Person

Principles

Problems

Perspicacity

Viktor Frankl’s “Man’s Search for Meaning” offers profound guidance for business owners feeling overwhelmed by today’s relentless news cycle, reminding us that survival often depends on having something meaningful to work toward rather than comfortable circumstances.

Steve shares practical questions for creating AI language guides that capture your genuine voice instead of corporate cardboard, while David emphasises why getting the human connection right matters more than perfect features and benefits.

A hilariously transparent fake award email reveals the growing cottage industry of manufactured credibility, prompting our hosts to consider launching their own award scheme (naturally at better value than the competition).

A classic Yellow Pages advertisement featuring an unfortunate trouser malfunction raises the eternal question: would this still work today, or have we lost our collective sense of humour about universal human embarrassments?

Get ready to take notes.

Talking About Marketing podcast episode notes with timecodes

01:15 Person This segment focusses on you, the person, because we believe business is personal.
Finding Meaning Beyond the Marketing Noise

Steve returns from the South Australian Variety Bash with a profound observation about digital overwhelm, particularly the “plastic individuals spouting self-congratulatory stuff written by ChatGPT” that populate LinkedIn. His remedy draws from Viktor Frankl’s experiences in Nazi concentration camps, where survival often came down to having something meaningful to live for rather than just comfortable conditions.

Frankl’s insight that “those prisoners were most likely to survive who had a meaning orientation toward the future” offers surprisingly relevant guidance for business owners feeling crushed by current events and marketing pressures. David reinforces this with Frankl’s three sources of meaning: love, work, and how we face suffering. The key insight for business owners struggling with direction? Having something greater than yourself to work toward provides resilience that no amount of tactical marketing advice can match.

The conversation moves from Frankl’s flying analogy about aiming higher than your target to compensate for crosswinds, suggesting that noble ideals serve a similar purpose in business: they keep us moving in the right direction even when external forces try to blow us off course.

11:30 Principles This segment focusses principles you can apply in your business today.
Teaching AI to Sound Like You (Instead of a Corporate Robot)

Moving from philosophical foundations to practical application, Steve introduces a comprehensive questioning framework designed to help AI tools capture your genuine voice rather than defaulting to generic business-speak. The challenge: most website copy sounds nothing like the engaging humans who run the businesses.

The question series begins with vision and dreams (“What does success look like to you, not just financially but personally and emotionally?”), moves through passion and values (“Why does your business exist beyond just making money?”), and progresses to origin stories and audience connection. David notes how these questions mirror Viktor Frankl’s approach to finding meaning, emphasising that emotional investment in your work creates the connection that differentiates you from anonymous competitors.

The hosts stress that while features and benefits matter, they work best when anchored in deeper context about why your business exists. David’s insight about HubSpot’s early community-first approach reinforces this: “Having a product without a community is terrifying. Having a community who are already listening to you… when you offer them a product, the chances of them saying yes is much higher.”

26:45 Problems This segment answers questions we've received from clients or listeners.
The Great Awards Swindle

Steve shares a magnificently transparent scam email from “Charlotte Green” at Food Business Review, offering Barista Door Coffee (his wound-down hobby business) the “prestigious” title of “top espresso coffee bean service” for the bargain price of $3,000 USD. The email’s shameless construction provides a masterclass in manufactured credibility.

David’s reaction cuts to the heart of the issue: “How dare they make claims about building credibility when the whole thing is absolute bullshit.” The hosts examine how these fake awards create a credibility arms race, where legitimate achievements get devalued by the proliferation of purchased recognition.

The conversation explores the broader implications for genuine business awards and media coverage, questioning how many “Adelaide’s top 10” stories actually involve financial transactions. With characteristic cheekiness, they consider launching their own “Australasian Small Business Award” at better value than the competition, highlighting how easy it would be to join this particular race to the bottom.

33:00 Perspicacity This segment is designed to sharpen our thinking by reflecting on a case study from the past.
Would a Man Fixing His Fly Still Sell Yellow Pages?

In a delightfully unexpected turn, the hosts examine a 1990s Yellow Pages advertisement featuring a man attempting to fix his undone fly using a building’s window as a mirror, unaware that office workers inside are watching his apparent public display. Steve’s confession that he may have accidentally recreated this scenario recently adds personal relevance to the discussion.

David hopes the advertisement would still work today because “it’s a human thing” rather than something designed to cause deliberate harm. The hosts conclude that universal human experiences, particularly embarrassing ones we can all relate to, retain their advertising power regardless of changing sensitivities.

This segment reinforces a recurring theme: marketing that connects with genuine human experience tends to outlast tactical approaches or manufactured controversy.

