Once upon a time it was easy buying products.

We’re talking 150 years ago here. You went to the guy who sold soap. Maybe he had a shop. You bought the soap off the guy. If he was a nice chap, then even better. Product and seller bound up in a small but pleasant experience.

Then brands came along. Layers of veneer were added – emotional benefits, empty promises and, in the case of TV advertising, metaphorical journeys that attached all sorts of mystical significance to what was, most likely, still a bar of soap.

What I find really interesting, exciting and energizing about the marketing landscape today is that these layers of artifice are being stripped away. You can’t get away with bullshit any more. If people want to find out more about a brand, they can go online and see if the reality and behaviour of the brand lives up to the message.