Thinking Data, Talking Human: 8 Rules for Effective Customer Engagement

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Thinking Data, Talking Human
Marc Michaels, Business Director, Public Sector/Not-for Profit
Mike Cavers, Executive Creative Director
LATERAL GROUP WHITE PAPERS
Executive Summary
‘Thinking Data, Talking Human’ provides marketers with a series of eight rules
for the pursuit of effective customer engagement in today’s fragmented and
congested landscape. The rules are formulated from analysis of the latest
thinking in the fast-changing field of Behavioural Economics and its relevant
application to marketing, combined with real-life examples of data-driven
creative that have resulted in significant behaviour-change.
In austere times, in a risk-averse business world, there is a tendency to
approve only marketing investment if it is building on or optimising a known
quantity. However, creatives plead for the freedom to express and develop
ideas which generate the fame and ‘talkability’ that can have a major impact
on outcomes for a brand.
Data does not have to be a barrier, but can be the source of insight that
inspires a creative spark. The rise of big data has signalled a seismic shift in
how brands interact every day with consumers. People are volunteering more
of their information than ever, providing marketers with a broader view
of their personal preferences, interests and behaviours.
And, by combining it with the psychology of human behaviour that we
learn from observation, market research or through practical application
of Behavioural Economics, we can gain additional powerful insight:
understanding what really makes our customers tick.
It is then the task of the creative to fuse these insights from data and
psychology to create human content that tells a story that connects to people,
and provides a clear route to meaningful customer engagement.
It is a case of having your cake and eating it. Great creativity will result from
a fusion of data and insight, delivered in the right channels, producing
marketing content that is well targeted but also connects emotionally.
A case of thinking data and talking human.

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The Panacea for marketers has long been finding a way to appeal
directly to consumers, with timely, motivating and relevant
content which is not only a true reflection of the brand, but
also memorable, enabling the creative to stand out from the
competition and resonate with the consumer on an emotional
and rational level. The route to getting to this point, however,
is often confused and much debated. With the proliferation of
consumer data that has sprung up and evolved in recent years,
many brands are struggling to get to grips with how to harness all
the information they have at their fingertips and make it work for
their communications campaigns. This has sparked a growth in
academic studies looking at the psychology of individuals and how
we as marketers need to study, consider, and understand human
behaviour before deciding how to attract people’s attention to
convert them into customers, and ultimately establish loyalty.
THINKING DATA, TALKING HUMAN
Introduction
Blending data and emotion
What we will be presenting in this paper is the view that data insight,
combined with emotional and behavioural analysis, can actually
enhance and inspire the creative process. What’s more, the creative
element does not necessarily have to be the output generated
– the word and pictures - creativity can manifest itself as the trigger
or idea that puts the wheels in motion and helps marketers achieve
the results they desire. Our view is that we need to ‘think data and
talk human’; that is, look at the numbers and figures, but put them
in a context that relates directly to human experience and our natural
reactions, in order to create scenarios in which brands can tap straight
in to people’s needs and desires.
This paper will look at current thinking around Behavioural Economics,
how psychology and data have previously been used (in silos) in
marketing practices and then move on to explore the effectiveness and
huge potential in using them together to achieve great results. It will
also look to unravel the confusion around the types of data insight
available to brands. Transactional data, for example, can play a very
specific role in outlining what people do and when, whereas data
gleaned from research, qualitative studies and indeed behavioural
testing, offers the reasons and triggers behind why people behave
as they do.
We will seek to prove that looking at the ‘what’ of human behaviour
and the ‘why’ independently is not enough – it’s looking at the two
alongside one another, and applying this knowledge creatively and
quickly is the key to forging long lasting and impactful relationships
between brands and people. Moreover, we argue that the key to
making this theory work for marketers and for brands is to turn it
quickly and intelligently into action: to take data, psychology and
research and action them directly, case by case, in order to develop
a series of actions which take this information on board and convert
them into effective results.
Ultimately, this paper will outline the best practice for marketers,
including eight rules that we feel play a pivotal role in the way
marketers create truly effective and creative campaigns. By taking
an integrated approach that adopts a broader view, acting decisively
and embracing the learnings that come from all forms of insight,
and even from failure, we can create memorable and intelligent
ways of engaging with people.
