In the 1990s, awareness of the 5 a day rule sky rocketed from 8% to 39%. But the corresponding behaviour remained unchanged: the proportion of Americans getting the right intake stayed at 11%.
Sam Salama
During Covid-19, in the absence of in person exams, the government created an algorithm to assign A-level grades. It was designed to be fair – based on historic school results and teachers’ assessments of individual students – but it ended up discriminating against students from poorer backgrounds, whose past performance was typically worse and whose class sizes tended to be bigger.
The brains behind Moneyball, and a figurehead for sport’s analytics revolution, owes his success to one trait: “Being the dumbest guy in my own room.” It was this ignorance that allowed him to see opportunities – and find players – that no one else was looking for.
Marketers significantly overestimate the recognition of their distinctive brand assets vs consumers (by an average of 40%!). A reminder why it’s so important to conduct consumer research and not solely rely on marketers’ judgements.
Most marketers understand the importance of long-term brand building, but the real challenge is convincing their seniors to buy into it. Helpfully, Mark Ritson outlines seven tactics to improve the chances of success, from sourcing case studies (“pick big impressive brands, in your sector or outside it”) to explaining the why (i.e. what’s in it for them).
Despite being known by 95% of consumers, Chips Ahoy! is only found in 30% of U.S. households. So the brand has recently launched several innovations to appeal to a wider customer base, including Baked Bits (on-the-go snacking), more products under $3, and better for you products like gluten-free Chips Ahoy!
How do you turn an unknown yogurt brand into a $3 billion revenue business? Give it mass distribution. According to Chobani’s founder Hamdi Ulukaya, “the single most important decision we made” was insisting the product be sold in mainstream grocery stores rather than specialty stores, and that it be stocked in the dairy aisle not the gourmet food aisles.
In the recent conclave, clerics actually used the film (of the same name) for guidance on deciding the new Pope. The film is considered to be remarkably accurate, which is especially helpful for the clerics with little experience of Vatican politics and protocol.
In Japan, sales of adult nappies have outpaced infant nappies for more than a decade – which makes sense given the country’s unusually old population (those aged 65 and over make up 30%). The decline of infant nappies has become so stark that Oji Holdings, a leading producer, recently announced it will stop making them altogether.
Almost half of UK adults gamble in a given month, but the occasional players are not the ones the industry cares about: 86% of online betting profits come from just 5% of (very obsessive) customers.
If you think kebabs are for nights out, then think again: only 4% of GDK’s business is done post 11pm – this has been helped by a diversified product range, including healthier options like rice bowls, and an ad campaign designed to showcase its relevance at every meal time.
The beauty brand was hailed as a poster child for the DTC model. But now, as Shane O Leary notes, “it has 11 stores and a Sephora partnership is key to recent growth.” Like many brands it is realising that physical stores play a crucial role in brand growth.
As bleak as it sounds, suicide is a question of ease and not just motivation. In the US, suicide rates are highest in the states where gun ownership is highest (and largely where gun control laws are weakest).
Beware restrictions on distribution. Joe Rogan’s exclusive deal with Spotify caused a decline in search volumes and – as the linked article notes – fewer followers for guests who appeared on the podcast. Reach still matters, even for someone as famous as Joe Rogan.
Blackjack and poker might be the quintessential casino games, but they don’t drive the bottom line. 70% of Las Vegas gambling revenue is from slot machines, which brought in $10.5B last year (for comparison, the entire US box office in 2024 was $8.5B).