Why the best advertising doesn't try to sell you anything.

I just finished reading ‘Obliquity’ by John Kay, and it perfectly explains why most marketers struggle with brand building. 

The core idea is simple:

Our most important goals are best achieved indirectly.

Take mental availability. Instead of chasing immediate clicks and conversions, the smartest brands focus on building memories. These memories work obliquely. They increase the chances your brand gets thought of when buyers are actually ready to buy.

That's why creativity isn't just decoration. It's the ultimate indirect tool for achieving sales.

But here's the problem: Direct approaches feel more controllable. ROI dashboards, performance metrics, conversion tracking all give us the illusion we're solving the right problems.

As Kay puts it. "The computer is very good at solving the problem we have specified, but less useful when we are not quite sure what the problem is."

Buyer behaviour is messy. Emotional. Contextual. Full of experiences and need-states that evolve over time. Yet we keep trying to force direct solutions onto indirect problems.

Digital advertising has only made this worse. We've been seduced by short-term signals and the promise of direct response. Forgetting that brand building works best when it works sideways. 

As Picasso said, "Art is a lie that makes us realise the truth."

So stop chasing the straight line.

You’ll get More BANG for your brand by thinking obliquely.

Matt Arbon is Creative Partner and Co-Founder at ScienceFiction.