Behavioural Economics and understanding the psychology of what
makes people tick is hugely important for any brand wanting to
understand how best to get people to buy their products and services.
The key word in this sentence is ‘people’ – so often, marketers can
forget that the ‘targets’ of their ‘strategies’ are human beings with
feelings and irrational responses, at odds with the controlled rigidity
that these military-like terms imply. The ‘targets’ are people, and the
‘strategies’ are, or should be, conversations and reactions based on a
real understanding of the barriers, motivators and triggers that affect
us as we go through life.
One trend which has bubbled up over the years is the faulty notion
that insight that is derived from data – that is numbers, figures
and detailed analysis – can get in the way of this more emotional
connection. The argument is that data can somehow restrict or inhibit
the creative process that emotional and behavioural analysis offers,
and in fact can take away from the personal insight that can be
gained by looking at people’s habits and behaviours. It is assumed
that data, because it is made up of facts and figures, goes against the
notion of understanding people. The truth is actually the opposite: it
is data that can help us to humanise the marketing process and break
it down into an understanding of how people really work.
So often, marketers can
forget that the “targets”
of their “strategies” are
human beings’
‘

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Using people’s behaviour and habits as a marker for planning
business (and in particular, marketing) activity is by no means
a new phenomenon. In fact, as McKinsey puts it, ‘long before
Behavioural Economics had a name, marketers were using
it.’ The concept gave birth to marketing stalwarts such as the
‘buy one get one free’ offer, which was used again and again
simply because it worked, tapping into an innate human need
to recognise they were getting a bargain. However, despite the
practice being around for years, the trend of speaking about
behavioural techniques in direct correlation to marketing activity
has accelerated in the last five years, thanks mainly to the
advocacy of industry heavyweight Rory Sutherland.
Sutherland’s take on Behavioural Economics is wide reaching; he
has spent many years observing people and their motivations to
buy, interact with, and leave brands behind. His broad definition
of his vision for agencies is “to use ideas to convert human
understanding into business advantages for our clients.” This
reasoning is sound and has given birth, quite rightly, to years’
worth of studies, experiments and practices that look at human
behaviour before forging ahead with marketing activity. Books
such as ‘Influence’, ‘Thinking Fast and Slow’, ‘Nudge’, ‘Herd’,
‘Loss Aversion’, ‘Prospect Theory’ and ‘The Tipping Point’ all look
at understanding people’s irrationality; developing theories and
solutions such as Choice Architecture, looking at uncovering
and manipulating the choices people make through defaults,
Historical thinking and application
of Behavioural Economics
‘Chunking’, which deals with breaking information up in order to
comply with people’s need to absorb things in small and gradual
stages and Social Norms, where we are influenced by what significant
others around us say or do.
The role of data in this debate and the role it has to play in
Behavioural Economics has not been ignored; in fact many have
spoken about the need to look at data in order to build successful
campaigns. Indeed, there has already been talk from many about the
need to combine data and psychology in order to truly understand
how behaviour impacts on brand success. As Chris Arnold surmises,
“To have data without psychology is like watching a black & white
silent movie, it’s ok if you haven’t watched in colour with great
sound but once you’ve discovered the bigger picture there’s no
turning back.”
However, we would argue that so far, theory has played a far bigger
part than practice in this area. There may well be an acknowledgement
that data and psychology can be successfully fused, but we propose
that the next step forward is to recognise the creativity that can come
from this, and the need to act fast to harness this and convert it
into tangible business results. There has been little evidence so far
of marketers actually putting all these theories and ‘solutions’ into
practice, and using all the information they have to actually build
suitable communications and conversations with their audiences.
Let’s begin by looking at every step of the process in detail: what
actually do we mean by data insight and what are the different types
that can actually assist us in making a difference in terms of how we
talk to people? What role can psychology actually play in what we
do, as marketers, to connect with people? And finally, how can we
combine all these factors and actually make a difference in terms of
reaching people in an effective and, let’s face it, profitable manner?
Transactional data
Transactional data is the information that teaches us about what
people do: how often they buy from or interact with a brand, what
choices they make, when they buy and when they don’t. This gives
us insight about habits, patterns and trends, but in a purely factual
sense. From this data, we can only tell the when, the how and the if,
not the why or the why not. Alone, this data is useful, as it gives us
the bare bones surrounding the decisions that people make. Yes, this
can help us to look at trends, differences in the market and emerging
patterns, but in terms of developing strategies for reaching consumers,
this simply isn’t enough. We need to know the why; the drivers,
reasons and triggers behind these trends and gain clues as to how
we can predict and react to these trends in the future.
