During this episode of “Marketing Today,” I interview Wiemer Snijders, author, editor and curator of the book “Eat Your Greens: Fact-Based Thinking To Improve Your Brand’s Health.” With an emphasis on a scientific-based, self-learning, Snijders brought together a collection of incredible people to share a variety of perspectives on topics around branding and marketing. Today on the show, Snijders talks about the creation of the book, what it took to pull it together and the insights from innovative thinkers, especially those who base their findings on scientific facts. 

Snijders explains the structure of the “Eat Your Greens” and why he wanted to structure it in an easily digestible way. He wanted to provide a means for people to quickly pick up the book, read some short, topic-based articles and challenge them to dive into those topics further. It’s very much like “looking at a selection of painters from a certain period or style, indulging in small portions and exiting a richer person,” he notes.

Snijders describes the setup and the broad “briefing” for the book. He told people, “you can write about anything, you just have to back it up with facts.” The first chapter was designed to focus on the fundamental ways we make choices as consumers. How do you approach the reality that “about 40 percent of your customers are going to only buy once, in five years?” How does that shape what we do in marketing? Snijders also shares the importance of evaluating and growing that group of people. How do you actually measure effective advertising? Snijders shares incredible insights on how to use the limited amount of time we have to share our messages.

Highlights from this week’s “Marketing Today”

  • What was the reasoning behind building a compilation book? (01:48) 
  • How did Wiemer find and pick those who would appear in the book (04:24) 
  • An interesting answer to whether Wiemer has a favorite chapter (06:31)
  • Who do we need to hear from next? (07:05)
  • The 1st Chapter and “set up” for the book (08:25)
  • The fundamental and well-established things in customer choice (08:55) 
  • The “banana” visual of distribution (13:41) 
  • Focusing on value-based marketing (18:21)
  • Why Wiemer focuses on “purpose” and “unique selling propositions” (22:54)
  • Why the “Essence of Branding” is so vital (28:10)
  • Exciting insights into consumer purchasing behaviors (30:02) 
  • What opportunities does Wiemer see for marketers today? (32:09)
  • Digging into the idea of “creative publicity” (33:27) 
  • What defines and makes up Wiemers’s past? (35:47) 
  • What personally drives Wiemer? (38:27)
  • Wiemer’s advice to his younger self (39:58)
  • Who should we follow or take notice of? (40:50)
  • What does the future of marketing look like? (43:44) 

Alan B. Hart is the creator and host of “Marketing Today with Alan Hart,” a weekly podcast where he interviews leading global marketing professionals and business leaders. Alan advises leading executives and marketing teams on opportunities around brand, customer experience, innovation, and growth. He has consulted with Fortune 100 companies, but he is an entrepreneur at his core, having founded or served as an executive for nine startups.