Useful illustration of the difference between data and information (and knowledge)

Data and Information. These terms are often used interchangeably, though they actually mean very different things. I recently came across this example*, provided by Sir Nigel Shadbolt, Professor of Artificial Intelligence at Southampton University. He says: When I give you a number, like 37, you don’t know whether that is somebody’s age or a particular … Continue reading Useful illustration of the difference between data and information (and knowledge)

Customers that suffered to get your product value it more than those that didn’t

I am (finally) reading the book Mistakes were made (but not by me) by Carol Travis and Elliot Aronson (affiliate link), which explores why people find it hard to accept responsibility for mistakes. There is an interesting section in the book, where authors report on findings from psychological experiments that show that: ‘(I)f people go … Continue reading Customers that suffered to get your product value it more than those that didn’t

Ladies and gentlemen: meet the user

Recently, I attended a workshop at the HCCM where Russell Davis, Director of Strategy at Government Digital Service, talked us through the process of transforming the government’s online presence. He said that, very early on in the process, he affixed this picture on the wall, to remind everyone of who the websites’ users were: It … Continue reading Ladies and gentlemen: meet the user

UK attitude towards monitoring of internet and mobile communications is surprisingly tolerant

I wonder if you can help me make sense of this. I came across a survey by YouGov for Amnesty International, published earlier this month, about the attitudes of people from 13 countries* towards government surveillance. According to this data, UK residents are more likely than the (study’s) average to support mass surveillance by government … Continue reading UK attitude towards monitoring of internet and mobile communications is surprisingly tolerant

Young Saudi females and their smartphones

That picture of a 13 year old’s mobile home screen reminded me of a really interesting paper written by Sunila Lobo and Silvia Elaluf-Calderwood (who is a whizz about all things mobile) on how young female Saudis use their smartphones. The paper is available here, though, unfortunately, it is behind a paywall. The research … Continue reading Young Saudi females and their smartphones

Who needs a phone, anyway?

Oh, I love this – it is a screenshot of this man’s 13 year old daughter’s iPhone home screen. Within easy reach are: Camera Instagram Text messaging Web browser Less accessible (i.e., tucked away within a folder) are: iTunes Pinterest Snapchat Youtube And nowhere to be seen: Facebook and… Phone! I suspect this reflects the … Continue reading Who needs a phone, anyway?

Spotted elsewhere: The Trust Engineers

What? A podcast episode from RadioLab about how Facebook’s Protect and Care team (formerly known as the Trust Engineering team) tweak this social network’s interface to make it a more trusted and friendlier environment. Where? Retweeted by ‘New Social Media, New Social Science?’, aka NSMNSS (Twitter feed here). As per NSMNSS’s website, this organisation ‘brings … Continue reading Spotted elsewhere: The Trust Engineers

If digital were a game, the result at half time would be marketing 1:marketers 0

Last week, one of the articles shared on my Twitter timeline claimed that digital technology heralds the dawn of a new golden age for marketing. The article, which was published in McKinsey Quarterly and can be accessed here, states that: “CEOs are looking to their CMOs more than ever, because they need top-line growth and … Continue reading If digital were a game, the result at half time would be marketing 1:marketers 0

Crib sheet for campaign planning

Here is something that I prepared for my students, to help them decide what media to use for different types of marketing campaigns, and what message to focus on. I thought it might be useful for you, too. If you like this cheat sheet, please share, and do let me know by clicking like or leaving … Continue reading Crib sheet for campaign planning

Guest post on the psychology of complaining

I wrote a guest post for Mark Schaefer’s blog, {grow}, on the psychology of complaining. I am an avid reader of {grow}, and always recommend it to marketers new and established. So, as you can imagine, it is a great honour to contribute to the community. Do take a look, and join the discussion, here.