One way of obtaining this information is yet again through data, but
in the form of research, providing the qualitative kind of insight that
allows us to delve into the trigger points behind the decisions people
make. However, often people are telling us what they think we want
to hear and not what they actually would do in that situation. This
occurs because research generally develops an artificial construct that
taps into the more rational ‘Systems 2’1
mindset. Where transactional
data gives instant, black and white information about what people do,
To have data without
psychology is like
watching a black &
white silent movie,
it’s ok if you haven’t
watched in colour with
great sound but once
you’ve discovered the
bigger picture there’s
no turning back’
‘
1 See the ‘Pyschology’ section for more details.

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Historical thinking and application
of Behavioural Economics
research can provide the grey areas between these facts: What was it
that made someone reach for the internet or the phone at midnight,
or the reason why certain people only buy certain products on a
Wednesday, in May, or after five o’clock.
Pyschology
The trap that so many businesses and marketers can fall into is
assuming that people use their ‘Systems 2’2
rational brains and act
as the economists say we should act. The truth is actually that we
are far more likely to operate as un-economic man engaging our
‘Systems 1’ brain: we are intuitive, emotional, and make judgements
and decisions far quicker than even we are willing to admit .
Impulsivity is by far a more common human trait than calculation.
Of course, not everyone is the same, but academic studies in
cognitive psychology tell us that people take the ‘Systems 1’,
automatic, route 90 percent of the time and then we often engage
our ‘Systems 2’, considered, brain to post-rationalise our instinctive
decision. Or if we do engage Systems 2, where we start to calculate
options and opportunities, we may end up with decision paralysis
because there is just too much information. We like short cuts, they
help us cope with the world and form an integral part of the thought
processes that dictate the decisions made to such an extent that it
has an entire science called heuristics devoted to it. A heuristic is
a mental shortcut that allows people to solve problems and make
judgments quickly and efficiently. These rule-of-thumb strategies
shorten decision-making time and allow people to function without
constantly stopping to think about the next course of action.
So what is the value of combining all of these ways of discovering
and analysing information? The quick answer is that by doing this,
we stop thinking of our marketing ‘audiences’ as cold, emotionless
‘targets’ and recognise them as impulsive, irrational and quick
thinking real people. Don’t be fooled, however, into thinking that
this means people can’t be led, influenced or tempted by brands
and the tactics (yes, another military word!) that they implement.
At the centre of the ‘Thinking Data, Talking Human’ approach lies
the fact that we embrace fully our need and desire to get under
people’s skin and understand the way in which they tick and
respond. We know that it’s necessary to study, analyse and model
people’s behaviour in order to get closer to them and try to get
them to engage with us and our brands.
We like short cuts,
they help us cope
with the world’
‘
Impulsivity is by far a
more common human
trait than calculation’
‘
The difference is that we are acting, quickly and intelligently, on
all the information that we are gathering: the transactional data,
the qualitative research and the psychological understanding of
human nature. By incorporating all of these elements, we stand a far
better chance of not only connecting with people, but making these
connections count and mean something: engaging with people on a
level whereby they feel understood, relevant and important enough to
be engaged with. People are easily flattered, after all: make them feel
understood and important, and that there is something in it for them,
and, more often than not, they are willing to be approached, spoken
to, and even sold to.
2 A definition of the ‘Systems 1’ and ‘Systems 2’ brains can be found in Daniel Kahneman’s book ‘Thinking Fast and Slow’ – ‘System 1 operates automatically and quickly, with little
or no [conscious] effort and no sense of voluntary control. Systems 2 allocates attention to the effortful mental activities that demand it, including complex computations ...
[and] are often associated with the subjective experience of agency, choice and concentration’.

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So how does all of this actually work in terms of marketing
campaigns? We will now examine a number of examples that
bring to life the concept of ‘Thinking Data, Talking Human’. These
examples aim to demonstrate the ways in which data, research
and psychology can be combined and applied to make a real
difference in the conversations and interactions brands have with
their audiences, and how just by changing a word of copy here,
or implementing a change of direction there, can have a huge
impact on the results of a campaign.
