One of the most dangerous questions a company can ask is: “How do we continue selling what we already make?” It sounds practical. It may even sound commercially responsible. After all, the company already has the product, the built-up infrastructure, the accumulated expertise and the existing customer base. But the question begins with the company’s existing solution rather than the customer’s changing reality. A better question is: “What problem is the customer trying to sol

My enemy is not age. It is not seniority. It is not experience. My enemy is rigid thinking, especially when it is protected by rank, authority and ego. I have seen this problem often in Singapore, but it is certainly not limited to Singapore. It exists in companies and institutions around the world. Someone has spent twenty or thirty years in an industry. They own the company, hold a senior title or have authority over everyone else. Over time, they begin to assume that they

Many brands say they are selling a product. But most of the time, they are not. They are selling a moment of a lifestyle. A feeling. A memory. A reason for someone to choose them again, even when there are ten other products sitting on the shelf, all making roughly the same promises. Years ago, while working on a trade proposal for a premium beer brand in China, we were asked to think about how the brand could create more meaningful consumer interactions inside Chinese and We

There is an old story attributed to General George S. Patton during the Second World War.As the story goes, Patton was studying a map with around thirty senior officers while planning the movement of his forces. The map showed a road junction that appeared useful to the operation. Everyone had accepted it. Except for one corporal, often identified in versions of the story as Corporal Davis. Before the war, the corporal had reportedly worked in road surveying. He knew the area

Years ago, my team pitched an activation to MHD for one of Hennessy’s products in hostess night clubs and KTVs across the China market. During the process, something had became obvious. The management team knew the product extremely well. They knew the brand history, positioning, packaging and campaign materials. They probably also knew impressive facts about cognac that most customers would struggle to remember after midnight. But they did not fully understand how people wer

As that old anecdote goes, Henry Ford once had a machine that nobody could repair. His engineers had tried different solutions, but the problem remained. Eventually, Ford called in an experienced engineer. The engineer examined the machine, listened to it carefully and placed a chalk mark on one particular spot. Ford’s team repaired that section. The machine worked again. The engineer later submitted a bill for $10,000, which was an astronomical sum at that time. Ford was su

First, get the message right, then refine the form in which it is delivered. I must confess: I was an asshole of a marketing executive in my younger years. Almost 2 decades ago, I spent almost an entire day sitting behind a junior designer at our agency’s office. I kept asking her to do stuff like adjust the font size. And then the spacing. And then the Pantone shade. And then the spacing AGAIN. And then we went back to the font-size again. Round n round we went… A little bi

A message can be completely true, well written and professionally designed, and it can still fail. Because sometimes the problem is not with the message itself. It is finding the right fit. The audience may not care about the same things that we, the brand owners, care about. They may not have the time, background knowledge or just plain interest to process everything we want to tell them. Yet many businesses respond by adding even more information. I have encountered this re

I originally planned to write about reviewing new business opportunities, but the same thinking applies equally to internal initiatives. An opportunity may come from outside the business: a partnership, investment, new market or project. An initiative may come from within: a new product, campaign, service or idea. Both may sound exciting. Both can also consume far more than money. They require time, attention, mental energy, people and sometimes even reputation. When evaluati

Most people think strategy starts when the action starts. It doesn’t. I learned this from the field manuals I'd read during my military service, from playing chess in school and from years of playing real-time strategy games. Before launching an assault, you don’t just charge forward and hope everything works out. You prepare the ground first. Move the artillery into position, study the route towards the objective and check that all the support and resources are ready. Look a

In mid 2020, Huawei was facing a difficult communications environment. COVID-19 had created growing suspicion toward Chinese companies in many markets. At the same time, tensions between the United States and China were already shaping how Chinese technology brands were being perceived by the rest of the world. The problem was no longer simply whether Huawei’s technology was capable. It was also about whether people felt comfortable working with the company behind it. Huawei

People often talk about creativity as though it is the main ingredient or inspiration behind anything beautiful. It is vital, yes. Creativity gives us the original idea. It gives a product its character, a building its personality and a brand its soul. But creativity alone does not make something last. What makes it last is what comes after the idea: the standards, structures, adherence to quality, frameworks, discipline and decisions that protect it over time. I learned th

After more than two decades working in marketing and strategy across Asia, I have noticed the same pattern again and again. I should be clear about one thing first. Most of the businesses where I have seen this happen were small and medium-sized companies, especially owner-led businesses such as bars, restaurants, hospitality operators, retailers and service companies. Large corporations usually do not have this problem in quite the same way, although they may still make poo

In some businesses, a small scratch is not a small problem. This was something I saw clearly while working on a visual documentation project involving private jets, which could cost upwards of USD50+ million each. The issue was not about marketing, branding, or advertising. It was a very real and practical commercial problem. Aircraft were being brought in for scheduled maintenance by private clients, often high net worth individuals, and disputes could arise over the condi

Many years ago, people were still asking whether AI could really change the way we work. Today that question has already been answered in ways we could never have imagined. Almost everyone is using it in some way or another. Students use it. Business owners use it. Large companies use it. Small companies use it. It has now become part of everyone's everyday work. People have even been replaced by it. And let's face it, there is nothing inherently wrong with that. AI can save

Before I joined, Sales were down. That was the situation when I came in as the marketing manager for a Korean restaurant chain in Singapore. The easy reaction (and most obvious solution) would have been to run more promotions, push more discounts, increase advertising, or create louder marketing materials. That is often what most businesses do when revenue is down. They try to generate more activity around the same old offer. But the real question was not: How do we promote h

In my experience, one of the most important questions in business is not “What can we open?” It is: What is the smarter commercial position to take? 2 decades ago, I worked with a client who was interested in entering the food and beverage space. His initial thinking was familiar: open a restaurant, eatery, or possibly a high-end grocery concept. On the surface, the idea made sense. Food is a large market. Consumers are always eating. Premium food concepts can look attractive

One of the most useful lessons in brand activation is this: the size of the physical space should not limit the size of the consumer experience. That was the thinking behind my Mixxtail pop-up store campaign proposal in China. The brief involved a pop-up store in a mall environment. On the surface, the task seemed straightforwardand simple: create attraction, bring people into the store, let them sample the product, and help generate awareness. But the real strategic issue wa

When launching a new brand, one of the hardest problems is not always awareness. It is meaning. People may see your product. They may understand what it does. They may even agree that it looks good. But that does not automatically make them want it. This was the challenge behind the brand's launch strategy. On the surface, it was a premium drinkware product. But selling it only as a bottle, cup, or tumbler would have made the brand too easy to compare with other drinkware bra

Many businesses are quick to ask, “What should we do next?” Should we run more ads?Should we hire more salespeople? Should we change the website? Should we launch a promotion? Should we open another outlet? Should we rebrand? Should we post more content? Should we enter a new market? These are not bad questions. But they are often asked too early. At Clarity Associates, we believe in a simple principle: Diagnose Before You Prescribe. In medicine, no serious doctor should pres