Author Archives: john v willshire

Rivetings: MTPW graphic, a work in progress

Posted on May 16, 2012 by john v willshire

On the flight home from Croatia, I was doodling around some ideas that occurred off the back of the MTPW presentation. This is one that’s interesting enough to keep pushing at.   Everyone goes clockwise nowadays.  Make People Want Things. … Continue reading →

Posted in Making | 2 Comments

Make Things People Want or Make People Want Things? – my slides from #IdejaX

Posted on May 12, 2012 by john v willshire

I was honoured to be invited to talk at IdejaX in Croatia this year.  I’m just back home to lovely chunky broadband, so thought I’d upload my slides. View more presentations from John V Willshire   It’s a completely new … Continue reading →

Posted in Artefact, brand, digital, economics, Making, marketing, media, social, technology | 26 Comments

There’s work and there’s your life’s work

Posted on May 7, 2012 by john v willshire

This is Apple’s welcome note to new employees.  It made me think back to Sennett’s description of Antonio Stradivari which I mentioned last week. People will only want the things you make as much as you want to make them. … Continue reading →

Posted in work | 15 Comments

Thinking of things; in substance, and essence

Posted on May 3, 2012 by john v willshire

(This is Part III of an ongoing series: Part I here, Part II here)   What do marketers know about making things?  Marketing folks and their agencies are simply the airy-fairy brand whisperers, are they not? They don’t like getting … Continue reading →

Posted in advertising, brand, economics, Making, marketing, politics, society | 14 Comments

Making Is Marketing, Marketing is Making

Posted on May 2, 2012 by john v willshire

(this is Part II of an ongoing series… Part I is the ‘Easter Island’ post  here) I’ve been extending the thinking behind Make Things People Want beats Make People Want Things aphorism, and for simplicity’s sake (and perhaps slightly for … Continue reading →

Posted in advertising, brand, Making, marketing | 23 Comments

If you want to make it as a nation, you’ve got to make things

Posted on May 2, 2012 by john v willshire

“This is the proposition that the basic and irreversible function of an industrial economy is the making of things; that the more things it makes the bigger will be the income, whether dollar or real; and hence that the key … Continue reading →

Posted in brand, Making, politics, society | 4 Comments

Rivetings: what’s in the box?

Posted on May 2, 2012 by john v willshire

A box for one of the in-house Smithery projects. Excited.

Posted in Making | 2 Comments

I, for one, welcome our new robot advertising overlords…

Posted on April 30, 2012 by john v willshire

Admap launched an Admap prize this year, calling for essays on ‘The Future of Planning’… and my brother Andrew and I decided we’d write something a bit provocative for it. The shortlist has just been announced (all the best to … Continue reading →

Posted in advertising | 2 Comments

Adweek interview: me being Scottish for Amerkins

Posted on April 27, 2012 by john v willshire

When I was over in the US judging the CLIOs, Stevan Keane from Adweek kindly invited some of the judges to take part in a ‘Six Questions’ feature they do. So here’s me, being Scottish, for Amerkins:   Oh, and … Continue reading →

Posted in advertising | 4 Comments

Easter Island, Choice, and Making Things People Want

Posted on April 26, 2012 by john v willshire

Many years ago, I read a book called Collapse, by Jared Diamond. The book details how, throughout history, various civilisations have caused their own demise, often by continuing to do the very thing that is destroying them. The example that … Continue reading →

Posted in advertising, brand, Making, marketing, media | 3 Comments