Example One
Abandoning the generic
Many brands and agencies build a campaign strategy on the
basis of a common idea, which in many cases can evolve into
a more sophisticated message by looking at the supporting
data first. A great example of how a message evolved through
the analysis of consumer behaviour into something truly
effective was an execution undertaken for a British airline carrier.
The campaign targeted people with an email offering them cheap
flights abroad for the summer. The mailing was a mass, generic
template, which assumed that the trigger for people wanting to
use the airline was a desire to get away during the summer, and
experience hot weather and an appealing location. Therefore,
the messaging used simply referred to the common need to go
somewhere warm and discover new and sunny climes.
However, once the customer survey data was reviewed, the
airline discovered that in fact, the majority of customers using the
service were actually doing so because they had a holiday home
in the area they were visiting. Immediately, it became clear that
the method of communication with the target audience needed
to evolve. Their motivation was not to go somewhere new, and
they didn’t need convincing about the location. In truth, as they
had a second home there, it was likely they were going to visit
anyway, so the emphasis of the mailer needed to change (not
completely because cheap flights and great value would still be a
major appeal). However, simply by changing the subject line and
the initial language used, the mailing could now directly acknowledge
people’s desire to visit their holiday home, making the communication
relevant, familiar and making the benefits clear: we know you have a
home here, so why not fly there this summer at a cheaper price? By
adding in other nuances such as dropping in familiar place names and
including links and information that would both make sense and hold
benefits for the recipients, the email had now transformed from being
a mass sales message to a targeted and directly applicable piece of
information. Needless to say, open rates and click-throughs from the
email went through the roof after the e-mail was changed.
This is a great example of ‘Thinking Data, Talking Human’ mainly
due to its simplicity: by looking at the data available and then
thinking carefully about what would appeal to human nature in this
case, the brand was able to show its customers that it understood
their needs and, most importantly, was able to offer them something
beneficial and appealing as a result. Not rocket science, maybe,
but a prime example of fact and feeling coming together to achieve
a positive outcome for both customer and brand.
Example Two
Getting behind the trigger(s)
Emotions and desires play a huge part in any human behaviour,
and it’s vital that marketers put in the required effort and analysis to
understand the complexities that drive people to do what they do.
Especially in matters such as health and wellbeing, emotions are
the key to how we make decisions and we are often spurred on in
these areas by very personal drivers, such as family history, personal
experiences and things we have seen and felt around us. Quitting
smoking is a decision that is made for many reasons by many people,
and is a hugely difficult area to deal with in terms of marketing,
simply because everybody’s experience and drivers will be different.
However, as made clear by our next example, the why isn’t always
the clue to how best to help people in this journey.
The Department of Health’s ‘Together’ CRM programme for giving
up smoking is still part of the NHS toolkit today, but was originally
based on analysis and research that combined data insight and
psychological investigation that allowed marketers to look at exactly
what kind of assistance people needed in their quest to give up the
cigarettes. It is easy to assume that the biggest challenge smokers face
in this difficult journey is actually deciding to give up, and as a result,
a lot of previous marketing had been built around highlighting the
reasons why people should quit. Highly emotive campaigns, focusing
on the effects of passive smoking, the impact of health problems on
family and the social stigma were common, and all
were seemingly aimed at helping people to make that momentous
decision to quit.
However, by looking at the data and listening to the people who
were calling helplines and applying for information packs identified
the real root of people’s struggles. Research showed that at any
given point 70% of smokers want to give up, so the decision has
Putting it into practice

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already been made and they need no push to help them see that
quitting was the answer. What they needed was assistance in how
to give up, and how to stay free of the cigarettes in the long term.
The data also showed that 80% of people calling had tried to give
up previously, sometimes up to five times before, and the struggle
for them was achieving success, not motivation. Once this fact had
been established, further research could be undertaken to look into
exactly what measures could help people to overcome these barriers
and complete the journey rather than just starting it over and over
again. This psychological insight showed that people were much more
likely to be successful if they committed to a pledge, a stop date and
an element of competition with friends or family to spur them on. The
result was the ‘Together’ programme, which assisted quitters every
step of the way, helping them to diarise, monitor and keep up their
progress, in the same way that many weight loss programmes help
their participants to keep the pounds off.
