Charlotte Blank, Chief Behavioral Officer at Maritz, says her job is 'selling science.' In this interview, held immediately before our meetup gathering in Minneapolis in February 2018, Charlotte describes research she conducted with Leslie John, Tami Kim, and Kate Barasz to create a recent HBR article titled "Ads That Don't Overstep." Their work yielded two very simple and important messages about communication: 1. Don't talk behind someone's back, 2. Don't make assumptions. In the world of big data, machine learning and algorithm-driven communication, marketers need to pay close attention to these.
An early part of our discussion was on Charlotte's fascination with Franz DeWaal's work with monkeys, bonobos and the mysterious octopus! This led to a discussion about fairness as a key principle in program design and if you're not familiar with DeWaal's seminal work with capuchin monkeys, check it out here.
We discussed the now-famous Target advertising case where the company promoted pregnancy-related products to young women based on their buying habits and in one case, neither the woman nor her parents knew she was pregnant. There's a line to pay attention to and it has to do with the two guidelines noted above.
Charlotte also mentioned a couple of excellent books that she's recently read: Melissa Dahl, publisher of Science of Us, has a new book called "Cringeworthy, A Theory of Awkwardness" and Seth Stephens-Davidowitz's new book called "Everybody Lies" are top picks for those curious about human behavior.
The theme music in this episode, like all the other Behavioral Grooves music, is composed and played by Tim Houlihan. We are grateful to Jon James allowing us to use his work "Transfiguration" during intro and outro of the interview.
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Women Do Too Much Non-Promotable Work: How To Say No More with Linda Babcock
How The Invisible Influence of Culture Shapes Our Behavior | Michele Gelfand
The Psychological Benefits of Using a Process to Achieve an Outcome | Joseph Keebler PhD & Peter Krask
Transport Your Thinking; Why We Need To Reframe Travel | Rory Sutherland & Pete Dyson
Why Not All Nudges Work ”In The Wild” | Nina Mazar & Dilip Soman
The Steps Needed To Empower the Powerless | Julie Battilana PhD
Why Talking To Strangers Is Actually Good For Your Wellbeing | Nick Epley
If You’re Wrong It’s Meaningless, But If I’m Wrong It’s Valuable | Peter Montoya
The Three Phases of Growth and Learning | Whitney Johnson
Mindset Matters Most: Top Tips from The Sales Evangelist, Donald C. Kelly
Is The A-nus Really The Key To All Intelligent Life? | Henry Gee
Why Applying Behavioral Science to Public Policy Delivers Better Policy | David Yokum PhD
Why Leaders Need To Care For People, Not Manage Them | Sesil Pir
Do We Judge Others By The Way They Speak? | Katherine Kinzler PhD
We Are Greater Together; The Power Of Belonging | Dominic Packer PhD
How Can Smart, Kind People Harness Their Influence? | Zoe Chance
No Regrets? Really? Why Regrets Actually Bring Us Hope | Daniel H. Pink
How To Stay Motivated So You Exceed Your Goals | Ayelet Fishbach PhD
A Long, Happy Life? The Impacts of Increasing Our Longevity | Bradley Schurman
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