Lies, damned lies, and statistics
So the Unilever Institute of Marketing ( doesn’t that name conjure up an impressive image of intellectual and academic excellence? ) releases a study which attracts a lot of attention. Nice catchy title – ” Four Million and Rising “, purporting to show that the middle class in South Africa is growing very nicely, thank ...
Turkish Delight
Life in the Panda Den continues at a breathtaking pace. I have just returned from a week in Paris and Istanbul, ostensibly to celebrate my birthday. But is it a celebration when, in Paris, you are surrounded by the most stylish people in the world, which only makes me feel like the least stylish person ...
An investment decision
Why, oh why, do people take something that is working very nicely, thank you very much, and stuff it up, just because they get bored? I am seriously pissed off, as one of my favourite magazines is now off my reading list due to the ” creatives ” having been let off their choke chain ...
How dumb am I?
Pondering Panda has just reached another milestone. 3 million interviews completed in under two years. Big number. Great excitement in the team, and definitely an excuse for yet another celebration. The Panda continues to grow, with our list of clients increasing by the day. All good, with the result that the recruitment of good people ...
The times, they are a’changing
Ever get that feeling that somebody is confusing you with somebody else? Doesn’t happen to me often, but I certainly felt that way when I received an invitation to be the opening keynote speaker at this year’s SAMRA conference. Who, me? Are you sure? I think I am known for being frank to the point ...
The repeat button is stuck
My mother turns 99 next month. Big number. Her mother lived to be a hundred-and-something. But my father died when he was 61. So, for those of you who like to forecast the future, I am definitely going to kick the bucket between now and 100 – yielding a confidence interval of more than 30 ...
Keeping a finger on the pulse
Part of what we do is keep a finger on the pulse of young South Africans. What are their interests, their hopes, their desires? How do they feel about the world they live in, and do they see it getting better or worse? When anything is reported in the media that we think might have ...
They all say that
What is it about us human beings, that we have this damning propensity to believe complete and utter rubbish, particularly when it is communicated with confidence? And to go on believing, even when it should be crystal clear that what we were led to believe has been exposed as nothing more than illogical nonsense. I ...
Keep your customers satisfied
Customer satisfaction studies. A booming industry in its own right around the globe. And now, with the advent of mobile technology, we are able to get much closer to the moment of purchase, while memories are still fresh and more likely to be accurate. But what about the importance of employee satisfaction studies? Where do ...
Don’t look up
The human condition. Sigh. It really gets a little tiresome at times. As humans, we really have to start making an effort to get our act together, as things are not looking good, not good at all. We stubbornly refuse to reject myths, even when it has been conclusively proved that myths are just that. ...