Interview with Dominic Grounsell, More Th>n

What’s the smartest business idea you’ve ever had?
Realised… I made the BT Home Hub the icon of the BT Total Broadband proposition. Featuring this device so prominently in all marketing activity helped to transform the BT proposition from being a communised broadband signal coming though the pipe in the wall into something differentiated, tangible and valuable in the eyes of consumers.

Unrealised…. I had an idea at university that was somewhere between Trip Advisor and Yahoo! Answers. Unfortunately, I didn’t have the money to make it happen!

What was your biggest failure and what did you learn from it?
When I was leading the UK relaunch of Lux, I created an opulent, immersive brand experience campaign that toured the country for three months. This was a great piece of activation for the relatively small number of people who went through it, but it was also very expensive and left me little money for mass awareness and sampling activity. The strategy looked great from a creative marketing point of view, but it ended up adversely impacting the brand’s ability to drive trial and gain momentum.

It taught me that it’s critical to reach as many people as possible, as quickly as possible when dealing with new brands or products. Breadth shouldn’t be compromised for depth at launch. It also reaffirmed how critical it is to establish your functional benefit in the minds of customers. This is your rationale for being in the market in the first place and the foundation on which you can build an emotional bond with the consumer.

What’s your proudest achievement?
Winning The Marketing Society’s UK Young Marketer of the Year award.

If you could edit your past, what would you change?
I tried my hand at stand up comedy once… It did not go well.

What’s your worst habit?
I have slight OCD about plugs. I don’t like them being left in ‘unnecessarily’ and so I’m always pulling them out…

Who would you invite to your dream dinner party?
Bill Hicks, Megan Fox, Cindy Crawford, Eddie Izzard, Paul Oakenfold, Heston Blumenthal

What keeps you awake at night?
Worrying about the endless amount of renovation that’s needed in my new house

What books are on your bedside table?
Seeing Further: The Story of Science and the Royal Society, Bill Bryson; Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell and Myths & Legends of Ancient Greece & Rome, E.M. Berens

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