Is there anyone or any resource that you think strategists rely on too much that is counterproductive?
Data. Data. Data. (And it’s not just strategists. It’s all of us!)
We are living in the golden age of information. Figures and facts – as well as the tools and techniques to extract them – are more plentiful than ever.
But it feels like we’ve become certifiably and undeniably DATA DRUNK. We’ve been wooed by numbers. Our judgment’s gotten cloudy. We’ve become overly enamored with what we can measure.
But not everything that matters can be measured. And not everything that can be measured matters. And while data is seemingly unlimited, it still has its limits.
To truly unleash its power, we believe data must be humanised. So when we dive into the infinity pool of info, we intentionally mix in culture, conversation, and emotion to give it real meaning. We talk to people. We look past what may be true to explore how it came to be. And while our insights and ideas are often inspired by data, we know they must be infused with human magic to ever amount to anything.
What do you think is the most underused resource for better strategy?
One of the least sexy tools you can possibly think of: Syndicated Research!
Seriously. Hear me out.
Often relegated to the media department, syndicated research is typically used to inform a plan or an audience. But at Fallon, our long-time research director (Mark Nelson) is a numeric Picasso and leverages it as an exploratory tool for uncovering insights.
Here’s a great example. Several years ago, we were working with International Delight, a coffee creamer brand. Prior to that, creamer was typically marketed as a wingman to coffee. The Solange to coffee’s flashier Beyoncé.
But as we analysed the heaviest users of creamer, we started seeing a unique trend in their food preferences. They didn’t just buy Betty Crocker cake mix, they bought Betty Crocker Super Moist Mocha with Swirls and Sprinkles. They didn’t just drink Dr. Pepper. They liked Diet Vanilla Cherry Dr. Pepper. Across dozens of different categories, they didn’t want the most basic or even slightly kicked up option of anything. Instead, they wanted the most supercharged, flavour-bombed version of everything.
We formed a hypothesis that we proved out in qual: These people didn’t want coffee that tasted like coffee. They wanted coffee that tasted like CANDY. For them, creamer didn’t ride shotgun. It was the sugar-fueled, amaretto salted caramel main event—topped with an entire bowl of cherries.
We christened them Flavor Nation and positioned International Delight as a party in a cup. The resulting work was a completely fresh take on the category that drove results and quickly made people rethink coffee—and most importantly, creamer.
Is there anywhere you go when you’re struggling with a brief or a place that seems to help you work or think?
I often do my best thinking when I’m not thinking.
I haven’t tried to access the hypnagogic state—that funky phase between wakefulness and sleep where it’s believed we have our most creative ideas. (Edison, Einstein, and others were rumoured to doze off holding something in one hand, so they’d wake up when it hit the floor, and then scramble to jot down whatever came to mind.) But I do ascribe to the idea that our brain does some of its best work when we’re focused on other things.
Over the years, I’ve realized that when I take a break from concentrating on something intently (to have a glass of wine with a friend, go for a walk, or binge-watch a show), things come to me more easily.
And when I’ve been lucky enough to take a significant break (like a two-week vacation or pseudo-early retirement), I’ve been shocked by how much faster ideas flow. There’s actually a book called Out of My Skull: The Psychology of Boredom (by James Danckert and John Eastwood) that explores how boredom can spark creativity – in case you ironically have nothing to do and want a little inspiration.
