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This week we’ve caught The King in the North. Nope, it’s not Jon Snow, but one of Sheffield’s finest, Lee Davies. OK, he may not actually rule the North, but he’s certainly one of the most talented designers and creative directors in any part of Westeros the UK, for that matter. He modestly calls himself ‘a right mess’, but growing up in a cultural backwater in Cheshire didn’t hinder him rising up to design great work for the creative brand communications agency Peter & Paul for 12 years, where clients have included the likes of Channel 4, Unilever and the V&A. He lets us know all the details about his way of working, what makes for an effective creative process as a designer, brand identities, his passion and talent for writing, Behavioural Science, Signalling, Sheffield and a whole lot more. Any budding designers, or anyone who simply wants their company or agency to produce better creative work, should bend their ear hither now. ///// Instagram Peter & Paul Twitter Peter & Paul Twitter Lee Davies How To by Michael Bierut Made To Stick by Chip & Dan Heath Creativity, Inc. by Ed Catmull A Technique for Producing Ideas by James W. Young   The Anatomy of Humbug by Paul Feldwick /////

This episode is the most eagerly anticipated ‘Part 2’ since The Godfather movie series, as we resume our chat with The Don of Behavioural Economics in 2019; the one and only Rory Sutherland. Rory Sutherland is a copywriter-turned-behavioural science expert and torch-bearer, and Vice Chairman of Ogilvy UK. He’s been President of the IPA, Chair of the Judges for the Direct Jury at Cannes, and has entertained millions via his unrivalled TED Talks. Rory writes regular columns for The Spectator, and is the author of two books: The Wiki Man and the recently published Alchemy, The surprising Power of Ideas which don't make Sense. He talks on subjects even more wide ranging than Part 1, including: Nudgestock, Shakespeare as a behavioural economist, Psychological hacks for parents, Comedy, The Pratfall Effect with Vicars, Sloe Gin, and a whole lot more. ///// Rory's Links (complete version available in Part 2 to follow) Twitter: @RorySutherland Alchemy: The Surprising Power of Ideas That Don't Make Sense by Rory Sutherland Nudgestock 2019 speaker videos Complexity and the Art of Public Policy by David Colander & Roland Kupers Success and Luck by Robert H. Frank The Darwin Economy by Robert H. Frank Fooled by Randomness by Nassim Nicholas Taleb The Naked Jape by Jimmy Carr & Lucy Greeves The Mating Mind by Geoffrey Miller Genes in Conflict by Robert Trivers  River out of Eden by Richard Dawkins Gasp Links Signalling by The Blogfather Effectiveness by The Blogfather Be Different by The Blogfather /////

This week we’ve caught the uniquely and multi-talented author, poet, and podcast presenter, Giles Paley-Phillips. Giles is the award-winning author of children’s books including The Fearsome Beastie and Little Bell and the Moon, and talks to us on his motivations for writing, how he got published, and also some tips for those who have their own dreams of being a writer. He delves into his role as a co-host on the British Podcast Awards nominated ‘Blank’ podcast alongside comedian Jim Daly, where stellar guests have included Gary Lineker and Louis Theroux. He also very generously and openly talks about his childhood, how his career developed, and his time on the road in a rock band, including a performance at the Glastonbury festival. Go listen and enjoy! ///// Episode Links Twitter: @eliistender10 BLANK podcast One Hundred and Fifty-Two Days by Giles Paley-Phillips The Fearsome Beastie by Giles Paley-Phillips Little Bell and the Moon by Giles Paley-Phillips So You’ve Been Publicly Shamed by John Ronson    A Game of Thrones Series by George R.R. Martin    Mentors by Russell Brand    Waiting For The Punch by Marc Maron /////

This week we’ve caught Ogilvy UK’s and Behavioural Science’s finest, Rory Sutherland. It’s an hour of Rory. What do you expect? If it’s a jam-packed, entertaining chinwag on all things advertising, marketing and psychology then come tuck in. For those for whom this will be a first dose of Rory, he is a copywriter-turned-behavioural science expert and torch-bearer, and Vice Chairman of Ogilvy UK. He’s been President of the IPA, Chair of the Judges for the Direct Jury at Cannes, and has entertained millions via his unrivalled TED Talks. Rory writes regular columns for The Spectator, and is the author of two books: The Wiki Man and the recently published Alchemy, The surprising Power of Ideas which don't make Sense. He talks to us on a ton of topics, including; Direct Marketing, Measurement, Efficiency V’s Effectiveness, the state of the modern Ad Agency, Harry Potter, and the need to establish marketing as its own form of unique science. ///// Rory's Links (complete version available in Part 2 to follow) Twitter: @RorySutherland Alchemy: The Surprising Power of Ideas That Don't Make Sense by Rory Sutherland Gasp Links Signalling by The Blogfather /////

