In the mid-1940s, the diamond cartel De Beers had a challenge probably no other company ever had. They controlled almost all the diamond mines in the world. And they had an excessive supply after the discoveries of huge mines a few decades earlier. But they had a dilemma. If they reduced the price and made…
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Cross-Industry Innovation: How to Differentiate Your Brand By Ignoring Best Practices
In 2001, all business and tech publications were saying Steve Jobs just made a big mistake. Jobs announced that he decided to change Apple’s retail strategy. Up to that point, Apple had partnered with electronic retailers like Best Buy and Circuit City to sell its products. But it never worked out as Apple expected. Apple…
The Framing Effect: How To Give Customers a Good Reason to Choose You
You’ll remember the scene if you’ve watched Mad Men. In the 1960s, the FTC bans tobacco companies from making any health claims in their ads. Before that, it was normal to see ads with the “health benefits” of cigarettes. But public opinion was starting to change on tobacco. So Lucky Strike executives ask for help from Don Draper’s…
Repositioning: How to Turn Your Strengths Into Profitable Growth (Without Spending More)
In the 80s, the Swiss watch industry was in an existential crisis. Japanese brands had flooded the market after quartz technology became accessible. Seiko, Casio, Citizen… It was like a revolution. Suddenly, Japanese brands could produce less expensive and more accurate watches. Put yourself in the shoes of the Swiss. You see mechanical watchmaking as…
Cognitive Dissonance In Marketing: How To Make Sales Easy
On a winter day in 1971, McCann’s young copywriter Ilon Specht was frustrated. She was chosen to write the ad for an expensive hair color brand called L’Oréal. And her colleagues (mostly men) were after the same old ideas. Show a woman changing to a new hair color to be more attractive to a man.…
Bowling Alley Strategy: How New Players Dominate Big Markets
In 2000, Marc Benioff decided to declare war. He founded Salesforce a year earlier and entered the competitive CRM market. And Siebel Systems was the market leader with a 45% market share. So Salesforce desperately needed to get known. Benioff worked with an agency to come up with a bold campaign. You know what was…
How Brand Values Actually Build a Winning Brand
Think about it. You are an accountant in 1926. And you see many inefficiencies in the businesses you work with. So you decide to leave your job and start a consultancy in an era when nobody knows what “consultant” means. Fast forward 30 years. The firm you started has so much influence, it’s the consultant…
Why Simple Brands Win (And How To Become One)
Imagine this. It’s 1986. The fast food trend Ray Kroc started with McDonald’s 25 years ago is at its peak. There is a burger restaurant in every corner of America. McDonald’s, Burger King, Wendy’s… What are the odds of a new burger restaurant to rise as a competitor in these conditions? And not by focusing…
Buying Triggers: How to Create Growth From Non-Obvious Demand
In 1957, copywriter Donald Gilles got a challenge. “How can we position this chocolate brand called KitKat?” The UK economy was finally booming after World War II. So KitKat’s owner Rowntree’s knocked on advertising agency JWT’s door for a new campaign. And JWT assigned Gilles to the task. Now, the positioning challenge for a bar…
Halo Effect: Why Great Brands Are Built in Details (And How To Nail It)
In 1983, Horst Schulze took on a big challenge. He became a founding member and the president of The Ritz-Carlton Company. The co-founders’ goal was clear. Take the legacy of Ritz and Carlton names in the hotel industry. And turn it into a successful luxury hotel chain. But the hotel industry is one of those…