Opinion
A false god: innovation isn’t as mystical as it seems
Innovation is often revered as an esoteric art form, which only a few geniuses are privy to. But Andrew Lewis argues that everything isn’t as mystical as it seems.
Browsing: Decoder
Opinion
The lying game: Andrew Lewis on why marketers need to do less asking and more watching
The difference between consumers’ claimed behaviour and actual behaviour is often vast. And while marketers like to have concrete data to make plans, Andrew Lewis thinks they need to become better at observing customer behaviour.
News
Andrew Lewis on why we still need big ideas in the age of personalisation
Marketers have so many tools available to them to target customers and personalise communications. But they still need to bear in mind how people arrive at the front door in the first place, says Andrew Lewis.
News
Ghost of Christmas past: Andrew Lewis on why memories matter more than experiences
At a time when he is being coaxed into commercial activities through nostalgia, TRA managing director Andrew Lewis reflects on why it’s important for brands to attach their experiences to consumers’ memories.
News
Milking it: Andrew Lewis on why value is relative
One of the persistent public views that exists around marketing and advertising is that these industries are great manipulators of us all, creating in us silly desires and passing fancies that divert us from a virtuous life path and empty our wallets with the skill of a pickpocket. And when one looks at something like the furore created by Lewis Road Creamery around chocolate milk, it’s pretty easy to see how people might start musing on this. But the truth is that we are a much less Machiavellian lot than our fancy milk would suggest.
Opinion
Closing the loop: what marketers can learn from Mozart’s syphilis
You might not think there are too many similarities between treating syphilis and differentiating brands, but you’d be wrong, says Andrew Lewis, because it illustrates the importance of combining theory with practice.
Opinion
Good talkers, bad listeners: why brands need to get better at lending their ears
Like beards and Jennifer Lawrence, customer centricity is having a bit of a ‘moment’ currently. But in this rapidly changing nation, we’re not listening hard enough to what customers actually want, says Andrew Lewis.
Opinion
From inside out to outside in: how brands need to rethink innovation
Incremental innovation might actually be hindering, not helping growth, says Andrew Lewis. So brands need to start acting like entrepreneurs if they want to find those breakthrough insights.
Opinion
More doing, less describing: what brands can learn from actors
Andrew Lewis thinks that despite 50 years of research, practice, learning and refinement, we are still pretty rubbish at creating great brands that genuinely connect with people. And he thinks the secret to rectifying this might lie in the teachings of Stanislavski.
Opinion
Death of a salesman: why brand advertising is losing its mojo
In an age where product information is readily available, Andrew Lewis says brand advertising is losing its efficacy in directing consumers’ choices—and it may even be making brands irrelevant.
Opinion
In memoriam: what holidays can teach us about marketing
Whether it’s trips to Cuba or brands and businesses, memory trumps experience in the human brain, says Andrew Lewis. So you need to design your services with that in mind.
Opinion
Switching off, checking out: as broadcast viewership declines, how will brands get in people’s faces in the future?
Viewership of broadcast TV is declining here and around the world. And, in correlation, some consumers appear to have largely checked out of advertising altogether, writes Andrew Lewis. So a reliance on brand-led communications to drive engagement will be found wanting.
Opinion
The power of perspective
Those in this industry often suffer from the ‘Curse of Knowledge’, says Andrew Lewis. So it’s important to get outside ourselves to understand the everyday consumer.
Opinion
When it comes to branding, personality is overrated
To be a great brand, consumers simply need to get a sense of the personality though its actions, rather than have it delivered fully formed, says Andrew Lewis.
Opinion
Inside the social media echo chamber
Who are brands really talking to on social media? The converted, says The Research Agency’s Andrew Lewis.
Opinion
The case for irrationality
The consumer may always be right. But let’s stop pretending consumers know what they’re doing, writes The Research Agency’s Andrew Lewis.
News
Ease vs. overload: the blessing/curse of connection
Digitally connected consumers in New Zealand use wireless and mobile technology to make their lives easier and save time, shows the latest report from Nielsen. But other studies show technology hasn’t made life easier or more fulfilling at a fundamental level. PLUS: an infographic on the state of digital play in New Zealand.
Opinion
Ignorance is bliss: why happiness has nothing to do with knowledge
People don’t really understand the things they buy, says Andrew Lewis. And that’s the way
they seem to like it.
Opinion
Culling me softly: information overload and the upshot for brands
We live in a world of information overload, says Andrew Lewis. And as consumers start entering ‘The Age of the Cull’, brands that enhance life through digital connections are the only ones likely to survive.
Opinion
‘Because not everything is better in front of a crowd’
Colmar Brunton has just released some survey results that show 60 percent of New Zealanders follow a brand on social media and more than two thirds think a social media presence adds to the brand’s appeal. But what those consumers say when they’re talking to those brands is another, very different question. So we thought we’d republish a column by The Research Agency’s Andrew Lewis that ran in the last issue of NZ Marketing and detailed the interesting results of a survey on how people interact with brands on social media.