Viktor Frankl&rsquo;s &ldquo;Man&rsquo;s Search for Meaning&rdquo; offers profound guidance for business owners feeling overwhelmed by today&rsquo;s relentless news cycle, reminding us that survival often depends on having something meaningful to work toward rather than comfortable circumstances.
Steve shares practical questions for creating AI language guides that capture your genuine voice instead of corporate cardboard, while David emphasises why getting the human connection right matters more than perfect features and benefits.
A hilariously transparent fake award email reveals the growing cottage industry of manufactured credibility, prompting our hosts to consider launching their own award scheme (naturally at better value than the competition).
A classic Yellow Pages advertisement featuring an unfortunate trouser malfunction raises the eternal question: would this still work today, or have we lost our collective sense of humour about universal human embarrassments?
Get ready to take notes.
Talking About Marketing&nbsp;podcast episode notes with timecodes
01:15 Person&nbsp;This segment focusses on you, the person, because we believe business is personal. Finding Meaning Beyond the Marketing Noise
Steve returns from the&nbsp;<a href="https://car13.com.au/">South Australian Variety Bash</a>&nbsp;with a profound observation about digital overwhelm, particularly the &ldquo;plastic individuals spouting self-congratulatory stuff written by ChatGPT&rdquo; that populate LinkedIn. His remedy draws from Viktor Frankl&rsquo;s experiences in Nazi concentration camps, where survival often came down to having something meaningful to live for rather than just comfortable conditions.
Frankl&rsquo;s insight that &ldquo;those prisoners were most likely to survive who had a meaning orientation toward the future&rdquo; offers surprisingly relevant guidance for business owners feeling crushed by current events and marketing pressures. David reinforces this with Frankl&rsquo;s three sources of meaning: love, work, and how we face suffering. The key insight for business owners struggling with direction? Having something greater than yourself to work toward provides resilience that no amount of tactical marketing advice can match.
The conversation moves from Frankl&rsquo;s flying analogy about aiming higher than your target to compensate for crosswinds, suggesting that noble ideals serve a similar purpose in business: they keep us moving in the right direction even when external forces try to blow us off course.
11:30 Principles This segment focusses principles you can apply in your business today. Teaching AI to Sound Like You (Instead of a Corporate Robot)
Moving from philosophical foundations to practical application, Steve introduces a comprehensive questioning framework designed to help AI tools capture your genuine voice rather than defaulting to generic business-speak. The challenge: most website copy sounds nothing like the engaging humans who run the businesses.
The question series begins with vision and dreams (&ldquo;What does success look like to you, not just financially but personally and emotionally?&rdquo;), moves through passion and values (&ldquo;Why does your business exist beyond just making money?&rdquo;), and progresses to origin stories and audience connection. David notes how these questions mirror Viktor Frankl&rsquo;s approach to finding meaning, emphasising that emotional investment in your work creates the connection that differentiates you from anonymous competitors.
The hosts stress that while features and benefits matter, they work best when anchored in deeper context about why your business exists. David&rsquo;s insight about HubSpot&rsquo;s early community-first approach reinforces this: &ldquo;Having a product without a community is terrifying. Having a community who are already listening to you&hellip; when you offer them a product, the chances of them saying yes is much higher.&rdquo;
26:45 Problems This segment answers questions we've received from clients or listeners. The Great Awards Swindle
Steve shares a magnificently transparent scam email from &ldquo;Charlotte Green&rdquo; at Food Business Review, offering Barista Door Coffee (his wound-down hobby business) the &ldquo;prestigious&rdquo; title of &ldquo;top espresso coffee bean service&rdquo; for the bargain price of $3,000 USD. The email&rsquo;s shameless construction provides a masterclass in manufactured credibility.
David&rsquo;s reaction cuts to the heart of the issue: &ldquo;How dare they make claims about building credibility when the whole thing is absolute bullshit.&rdquo; The hosts examine how these fake awards create a credibility arms race, where legitimate achievements get devalued by the proliferation of purchased recognition.
The conversation explores the broader implications for genuine business awards and media coverage, questioning how many &ldquo;Adelaide&rsquo;s top 10&rdquo; stories actually involve financial transactions. With characteristic cheekiness, they consider launching their own &ldquo;Australasian Small Business Award&rdquo; at better value than the competition, highlighting how easy it would be to join this particular race to the bottom.
33:00 Perspicacity This segment is designed to sharpen our thinking by reflecting on a case study from the past. Would a Man Fixing His Fly Still Sell Yellow Pages?
In a delightfully unexpected turn, the hosts examine a 1990s Yellow Pages advertisement featuring a man attempting to fix his undone fly using a building&rsquo;s window as a mirror, unaware that office workers inside are watching his apparent public display. Steve&rsquo;s confession that he may have accidentally recreated this scenario recently adds personal relevance to the discussion.
David hopes the advertisement would still work today because &ldquo;it&rsquo;s a human thing&rdquo; rather than something designed to cause deliberate harm. The hosts conclude that universal human experiences, particularly embarrassing ones we can all relate to, retain their advertising power regardless of changing sensitivities.
This segment reinforces a recurring theme: marketing that connects with genuine human experience tends to outlast tactical approaches or manufactured controversy.

