
Your source for knowledge, reports, thought leadership, and other tomfoolery. No fluff. No folklore. Just sticky, science-backed brand truth.
The Most ABSurd Blog
How much should you fear brand haters?
Marketers fear haters, but the real problem is indifference—most people don’t dislike your brand, they just don’t notice it.
Should You ”Bland” Your Brand?
Everyone’s flattening their logos to look modern and minimal—and ending up looking exactly like everyone else.
Is Your Brand Easy to Recognize?
If you zoom out on a Google image search and can’t spot your brand fast, congrats—you look just like everyone else.
What Should You Focus on First: Revenue or Profits?
A massive EU study of 650,000 firms found the winners weren’t chasing growth—they started with profits first.
So you want an "ownable" brand asset...
Everyone wants ‘ownable’ brand assets—but Ehrenberg-Bass’s global study of 1,200 elements shows few are truly unique.
Small brands don't have loyal fanbases
The data is clear—small brands don’t have super-loyal fans; they just have fewer buyers who buy less often.
Heavy buyers aren't loyal buyers
Heavy buyers aren’t your most loyal—because the more people buy, the more brands they buy.
How are airplanes like sneakers?
Turns out buying airplanes looks a lot like buying sneakers—B2B and B2C follow the same laws of brand science.
What Can a Brand "Own"?
Every brand wants to ‘own heritage,’ but in mature categories, size—not story—drives those associations.
How do you measure the success of a Super Bowl ad?
Every year we crown Super Bowl ad winners—but whether they ‘worked’ depends on which scoreboard you’re watching: surveys, buzz, sales, or just your gut.
LOYALTY TO CAR BRANDS? MAYBE
We think car buyers are fiercely loyal, but most switch brands far more often than marketers—or Steve Ballmer—would believe.
Bad data takes you confidently in the wrong direction
The biggest problem in marketing isn’t bad data—it’s looking at the wrong data, and doing it confidently.
How will Amazon's brand lose iTs luster?
Amazon’s Marketplace may boost sales, but moldy jerky and expired baby formula are eating away at its brand trust.
Do TV ads impact sales... at all?
A massive study of 250 grocery brands found TV ads barely move short-term sales—good ones pay off in the long run, not week to week.
We still don't know which half
A century after Wanamaker, we still don’t know which half of our marketing beliefs are wrong—but brand science can finally show us.
The robot will now write the ads
Can AI really write better headlines than humans — or is it just really good at stealing from Ogilvy’s playbook?
Little loyalty in hospitality too
Turns out your favorite hotel, cruise line, and airline aren’t all that different — a new study shows most hospitality brands win by being generic, not unique.
Loyalty can't die
Nielsen says “disloyalty is the new black,” but the truth is, shoppers have always been brand hoppers — switching’s not a trend, it’s human nature.
Online brands are flocking to TV
Purple’s pouring money into TV because they actually want to grow big—and TV, the “dying” medium no one watches anymore, is still one of the best ways to do it.
Don't target Millennials after all
Marketers love chasing Millennials — they’re young, hip, and values-driven! Also: broke. Low wages, high debt, and zero wealth make “purpose” less a virtue and more a survival strategy.