All posts by rapierandthinkblog

How nudge theory got people to give blood

With blood donation rates in decline all over the developed world, Sweden’s blood service is enlisting new technology to help push back against shortages. on initiative is when donors are sent automatic text messages telling them when their blood has actually been used. This approach helps to retain and recruit more donors by highlighting their importance and…

Welcome to the Absent Corporation, where customer services don’t exist

David Boyle has recently written in The Guardian, about the lack of customer service. We live in a time where people are replaced with algorithms, five-stars and never-ending dial tones. His conclusion? “This great silence, this neglect of customers, especially when anything goes wrong, is partly a byproduct of the financialisation and virtualisation of reality.…

The ‘Nokia’ 3310 isn’t a Nokia

You will probably already know, but Nokia has re-released their 3310 model. And people are excited about it. The Nokia 3310 is the epitome of nostalgia. After all it was the Nokia 3310 that brought us Snake. Unfortunately though, Thomas Ricker from The Verge is here to tell us that the Nokia 3310 isn’t really…

The best in creativity Primary Menu Poetry in motion: on successful poster design

Paul Belford has recently written an article in Creative Review about successful designs. The full article is definitely worth and read (you can find it here: CreativeReview). But if there’s anything that you take away from this article, it’s summarised in this lovely excerpt: “It’s the subtle little details like this that can often lift a…

Ikea’s Wants to Help You Grow Your Own Food

Created by IKEA’s Copenhagen-based innovation and design lab Space10, whose mission is to “design a better and more sustainable way of living”, The Growroom is a spherical, multi-layered garden made out of plywood, developed to encourage people in urban environments to grow their own food locally and bring some greenery to concrete jungles worldwide. The…

Data is key for customer-centric brands

In a Warc Best Practice paper, How to develop a customer-centric organisation, Jonathan Earle, Commercial Marketing Director at Dixons Carphone, says “customer-centric companies are data-centric companies”. “Being customer-centric involves knowing your customers better than anyone else does coupled with a very clear raison d’être as to why you are in business. When both are in…