alistair’s articles

Gut Thinking
(Click the title for the full article)

Discussing sport with a six year old boy is a straight forward affair. Who is the fastest? Who is the strongest? Who is the best? These three questions dominated every sport we talked about. And whilst I assumed that the last question would be a summary of the first two, we quickly discovered that this [...]

King Customer Is Back
(Click the title for the full article)

“I’m sorry sir, that hand dryer cant be repaired” To be fair, I wasnt too surprised since I had punched it recently. It’s a way of dealing with difficulties. “Oh, well guess you’ll have to put in a new one, I’ll leave it with you” “Sorry sir, I can’t do that now, you’ll have to [...]

Cilla Black is Trending
(Click the title for the full article)

Running your own business means late nights. It is a simple example of supply (24 available hours in one day) and demand (everyone wants something from you). Why do they make economics so complicated on the news? Don’t think I am whining though; being in demand is no bad thing. Demand is what everyone wants [...]

Promises Promises
(Click the title for the full article)

Remote working is very popular. I have seen how it works on the TV. I can analyse a spreadsheet and view a movie whilst jogging with my child to a rock concert. All in the bright sunshine I haven’t seen the ad where I am jammed into a crowded coffee bar balancing a bucket of [...]

Marketing Without Borders
(Click the title for the full article)

I subscribe to Private Eye. For those outside the UK or within the UK but lacking in curiosity, Private Eye is a satirical magazine that doggedly pursues the details of public figures; their utterances and more importantly their actions. Wrapped around the latest issue was Without Borders (2nd Edition). An A3, 8 page marketing and [...]

Risky Business
(Click the title for the full article)

“When you turn over the paper, you will have three hours to answer a single question.” Thirty philosophy undergraduate students, desperate to complete their three years of arduous study do as they are told and read the question: “Define a risk”. 29 people start writing feverishly. More paper is requested by some. After three minutes, [...]

Apple users know nothing. Just like your customers.
(Click the title for the full article)

The aisle seat on a plane has advantages but it’s biggest drawback is having to move to let the two passengers nearer the window out if they need to visit the toilet or, in this case retrieve something from the overhead storage. The Chap next to me had been looking at a spreadsheet of figures [...]

Air Berlin Touches You Everywhere
(Click the title for the full article)

1988. Wimbledon beat Liverpool in the FA Cup Final and the British pound note is replaced with a coin. Less reported was that 5 penniless 18 year olds were leaving school behind them and planning for 2 weeks in the summer Mediterranean sun. But with no money how could they get in to nightclubs and [...]

Evolution is Cleverer Than Google Enterprise Mapping
(Click the title for the full article)

Madame Berthe’s mouse lemur is the World’s smallest living primate. Weighing in at 30 grams, it doesn’t need a huge amount of food but for healthy living it does need a very specific type of food; liana honeydew. Not just any type of liana honeydew, the liana has to be the right kind. The right [...]