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The Most ABSurd Blog
Should You ”Bland” Your Brand?
Everyone’s flattening their logos to look modern and minimal—and ending up looking exactly like everyone else.
Do Ad Campaigns Suffer Wear-Out?
Communicus found that 80% of new ad campaigns perform worse than the proven ones they replaced—so maybe don’t kill what’s working.
Does 80% of Your Revenue Really Come From 20% of Your Customers?
The 80/20 rule is old—1896 old—but new data from 330 companies shows Pareto’s math doesn’t hold up quite the way we think.
Is Advertising a “Tax on the Poor”?
Antenna found that rich or poor, we skip—or sit through—ads in about equal measure.
Does GEN-Z Really Prefer Brands With Purpose?
Gen Z says they love purpose—but when asked to rate their favorite brands, purpose barely makes the list.
How Does Market Share Influence Profits?
Common sense says bigger share means bigger profits—but the data doesn’t exactly agree.
Are Premium Brands Only Bought By Affluent People?
You’d think rich people buy premium and everyone else buys cheap—but Europanel’s data shows shampoo doesn’t care about your income.
Are People Actually Brand "Loyal"?
Bain and Kantar found that brand ‘loyalty’ is mostly a myth—most people buy from a repertoire, not a favorite.
How Valuable is Your “Brand”?
Interbrand, BrandZ, and Brand Finance mostly agree on which brands are strongest—but not on what those brands are actually worth.
What if we're all a little ageist?
Ageism might start closer to home—people everywhere feel six years younger than they are, and wish they were five years younger still.
Why Aren't Old People in Your Ads?
CreativeX found people over 60 appear in just 1% of ads—a costly blind spot in adland’s ageist loop.
Big Brands Have Higher Loyalty. Again.
Streaming data proves it again: big brands like Netflix win twice—more buyers and higher retention—while small brands suffer Double Jeopardy.
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 Media Drives Long-Term Sales Best?
Thinkbox found TV still rules the long game—delivering nearly twice the sales impact over time than in the first two weeks.
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.
Do Heavy Buyers Stay Heavy?
NPD found that nearly three-quarters of buyers are light buyers—the universal Banana Curve strikes again.
We Need Emotional Content
Everyone says ‘make emotional ads’—but as D’Arcy O’Neill asks, which emotion do you actually want people to feel?
Is Advertising a "Tax for Being Unremarkable"?
If this is true, why is Amazon — clearly a pretty remarkable company, a TECH company, and seemingly ubiquitous — why is it the largest advertiser in the US today, spending $16.9Bn last year on ads?
Funky Taglines Are Good Taglines
Most taglines sound nice but mean nothing—while the great ones actually make you think of the brand.
What Your Media Says About Your Brand
Where you advertise shapes how people see your brand—and Thinkbox found TV sends a very different signal than social.