Poor Apple. Again.

This time last year, Apple launched a new operating system that had numerous technical problems, as well as a mapping app that was so inaccurate that it became the target of many jokes. Fast forward to this year and, once again, Apple’s recent product launches (including 2 models of iPhone 6, the Apple Watch and … Continue reading Poor Apple. Again.

It’s official: cats don’t rule the Internet

Quick. Answer this question: What is the most popular category of photos on Instagram? I thought it was food, but I was wrong. And if you thought that it was cats you were wrong, too. According to this paper by Hu, Manikonda and Kambhampati, nearly a quarter of content posted on Instagram are selfies. This is … Continue reading It’s official: cats don’t rule the Internet

Home or away – deciding where to publish your blog post

Well, call me absent minded, but I only just realised that LinkedIn has a new(ish) feature: blogging. Well, actually, the company calls it ‘Long-Form Posts’ so let’s refer to this feature as LFPs, for short. Your LFPs are displayed as part of your profile and are accessible to LinkedIn users not on your network. … Continue reading Home or away – deciding where to publish your blog post

The performative power of the score

There are two interesting articles in the news, today. They are about two very different companies but, essentially, the same issue: the performative power of the score. Or, in others words, about how much a simple number can influence our life. The first article is about passenger transportation company, Uber. It was revealed that … Continue reading The performative power of the score

What would you miss without your mobile phone?

Sometime ago this picture of a modified Maslow’s pyramid of needs was doing the rounds on Twitter. It was meant to be a joke, but it turns out that it may not be that far off reality. According to research recently published by Ofcom, access to mobile services and access to the Internet are now … Continue reading What would you miss without your mobile phone?

The other side of free apps

Human is an iPhone app (no affiliate link) that monitors movement. It tracks physical activity throughout the day with the objective of encouraging an active (and, thus, healthy) lifestyle. And it is free. While we are eagerly tracking how many minutes we have walked or cycled, grateful for this boost to our health from … Continue reading The other side of free apps

What cat food says about the cat owner

When I teach about positioning, I often refer to the market for cat food, using an example unashamedly stolen from my fabulous former colleague, David James. There are 2 key aspects to positioning. One is to find an angle for the product that is unique and, hence, differentiates it from the competitors. Otherwise, you … Continue reading What cat food says about the cat owner

Co-Creation mind map

I am working on a paper using co-creation, which required me to survey the related literature. To help me capture the key themes discussed in the various papers that I read, I created a mind map. This is still work in progress but, as this is such a relevant topic in marketing (and management, in … Continue reading Co-Creation mind map

Is a branded mobile app a step too far for book publishers?

I wrote a short piece for The Conversation (a website that disseminates academic research and provides analysis of news by academic researcher on) on the rationale behind Mills & Boon’s move into mobile apps. Mills & Boon, like other book publishers, has been dramatically impacted by digital technology and the associated changes in consumer behaviour, … Continue reading Is a branded mobile app a step too far for book publishers?