Clearly there are more important issues than marketing to consider when thinking about Scottish independence, but being up in Scotland on business in the days before the referendum led me to think about what a yes vote for independence might mean for brands that use aspects of Britishness to define their appeal. Ones that come to mind include Burberry, Lambs Navy Rum, Hovis, Mini and BA which, since the days of ‘the world’s favourite airline’, has had an assocation with national pride in international success. What would a ‘yes’ vote for Scottish independence mean for these avowedly British brands? If Britain no longer includes Scotland, what will ‘Britishness’ signify to the Scots? If a vote for independence is a vote for disassociation from ‘British’ values in favour of distinctively Scottish values, does that deposition British brands and put them at a disadvantage when targetting the Scots? And will it change what Britishness means to the English, Irish and Welsh? Might ‘British’ values effectively become a synonym for English, leading to a lack of relevance in the rest of the UK?

I’d argue that it’s not hard to think of attributes that are distinctively Scottish rather than British: proud, rebellious, dour, wry, frugal, etc. It’s harder to think of attributes that are distinctively British rather than English. And if British brands become merely English, that may narrow their appeal.

And if brands can't trade on Britishness any more, never again will we see genius like this, which would be a shame:

Mind you, it's not hard to imagine Irn Bru running a campaign along similar lines to the one above if Scotland were to vote yes for independence: "I'm Joe Broon and I drink Irn Bru! Come and get me, ye auld Etonians!" Smart Scots brands will no doubt be hoping and planning to tap into the popular mood, whichever way the vote goes.

Over the past week, you may be forgiven for thinking Dave Gorman is stalking you. He’s been popping up outdoors, on screens and in the press, telling you in not-so-subtle ways to watch the second series of his new show, Modern Life is Goodish. And he’s rather spot-on in his targeting, isn’t he? 

UKTV briefed us to create a campaign to promote his new TV series, starting on Dave at 10pm tonight. Together, we wanted to challenge the norm in marketing just like the witty comic challenges the norm in his critically acclaimed show.

From popping up in your Facebook feeds and honing in on your Twitter chat, to disrupting the tried and true grid system of a magazine layout just because he can, the comedian is reaching new and existing fans by exposing the quirks of ad placement and social media targeting.  

Taking cues from the series, which points out life’s absurdities by making viewers think twice about the humour in everyday moments, the print, digital and OOH campaign pokes fun at the smoke and mirrors techniques used in advertising.

On Facebook, Dave highlights the eerily specific targeted ads that pop up on users’ newsfeeds. Promoted ads address users with playful graphics mirroring their own profiles, speaking directly to curiously specific groups including Scottish men interested in cooking and frequent travellers interested in home appliances.  

On Twitter, Dave is spooking twitter users by tweeting images directly at users based on the keywords they use. 

And online, he’s exposing the elaborate labels digital ad targeting applies to us. Energetic optimist? Sure. We'll take that one. 

Keep an eye out for more of Dave Gorman interrupting your thoroughly modern life, and make sure to tune in for the first episode of Dave Gorman: Modern Life is Goodish tonight on Dave at 10pm.