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How not to Plan: 66 ways to screw it up
In the sink or swim world of planners, strategists and their clients, now more than ever, there is a need for a practical handbook to guide us through all the main parts of the process. And thanks to Les Binet and Sarah Carter at Adam&eveDDB we now have just that.
The original inspiration for the book was a set of articles that they wrote for Admap over 6 years. In these they set out to bust a lot of myths and nonsense that swirl around marketing and communications by using evidence-based approaches and interesting examples to make their points.
We’ve been working with them to turn this treasure chest of wisdom into a practical guide. We’ve called it How Not To Plan in reference to its myth busting antecedents and in homage to an old but much loved set of essays published back in 1979 in an APG book called ’How to Plan Advertising’. The How Not to Plan of 2018 is a manageably sized handbook which leaves room for your scribbles and notes and can be read as a guide or used as a constant helpful reference point.
It’s loosely based on the Planning Cycle and is grouped into themes that are important at different stages in the process, covering everything from how to set objectives, the 4 Ps, research and analysis, to briefing, creative work and media and effectiveness At the end of each chapter you’ll find a simple 2-minute check list for how to do it better, a short case study showing how it’s done brilliantly, a space for your notes and further reading for the intellectually gifted…
The original inspiration for the book was a set of articles that they wrote for Admap over 6 years. In these they set out to bust a lot of myths and nonsense that swirl around marketing and communications by using evidence-based approaches and interesting examples to make their points.
We’ve been working with them to turn this treasure chest of wisdom into a practical guide. We’ve called it How Not To Plan in reference to its myth busting antecedents and in homage to an old but much loved set of essays published back in 1979 in an APG book called ’How to Plan Advertising’. The How Not to Plan of 2018 is a manageably sized handbook which leaves room for your scribbles and notes and can be read as a guide or used as a constant helpful reference point.
It’s loosely based on the Planning Cycle and is grouped into themes that are important at different stages in the process, covering everything from how to set objectives, the 4 Ps, research and analysis, to briefing, creative work and media and effectiveness At the end of each chapter you’ll find a simple 2-minute check list for how to do it better, a short case study showing how it’s done brilliantly, a space for your notes and further reading for the intellectually gifted…
403 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 10, 2018
195 people are currently reading
1348 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
March 26, 2022
Mam taku svoju kategoriu knih “ktore by si mal precitat kazdy”. How not to plan je kniha, ktoru by si mal precitat kazdy, kto sa aspon vzdialene pohybuje okolo marketingu.
Pre mna to bola asi najlepsia kniha ever, aj ked ma svoje muchy (o tych nizsie). Pri citani sa mi vybavovali vsetci kolegovia, klienti aj ludia, ktori sa o marketing zaujimaju a hned som vedel, ktori z nich by si to potrebovali najviac precitat. Zaroven som si hned spojil, ktore kampane v nasich koncinach vznikli presne podla tejto knihy, bod po bode - za vse napr. Dedoles.
V marketingu, hlavne s rastucim vplyvom socialnych sieti, pribuda vela nepochopenia toho, ako komunikacia funguje, co znamena budovanie znacky, co je relevantne a co len pekne posobi. Vacsinu tychto mytov kniha vyvracia na zaklade dat z IPA, sutaze efektivity v reklame.
K tym mucham. Autori az prilis casto a prilis intenzivne zlahcuju ulohu a vyznam digitalnych kanalov v komunikacii. V podstate sa neustale vyhranuju voci marketerom, ktori (prehnane) evanjelizuju digitalny marketing. Ono by to nevadilo, pretoze sa da s nimi suhlasit, len je toho v knihe proste privela. Dalsia vec je prilis casta nekonkretnost v odporucaniach a velakrat aj absencia podpory ich trvdeni konkretnymi datami.
Celkovo ale mozem s cistym svedomim dat 5 hviezdiciek a som si isty, ze kazdy sa po precitani stane aspon o kusok lepsim marketerom. Samozrejme, treba citat kriticky, s otvorenou myslou a ocistit si informacie tak, aby boli relevantne v nasom kontexte.
