Product launches feel monumental from the inside, yet are almost invisible from the outside. Launching a product is one of the most exciting things you can do. Building toward the day you finally reveal your life-changing marvel. Watching traction form, sometimes really fast. Seeing strangers delight in something that once existed only in your head. That part is real. I’m experiencing it right now vicariously through clients. What too many innovators forget is how easily real life can poison...
1 day ago • 1 min read
Success is dependent on whether the buyer feels recognized, reduced … or even abused. Researchers call it the Starbucks Effect. Across five experiments, people showed dramatically stronger preference for bakeries, cafés, and chocolatiers that used their name instead of an order number. Liking went up 37.5%. Preference went up 32.6%. Even satisfaction nudged up. On paper (or in an email) this sounds super-obvious. In practice, I’ve seen many brands dreadfully misuse this power. The effect is...
2 days ago • 1 min read
The right pairing expands the room, sometimes in a really big way. I wrote a while back about how Dr Pepper has, in many places, grown into one of the most popular soft drinks in America. It didn’t pull that one off by being neutral. It did it by being unmistakable (if not a little weird) for a soda. And now, it’s a weird Tic Tac. Tic Tac® Dr Pepper® Mints take that 23-flavor identity and compress it into a pocket format. This is not the strangest collaboration we’ve seen, but it is a notable...
3 days ago • 1 min read
Effort and scarcity do not reduce value, they create it. Nearly every Valentine’s Day, I buy my wife chocolates from the same place. There are excellent, locally made options two minutes from home. Instead, I drive 45 minutes, wait in line for half an hour, and choose from the latest work of a world-renowned chocolatier whose creations are sensational. You never know what you’re gonna get, but in the best possible way. Other award winners exist. This one is special to us. I know it before I...
4 days ago • 1 min read
The fastest way to LOSE a yes is to ask one more question. A 2025 Journal of Consumer Research paper looked at something many teams assume is harmless: the “confirm or change” nudge at checkout. You know the moment: You’ve chosen the product. Good to go. And then, the system asks if you’d like to confirm … or consider something else. In one context, this works. A subscription app nudged users to switch from monthly to annual and saw a meaningful lift. BUT, in another case, it totally...
5 days ago • 1 min read
Demand doesn’t have to ask permission from category boundaries. I avoid Doritos for one simple (but important) reason: I love ‘em TOO much. They are chemically engineered pleasure, and I know exactly how that story ends for me. Which is why PepsiCo launching Doritos Protein feels like a big moment to me. Protein has officially crossed into territory that used to be unapologetic junk food. Somehow, this is no longer a discussion about athletes, meal replacements, or functional snacks...
7 days ago • 1 min read
New research shows bold color in food and drink is shaping how people connect, share, and find comfort. A new report from GNT Group, covered by Quality Assurance Mag, highlights a subtle but really important shift in food and drink consumption. As we all navigate instability, screen fatigue, and constant digital noise, shared eating and drinking moments are becoming more emotionally charged. Color is playing a larger role in setting the tone for those moments, often before taste, aroma or...
8 days ago • 1 min read
In 2026, beauty buyers want proof at the cellular level and permission to be visibly expressive again. Big hair and all. An interesting, clear pattern is emerging in beauty right now. On one axis, consumers are leaning hard into “cellness”: skincare positioned around cellular health, barrier repair, microbiome balance, and longevity. Ingredients even sound biotech-adjacent. Claims are clinical, and real performance matters. On the other axis, aesthetics are getting bolder. Vogue is tracking a...
9 days ago • 1 min read
Stated intent is emotional. Commitment is situational. Multiple consumer studies in 2025 showed the same weird gap: People would talk about cutting back, spending less, being practical. Then they bought other stuff anyway, as long as value and necessity show up clearly in the moment. I don’t really think buyers are lying on purpose. Most genuinely believe what they say when asked about spending intentions. It just isn’t what they often go on to do. This is often the case in surveys, where...
10 days ago • 1 min read
