Thoughtspark - Smart content to ignite your business

What a topical subject about an institution for which we Brits have so much love and affection (quite rightly). It’s the elections today and all

How up to the minute can a Thursday ThoughtSpark be? Next week, the UK goes to the polls. Most pundits seem to agree that the

Well, kind of yes… But also, kind of no. Communicating an understanding to sales and commercial managers of the way in-house marketing professionals and agencies

It’s just so beautifully simple and based on common sense. It demands that sustainability references for a financial product:- #1 Are correct and capable of

But it’s something we should avoid at all costs. Because if (when) you get found out… it’ll cost you! I’ve had a really interesting discussion

This failure comes far, far, far too often. I always try to repeat to myself the phrase “How would I react if I received this

So – two fascinating aspects of an Advertising Standards Authority ruling from earlier this year. The first thing is that this is a case picked

Just how much green guff are we reading, day by day, month by month, ad nauseam? Is it significant? Is it saying something either credible

There’s the old adage that first class people hire other first class people; but second class people only hire third class people. The immediate interpretation

What is this obsession with automation? Sure, it applies to the world of consumer marketing and also what I would call ‘mass’ B2B. The benefits

What is this obsession with automation? Sure, it applies to the world of consumer marketing and also what I would call ‘mass’ B2B. The benefits

Managers – in businesses large and small – are generally hopeless at confrontation, particularly around issues of under-performance. This is corrosive. Every time a managers

What makes a good social post, I ask? Lots of engagement and response, you say. Wrong, I say. Because a few good engagements are worth

If we involve experts to give us input, then we shouldn’t contradict or gainsay them when they come up with inputs that don’t match our

All the out-of-the-box marketing metrics are all about quantity. This is incredibly misleading. Sure, much targeting effort goes into pushing out messages, campaigns and propositions

Sometimes you get a ruling on green marketing (or rather, on greenwashing) that beggars belief. It makes everyone gasp in astonishment not just because it

Nobody likes a sycophant. Or if they do, it’s a sign of their own highly developed inadequacies. But upstaging is just as pathetic. Avoid it

How many times (I speak to those who have experience in service business sales) do you end up selling what originally caught your target audience’s