The thing that matters is what gets meaningfully better for the customer. Last month, JD.com launched Joybuy across markets including the U.K. and Germany, stepping directly into competition with Amazon, Temu, and AliExpress. At first glance, it looks like more of the same, right? Another marketplace. Another app. And another wave of low-cost competition entering an already saturated space (two if you count your smartphone app Library). But I think the underlying model is different in a way...
3 days ago • 1 min read
Under cost pressure, spending gets reallocated toward faster emotional returns. On Wednesday L’Oréal reported 6.7% like-for-like sales growth, beating expectations as demand held strong across the U.S., Europe, and emerging markets. This is often described as the “lipstick effect” and it’s proving literally true. Consumers cut back in many areas while continuing to spend (often even spending more) on small indulgences. Like lipstick and other cosmetics. People aren’t simply spending less...
4 days ago • 1 min read
When your brand name doesn’t carry the benefit, your customer bears the cognitive load. A strong product name does more than label. It preloads the reason to care. The research is straightforward. When a name suggests a benefit, people are more likely to believe the product delivers it and far more likely to recall that benefit later. That second part is the lever. Recall is what shows up at the moment of need. Look at how often this shows up in the wild. PayPal signals ease and trust in...
5 days ago • 1 min read
When a brand embeds behavior into the product moment, is it helpful or overreach? KitKat has introduced “Break Mode” in Panama, developed with Ogilvy, turning its wrapper into a functional signal blocker for your phone. Not metaphorically, but physically. The packaging acts as a Faraday cage, using conductive layers and shielding materials so that when your phone goes inside, signals drop completely: calls, data, Bluetooth, GPS. You don’t toggle a setting. Just slip your phone in the...
6 days ago • 2 min read
The structure of a deal can change how valuable it feels, EVEN when the math stays the same. New research looked at something marketers tend to assume is straightforward: Discounts. Across multiple experiments and thousands of deal posts, a pattern shows up: A single 25% discount underperformed compared to the SAME total discount split into smaller, stackable pieces. By stacking, purchase intent increased by roughly 16 percent, and engagement rose even more. What’s happening here is not...
7 days ago • 1 min read
A leadership change can unlock decisions that have been economically or culturally out of reach. Will this one? Apple has named John Ternus as its next CEO, with Tim Cook stepping aside after 15 years and moving into an executive chairman role. Cook’s era may not have delivered amazing innovation, but did bring phenomenal scale and consistency. The company expanded its core products into global platforms and reached valuation milestones that totally reshaped expectations for what a tech...
8 days ago • 1 min read
Two technically identical claims can create very different levels of trust. I came across a deep study that tested something most product teams I know would dismiss as a formatting preference. “10 grams of protein” versus “ten grams of protein.” Same product and literally the same claim. But totally different outcomes. Across multiple experiments, ads, and even analysis of tens of millions of reviews, the version using digits consistently performed better. It drove higher clickthrough rates,...
9 days ago • 1 min read
The risk is being unable to move when the future arrives. Qurate Retail Group built QVC into a powerhouse by mastering a format that still dominates product sales today. A host, a product, urgency, and instant purchase. That same structure now thrives inside TikTok Shop, Amazon Live, and social commerce feeds everywhere. The thing that really changed was the delivery. Screens moved from cable TV to mobile, and the experience became more immediate, more personalized, and always within reach....
10 days ago • 1 min read
What happens when central distribution controls the demand itself? For years, Bath & Body Works staunchly resisted Amazon. The logic was sound, and the kind I encourage. Control the experience, protect margins, and OWN the customer relationship. Don’t build your business on rented land, competing against others and even Amazon’s house-branded copycats to feather a billionaire’s nest with your ad money. In this case, something changed in a big way. The CEO now says it’s impossible to gain...
10 days ago • 2 min read
