“Remember: we respond to communication as a whole, not just as a message … think about the ‘body language’, not just the language. How something is said, or who says it, often matters more than what is said.”
Les Binet & Sarah Carter, advertising experts
“Campaigns containing little or no product, but working instead by appealing to emotions or ‘herd instincts’, are twice as effective as conventional ‘message’ advertising. It seems in marketing, like politics, meta-communication is what matters … what you say matters less than how you say it.”
Sarah Carter & Les Binet, ‘How not to plan’
Words are, in my not-so-humble opinion, our most inexhaustible source of magic. Capable of both inflicting injury, and remedying it
Albus Dumbledore
“When you give too many details and words and ideas and choices, all those ideas compete with each other – so the receiver has a lot of details, but doesn’t know which one to focus on.”
Joel Schwartzberg, professional presentation coach, via HBR
I’m not in the business of selling houses. I’m in the business of delivering dreams, shaped as houses.
Phil Dumphy, Modern Family
“There’s something about ideas that are genuinely new and challenging that makes them hard to assess. By definition, the genuinely ‘new’ has no clear frame of reference – and often makes us uncomfortable. But it is precisely these edgy and unusual thoughts that make those ideas memorable.”
Michael Johnson, co-founder Johnson Banks brand consultancy
If you wish to persuade me, you must think my thoughts, feel my feelings, and speak my words.
Marcus Tullius Cicero, renowned Roman Senator and orator
The essential difference between emotion and reason is that emotion leads to action, while reason leads to conclusions.
Donald B. Calne, renowned neurologist
For better or for worse, in visual culture we judge and are judged by appearances
Kim Golombisky & Rebecca Hagen, design authors
“If some people find it unclear, it’s unclear. If you find it clear and someone else finds it unclear, it’s unclear. The responsibility for clarity of comms is with the communicator not the recipient.”
Vic Polkinghorne, Founder – agency WeAreSellSell
Bite-Sized Marcomms 