Hey friend β Rob here. So, two quick things about our recent Contagious partnership: We now have a winner β Iona Ratcliffe, you're going to Most Contagious London! (Check your inbox.) I also secured a mega discount code for anyone else who wants to buy a ticket. (Keep reading for it.) Plus, some practical things i've learned over the past 15+ years on how to collaborate with creative teams. But first, the discount code. The Contagious crew are among the readers of this newsletter, so we...
3 days agoΒ β’Β 3 min read
Hey friend β Rob here. "Shit, i'm losing control again." This has always been my reaction whenever i get emotional in an argument. And i hate that feeling, thank you very much. Of course, i've been getting better at handling it, through a fun little process called emotional self-regulation. Part of it comes from reframing what an argument is really about. Old me: "arguments are two people who hate each other." New me: "arguments are two people shaping each other." Especially if said argument...
12 days agoΒ β’Β 2 min read
Hey friend β Rob here. I spotted this last week at Droga5's offices. And you know what, it's great advice. Especially for the over-thinkers out there (HI!). Those of us who show up with a rattlebag of: Intelligence Cultural references Peer reviewed studies Specialised words because why not (Latest for me is "category entry points".) And yet, there is a danger of being so good at thinking. We over-think things. And as a result overload others that work with us. Not a very good place to be.And...
16 days agoΒ β’Β 2 min read
Hey friend β Rob here. Movember is upon us, and so is what many are considering "the masculinity election" in the US. Over the past few weeks, i've been reading, reflecting and riffing with others on modern masculinity. And because this is a platform about helping strategists grow, there's tons of growth we as men owe to ourselves. Not to mention to others. So, here are 30 personal mini-reflections on being a modern man. (And so it's 100% clear, i'm writing this as a cisgender man, there's...
21 days agoΒ β’Β 2 min read
Hey friend β Rob here. I recently went back to my vault of notes from the IPA Eff Test, something i do now and then. And boy do i have a nerdy new set of fun ways to think about effectiveness, hand-rolled just for you! I did this because a recent conversation emerged in our private community, on objectives and KPIs. So here's how i usually talk about it with clients, and yes this should be even before you brief the work. Broadly inspired by the wisdom of Binet & Field, who if you don't know...
22 days agoΒ β’Β 6 min read
Hey friend β Rob here. Memes are more than time wasting. They're research and development. You know why? Tension. Tension is interesting because it's hard. It's hard on our egos, who want it easy. It's hard because it signals trouble. It's hard because it's not linear. And yet, tension creates vibration. And vibration gets us hooked. And thatβs what every successful meme has. Tension. Followed by punchline. Plato was onto something similar: "Serious things cannot be understood without...
25 days agoΒ β’Β 1 min read
Hey friend β Rob here. System1 and The IPA are two of the most legit evidence-based bodies out there. And they recently co-released a research report on the importance of creative consistency. Or as they call it β compound creativity. (Goodness me, i love a financial analogy.) The full report is at the bottom of this email. But because i'm a nerd about this stuff, i clipped the 7 most useful charts for your β¨ pleasure β¨. Hope they're useful for when making the argument for... not changing...
25 days agoΒ β’Β 1 min read
Read online Hey friend β Rob here. Two lessons i learned this week: When you worry more about character counts than your own character, the real problems creep in Content by itself is a commodity, but community spaces are where the premiums lie Thank you to Rachel for helping calm down an over-existential elder millennial on a Monday evening. Back to basics. Here's a short but sharp email, hand rolled just for you. Plus a bunch of links that deserve to be set free. But first, let's talk about...
27 days agoΒ β’Β 3 min read
Hey friend β Rob here. I'm a sucker for blending modern social thinking with classic effectiveness thinking. The first go at this was on how Byron Sharp can help pump your social strategies. Today, chapter 2 of this definitely-not-a-book endeavour. That's right kids, we're going with Binet & Field. And how they can help you bust your social feeds more effectively. Or, at the very least, help justify why feeds need busting in the first place. Let's get into it. First up, the reason i write...
28 days agoΒ β’Β 8 min read