Pre mna to bola asi najlepsia kniha ever, aj ked ma svoje muchy (o tych nizsie). Pri citani sa mi vybavovali vsetci kolegovia, klienti aj ludia, ktori sa o marketing zaujimaju a hned som vedel, ktori z nich by si to potrebovali najviac precitat. Zaroven som si hned spojil, ktore kampane v nasich koncinach vznikli presne podla tejto knihy, bod po bode - za vse napr. Dedoles.
V marketingu, hlavne s rastucim vplyvom socialnych sieti, pribuda vela nepochopenia toho, ako komunikacia funguje, co znamena budovanie znacky, co je relevantne a co len pekne posobi. Vacsinu tychto mytov kniha vyvracia na zaklade dat z IPA, sutaze efektivity v reklame.
K tym mucham. Autori az prilis casto a prilis intenzivne zlahcuju ulohu a vyznam digitalnych kanalov v komunikacii. V podstate sa neustale vyhranuju voci marketerom, ktori (prehnane) evanjelizuju digitalny marketing. Ono by to nevadilo, pretoze sa da s nimi suhlasit, len je toho v knihe proste privela. Dalsia vec je prilis casta nekonkretnost v odporucaniach a velakrat aj absencia podpory ich trvdeni konkretnymi datami.
Celkovo ale mozem s cistym svedomim dat 5 hviezdiciek a som si isty, ze kazdy sa po precitani stane aspon o kusok lepsim marketerom. Samozrejme, treba citat kriticky, s otvorenou myslou a ocistit si informacie tak, aby boli relevantne v nasom kontexte.
August 22, 2023
Apie marketingo komunikaciją iš įvairių pusių paneigiant mitus ir pasiūlant, ką daryti, kad veiktų. Parašyta smagiai ir vietomis kandžiai. Marketingo srityje dirbantys gal neatras kažko super negirdėto, bet pažadu, kad bus daug vietų, kurias norėsis pasibraukti ir įsiminti.
June 21, 2020
Trendy a neustáli vývoj v marketingu prinášajú množstvo mýtov. Autori, dlhodobo pôsobiaci v odbore, ich vyvracajú a používajú na to dlhodobé dáta, vlastné skúsenosti, ale aj skúsenosti iných. Keďže sa o marketing zaujímam "len" niekoľko rokov, viaceré mýty kniha vyvrátila aj mne. A niektoré moje vlastné hypotézy z pracovného života som si naopak zase potvrdil.
Prečítať by si to mal každý z oblasti PR a marketingu, odporúčam tiež každému, koho zaujíma svet reklám a komunikácie značky celkovo. Je to asi jedna z najlepších biznisovo-orientovaných kníh, ktoré som čítal a určite sa k jej jednotlivým pasážam budem vraciať.
Prečítať by si to mal každý z oblasti PR a marketingu, odporúčam tiež každému, koho zaujíma svet reklám a komunikácie značky celkovo. Je to asi jedna z najlepších biznisovo-orientovaných kníh, ktoré som čítal a určite sa k jej jednotlivým pasážam budem vraciať.
December 16, 2020
A GO-TO guide for WHAT-TO, HOW-TO and NOT-TO if you are in marketing business. Client or agency side.
Pick any topic from table of contents & get a digested, proven guides.
Sublime no-BS writing.
Pick any topic from table of contents & get a digested, proven guides.
Sublime no-BS writing.
January 11, 2023
Don’t think I’ve ever taken so long to read a book. Every 2 page sub-chapter is packed with so much thinking it’s helped challenge conventions for including my own. Lots to mediate on. A must read for anyone serious about becoming an excellent marketeer.
September 30, 2022
A collection of articles from Ad Map on advertising planning, interspersed with how to check lists and some (short) case studies.
OK, good stuff first. Some of the articles are excellent.
For example, the explanation of how Kahnemann’s System 1 and System 2 thinking applies to advertising is as clear as you can get. Similarly, the push on advertising planners to consider the wider marketing mix beyond promotion, and in general to be critical thinkers and have a broad viewpoint, all very good.
But, there’s also a lot of really frustrating things about this book.
