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Lenny's Podcast: Product | Growth | Career - What most people miss about marketing | Rory Sutherland (Vice Chairman of Ogilvy UK, author)

What most people miss about marketing | Rory Sutherland (Vice Chairman of Ogilvy UK, author)

Explicit content warning

07/21/24 • 84 min

Lenny's Podcast: Product | Growth | Career

Rory Sutherland is widely regarded as one of the most influential (and most entertaining) thinkers in marketing and behavioral science. He’s the vice chairman of Ogilvy UK, the author of Alchemy: The Dark Art and Curious Science of Creating Magic in Brands, Business, and Life, and the founder of Nudgestock, the world’s biggest festival of behavioral science and creativity. He champions thinking from first principles and using human psychology—what he calls “thinking psycho-logically”—over mere logic. In our conversation, we cover:

• Why good products don’t always succeed, and bad ones don’t necessarily fail

• Why less functionality can sometimes be more valuable

• The importance of fame in building successful brands

• The importance of timing in product success

• The concept of “most advanced, yet acceptable”

• Why metrics-driven workplaces can be demotivating

• Lots of real-world case studies

• Much more

Note: We encountered some technical difficulties that led to less than ideal video quality for this episode, but the lessons from this conversation made it impossible for me to not publish it anyway. Thanks for your understanding and for bearing with the less-than-ideal video quality.

Brought to you by:

Pendo—The only all-in-one product experience platform for any type of application

Cycle—Your feedback hub, on autopilot

Coda—The all-in-one collaborative workspace

Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/what-most-people-miss-about-marketing

Where to find Rory Sutherland:

• X: https://x.com/rorysutherland

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rorysutherland

• Book: Alchemy: The Dark Art and Curious Science of Creating Magic in Brands, Business, and Life: https://www.amazon.com/Alchemy-Curious-Science-Creating-Business/dp/006238841X

Where to find Lenny:

• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com

• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/

In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) Rory’s background

(02:37) The success and failure of products

(04:08) Why the urge to appear serious can be a disaster in marketing

(08:05) The role of distinctiveness in product design

(12:29) The MAYA principle

(15:50) How thinking irrationally can be advantageous

(17:40) The fault of multiple-choice tests

(21:31) Companies that have successfully implemented out-of-the-box thinking

(30:31) “Psycho-logical” thinking

(31:45) The hare and the dog metaphor

(38:51) Marketing’s crucial role in product adoption

(49:21) The quirks of Google Glass

(55:44) Survivorship bias

(56:09) Balancing rational ideas with irrational ideas

(01:06:19) The rise and fall of tech innovations

(01:09:54) Consistency, distinctiveness, and clarity

(01:21:12) Considering psychological, technological, and economic factors in parallel

(01:23:35) Where to find Rory

Referenced:

• Google Glass: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_Glass

• Meta Portal TV: https://www.meta.com/portal/products/portal-tv/

• Rory’s quote in a LinkedIn post: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/brad-jackson-04766642_the-urge-to-appear-serious-is-a-disaster-activity-7093497742710210560-1LYN/

• The MAYA Principle: Design for the Future, but Balance It with Your Users’ Present:

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Rory Sutherland is widely regarded as one of the most influential (and most entertaining) thinkers in marketing and behavioral science. He’s the vice chairman of Ogilvy UK, the author of Alchemy: The Dark Art and Curious Science of Creating Magic in Brands, Business, and Life, and the founder of Nudgestock, the world’s biggest festival of behavioral science and creativity. He champions thinking from first principles and using human psychology—what he calls “thinking psycho-logically”—over mere logic. In our conversation, we cover:

• Why good products don’t always succeed, and bad ones don’t necessarily fail

• Why less functionality can sometimes be more valuable

• The importance of fame in building successful brands

• The importance of timing in product success

• The concept of “most advanced, yet acceptable”

• Why metrics-driven workplaces can be demotivating

• Lots of real-world case studies

• Much more

Note: We encountered some technical difficulties that led to less than ideal video quality for this episode, but the lessons from this conversation made it impossible for me to not publish it anyway. Thanks for your understanding and for bearing with the less-than-ideal video quality.

Brought to you by:

Pendo—The only all-in-one product experience platform for any type of application

Cycle—Your feedback hub, on autopilot

Coda—The all-in-one collaborative workspace

Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/what-most-people-miss-about-marketing

Where to find Rory Sutherland:

• X: https://x.com/rorysutherland

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rorysutherland

• Book: Alchemy: The Dark Art and Curious Science of Creating Magic in Brands, Business, and Life: https://www.amazon.com/Alchemy-Curious-Science-Creating-Business/dp/006238841X

Where to find Lenny:

• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com

• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/

In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) Rory’s background

(02:37) The success and failure of products

(04:08) Why the urge to appear serious can be a disaster in marketing

(08:05) The role of distinctiveness in product design

(12:29) The MAYA principle

(15:50) How thinking irrationally can be advantageous

(17:40) The fault of multiple-choice tests

(21:31) Companies that have successfully implemented out-of-the-box thinking

(30:31) “Psycho-logical” thinking

(31:45) The hare and the dog metaphor

(38:51) Marketing’s crucial role in product adoption

(49:21) The quirks of Google Glass

(55:44) Survivorship bias

(56:09) Balancing rational ideas with irrational ideas

(01:06:19) The rise and fall of tech innovations

(01:09:54) Consistency, distinctiveness, and clarity

(01:21:12) Considering psychological, technological, and economic factors in parallel

(01:23:35) Where to find Rory

Referenced:

