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There are plenty of signs that the way we have typically described gender may be dying before our very eyes. In Austria last year, the winner of Eurovision’s popular song contest was a 26 year old drag queen with a beard named Conchita Wurst. Earlier this year, Sweden officially became the first country to add … Read more
Robert Townsend is one of the most underappreciated leaders in history. He is not a household business name like Steve Jobs or Jack Welch. He didn’t lead an organization into making products to change the world. In fact, many of the employees that now work at the company he once led have probably never even … Read more
I should have loved McDonald’s ambitious Super Bowl ad promoting the idea that customers could pay with “lovin’” instead of cash. Any marketer should. It’s bold, innovative, and takes a stand. McDonald’s believes we should be nicer to each other and have a little more fun. What could be a better brand message than that? … Read more
On the morning of November 15, 2013, most of San Francisco woke up with no idea that their city was about to be saved by a superhero. The fact that this particular superhero happened to be less than four feet tall and was only five years old were details most of the city would only … Read more
There are a surprising number of people who believe that I don’t like puppies. Every year the day after the Super Bowl when the votes are tallied rating all the ads, the ads with puppies always mainstream favorites. Meanwhile, for the past four years I have published my own list of winners and losers based … Read more
Facebook has brands worried … again. A recent article headline from Ad Age magazine summed up this concern perfectly, announcing that “Facebook Cuts Brands’ Reach Once Again.” Of course they did. One of the biggest issues facing the largest social media platforms today is how to monetize their offerings. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter are all working … Read more
Today is great timing for a Halloween promotion. Everyone is talking about costumes, candies and spooky stuff as they prepare for the rare treat of a Friday evening Halloween. If you happened to visit Oreo on Instagram or Facebook or Twitter today, you would see what seems like another piece of social media brilliance from … Read more
If there’s an argument against using a small advertising agency, I’ve probably used it. After 15 years leading work for dozens of clients at two of the biggest ad agencies in the world, and participating in close to 100 pitches—I know how to argue against a smaller competitor. Yet for more than a year now, … Read more
In 2007 an association of about 50 Honda dealerships based in the Southern California area launched a bold experiment. Faced with the reality that customers generally rate car dealers among the least trustworthy people in business, Honda and their agency at the time had an idea to change that perception. The “Helpful Honda Dealers” concept … Read more
There aren’t many people in the world who don’t love a good soccer trick video. And when the World Cup rolls around, you might expect that there will be lots of them flooding YouTube. So over the past few weeks I have seen everything from a freestyle champion soccer player dressing up as an old … Read more
Non-Obvious Thinking is my latest book about the 4 secrets of becoming a non-obvious thinker - released 10/01/2024.
Rohit Bhargava is a trend curator, founder of the Non-Obvious Company and the 3-time Wall Street Journal bestselling author of ten books.
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In addition to Non-Obvious Thinking, Rohit is the author of 10 books on trends, the future of business, building a more human brand with storytelling and how to create a more diverse and inclusive world.
