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8 rules I live by as a Head of Brand & Marketing

Jack Willoughby wearing glasses, a black cap, and a beige fleece stands indoors holding a smartphone, on scene at a photoshoot for Xpert in his role as Head of Brand and Marketing, with a metal railing and straw in the background.

I used to think brand and marketing was mostly about good ideas, clever campaigns, and clean design. It’s not.


It’s discipline, simplicity, and choosing what not to do.


After years running brands, building Xpert as Head of Brand and Marketing, and carrying more plates than I’d ever admit publicly, these are the eight rules I keep coming back to. They guide how I lead, how I make decisions, and how I keep a business moving even when everything feels urgent.


These are the rules that actually matter.


1. Focus means eliminating


Most people think focus is about working harder on more things. It’s not. It’s the opposite.


Focus is the courage to delete

  • ideas

  • distractions

  • “nice to haves”

  • and anything that doesn’t push the brand forward.


Every time I cut something, the real priorities get sharper.

You don’t see progress by adding.

You see progress by removing.


2. Simplicity requires sacrifice


Simple is not easy.

Simple means something was deliberately taken away.


Most businesses want simplicity, but they don’t want the sacrifice required to earn it.


A simple message? Hard.

A clear brand? Hard.

A frictionless customer journey? Very hard.


Good brands feel effortless because someone behind the scenes sacrificed complexity so customers don’t have to.


3. Sacrifice is strategy


Strategy isn’t choosing everything you want.

Strategy is choosing what you’re willing to give up.


A real strategy says:

“We are doing this… which means we are not doing that.”


Every strong brand has a spine.Every weak brand tries to please everyone.


4. Always think ecosystem


Nothing in marketing exists on its own.


A campaign is only as strong as:

  • the website it points to

  • the product it promotes

  • the retail experience backing it

  • the story behind it

  • the content surrounding it

  • the consistency that holds it together


Good marketers think about assets.

Great marketers think about ecosystems.


5. The customer isn’t always right and they don’t always know what they want


Listening to customers matters. But following them blindly is how brands lose themselves.


Customers speak in symptoms, not solutions.

They tell you what they think they want… not what actually solves their problem.


Your job is translation:

Hear the words, understand the need, ignore the noise.


6. Control the whole experience


If you want a strong brand, you can’t just control the logo or the ads.

You need to own everything the customer touches.


  • Packaging

  • Store experience

  • Website

  • Social

  • Staff knowledge

  • After-sales

  • How you speak

  • How you show up


A brand is the sum of its moments.

Control the moments and you control the perception.


7. Stay true to your core values and your reason for being


Brands lose their way when they chase trends instead of purpose.


Your brand should be rooted in something real:

  • Why you exist

  • Who you’re for

  • What you won’t compromise

  • What you believe in


When you stay true to that, decisions get easier.When you drift, everything becomes confusing — for you and your audience.


8. Frameworks make action easier


People think frameworks slow you down.

They don’t. They remove guesswork.


The ones I rely on most:

Vision → Commitment → Execution

(Where are we going? What will it take? What are the actions?)


Reach → Act → Convert → Engage

(A clean way to map customer journeys and campaigns.)


Who’s it for? What do you want them to think? What do you want them to do?

(A simple gut-check before creating anything.)


Frameworks stop emotions from driving decisions.

They bring clarity when things get messy.

And in brand and marketing, things are always messy.


Final thought on the 8 rules I live by as a Head of Brand & Marketing


These rules aren’t perfect.

They just keep me grounded.


Brand and marketing can get complicated fast.

But when you cut the noise, simplify the work, and stay true to what matters, you end up building something people actually care about.


And that’s the whole point.



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