Talking About Marketing is a podcast for you to help you thrive in your role as a business owner and/or leader. It's produced by the Talked About Marketing team of Steve Davis and David Olney, with artwork by Casey Cumming. Each marketing podcast episode tips its hat to Philip Kotler's famous "4 Ps of Marketing" (Product, Price, Place, Promotion), by honouring our own 4 Ps of Podcasting; Person, Principles, Problems, and Perspicacity. Person. The aim of life is self-development. To realise one's nature perfectly-that is what each of us is here for. - Oscar Wilde Principles. You can never be overdressed or overeducated. - Oscar Wilde Problems. “I asked the question for the best reason possible, for the only reason, indeed, that excuses anyone for asking any question - simple curiosity. - Oscar Wilde Perspicacity. The one duty we owe to history is to rewrite it. - Oscar Wilde Apart from our love of words, we really love helping people, so we hope this podcast will become a trusted companion for you on your journey in business. We welcome your comments and feedback via podcast@talkedaboutmarketing.com

Talking About Marketing is a podcast for you to help you thrive in your role as a business owner and/or leader. It's produced by the Talked About Marketing team of Steve Davis and David Olney, with artwork by Casey Cumming. Each marketing podcast episode tips its hat to Philip Kotler's famous "4 Ps of Marketing" (Product, Price, Place, Promotion), by honouring our own 4 Ps of Podcasting; Person, Principles, Problems, and Perspicacity. Person. The aim of life is self-development. To realise one's nature perfectly-that is what each of us is here for. - Oscar Wilde Principles. You can never be overdressed or overeducated. - Oscar Wilde Problems. “I asked the question for the best reason possible, for the only reason, indeed, that excuses anyone for asking any question - simple curiosity. - Oscar Wilde Perspicacity. The one duty we owe to history is to rewrite it. - Oscar Wilde Apart from our love of words, we really love helping people, so we hope this podcast will become a trusted companion for you on your journey in business. We welcome your comments and feedback via podcast@talkedaboutmarketing.com

The only thing worse than being talked about, is not being talked about...

Talking About Marketing

Talking About Marketing is a podcast for you to help you thrive in your role as a business owner and/or leader. It's produced by the Talked About Marketing team of Steve Davis and David Olney, with editing by Tim Whiffen. Artwork by Casey Cumming.

Each marketing podcast episode tips its hat to Philip Kotler's famous "4 Ps of Marketing" (Product, Price, Place, Promotion), by honouring our own 4 Ps of Podcasting; Person, Principles, Problems, and Perspicacity.
Person. The aim of life is self-development. To realise one's nature perfectly-that is what each of us is here for. - Oscar Wilde
Principles. You can never be overdressed or overeducated. - Oscar Wilde
Problems. “I asked the question for the best reason possible, for the only reason, indeed, that excuses anyone for asking any question - simple curiosity. - Oscar Wilde
Perspicacity. The one duty we owe to history is to rewrite it. - Oscar Wilde

Apart from our love of words, we really love helping people, so we hope this podcast will become a trusted companion for you on your journey in business.

We welcome your comments and feedback via podcast@talkedaboutmarketing.com

<a href="https://talkedaboutmarketing.com/podcast/">Talking About Marketing</a> is a podcast for you to help you thrive in your role as a business owner and/or leader. It's produced by the Talked About Marketing team of Steve Davis and David Olney, with editing by Tim Whiffen. Artwork by Casey Cumming.
Each marketing podcast episode tips its hat to Philip Kotler's famous "4 Ps of Marketing" (Product, Price, Place, Promotion), by honouring our own 4 Ps of Podcasting; Person, Principles, Problems, and Perspicacity.
<ol>
<li>Person. The aim of life is self-development. To realise one's nature perfectly-that is what each of us is here for. - Oscar Wilde</li>
<li>Principles. You can never be overdressed or overeducated. - Oscar Wilde</li>
<li>Problems. “I asked the question for the best reason possible, for the only reason, indeed, that excuses anyone for asking any question - simple curiosity. - Oscar Wilde</li>
<li>Perspicacity. The one duty we owe to history is to rewrite it. - Oscar Wilde</li>
</ol>
Apart from our love of words, we really love helping people, so we hope this podcast will become a trusted companion for you on your journey in business.
We welcome your comments and feedback via <a href="mailto:podcast@talkedaboutmarketing.com">podcast@talkedaboutmarketing.com</a>

From Viktor Frankl’s concentration camp wisdom to AI style guides that actually sound human, Steve and David explore why finding meaning beats chasing metrics, whether fake awards fool anyone, and why a man adjusting his fly in public might still make great advertising.