The lesson here is that assumptions and common beliefs are not
always accurate, and that again, with a simple look at human
behaviour patterns and historical data that plots trends and common
threads, we can piece together the real picture, and, as with this case,
really help to make a difference to those who need help.
Example Three
Bringing it all together
Although psychology can sometimes trump data and research,
and vice versa, some of the most encouraging results we’ve seen
at Lateral Group have indeed been when all these elements work
in tandem together. Our work for the government’s DCLG on its
‘Right To Buy’ scheme, which saw an extra £75m invested in
encouraging council house tenants to buy their homes, was a
classic example of bringing the elements together to create a
campaign which incorporated data analysis to identify eligible
tenants, absorbed additional research findings and also drew
on psychological understanding of human behaviour.
In creating the direct mail and door drop activity, we took steps
to ensure the creative was stand out and eye-catching (a die cut
house-shaped door drop was 38% more successful than a standard-
shaped version) even though in research people were telling us that
they wouldn’t respond to the ‘gimmicky’ version. Data showed us
that eligible tenants were hard to reach, so we encouraged self-
identification through door drops and direct mail. The psychological
element with this campaign tied in with the traditional Behavioural
Economics tactic of ‘chunking’: helping people through the process
by imparting small pieces of information at a time. This helped people
to identify with the fact that they were eligible, and then guided them
through the process step-by-step so they didn’t feel overwhelmed,
confused or put off. Not only this, but the campaign built on the
inherent desire to adhere to an emerging social norm that more and
more people where considering buying their council house and
used this to strike a chord with the recipient.
What really worked here was the use of data, research and
psychology in the initial stages, which all helped us to understand
the circumstances that our audience was in. The timing meant that
the credit crunch was in full swing, so both psychology and research
told us that people were unsure about whether they could afford to
buy. We also knew, from psychological insights, that an emotional
trigger was vital here: the pull of owning your own home is a strong
one, and so our mailer needed to address this, but also make it simple
for people to understand exactly how they could do this in their
economic circumstances and where they could turn to for support
and guidance through the process.
The results were staggering: the take up of the scheme has doubled
over the last year, and additional research and data analysis shows
us that we can build on this success even further. By looking into
the triggers and factors that drove those who did respond positively
to the scheme, we have identified trends and patterns which will
allow us to model our mailings accordingly. Crucially, these not only
reflect data orientated factors such as age, gender, length of time
living in an area, income, house prices and ethnicity, but also show a
dependence on a very psychological element: niceness. The data we
at Lateral Group analyse to understand what causes a psychological
trigger shows that ‘gut feeling’ or a sense of living in a ‘nice area’ is
enough for the majority of people to consider buying their homes.
With this in mind, we created a niceness index and ranked areas such
as the factors that contribute to an area being considered ‘nice’, even
if it amounted to their opinion of the view down the street a couple
hundred yards in either direction. It may seem fairly obvious, but the
insights that we gain from these success stories often is: the key is in
incorporating these findings into our work moving forward.

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Where psychology can get really interesting in this equation is when
it actually helps us to see an opportunity by working against, or
exposing holes in data. Data insight, we must remember, can only
tell us so much, and this is sometimes where outside research,
including psychological analysis, can help us to complete the puzzle.
This was the case with another Government example, this time from the
House of Commons, which was trying to boost the number of young
people going to the polls. The data was showing that young people
(especially 18 year olds, who were the focus of this campaign) were
almost unreachable outside of digital media, and that online was the
only way of connecting with them. The additional research indicated
that this group was totally disengaged with politics, not interested in
voting and unaware of the processes involved, as most of them were
simply registered under their parents’ details.
However, psychology tells us that people (especially the young),
love seeing their name in lights and that physical, personally tailored
information can make us sit up and be interested in most subjects, even
those we are supposedly disengaged with. It also tells us that despite
the increasingly online world we live in, 90% of conversations we have
on a daily basis are still offline, and physical information provides us
with reassurance and prompts us to make conversation with others.
Therefore, a direct (yes, direct, not digital!) mailing was sent to all 18
year olds, in the shape of a newspaper entitled Voting Times, in which
the recipient’s name was used in the headline. As a result, the mailing
was putting them at the centre of the piece, and the accompanying
information showed them the implications and importance that their
vote could have.
