8, 2024 4 min read Fun & HumorTechnology & InnovationSponsoredStore LocationExecutivesESG and CSREconomyConsumers 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
CPG: Adult Beverage Chief Buzzword Officer One of the most entertaining parts of going to the Cannes Advertising festival for the first time recently was eavesdropping on so much marketing chatter in one place. It was surreal to walk the cobblestone streets past cafe tables and hear, not French, but snippets of conversation with language like “brand salience” and “mental availability.” […] Tom Fishburne July 1, 2024July 7, 2024 3 min read Fun & HumorSponsoredConsumersDept. DairyExecutivesCPG: Adult BeverageAssociates 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
International Return from Cannes Lions ’24: Creativity Here’s my cartoon recap from the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity this week. System1 invited me to sketch a daily cartoon based on what I observed, walking around with my sketchpad for the week. This one is about the transition back to regular work at the end. Even if you haven’t been to this […] Tom Fishburne June 23, 2024June 23, 2024 2 min read Fun & HumorESG and CSRInternationalTechnology & InnovationCustomer Experience 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Channel: Ecommerce & Digital Dispatch from Cannes Lions ’24: Marketing Effectiveness The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity has been on my bucket list ever since I started in marketing. I’m here for the first time this week thanks to System1 — who I’ve known since their Brainjuicer days. They invited me to be a Marketoonist-in-Residence for the week, so I’m going to capture some of […] Tom Fishburne June 17, 2024June 17, 2024 2 min read Fun & HumorAmazonSponsoredMarketing: Social MediaInternationalSustainability 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Data & Insights Anecdotes and Data There’s a well-known aphorism that “the plural of anecdote is not data.” I found it interesting to learn that the origin of that line was actually the opposite. In the late 60s, a Cal Professor and political scientist named Ray Wolfinger heard a student dismiss a statement as “just an anecdote” and responded that “the […] Tom Fishburne June 10, 2024June 10, 2024 3 min read Data & InsightsFun & HumorSponsoredThick DataTechnology & InnovationShoppersOwned Brands (Private Label)GovernmentExecutivesAmazon 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Data & Insights AI Chatbots and GenAI Hype We’re at a surreal stage of generative AI adoption, as some of the growing pains of this still relatively new technology are revealed in funny and bizarre ways. Google released “AI Overviews” at scale in the US recently, giving everyone an opportunity to kick the tires and ask Google questions answered by AI, which then […] Tom Fishburne June 3, 2024June 6, 2024 3 min read AITechnology & InnovationFun & HumorMarketing: VoicePredictions and ForecastsInsight ProvidersSponsoredGoogleChatGPTDept. Toys & GamesDept. PetDept. NonfoodDept. Dairy 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Department: Nonfood Guessing the Brief I stumbled across a quote recently from legendary ad agency founder Pat Fallon: “If the creative brief is not itself creative, what right do its authors have to expect anything different?” The brief is often treated as a formality or a tick-box exercise, rather than one of the most important tools in a marketer’s toolkit. […] Tom Fishburne May 28, 2024May 28, 2024 2 min read Fun & HumorSponsoredAgenciesResults & InvestmentPredictions and ForecastsPartnershipsHealth & WellnessDept. Nonfood 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
CPG: Food Market Share and Competitor Obsession I’m returning from giving a keynote talk in Europe on different types of marketing myopia, and gave some thought this week to category myopia. There’s a famous Jeff Bezos quote attributed to an early Amazon shareholder letter: “We’re not competitor obsessed, we’re customer obsessed. We start with what the customer needs, and then we work […] Tom Fishburne May 20, 2024May 20, 2024 3 min read Fun & HumorShoppersSponsoredNestleCompetitionConsumersDept. FrozenGeneral MillsAmazonBig DataExecutivesInsight ProvidersPredictions and ForecastsRestaurantsDept. Dairy 0 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Data & Insights Partnerships & Alt Profit Media & Marketing Data & Insights Shopper & Customer Valentine’s Day flower sales could shift to FTD, other brands in 2025 1-800-Flowers still leads in US, FTD is gaining share 1-800-Flowers is the largest flower service by sales headed into Valentine’s Day 2025, according to Earnest credit card data. However, the industry stalwart is likely to lose share this season if recent trends continue. Access chart in Dash. 1-800-Flowers commanded 37.0% of Valentine’s Day flower sales […] Written by Earnest Research February 11, 2025February 11, 2025 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Holiday & Events Holiday & Events Shoppers believe best holiday deals are after holidays A good number of consumers, over 77%, believe there are better deals available after the holidays, and nearly 51% plan to take advantage by making a large purchase in late December and January. Those are top findings from a Holiday Green survey, from CouponCabin, regarding consumer habits in the post-holiday time frame. When it comes to post-holiday […] Written by Retail Customer Experience January 17, 2025January 17, 2025 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Trends & External Forces Data & Insights Technology & Innovation Trends & External Forces 2025 Outlook: A Snapshot into Ad Spend, Opportunities, and Strategies for Growth IAB’s 2025 Outlook: A Snapshot into Ad Spend, Opportunities, and Strategies for Growth offering an early glimpse into ad spending trends for the coming year. The report is a must-read to gain and understanding of brand and agency buyers’ growth strategies and the challenges they foresee. The report covers: 2025 projections for the market overall […] Written by IAB January 16, 2025January 17, 2025 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Uncategorized A major shift in North American grocery retail Spending is migrating away from traditional supermarkets and hypermarkets to channels that better align with busy lifestyles. The post A major shift in North American grocery retail appeared first on Retail Insight Network. Written by Retail Insights Network January 14, 2025January 14, 2025 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Data & Insights Technology & Innovation AI at the retail edge: What’s possible now There’s been a lot of talk lately about artificial intelligence (AI) and generative AI (GenAI) and how these technologies are going to revolutionize retail. But the retail revolution can’t be accomplished with sweeping generalizations about putting more technology into stores. Successful retail outcomes are built using technology to solve specific challenges, expanding on wins and […] Written by RetailDive January 13, 2025January 13, 2025 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked