Rory Sutherland

‘A breakthrough book. Wonderfully applicable to everything in life, and funny as hell.’ Nassim Nicholas Taleb To be brilliant, you have to be irrational Why is Red Bull so popular – even though everyone hates the taste? Why do countdown boards on platforms take away the pain of train delays? And why do we prefer stripy toothpaste? We think we are rational creatures. Economics and business rely on the assumption that we make logical decisions based on evidence. But we aren’t, and we don’t. In many crucial areas of our lives, reason plays a vanishingly small part. Instead we are driven by unconscious desires, which is why placebos are so powerful. We are drawn to the beautiful, the extravagant and the absurd – from lavish wedding invitations to tiny bottles of the latest fragrance. So if you want to influence people’s choices you have to bypass reason. The best ideas don’t make rational sense: they make you feel more than they make you think. Rory Sutherland is the Ogilvy advertising legend whose TED Talks have been viewed nearly 7 million times. In his first book he blends cutting-edge behavioural science, jaw-dropping stories and a touch of branding magic, on his mission to turn us all into idea alchemists. The big problems we face every day, whether as an individual or in society, could very well be solved by letting go of logic and embracing the irrational.

The Surprising Power of Ideas That Don't Make Sense

Alchemy

Rather disappointing. This book could’ve been a long blog post or a podcast. The author had a goldmine of examples but they were diluted on a book that felt repetitive and disconnected.

It would’ve been great to learn more on actual cases such as TK Maxx or Redbull

Cristian Garcia

Rather disappointing. This book could’ve been a long blog post or a podcast. The author had a goldmine of examples but they were diluted on a book that felt repetitive and disconnected.
It would’ve been great to learn more on actual cases such as TK Maxx or Redbull

Donald

I got paid to read this at work. It's an unfocused, repetitive book that could have been at least 200 pages shorter.

We think we are rational creatures. Economics and business rely on the assumption that we make logical decisions based on evidence. But we arent, and we dont. In many crucial areas of our lives, reason plays a vanishingly small part. Instead we are driven by unconscious desires, which is why placebos are so powerful. We are drawn to the beautiful, the extravagant and the absurd from lavish wedding invitations to tiny bottles of the latest fragrance. So if you want to influence peoples choices you have to bypass reason. The best ideas dont make rational sense: they make you feel more than they make you think. Rory Sutherland is the Ogilvy advertising legend whose TED Talks have been viewed nearly 7 million times. In his first book he blends cutting-edge behavioural science, jaw-dropping stories and a touch of branding magic, on his mission to turn us all into idea alchemists. The big problems we face every day, whether as an individual or in society, could very well be solved by letting go of logic and embracing the irrational.

The Dark Art and Curious Science of Creating Magic in Brands, Business, and Life

Ivaylo Durmonski

Pitching an idea to a group of people requires an elaborate, and most importantly, rational explanation of why your concept, your product, will succeed. After all, investors are more open to ideas that introduce cheaper and bigger-size alternatives to existing products.

But this is not actually how the market operates. Rory Sutherland explains that consumers are not obeying logic when they are making decisions. Their reasons are psycho-logical. Not only buyers rely mostly on emotional cues, but they also want the product they purchase to somehow enhance their personality in the eyes of others.

This outcome, as you can imagine, cannot be achieved by following strictly logical patterns. To crack the code of the human enigma you need to try different things – weird, often illogical.

Alchemy: The Dark Art and Curious Science of Creating Magic in Brands, Business, and Life is the type of book that will transform your insane idea into a piece of rare originality. If you are still struggling with sales, and you don’t know how to best present your product, or even worse, not sure what type of emotion you want to evoke in people, this book will surely help you.

Key takeaway?

Becoming an alchemist, a proactive predictor of the human mind, and a kick-ass business owner requires a sip of insanity. Rationality is a weakness in the business world. It makes you predictable. And predictable stands very close to boredom. Things shouldn’t be only effective. They must be also attractive to consumers. Rory elaborates, “The scent was not to make the soap effective, but to make it attractive to consumers.”

Read the full summary:
https://durmonski.com/book-summaries/...

Ashley Stevens

Mark Phillips

Simon Oosterdijk

Matthew Jackson

D VA

ian alas

Drew Spartz

Rich

Max Tatton-Brown

HOW DOES MAGIC HAPPEN? The Ogilvy advertising legend—“one of the leading minds in the world of branding” (NPR)—explores the art and science of conjuring irresistible products and ideas. "Sutherland, the legendary Vice Chairman of Ogilvy, uses his decades of experience to dissect human spending behavior in an insanely entertaining way. Alchemy combines scientific research with hilarious stories and case studies of campaigns for AmEx, Microsoft and the like. This is a must-read." —Entrepreneur ("Best Books of the Year") Why is Red Bull so popular, though everyone—everyone!—hates the taste? Humans are, in a word, irrational, basing decisions as much on subtle external signals (that little blue can) as on objective qualities (flavor, price, quality). The surrounding world, meanwhile, is irreducibly complex and random. This means future success can’t be projected on any accounting spreadsheet. To strike gold, you must master the dark art and curious science of conjuring irresistible ideas: alchemy. Based on thirty years of field work inside the largest experiment in human behavior ever conceived—the forever-unfolding pageant of consumer capitalism—Alchemy, the revolutionary book by Ogilvy advertising legend Rory Sutherland, whose TED talks have been viewed nearly seven million times, decodes human behavior, blending leading-edge scientific research, absurdly entertaining storytelling, deep psychological insight, and practical case studies from his storied career working on campaigns for AmEx, Microsoft, and others. Heralded as “one of the leading minds in the world of branding” by NPR and "the don of modern advertising" by The Times, Sutherland is a unique thought leader, as comfortable exchanging ideas with Nobel Prize winners Daniel Kahneman and Richard Thaler (both interviewed in these pages) as he is crafting the next product launch. His unconventional and relentlessly curious approach has led him to discover that the most compelling secrets to human decision-making can be found in surprising places: What can honey bees teach us about creating a sustainable business? How could budget airlines show us how to market a healthcare system? Why is it better to be vaguely right than precisely wrong? What might soccer penalty kicks teach us about the dangers of risk-aversion? Better “branding,” Sutherland reveals, can also be employed not just to sell products, but to promote a variety of social aims, like getting people to pay taxes, improving public health outcomes, or encouraging more women to pursue careers in tech. Equally startling and profound, Sutherland’s journey through the strange world of decision making is filled with astonishing lessons for all aspects of life and business.

Alchemy The Surprising Power of Ideas That Don't Make Sense

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