Drive north out of Kampala in Uganda and you will come across many signs like this one – Coca Cola has sponsored a local school and given the school a Coca Cola sign. A example of commerce invading people’s lives and landscapes you might think? But on reflection I think not. It is (asContinue reading “Coca Cola and the doctrine of happiness”
Author Archives: Julian Saunders
My favourite online resources
I was asked what they were by Aurora magazine – a Karachi based media and marketing magazine so here there are Slideshare.net A treasure trove of PowerPoint presentations on all sorts of topics If you can’t get to the ultra hip SXSW tech conference in Austin Texas with all the other cutting edge digerati, well,Continue reading “My favourite online resources”
Why we need stories
One of the shortest explanations of our profound need for stories comes from EM Forster, with these two lines “The King died , and the queen died” ” The King died , and the queen died of grief” The first line plays to our deepest fears – that life is just a series of randomContinue reading “Why we need stories”
Brands get public spirited big time
There are emerging trends and then there are fully emerged trends If you take the Cannes 2013 awards as a guide then the idea that brands should take on public spirited causes is now a fully emerged trend I mean by this not just a commitment to being responsible in the way they do business.Continue reading “Brands get public spirited big time”
Islam and a sense of belonging
I do feel watching the British media that there is often a failure of empathy in our discourse about Islam. So here us my attempt (inspired by the pleasure i have had from visiting Pakistan and the British Museum’s exhibition about Hajj last year) to explain the appeal of Islam in terms that a westernContinue reading “Islam and a sense of belonging”
The mobile revolution is postponed
Well it was at Glastonbury anyway. You know that a technology is not yet really mainstream when people keep talking about it. Successful technologies become invisible-only when you get a power cut do you have to think about power supplies. A typical call at Glastonbury- when you could get through – was something along theContinue reading “The mobile revolution is postponed”
What over 900 case histories tell us about designing effective campaigns
The IPA latest book on effectiveness by Les Binet and Peter field performs a valuable service for hard pressed brand managers and creative directors everywhere . It provides the hard evidence for taking a long term view of brand building. And for creative directors at ad agencies it endorses something that they have known forContinue reading “What over 900 case histories tell us about designing effective campaigns”
Cameron needs to bring back the adpeople
The big thing that the advertising people understand (that the PR’s don’t often) is that success comes from the long view. Tactics will not be enough to win- you need long term strategy too. The branding game is all about trying to occupy a position for a brand in the mind of consumers (or citizens) andContinue reading “Cameron needs to bring back the adpeople”
The sad decline of iTunes
Here is something i have just noticed- I haven’t bought any music from Itunes for over two months and i used to be hooked And i have a new obsession. airbnb– the website marketplace where you can book accommodation in other people properties. I am currently using it to find a place in NYC. IContinue reading “The sad decline of iTunes”
Tips on sports promotion from Barry Hearn #under the spotlight
To The Marketing Society for an Under the Spotlight evening to hear Barry Hearn speak about his career as a sports promoter. Great fun and full of insight and useful lessons about life and business His career started by accident – he was FD of a fashion firm-which he had joined from KPMG (very respectable!)-Continue reading “Tips on sports promotion from Barry Hearn #under the spotlight”
joinedupthink 