Firstly, the book should be called How Not to Write For Anyone Outside Big London Advertising Agencies and Clients with Million-Pound Budgets. Because, that seems to the target audience. A lot of the advice seems focussed on getting clients to spend more on advertising, and less on anything else.
So, they trash among other things CRM and loyalty programs, most quantitative and pre-test research, and the bulk of social media and digital marketing. That’s just a random selection.
This criticism might be fun once a month in a magazine article, but one after another (66 times) in a book gets quite tiresome. Especially, as they tend to blame the tool or channel as useless, rather than the way people use that tool or channel. (there’s plenty of examples of the things they trash, done well for anyone who’s worked in marketing).
It’s particularly annoying because they “advise” you to be open-minded and consider multiple scenarios and contexts, then promptly don’t follow their own advice.
The checklists in particular, are poorly written. They’re basically a list of generic, vague and contradictory bullet-points.
Be ubiquitous, for example. Ok, how?
Or, look at the data. But, then use your intuition, too. Well, thanks.
Imagine you did a brainstorm session at the pub on a Friday, and got the intern to write up the notes, without organising or editing them. That’s what these feel like.
Though there’s a lot of smart stuff in this book, it feels unedited. Like they didn’t go back and cut out all the early draft thoughts. Much better if they’d only included their top 3 tips for each article for example.
The writing tone of voice also borders on smug and self-serving at times. Everything feels written by advertising people, looking to show the value of advertising, by only using data and examples from advertising that worked, or from IPA studies (funded by, of course, the advertising business).
At the start, they talk about how we should all learn from misunderstandings and screw-ups. But in the whole book, there’s only one article where they themselves admit they got something wrong. And even then, it’s a pretty lightweight example.
What we get instead is a lot of plugging of their own work, and why it’s better than anything else out there. It reads like a sales brochure for their agency at times. In fact, wouldn’t be surprised if some of the content was lifted from some of their business pitches. It has that feel.
Really wanted to like this more than I did. If you’re in the target audience, you’ll probably love it.
If you have wider and deeper knowledge of marketing, you’ll still find some useful stuff in here, particularly the articles. But the checklists, best avoided or you’ll just get annoyed or confused.
OK, good stuff first. Some of the articles are excellent.
For example, the explanation of how Kahnemann’s System 1 and System 2 thinking applies to advertising is as clear as you can get. Similarly, the push on advertising planners to consider the wider marketing mix beyond promotion, and in general to be critical thinkers and have a broad viewpoint, all very good.
But, there’s also a lot of really frustrating things about this book.
Firstly, the book should be called How Not to Write For Anyone Outside Big London Advertising Agencies and Clients with Million-Pound Budgets. Because, that seems to the target audience. A lot of the advice seems focussed on getting clients to spend more on advertising, and less on anything else.
So, they trash among other things CRM and loyalty programs, most quantitative and pre-test research, and the bulk of social media and digital marketing. That’s just a random selection.
This criticism might be fun once a month in a magazine article, but one after another (66 times) in a book gets quite tiresome. Especially, as they tend to blame the tool or channel as useless, rather than the way people use that tool or channel. (there’s plenty of examples of the things they trash, done well for anyone who’s worked in marketing).
It’s particularly annoying because they “advise” you to be open-minded and consider multiple scenarios and contexts, then promptly don’t follow their own advice.
The checklists in particular, are poorly written. They’re basically a list of generic, vague and contradictory bullet-points.
Be ubiquitous, for example. Ok, how?
Or, look at the data. But, then use your intuition, too. Well, thanks.
Imagine you did a brainstorm session at the pub on a Friday, and got the intern to write up the notes, without organising or editing them. That’s what these feel like.
Though there’s a lot of smart stuff in this book, it feels unedited. Like they didn’t go back and cut out all the early draft thoughts. Much better if they’d only included their top 3 tips for each article for example.
The writing tone of voice also borders on smug and self-serving at times. Everything feels written by advertising people, looking to show the value of advertising, by only using data and examples from advertising that worked, or from IPA studies (funded by, of course, the advertising business).
