The One Reason So Many Brand Pranks On April Fools Day Failed This Year
Why do some branded April Fools Day jokes work while others fall flat?
Rohit
How The Non-Obvious Trend Of “RetroTrust” Started Taking Off
One of the most popular trends from this year’s edition of Non-Obvious was a trend I called RetroTrust – the idea that we trust in brands and experiences from our past. Since I wrote the chapter, I am discovering new examples of the trend in real life all the time. Last week I told the … Read more
Digital Undertakers, On-Demand Grandkids And Other Jobs Of The Future
One of the most consistent signs of our shifting future is how quickly new jobs and industries are emerging. Even as some fear technology making certain jobs obsolete, there are sci-fi sounding sectors like asteroid mining that are actually becoming reality. What I find more interesting, though, are the jobs which will be created as … Read more
Samsung’s Quiet Innovation, Men’s Makeup and Why Long-Term Space Missions Might Need Funny Astronauts | Non-Obvious Insights 02.21.19
Samsung’s Quiet Innovation That Everyone Ignored This week Samsung launched the world’s first folding phone. They also defied Apple and Google by keeping the 3.5mm headphone jack. This seemingly insignificant choice might be the cleverest part of the entire launch. Sometimes the most “innovative” thing you can do is deciding what NOT to change. Scientists Find … Read more
The Real Reason Influencers Make So Much Money
Everyone wants to be an online influencer, because it seems to pay well, but who is really benefiting? This article from the USA Today actually takes the unusual step of trying to reverse engineer a “rate” for influence and ended up with an estimate of “up to $100 for every 10,000 followers per sponsored post.” The amount … Read more
Jose Cuervo’s Tequila Train, Kim Kardashian’s Selfie Strategy and Barbie Focusing On Inclusion | Non-Obvious Insights 02.14.19
Why Jose Cuervo Wins With Its All-You-Can-Drink Tequila Train The temptation to create a “Strategic Spectacle” is popular for brands desperately chasing experiential marketing. Usually it leads to short term thinking and limited results. Not for Jose Cuervo, though, as their popular unlimited tequila train has been running for over 7 years. That is what commitment to an idea looks … Read more
Who’s Killing Sneaker Culture … And Why Does It Matter?
“You can have commerce or you can have culture,” Sean Williams says. He’s talking about sneakers but he might as well be talking about anything, anywhere. “You can’t have both. You’ve gotta pick one.” That’s probably the most impactful quote in this engaging Deadspin article from writer Casey Taylor that laments the slow dilution of sneaker culture. … Read more
Hotel Encourages Digital Detox, Cypto Founder Dies With Only Password To $190 million and Why SF Might Ban Facial Recognition | Non-Obvious Insights 02.07.19
The Hotel That Forces You To Take A Digital Detox In Sweden, one hotel has created a stunt designed to encourage you to stay off of Wifi during your stay … by only charging you when you use devices in the room. If you can exhibit self control for the evening in the “Check Out … Read more
4 Big Trends From The 2019 Super Bowl Ads That Explain Our Culture
The best part of the Super Bowl experience is always the advertising. That was particularly true this year thanks to another joyless victory by the Patriots in quantifiably the most boring Super Bowl ever. As a lover of marketing strategy, the big game always offers a chance to dissect the best and worst of how … Read more
How Millennials Became Workaholics, Japan’s Big Hacking Experiment and Why People Believe Tabloids | Non-Obvious Insights 01.31.19
Millennials Glorify #Hustle,Take Unhealthy Workaholism Mainstream As we live through the rise of “#hustle culture,” this article provides a much needed reminder that we need to stop celebrating workaholism among Millennials and instead describe the workplaces which foster this culture for what they are: toxic and inhumane. Japan Hacks 200 Million Devices In Pre-Olympic CyberSecurity Test To prepare … Read more
