If you are in business, you are in the business of behaviour. In this introductory episode, you'll hear about some of the ways behavioural science can help address business challenges, and get introduced to some of the experts who you'll hear from in future episodes, including: - Rory Sutherland, vice-chair of Ogilvy UK and TED talk superstar, on how behavioural science delivers better, counter-intuitive solutions for business; - Kate Waters, director of client and strategy at ITV, on how...

Rory Sutherland is vice-chair of Ogilvy UK, a TED talk superstar (with talks amassing over 7 million views), author of the brilliant 'Alchemy: The Surprising Power of Ideas That Don't Make Sense' and all-round polymath. He's also one of the best lunch companions you could hope for.

Rory Sutherland is vice-chair of Ogilvy UK, a TED talk superstar (with talks amassing over 7 million views), author of the brilliant 'Alchemy: The Surprising Power of Ideas That Don't Make Sense' and all-round polymath. He's also one of the best lunch companions you could hope for.

In the movie 'The Martian', Matt Damon's NASA scientist "sciences the sh*t" out of problems to help him survive on Mars. Why don't we approach business problems - problems that require understanding and influencing human behaviour - in the same way? How can behavioural science be applied to help us find better solutions for business?

Science - behavioural or otherwise - requires experimentation for progress. A hypothesis, followed by observation, then a deduction. And repeat. Why don't businesses do this? What are the barriers to testing and learning in business, and how do we overcome them?

Ever been curious about why Google has an 'I'm Feeling Lucky' button? Why does so much other technology fail the 'human test'? How did Facebook, Amazon, Netflix and Google come to be worth over $2,500 billion? And how does Netflix always know what we want to watch next?

What happens when we delegate decisions to an algorithm? How does a machine know when a customer is angry? If robots operate on logic, how do they deal with human behaviour that is frequently irrational, illogical or unpredictable?

Ever since the industrial revolution, we've been using machines to do things more efficiently than humans. But we know humans are biased - so what happens when those biases are simply employed more efficiently by a machine, or becomes part of an algorithm than runs it?

Tottenham and England footballer Harry Kane is a global superstar - but as young player he was rejected three times by scouts (including by Tottenham), and nearly quit football altogether. In business, successful recruiting is also notoriously difficult - around two-thirds of all hires are unsuccessful.

You may have a picture in your mind of your 'typical' customer - but, in reality, that person probably doesn't exist. And, when you do speak to your real-life customers, what they tell you about why they buy your products or services (or don't) is likely only 50% of the story.

Why is going to a foreign supermarket so confusing? Why did the very first car ads not feature a car? And whatever happened to Douglas, the animated trombonist from the Lurpak ads? Some brands are instantly noticeable, recognisable, familiar, and reassuring - and others are not.

John Wanamaker famously said "Half of all my advertising spend is wasted - the problem is I don't know which half." 75% of all viewable online ads are totally ignored by consumers. How do make sure that the brands we create are noticed, remembered, and (most importantly) bought?

The Behaviour Business Episode 18 - Branding That Means Business