I was disappointed by Jason Hickel’s Less Is More. I had a number of concerns that fit under three headings, lack of economic/business understanding, lack of historical understanding, and divorce from political reality. Today I’ll discuss the technical business elements of my complaint about Hickel’s book. Let us discuss modern business and sustainability Modern Business…
Search Results for: political marketing
Ideology, Persuasion, And Going Green
A major challenge is persuading members of the public with very different worldviews to take actions aimed at the common good, such as recycling. An appeal that works for a conservative might not work on a liberal, and vice versa. What then do we know about ideology, persuasion, and going green? People Differ In What…
Understanding Public Opinion: Oldie But Goodie Insights
In this post I look at classic book on understanding public opinion. Edward Bernays’ Crystalling Public Opinion. Some Advice Has Stood The Test Of Time In Helping Understand Public Opinion Firstly, this book clearly has a decent amount of the material that has stood the test of time pretty well. As far as PR precepts…
Scientific Thinking Is Hard (Especially For Academics)
I must confess to being disappointed with Gad Saad’s The Parasitic Mind. Before purchasing the book I knew I would disagree with many of his points given his robust public profile. (For background, Saad is the sort of evolutionary psychologists your mother warned you about. Lots of sex differences in consumption). That I would disagree…
Measuring Culture Is A Challenge, But Don’t Be Silly
It is obvious to even the most casual observer that measuring culture is a challenge. This hasn’t stopped people trying it. In many ways as a measurement person I appreciate this. Measurement challenges are great things to address. Yet…. My main problem with the activity is that the theory is silly, the methods employed seem…
Why Are Coronavirus Maps On The News So Unhelpful?
This was a topical post on data visualization and population. I have refreshed it a little. While the specific maps have changed, As of late 2020 the maps are better now. E.g., they often show cases per 100k of the population rather than simple totals. That said, the point is still relevant. When showing maps…
The Politics of Accounting
Tony Tollington’s book on Brand Assets is fascinating. (Accounting rules have changed a bit since he wrote it. The acronyms and rule numbers aren’t what are used nowadays but the ideas are similar). He makes fascinating notes on the politics of accounting. The Politics Of Accounting For Intangible Assets Tollington notes the problems with the…
Woke-Washing: A Big Deal?
I find the discussions of the role of social purpose in marketing fascinating. Unlike a lot of marketing discussions this can make it into popular debates. Owen Jones, a UK Guardian (left leaning) opinion journalist gave his view on brands and the culture wars. The open question — Woke-Washing: A Big Deal? LGBT Sandwich Jones…
Who Thinks Brands Should be Involved in Social Issues?
YouGov is a survey firm and [in 2018] they uncovered what consumers think of firms getting involved in social issues. What was the result? Who thinks brands should be involved in social issues? Political Involvement From Brands I think this is a fascinating topic. I would expect more and more political involvement from brands. If…
Innumeracy And The Problems It Causes
John Allen Paulos’ book Innumeracy tackles the fact that much of what is talked about in the public sphere shows an alarming lack of mathematical fluency. I had to agree with many of his points. (Though it might need a new edition; some of the writing seemed a bit dated, there were a frightening number…