Page 23: Cucumber, Hendricks and gin The gin brand Hendrick’s engaged in a very clever bit of nonsense when they suggested that their product be served not with lemon but with cucumber, which gained immediate salience. Being British, I failed to notice the genius of this move, which was that it also positioned the drink as sophisticatedly British in the United States. Americans find cucumber sandwiches a British peculiarity, to a Brit, of course, a cucumber is not seen as being particularly British, it is just something you make sandwiches with.

Page 34: It's much easier to be fired for being illogical than for being unimaginative. The fatal issue is that logic always gets you to exactly the same place as competitors

Page 34: Building bridges on subjective judgement

Robert Maillart did build bridges on subjective judgement. Among the 100 most beautiful bridges in the world. Not an engineer, but an artist in concrete.

Page 72... (My notes 🔻)

Not all purchasing decisions are driven by logic. Sometimes you buy an expensive t-shirt, and then rationalize its material and need. It doesn't necessarily solve a problem, it just... is. In that endeavor, building a 'brand' is a timeless tactic.

Page 76: Why do toothpastes have a line?

Subliminal effort to indicate superior ingredients and effort taken. It’s a combination of childish novelty and psycho-logic. It signals more conviction in fighting cavities, and freshening breath. People appreciate the ‘visible’ effort that goes into building a product.

Page 136:

The advertising agency, J. Walter Thompson, used to set the test for aspiring copywriters. One of the questions was simple:

‘Here are two identical 25-cent coins. Sell me the one on the right.’

One successful candidate understood the idea of alchemy.

“I'll take the right-hand coin and dip it in a Marilyn Monroe bag”, he said.

“Then I'll sell you a genuine 25 coin as owned by Marilyn Monroe.”

In math, it is a rule that 2+2 = 4. In psychology, 2+2 can equal more or less than 4. It's up to you.

We don't value things, we value their meaning.

What they are is determined by the laws of physics, but what they mean is determined by the laws of psychology.

(My notes 🔻)

Lots to talk here... wine tastes better from a heavier bottle. Why Bentley makes its car doors heavier. The physics of metaphors) Perceived value is important... WE value the meaning of things rather than its impicit value. Take Dyson for example. Your house help can do the work, but Dyson's premium-ness dicatest its value. It's also why you will see many folks keep their Dyson in their halls, to showcase its premium-ness, rather than dumping a typical mop far away from eyesight.

Page 141: Branding base lead In 19th century Prussia, a glorious feat of alchemy saved the public exchequer when the king and royal family managed to make iron jewellery more desirable than gold jewellery. To fund the war effort against France, Princess Marianne appealed in 1813 to all wealthy and aristocratic women to swap their gold ornaments for base metal to fund the war effort. In return, they were given iron replicas of the gold icons and jewellery they had donated stamped with the words, ‘Gold gab ich fur Eisen’ — “I gave gold for iron.”