Welcome to Posito
This time is different...
Hello and welcome,My name is Alex and I’ve worked in marketing for twenty years. I've participated in the internet's rise, harnessed social media's influence, and become increasingly dependent on digital analytics. But this time is different. Artificial Intelligence has changed everything and it's only just begun.I now freelance as a marketing consultant and contractor. I specialise in both 'the doing' (marketing activation) and 'the thinking' (marketing strategy). Most clients aren’t interested in both, but I can do that too.What makes me different is a fascination on the underlying principles that govern how marketing works. Marketing operates at the intersection between people and business, making it both rational and irrational. This means Artificial Intelligence will fundamentally transform it, but only to a point.Over a twenty year period spent working with global brands, startups and small businesses, I've researched the principles that underpin the big decisions, thereby influencing every activity marketers make. In doing so, I've built data sets that aren't available to LLMs. Furthermore, prior to a Masters in Marketing, my degree in Behavioural Sciences is more relevant than ever before.In this new landscape, I can posit and execute ideas that capitalise on the opportunities Artificial Intelligence brings, while managing its limitations.
A new technological era
Why care about AI?
Each time a technological shift in business happens, businesses can take a couple of differing strategies.Many dig in and are reticent to change. In fact, many of these businesses operate today in much the same way they did twenty years ago. Sure, they have a website, and a few fleeting social media sites, but beyond this, their internal operations happen in much the same way.Despite this, many of these businesses also continue to be very successful. This is because the industries they operate in function in fundamentally the same way as they did before the digital revolution. Yet, not for much longer. AI can disrupt their core businesses in a way no technology has done previously.By contrast, many businesses that see the potential of new technologies respond quickly. In fact, many of the world's greatest businesses were founded over the last twenty years. However, these businesses now also face difficult challenges. Their internal structures have been constructed around software platforms, making it extremely challenging to redesign teams and reallocate personnel when many roles can be automated away.Artificial Intelligence can already be thought of as an employee that is smarter than anyone in an organisation that is available and on hand at any time, night or day. Furthermore, they are completely unencumbered by human frailties. They transcend office politics, job titles or management structures. They have no room for emotion or sentimentality and are certainly not worried about stepping on toes.Unlike any other technological shift, businesses can't sit on the sidelines. Artificial Intelligence is already being used by most employees, whether the business has officially implement it or not.Of course, the greatest shift is yet to come. Artificial Intelligence will soon go beyond its need for human gatekeepers. It will be able to operate without needing the employees that currently take credit for its work. There will be no need for expanded email chains and resource intensive meetings.
Marketing support
How I can help?
I have many skills that can be beneficial to your organisation.An expert writer, with over a decade's experience in PR and content, I'm able to harness artificial intelligence to edit and develop content at an exceptional rate, while also ensuring it has a uniquely human touch to it.I'm also able to use the tools to develop marketing insights and strategies that used to be the preserve of major teams. These skills have been developed in the startup scene, working with invested startups as well as small businesses. Their meagre budgets, combined with an abilty to try new things, promote an entrepreneurial spirit that is hard to replicate within global brands.Furthermore, this combined experience, means I can execute across a diverse range of channels, taking inspiration from industry leaders and new technologies.
Get in touch
It starts with a call
Whether you're in-house, at an agency, a startup founder or running a local business, it all starts with a call.Why not check my availability and book in a 15 minute chat. If you can share some details that'll get me up-to-speed, then please do.Alternatively, feel free to email me opposite.
Proprietary research
Investigating marketing's perennial questions
Ever since marketing was a formal discipline, it has been governed by underlying principles. These have not changed despite wave upon wave of technological advancements.However, in many cases, the pursuit of technological understanding has been at the expense of understanding how marketing actually works. For example, if clicks to a website can be monitored then that's where the focus will be, often when a business has little or no understanding of its market positioning or target market.This knowledge imbalance is what fascinates me and the reason I've spent many years developing unique datasets. I want to understand the principles that govern marketing, so that marketers can be nimble and respond to market conditions without the creation of convoluted and bureaucratic processes.Here I list several of the most intriguing pieces of research that I've developed with the underpinning reports and data referred to during consultancy projects.
A summary of some of my most thought-provoking research pieces.
What size should a marketing team be?Comparing the revenue and marketing team sizes of 200 established market leaders and 100 scale-ups.
What stages of maturing do successful businesses follow? Researching the most famous businesses to identify five stages that they all went through over time.
What behavioural factors influence purchasing behaviour? Defining seven factors that determine purchasing decisions.
What’s the best way to define a target market? Illustrating four elements that marketers can use to understand a target market.
How does investment shape the marketing industry? Identifying the interests of more than 250 investors and assessing their economic impact.
What is the best way to set a sales & marketing budget? Analysing the financial statements of over 600 publicly listed companies to determine their sales & marketing budgets.
What size should a marketing team be? Comparing the revenue and marketing team sizes of 200 established market leaders and 100 scale-ups.
Are there any ‘growth hacks’ that all businesses can use? Investigating growth hacks that propelled 100 of the world’s most successful businesses.
What size should a marketing team be? Comparing the revenue and marketing team sizes of 200 established market leaders and 100 scale-ups.
Blog
Insights and ideas
This site has recently been streamlined. If you've clicked on a search engine link expecting a blog, the content may have been removed. However, many blogs and research pieces are still available on YouTube as videos.