If you want to solve a problem, you have to understand ‘the real why’.

This week we had to chance to experience a ‘double dose’ of Rory Sutherland via CIPR’s National Conference [link] and an Alchemists Forum [link] ‘An audience with’ session. Vice Chairman of Ogilvy UK, Rory Sutherland is renowned for his breakthrough book ‘Alchemy: The Surprising Power of Ideas That Don’t Make Sense’.  

Sutherland believes that to be brilliant you have to be irrational. He explores everyday observations and situations that are faced in both business and personal life that don’t necessarily make sense, yet are accepted and rarely questioned.

We’ve learnt a lot from Rory Sutherland this week and have noted some of the key learnings that we found particularly interesting and relevant to a life in a thriving communications consultancy.

Look beyond the plausible explanation

In business, perception matters more than reality. A rational explanation is just one cause or answer and we always tend to favour the plausible explanation rather than look beyond it for alternative answers.

Being closed minded can be dangerous in business as failing to look beyond the plausible and logical explanation can result in you missing the real meaning behind a campaign or targeting the wrong audience.

Conventional logic and business and policy making love the idea of the single right answer, because with this there can be no blame. This approach works if you’re happy with consistent ideas and results, however, this can be disastrous if you want to come up with an original idea.

Emotional connection is key

There is no point generating a stimulus to which the body is not sensitised. We tend to focus solely on logic (research, stats, etc.) when developing brands, products and strategies, but in the end it’s the emotional connection that secures business, sells products and gets results.

We have a tendency to become bogged down in research and let the numbers drive our strategy, but most of the time the end purchase or the campaign that connects with the client is the one that evokes an emotional response, not necessarily the one driven by data and stats.

Rory references a great example of the automotive industry, where hours of time and millions in investment go into developing a high performing automobile. All of these logical practices coming together result in a car which the consumer purchases based on their emotional response to it. Rarely are car purchasers driven to the ultimate purchase decision by the quality of a car’s chassis or a proprietary nut or bolt used in its construction, but they are driven to pull out their wallets by the way the car makes them feel.

It’s extremely important that we find an effective balance when it comes to quantitative research and emotional connections in order to find success in our efforts and create the ultimate brand experience and response, whether this is implemented through a comms strategy or product launch.

Give people permission to fail

Failure is not always negative. It’s important to approach failure as a learning experience and develop strategies in a way that give you permission to fail. Failure is often a result of exploring a different approach and taking a risk and to achieve business success and stand out from competitors. It’s essential that we have space to experiment, and Rory advises brands to consider ringfencing budget for experimentation in order to drive innovation through experimentation.

It doesn’t pay to be logical and avoid risks if your competitors are also being logical. Quite often, being logical can mean you are predictable and your competitors will know exactly what you plan to do next. Being at the same level as everyone else essentially means you are fighting to avoid bottom place. This is why it is crucial to experiment and allow space for failure within strategy and – more importantly – the opportunity to rise to the top.

Rory is just one of many inspirational leaders and speakers that our team has had the opportunity to learn from directly over the past months. His teachings have certainly helped us to take a step back and consider alternative approaches which will ultimately help to piece together the full picture and we hope benefit our clients in the coming months.

Team Impact. x