The results, flying in the face of both the data and the research, but
echoing the psychology, were overwhelming: 80% recall of the piece,
41% had read the Voting Times and of those who had, 56% said that it
improved their knowledge of voting and 64% said that it made them
feel more positive towards politics and voting. Again, reflecting the
psychology, 45% actually spoke to their friends about the pack, 17%
of those who read the Voting Times registered to vote and a further
43% said they considered registering in the next few months. So the
learning here is clear: don’t always take the black and white on board
if it doesn’t quite ring true with what we know about people, habits
and human nature. Sometimes, taking a gamble on these instinctive
feelings can really pay off.
Example Five
Honesty is the best policy
One of the biggest challenges that marketers face is reconciling how
different emotions affect a person’s perception of an experience, and
ensuring the brand message takes this into account. We worked with
Aviva Investors when it found itself inundated with queries relating to
its performance each time a quarterly statement was issued. Customers
looking for clarification caused a surge of 200% in call centre queries
and these avoidable calls placed the company’s internal system under
strain. What’s more, many of these queries related to information that
was already in their hands in the accompanying marketing document.
Our research showed that 75% of investors only read the valuation
summary, and the shiny paper that came with it often ended up in
the bin, after a single glance, as the design made customers think
they were being sold to.
The task then was to design a document to combat this and reduce
confusion by getting the message across through something that
didn’t feel, or look, like it was selling anything. Behavioural Economics
told us that the pain of losing money often outweighs the gain of
making it. Typically when a loss occurs, a message that explains the
reason, clearly and honestly, without any jargon is better received
than something that tries to dress it up and cover the cracks.
By combining the marketing document and statement into a cohesive,
in-depth booklet, the average time a customer spent reading the
collateral increased from two to fourteen minutes. This greater level
of engagement meant investors were better informed, freeing up
company resources and reducing the number of upset customers.
Example Four
Bucking the trend

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So where do we go from here? It’s clear that the basis for excellent
understanding of customers and what makes them buy and respond
positively to brands has been bubbling under marketing practices for
some time, but as mentioned, now is the time to really make use of all
of the tools we have at our disposal and make sure we are listening
and responding ourselves to what we’ve discovered.
Here are our rules for ‘Thinking Data, Talking Human’. This vein
of thinking will no doubt continue to evolve and draw on further
advancements in data analysis and our understanding of human
behaviour, but the below is certainly a good place to start.
1 Take an integrated approach
It is Data and Research and Psychological insight and you mustn’t silo
them - you need to look at them in the round and draw from all of
them equally and pull them all together. However, as detailed above,
don’t be afraid to defy certain elements of this if you think the gamble
is worth it. Psychology, in particular, can often put the cat amongst
the pigeons, but we shouldn’t underestimate just how accurate our
gut instincts about human nature can be.
2 Maintain a broader view
You need to take a wider view than just your specific campaign and
think around how people behave generally and align yourself to that.
You need to be curious and observe people, and be prepared to apply
this thinking to the most rigid and scientific of situations. Sometimes
the human element can penetrate a baffling set of figures and bring
them to life, making the answer obvious and achievable.
3 Identify what dictates behaviour
You need to identify barriers, motivators and triggers (and possibly
even create the latter if none exist). Once we know what makes
people behave, respond and react, we can anticipate, work with, and
even change these things, in order to make connections with people,
and more importantly, make those connections mean something.
4 Be sure to test and learn
Having seen what people do from data, you need to create
hypotheses about why people do things and test this (research and
in the field). Again, don’t be frightened of taking a stab in the dark or
theorising about something that might not be particularly popular or
commonplace. If testing and research can boost your theory, it might
just be the most profitable gamble you’ve ever taken.
5 Act on the insights
You need to action the insight that comes from this by building your
creative and channel deployment around this. Does your creative
idea ‘Think Data’ but also ‘Talk Human’ speaking to and reflecting
what really makes people tick? Marketers have long been guilty of
theorising and debating behavioural activity without actually
applying this knowledge or putting it into practice. Now is the time
to change that.