This week we’ve caught Wiemer Snijders. A Dutchman with a famous banana, Wiemer is one of the most prominent figures at the forefront of Marketing Sciences. Currently a Partner at The Commercial Works, he recently published Eat Your Greens: Fact-Based Thinking to Improve Your Brand’s Health, which features contributions from 35 of the world’s top marketers, including the likes of Byron Sharp, Mark Ritson and Bob Hoffman. Listen to him talk on how the scientific approach is helping to turn around marketing, the possible root causes of the lack of long-term strategic thinking in the industry, and a whole lot more. ///// Wiemer's Links: Twitter: @wiemersnijders Eat Your Greens by Wiemer Snijders The Mind Is Flat by Nick Chaker Bad Science by Ben Goldacre It’s A Little More Complicated Than That by Ben Goldacre How To Lie With Statistics by Darrell Huff Naked Statistics by Charles Wheelan Economics Facts And Fallacies by Thomas Saul Factfulness by Hans Rosyln Progress by Johan Norberg The Consuming Instinct by Gad Saad On Writing Well by William Zinsser /////

Listen to how we nearly lost one of the finest strategic minds in the industry to the ski instructing game. Murray Calder learnt his craft managing internationally renowned Scotch Whisky brands like Macallan, Highland Park, and The Famous Grouse, and his first job in the industry saw him do everything EXCEPT marketing, giving him a great grounding and a fundamentally important first lesson.   He’s been with MediaCom Edinburgh since 2006, where he is currently Strategy Director, and numerous honours bestowed on his bonce include a period as Chairman for the IPA in Scotland. He also now dabbles in wood block printing and typesetting, so plenty to lend your ears to. Listen and enjoy. ///// Twitter: @ScotStratGuy LinkedIn: Murray Calder Culture series by Iain M Banks The Makery Dunbar website The Makery Dunbar Instagram /////

Armed with a fishing pole and a tasty bait of Hemmingway, we caught none other than Glenn Fisher.  Arguably the most famous person to be born in Grimsby (by default), Glenn became a copywriter after a number of years working in the local council. For over a decade he worked with Agora, a multi-million pound international financial publisher, as Head of Copy. He is now freelance, focussing on coaching aspiring copywriters, and has recently published his first book, The Art of the Click, which explores direct-response copywriting, which has received glowing endorsements from some of the best… including previous Call to Action guests Vikki Ross and Richard Shotton. ///// Sophie's World by Jostein Gaarder The Art of the Click by Glenn Fisher History of Western Philosophy by Bertrand Russell Great Leads: The Six Easiest Ways to Start Any Sales Message by John Forde Books by Dave Trott, Milan Kundera and Paul Auster /////

After traversing lakes, vast boreal forests and glaciated mountains, we finally caught up with the charismatic Fredrik Hallberg. Being born in the most boring town in Sweden, Köping, propelled Fredrik to leap into the world of computers, and ultimately the internet, just to find something interesting. Fast forward in time, and he is now a seasoned Marketing Strategy Director and Management Consultant with more than 20 years of experience consulting Fortune 500 companies, digital start-ups, tech giants and domestic brands. A popular speaker at many public seminars and lectures, Fredrik has also just taken a brand spanking new position as a Partner at The Commercial Works alongside Wiemer Snijders, curator and editor of the brilliant ‘Eat Your Greens’. He talks to us on marketing strategy, brand purpose, the problem with online advertising, how important David Hasselhoff was to him in early life and a whole lot more! ///// Books by (Amazon Links): Bob Hoffman Dave Trott Byron Sharp Daniel Kahneman Cas Sunstein  /////

Catching Vikki Ross was no mean feat; she's here, there and everywhere. One of the best copywriters in the business, Vikki specialises in Branding and Tone of Voice, running workshops all over the globe, and creating voices for some of the UK’s biggest brands, including The Body Shop, Sky, ITV, and Virgin Media. She dedicates time to mentoring budding copywriters and is a very vocal champion of the art of copywriting itself. Vikki says; “Copywriting will take you further than you imagined – into people’s homes, onto high streets and on shoots around the world…” ///// Vikki Ross A Big Life in Advertising Mary Wells Lawrence  How To Write Better Copy by Steve Harrison Persuasive Copywriting by Andy Maslen  Hey Whipple, Squeeze This! by Luke Sullivan  The Copy Book by D&AD Ali Hanan / Creative Equals / Creative Equals Conference For Creative Girls Who's Your Momma? @VikkiRossWrites #CopywritersUnite #CopySafari Gasp (The Blogfather) Context. The Devil is in the Detail Building a Brand

This week’s podcast guest Eaon Pritchard was a tough catch, seeing as he is based in Melbourne and all, but that didn’t stop us collaring him for a chat. He’s a self-proclaimed ‘advertising douchebag’, but that does him a disservice, as Eaon has worked as an ad creative and planner for over 20 years, firstly in London and now over in Oz. He also lectures, consults, and writes regularly for WARC and other ad industry publications, while his spectacular and highly-praised book on advertising, ‘Where Did it All Go Wrong?’ caused R/GA’s Head of Strategy Rob Campbell to declare; “Eaon is funny and insightful. I hate him.” ///// Eaon Pritchard: Twitter: @eaonp Where Did It All Go Wrong - Adventures At The Dunning Kruger Peak Of Advertising The Stupidity Paradox: The Power and Pitfalls of Functional Stupidity at Work by Mats Alvesson The Triumph of Emptiness: Consumption, Higher Education, and Work Organization by Mats Alvesson Business Bullshit by Andre Spicer Intuition Pumps And Other Tools for Thinking by Daniel C. Dennett The Adapted Mind: Evolutionary Psychology and the Generation of Culture by Jerome H. Barkow /////