• Google Glass: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_Glass

• Meta Portal TV: https://www.meta.com/portal/products/portal-tv/

• Rory’s quote in a LinkedIn post: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/brad-jackson-04766642_the-urge-to-appear-serious-is-a-disaster-activity-7093497742710210560-1LYN/

• The MAYA Principle: Design for the Future, but Balance It with Your Users’ Present:

Previous Episode

undefined - Building a world-class data org | Jessica Lachs (VP of Analytics and Data Science at DoorDash)

Building a world-class data org | Jessica Lachs (VP of Analytics and Data Science at DoorDash)

Jessica Lachs is the global head of analytics and data science at DoorDash, where she’s built one of the largest and most respected data organizations in tech. In her more than 10 years at DoorDash, she has served as the first general manager, responsible for launching new markets; the head of business ops and analytics; and the VP of analytics and data science. Previously, Jessica founded GiftSimple, a social gifting startup, and started her career at Lehman Brothers as an investment banking analyst. In our conversation, she shares:

• How to structure and scale a high-impact analytics organization

• Centralized vs. decentralized data teams

• How to pick the right metric and aligning incentives

• Advice for data people on how and when to push back

• Lessons learned from building a global data team

• How to foster a culture of extreme ownership

• The role of AI in improving analytics team productivity

• Advice for aspiring data leaders without formal training

Brought to you by:

Webflow—The web experience platform

Anvil—The fastest way to build software for documents

Attio—The powerful, flexible CRM for fast-growing startups

Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/building-a-world-class-data-org-jessica-lachs

Where to find Jessica Lachs:

• X: https://x.com/jesslachs

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessica-lachs/

Where to find Lenny:

• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com

• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/

In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) Jessica’s background

(04:59) Centralized vs. embedded analytics teams

(10:52) The benefits of a centralized analytics team

(15:10) Balancing proactive and reactive work

(20:45) Advice on how to push back effectively

(24:20) Hiring for curiosity and problem solving

(28:57) Coming from a non-traditional background

(34:40) The early days and culture at DoorDash

(40:39) Encouraging cross-functional roles

(44:39) Defining effective metrics

(46:30) Simplifying metrics for better outcomes

(55:28) Focusing on edge cases and fail states

(01:00:12) Managing a global data organization

(01:02:31) Leveraging AI for productivity

(01:05:25) Building diverse and skilled data teams

(01:08:40) Lightning round

Referenced:

• How Netflix builds a culture of excellence | Elizabeth Stone (CTO): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-netflix-builds-a-culture-of-excellence

• Riley Newman on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rileynewman/

• Tony Xu on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/xutony/

• Imposter Syndrome: Why You May Feel Like a Fraud: https://www.verywellmind.com/imposter-syndrome-and-social-anxiety-disorder-4156469

• Stanley Tang on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stanleytang/

• Andy Fang on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fangsterr/

• Evan Moore on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/evanmoore/

• How WeDash became the flagship employee program for DoorDash:

Next Episode

undefined - 5 essential questions to craft a winning strategy | Roger Martin (author, advisor, speaker)

5 essential questions to craft a winning strategy | Roger Martin (author, advisor, speaker)

Roger Martin is one of the world’s leading experts on strategy and the author of Playing to Win, one of the most beloved books on strategy. He’s written extensively for the Harvard Business Review; consulted for dozens of Fortune 500 companies, including P&G, Lego, and Ford; and written 11 other books. In our conversation, we discuss:

• The five key questions you need to answer to develop an effective strategy

• Why most companies get strategy wrong

• How to avoid “playing to play” instead of playing to win

• Real-world strategy examples from Procter & Gamble, Southwest Airlines, Lego, and Figma

• How to think about differentiation vs. low cost

• Shortcomings of current strategy education

• Much more

Correction: Roger pointed out that he made an error during our chat. When I asked him about Richard Rumelt (~16 mins), he thought I said Richard D'Aveni.

Brought to you by:

Webflow—The web experience platform

WorkOS—Modern identity platform for B2B SaaS, free up to 1 million MAUs

Cycle—Your feedback hub, on autopilot

Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-ultimate-guide-to-strategy-roger-martin

Where to find Roger Martin:

• X: https://x.com/RogerLMartin

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/roger-martin-9916911a9/

• Website: https://rogerlmartin.com/

Where to find Lenny:

• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com

• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/

In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) Roger’s background

(02:20) The importance of strategy

(07:00) Challenges in developing strategy

(08:30) Critique of modern strategy education

(14:00) Hamilton Helmer and Richard Rumelt

(17:40) Defining strategy

(19:12) The Strategy Choice Cascade

(23:20) Playing to win vs. playing to play

(24:57) Examples of strategic success

(30:49) Differentiation and moats

(40:23) Applying strategy to real-world scenarios

(43:47) Customer-centric strategy

(44:45) Defining the market and product

(45:59) Value chain and distribution

(48:28) Cost leadership vs. differentiation

(53:16) Capabilities and management systems

(57:14) Competitive advantage and market positioning

(01:02:41) Counterpositioning and fault lines

(01:05:53) Adapting to AI and market changes

(01:14:11) Betterment over perfection

(01:18:42) Final thoughts on strategy

Referenced:

• Nearly 10% of S&P 500 CEOs are alumni of Procter & Gamble: https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2023/02/06/10-of-s-p-500-ceos-pg.html

• FigJam: https://www.figma.com/figjam/

• Figma: https://www.figma.com/

• What Is Resource-Based Theory?: https://www.igi-global.com/dictionary/the-impact-of-technological-governance-and-political-capabilities-on-firms-performances-under-economic-turbulence/67915

• Michael Porter on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/professorporter/

Competitive Strategy: Techniques for Analyzing Industries and Competitors:

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