Z-Files

Fascinating new WARC article (subscription required) about the marketing challenges facing the insurance industry in the time of global warming.People in parts of the US especially prone to climate-induced natural…

Credit: Unsplash/J. Balla Photography Some pet parents seem to be increasingly obsessed with their dogs, which seems like a good thing. But is it?In a recent New York Times feature,…

Credit: Macallan When is a bottle more than a bottle?  When you’re buying a $50,000 whisky.Macallan and Bentley have paired up to produce a new high-end whisky whose container doubles…

I wrote a few weeks ago that one human is universal is that we are all lazy and gross.  That has provided an innovation opportunity.Some interesting psychology is involved with…

I love this new ad from Quaker Canada.  A little bit schmaltzy, perhaps, but people dig schmaltzy in small doses. It is a touching little story.Nostalgia is a hot topic…

How can a brand with no budget and no awareness create buzz?  A little behavioral science can help.This comes from the newsletter of Jen Clinehens, a behavioral science specialist.  The…

One thing that unites humanity – regardless of skin color, religion, nationality, or political ideology – is that we are all lazy and gross.Not enough people wash their hands properly…

Major brands spend craptillions of dollars every year for the right to appear in the Super Bowl, the media and pop culture event of the year.  And why not? Last…

Just as the clothes make the person, the package makes the product.A recent study in the Journal of Marketing suggests that the optimal package design depends on both what the…

Jerry Olson shared this essay from The Guardian about the creeping trend of global ubiquity.The author, Kyle Chayka, uses coffee shops as his exemplar. Did you ever notice how many coffee shops look the…

This BBC article discusses how nostalgia cycles seem to have accelerated in recent years. Typically, nostalgia runs in 20-30 year cycles.  That is enough time for kids to become adults,…

c/o WARC Intuit knows something fascinating about Hispanic small business owners (SBOs) in the US and has turned that insight into an award-winning campaign.The business challenge was that many Hispanic…