Faris Yakob, Author at MediaCat

Faris Yakob

author and co-founder at Genius Steals

Faris Yakob is the co-founder (with his wife Rosie) of the nomadic creative consultancy Genius Steals and the online learning community The School of Stolen Genius. They have been working with brands, agencies of all disciplines and sizes, media companies and conferences around the world for the last decade, delivering keynotes, workshops, training and brand and business consulting.Their newsletter, Strands of [Stolen] Genius, was named one of the ‘7 Essential Reads for the Curious Creative’ by Hubspot and one of the top community resources for strategists in the world by the Planning Survey.Previously, he was Chief Innovation Officer of MDC Partners, Chief Digital Officer of McCann Erickson (NYC) and spent many years at pioneering communication strategy agency Naked, in London, Sydney and NYC. While in agencies, he won (as both a strategist and a creative director) and judged numerous awards, including the Effies, One Show, ADC, Clios and LIAs.Faris Yakob is the author Paid Attention: Innovative Advertising for a Digital World which was published in an updated second edition by Kogan Page in 2021 and is a contributing author to Creative Superpowers: Equip Yourself For The Age of Creativity, & Eat Your Greens: Fact Based Thinking to Improve Your Brand’s Health.

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The sound of brands

How do brands and their advertising work for people who can’t see?... 11.12.2024

Subject to seasonality

Do you do what everyone else in the category does or not? ... 28.10.2024

The hipster economy

'Even the biggest brands will be able to choose artisanal advertising'... 06.09.2024

The business of art is fame

... to create a brand that people think is worth buying... 23.07.2024

No truth without trust

'This year will see the largest amount of money ever deployed into political advertising'... 18.06.2024

A funny thing happened on the way to a Netflix show

'Satire has been in a tough spot conceptually since about 2016'... 06.03.2024

The balance of brands

Musings on strategy, balance, and the equilibria of 'correct' decisions... 13.09.2023

Survival of the ‘Fit for Purpose’

An economy built around efficiency is, by definition, not resilient... 09.08.2023

Legacy is a penis word

Part of the stain of patriarchy is the elision of women’s contribution to advertising... 12.05.2023

Optimism is a necessary delusion

'A brighter future can’t be built entirely in the fantasies of the past', writes Faris... 13.02.2023

How to develop risk competence

From Berlin playgrounds to edgy fashion brands, this month Faris Yakob writes about managing risk... 12.12.2022

The detour becomes the path

'There's a great sense of freedom to indulging in a side quest, flipping the bird to the culture of ... 22.11.2022

The age of wisdom

By way of Aristotle, Socrates and others, author Faris Yakob muses on the concepts of age and wisdom... 17.10.2022

Path of the rogue

Scoundrels use their power opportunistically, whereas rogues challenge the status quo, writes Faris ... 04.10.2022

Tribal gatherings

As internet culture becomes dominant and technology atomises us, where do we find our tribes?... 13.09.2022

Blurred lives

We might be different around different people but for brands, identity must be consistent, says Fari... 01.09.2022

Paul Feldwick and Faris Yakob on the nature of fame and attention

We ask authors Paul and Faris how important fame is today and then watch their brains work... 16.06.2022

Face the strange

Genius Steals' Faris Yakob says it's hard to face the strange... clients say 'give me something that... 12.05.2022

How iProspect ran Capri-Sun’s biggest DOOH campaign to date

How VCCP made an anti-scammer AI granny for O2

Can a brand safety and performance mindset co-exist in 2025?

Don’t overthink economic factors — capitalise on consumer spending

We’re hiring a reporter

Revisiting EssenceMediacom’s 2024 media predictions

Reddit leapfrogs X in UK social media rankings

Diamond industry calls for urgent marketing revival

2025 media trends, with dentsu and iProspect

Tom Gent on creating standout multi-platform video content

Talking regenerative brand design with Bob Sheard

Simon Akers and Jaz Poke on neurodiversity in media

Spotify playlists for brands: more than just tunes

Why creativity matters more than ever in digital advertising

Low stakes and new intimacies: social media in 2025

How do ad lengths impact attention?

Faris Yakob

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