eatbigfish's Press office on Bizcommunity

What does it take to stand out in a noisy but bland world?

I play a game with my 10-year-old on the way to school to alleviate the monotony of traffic. She calls it the ‘spot the car’ challenge. We look for pink, purple, or turquoise cars, and the first to spot 10 wins. It's good we don't have to find white, black, or silver cars, or the game would be over in two minutes. We’re overrun by them! And you might have noticed that they’re all starting to look the same. It’s true that car design and production teams are following the same processes to make cars safer, more aerodynamic and fuel efficient. But the result is that Jeeps are starting to look like VWs, and Hyundais are starting to look like BMWs. Look around and you’ll see this trend of ‘averaging’ everywhere: in interior design, coffee shops, restaurants, food photography, office spaces, Instagram posts, clothing, architecture, logos, and advertising. We’re inundated with more messaging and noise than any generation before, but all of it is converging to more of the same, more bland. 19 Nov 2024 Read more

Human truths, monsters and tribes: Thinking differently about inputs

At some point (hopefully not too often), we've all sat through a presentation in which we were bombarded with facts, data, and information that was loosely packed together but failed to tell a connected story. Often, these sessions are characterised by the erroneous and interchangeable use of concepts like observations, insights, takeouts, and human truths, where there is little connection between them and the absence of a useful 'so what'. The misuse of these concepts is not only problematic from a definition point of view. The biggest shortcoming is what is missed when they are not understood and therefore not applied appropriately for their intended purpose. 17 Sep 2024 Read more

Breaking free from "can’t because" thinking

We’ve all experienced situations at home, at work, around the braai, in the WhatsApp group or wherever, where every proposed solution or “oh what if we...” is met with that ever so final “we can’t do that, because…”. While frustrating in everyday life, for organisational culture, this mindset can be dire. 22 Aug 2024 Read more

What do I do now that I have become the 'challenged' and need to respond to the feisty young startup?

A few months ago, I was in a meeting with the strategy chief of a leading agency who vehemently confronted me for suggesting that their newly won client (the biggest brand in the category) could be a challenger. They claimed that this would go against the principles of the book. Technically, they are correct if we refer to page 26 of the second edition of Eating the Big Fish: The Three Criteria for a Challenger Brand. 3 Jul 2024 Read more

How Calybre defined their brand story from the start

Calybre, a newcomer to the data consulting market, knew they needed to get it right from the start when launching their business into a highly competitive industry. They approached eatbigfish (represented in Africa by Delta Victor Bravo) to help them distil and consolidate their brand story in a clear, impactful way that would resonate with their target audiences (both internal and external), while remaining true to their core values. 3 May 2024 Read more

Challengers to Watch 2023: TrackSmith

The world remains uncertain, and businesses must adapt to new and unpredictable economic, geopolitical and environmental realities. Against this backdrop, it's important to pay attention to the new (and renewed) challengers emerging and primed to disrupt categories in 2023. These companies are finding opportunities in the uncertainty, breaking with expectations, and not just meeting the needs of a fast-changing world but shaping its future. 28 Aug 2023 Read more