Ed Thompson, with over 20 years of experience in Japan and APAC’s advertising industry, leads Concept Design. He drives multinational success through creative and innovative strategies that accelerate business growth.
1. (3:52) What are some of your most memorable achievements, and what strategies helped you reach them?
2. (11:09) How could you approach understanding client needs? Could you share a particularly memorable episode?
3. (17:14) Given the constant evolution in marketing, what trends or technologies have you been focusing on, and how do you see them impacting your business?
4. (28:08) What have you implemented to increase customer loyalty, and do you have any specific success stories?
5. (32:37) What are your business goals moving forward? Are there any new areas you’re excited to explore?
6. (45:522) What do you enjoy doing outside of work? Do your hobbies or interests influence your approach to business?
1. Ed manages his company while also teaching at various universities, referring to his teaching as a 'part-time’ labor of love. He has been instructing in the continuing education program at Temple University Japan (TUJ) for over 20 years, something which he says somewhat surprises him since he never expected that to be the case.
He continues to lecture at TUJ because it allows him to learn while interacting with others, and thereby gain wider viewpoints and develop deeper insights. That has proven invaluable alongside his work as a marketing consultant over the past few decades while directing his portfolio of accounts at Concept Design (https://conceptdesign.io/work).
2. He emphasizes the importance of using research-based approaches to accurately capture client needs. However, efforts to alignresearch findings as much as possible with the reality of the marketplace can lead to delays in achieving expected results.
It is critical to quickly identify any misalignment between client needs and market realities to make necessary adjustments.
5. Ed’s future business goals can be condensed into several key points.First, he is regularly engaged in collaborations and consultations on assignments with embassies and larger international companies. However, his upcoming focus is for next year’s upcoming Osaka Expo 2025 (https://conceptdesign.io/consulting). Additionally, he is committed to professional education and is exploring ways to disseminate information worldwide, leveraging his experience teaching at corporations and universities. Recently, he has spent time collecting content from the numerous personal training and coaching sessions he’s delivered with Concept Design / COACHING / (https://conceptdesign.io/coaching). This has led to launch of his new online learning platform called Concept Design / ACADEMY / (https://conceptdesign.io/academy-page).
When creating the academy, he initially prioritized marketing, but he further reflected on his own past experiences and path to success. He realized he needed to add topics covering career, management and organizational development to ensure participants can gain valuable insights regardless of their career stage.
6. He also mentioned that while discussing ideas with emerging startups, he will sometimes realize that his thinking may not align with upcoming trends. So he considers engaging with a wide variety of people to sustain creativity is a good approach.
He encourages those interested in their career advancement and marketing and to check out the Concept Design / ACADEMY / (https://academy.conceptdesign.io/).
Final Words from Ed.
He encourages those interested in their career advancement and marketing and to check out the Concept Design / ACADEMY / (https://academy.conceptdesign.io/).
He believes his academy can be a valuable resource for your career and work-related challenges. He also suggests you inquire with your companies about educational subsidies covering registration costs.