At the start, they talk about how we should all learn from misunderstandings and screw-ups. But in the whole book, there’s only one article where they themselves admit they got something wrong. And even then, it’s a pretty lightweight example.
What we get instead is a lot of plugging of their own work, and why it’s better than anything else out there. It reads like a sales brochure for their agency at times. In fact, wouldn’t be surprised if some of the content was lifted from some of their business pitches. It has that feel.
Really wanted to like this more than I did. If you’re in the target audience, you’ll probably love it.
If you have wider and deeper knowledge of marketing, you’ll still find some useful stuff in here, particularly the articles. But the checklists, best avoided or you’ll just get annoyed or confused.
August 1, 2018
Na knihu How Not to Plan jsem dlouho čekal, ale to čekání se nakonec vyplatilo. Z původního dvouletého projektu, během kterého mělo být v časopise AdMap publikováno 24 článků, protože se autoři obávali, že pak už nebudou mít co říct, neměli Les Binet a Sarah Carter problém psát další čtyři roky. Díky tomu bylo publikováno více než 60 článků a ty si nyní můžete přečíst v krásně poskládané knize.
Les Binet a Sarah Carter jsou žijící legendy plánování a vy se můžete poučit z jejich mnohaleté praxe v jedné z nejkreativnějších agentur na světě. Články jsou srozumitelné a místy zábavné, že by si je měl přečíst každý. Nejen planneři. Protože kniha není jen o plánování. Každý si tam najde svoje a uvědomí si možná i některé chyby, které dělá. Takže pokud se ke knize dostanou marketingový ředitelé, kreativní ředitelé, analytici, accounťáci a další, tak to bude jedině dobře.
A nemusíte se bát, že se jedná o další marketingovou či motivační knihu, která vám nabízí zaručené rady, jak dělat úspěšné kampaně. Naopak sdílejí některé své chyby, kterých se dopustili, abyste se nespálili i vy. Co mi však kniha dala nejvíc, je to, že jsem v lecčem žil v mýtech a díky praktickým checklistům za některými články vím, na co si teď dávat pozor. To je důvod, proč se ke knize budu neustále vracet.
Les Binet a Sarah Carter jsou žijící legendy plánování a vy se můžete poučit z jejich mnohaleté praxe v jedné z nejkreativnějších agentur na světě. Články jsou srozumitelné a místy zábavné, že by si je měl přečíst každý. Nejen planneři. Protože kniha není jen o plánování. Každý si tam najde svoje a uvědomí si možná i některé chyby, které dělá. Takže pokud se ke knize dostanou marketingový ředitelé, kreativní ředitelé, analytici, accounťáci a další, tak to bude jedině dobře.
A nemusíte se bát, že se jedná o další marketingovou či motivační knihu, která vám nabízí zaručené rady, jak dělat úspěšné kampaně. Naopak sdílejí některé své chyby, kterých se dopustili, abyste se nespálili i vy. Co mi však kniha dala nejvíc, je to, že jsem v lecčem žil v mýtech a díky praktickým checklistům za některými články vím, na co si teď dávat pozor. To je důvod, proč se ke knize budu neustále vracet.
March 28, 2019
Definitely this is the best book I’ve ever read on brand building and brand communications. With all due respect to Byron Sharp (whose book I still consider as narrow minded) these guys managed to deliver very complex concepts in a very insightful way.
September 30, 2019
Reminds you of important strategy lessons, and adds great reasoning and arguments, ready to use insights.
November 6, 2021
Probably one of the best books on marketing and planning that I've read.
Binet and Carter cover a wide range of topics, from objective setting, evaluating marketing effectiveness, and how to go about conducting research.
The book originally started out as a column for admap, however, it turned out to be so much more.
I'll probably pick up and read this book each year. Their insight into marketing is something that cannot be missed.
If you're familiar with any of Bryon Sharp's work, you'll find comfort here.
Binet and Carter cover a wide range of topics, from objective setting, evaluating marketing effectiveness, and how to go about conducting research.
The book originally started out as a column for admap, however, it turned out to be so much more.
I'll probably pick up and read this book each year. Their insight into marketing is something that cannot be missed.
