CHRIS POWELL has some advice for clarifying the conflicting messages on climate change

Warren Buffett recently revealed that when he plays online bridge against Bill Gates, the founder of Microsoft assumes the nom de guerre of 'Challenger X'.1 Now we see Microsoft, after years of being a hugely successful product-led market leader,

Of the many challenges facing marketers, one of the most intractable is simply deciding where the marketing budget should be spent. How much should be spent on TV advertising versus online? Shouldn't more be spent on 'buzz' marketing?

You would be hardpressed to find better examples of companies which get this than Interface, the market leader in commercial floor coverings, shoe company Timberland and Stoneyfield Farm, the world's largest producer of organic yoghurt.

BACK IN 1955, starbursts were a sort of communications prophylactic. The Television Bill had been lengthily and fiercely debated: it was granted more Parliamentary time than any other Bill of the 20th century.

In 1841, Charles Mackay wrote his famous book, Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds, to describe various marketing phenomena.

Rather than challenge shareholder value (SHV), marketers have tried to adapt to it, with unfortunate consequences. SHV affects everything marketers do, striking to the heart of questions like:

Unfortunately, the value of brands, both in the consumer's mind as well as on the balance sheet, is not always reflected in the time and attention given by many companies' top management.

I don't suppose you remember William Kempe. He was very famous once. Between 11 February and 11 March 1600, he morris danced all the way from London to Norwich.

I bring both good news and bad. As far as the bad news goes, having worked through five recessions to date, I think that the current downturn is more than a sixth in the series.