Conclusions and moving forward
6 Be decisive and recognise the power of ‘now’
What’s more, you need to act quickly and intelligently, sometimes
even unpredictably, to bring these insights to life. Bear in mind the
power of ‘now’: today’s society is immediate and fast moving, and
factors that are affecting their decisions to buy, give, commit to
behavioural change may be transient and change as quickly as
they’ve come about.
7 Take a creative approach at every step
Creativity isn’t just about the messaging or imagery used in a
campaign. It can be a different way of doing something or a change
to environment or choice defaults. A renowned example of this came
from a very old, famous New York hotel that had constant complaints
that their lifts were too slow. However, the cost of replacing them
was simply too high, so an alternative creative solution was needed.
Using the insight that wherever there is a mirror, people will always
look at themselves to check their appearance. The hotel installed
floor to ceiling mirrors on each side of the lifts so that when someone
pressed the lift button, they would stand to one side and check their
appearance which meant they were unaware of how long it took for
the lift to arrive. This simple step virtually reduced complaints to zero.
This demonstrates that by fusing data, research and psychology,
we are giving ourselves endless opportunities to be creative at every
stage of planning: we must grab these opportunities with both hands
and be prepared to be surprised at where this creativity can strike
and what form it can take
8 Accept failure and learn
Failure is not a bad thing as long as you learn from it quickly. Without
mistakes and the insights they give us into how to prepare, execute
and react to situations, we wouldn’t be human ourselves. It is worth
remembering the role that data can play in analysising and altering
our approach, after all data provides a powerful tool to understanding
the reason behind failure. Not only this but we can monitor how
consumers react and alter the approach.
If you are not failing
every now and again, it is
a sign you are not doing
anything very innovative’
American author, comedian and film director Woody Allen
‘

9
About Lateral Group
Lateral Group is a Customer Engagement Agency with offices in
the UK and North America. We create profitable interactions for
brands that engage customers and influence purchase.
Customer Engagement is about getting customers to engage
with brands through timely and relevant integrated marketing
communications
We use data and insights to inform strategy and creative, using
technology to deploy ‘real time’ communications. We deliver
this through our proprietary Integrated Communications
Management (ICM) framework. ICM is designed to help clients
more effectively target, engage, deliver and evaluate their
customer communications across multiple channels. This ensures
that we deliver the right message to the right person, in the
right place, at the right time.
The Authors
Mike Cavers
From the DMA’s to D&AD, Caples to Cannes,
Mike is an award-winning integrated creative
director. He has run some of London’s
most successful creative departments, but
started his career in design. He moved into
sales promotion as Creative Director of Cato
Johnston, before becoming founding partner
of Limbo, BBH’s below-the-line arm. Over
the last 12 years, he’s shaped the creative
offering at Payne Stracey, followed by TBWA
Amsterdam as European Creative Director
– Integration, working on the Nissan
Account. Creative Director roles followed
at Publicis Dialog, Chemistry Communications
and The Marketing Store. Mike joined Lateral
Group in 2012. Born in India, Mike is a proud,
rugby-mad Scot who had a pet elephant as a
boy. In case you’re wondering, the elephant’s
name was “Hathi”, Hindi for elephant.
@MrCavers
mcavers@lateralgroup.co.uk
Marc Michaels
A marketing professional and procurement
expert with extensive experience, Marc has
been a champion for Marketing
Communications for 27 years. Having
managed hundreds of high profile
Government behaviour change campaigns
Marc provides ‘end to end’, specialist
consultancy across strategy development,
planning, implementation and evaluation.
Hired to create ‘a centre for direct
marketing excellence within Government’
over the years Marc built a 50+ strong
professional team with a peak spend of
some £60m building the Government’s
use and appreciation of the value of direct
in the media mix. Working on campaigns
as important and diverse as Tobacco
Education, Armed Forces Recruitment,
Pension Credit, Change 4 Life to Preparing
for Emergencies and preventing Cot Death,
Marc has provided services for just about
every major department and public body
including BIS, Home Office, The Department
of Health and DWP dealing with Chief
Executives of major agencies and suppliers
and civil service clients up to ministerial
level. Marc joined Lateral in 2012.
@MarcPMichaels
mmichaels@lateralgroup.co.uk
@lateralgroup
0845 859 0000
info@lateralgroup.co.uk
www.lateralgroup.co.uk

Thinking Data, Talking Human: 8 Rules for Effective Customer Engagement

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