If you're familiar with any of Bryon Sharp's work, you'll find comfort here.
March 28, 2020
Tho I don't like books that tell straight what to do and what to avoid without much in detail this was a great one even with the straight does and don'ts. The book is for marketing professionals so if your new to this market then a lot of it might be too hard to dig in. The authors talk a lot about common sense. It's refreshing to read an advertising book that looks on this perspective. Not everything is calculated. Advertising is part science and part art.
January 22, 2023
One of the best books I've ever read about communication and Marketing Management.
Got me wondering about awarding it a 5 star but the topics are so interesting and the blocks of insights and case studies are so packed of useful ideas that it ends up deserving it.
Marketeers in any business or geography must get this one.⭐️🫡
Got me wondering about awarding it a 5 star but the topics are so interesting and the blocks of insights and case studies are so packed of useful ideas that it ends up deserving it.
Marketeers in any business or geography must get this one.⭐️🫡
December 9, 2018
OK, na takéto knihy o marketingu by som si vedel zvyknúť. Na kosť osekaný štýl, kopec zaujímavých zistení, všetko podložené dátami. Človek je až prekvapený, koľko marketingových mýtov berie ako samozrejmosť. Určite odporúčam každému z fachu. :-)
April 21, 2019
Read only if your believe the new marketing thinking advocated by Andrew Erenberg and Prof. Byron Sharp.
The author has illustrated the points in a simple non- marketing way - devoid from jargons and heavy loaded words.
If you don’t believe in this theory then this book is of no use.
The author has illustrated the points in a simple non- marketing way - devoid from jargons and heavy loaded words.
If you don’t believe in this theory then this book is of no use.
April 30, 2021
No BS book busting plenty of myths in marketing and advertising world. Be aware that the book mostly focuses on traditional FMCG and retail brands so not everything applicable to tech world brands but still worth a read.
December 19, 2021
This book provides a very useful advices for all planners who live in the intersection between traditional and digital media.
A must read to strengthen our foundational thinking on how planning in advertising should be!
A must read to strengthen our foundational thinking on how planning in advertising should be!
January 23, 2022
Hands down to my new all-time favourite marketing book. Backed up by research, provoking thoughts and case studies, this book deserves more recognition.
If you only read one marketing book this year, make it this one.
If you only read one marketing book this year, make it this one.
February 20, 2024
This is a great marketing book written from the perspective of an agency, in very practical terms. Debunking many marketing myths that exist today. Sometimes is a bit too superficial, but every chapter is fun to read, full of insights and an excellent guide to plan.
March 9, 2024
Witty and very well written. Felt like someone was talking to me directly and sharing their experience, their very practical and useful learnings. Highly recommended for anyone within the advertising industry, almost a must read.
April 23, 2019
Simply awesome.
July 24, 2019
Interesting, informative and we'll written. A must read for Advertising Students and anyone who is looking to discover the process behind planning great advertising campaigns.
August 30, 2019
Fantastic book, highly structured with down-to-earth & evidence-based advice.
February 9, 2020
Must read for people working in Digital marketing
March 20, 2020
Some good insights about advertising and brandbuilding.
March 22, 2020
I'll be brief. This book's just awaken a new passion in me.
April 14, 2020
Probably one of the best books about marketing I’ve lately read. Practical and insightful.
Read
May 25, 2021It's my Holy Bible. Whenever I'm stuck, I just open this book and read any random chapter to find a new perspective and inspiration.
October 17, 2022
Good stuff
A bit outdated with specific examples, but all the principles still stand. If you're in marketing, read this. Makes you reflect.
A bit outdated with specific examples, but all the principles still stand. If you're in marketing, read this. Makes you reflect.
February 4, 2023
A go-to for discussions on advertising effectiveness! A must-read for marketers!
April 16, 2023
I purchased this book at a charity shop for 80p as it looked fun. I didn’t realise it was about advertising and am as far from the book’s target audience as you can get. Having said that it was an excellent read - clear and entertaining. I feel I have more understanding of the subject and if I was studying marketing this book would be a great help.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews