Embracing Marketing Mistakes

Joining the conversation today is Richard Noble, Head of European Public Relations at Audible. With years of experience managing brand reputation and navigating high-pressure PR situations, Richard understands how quickly things can go wrong when communication within a company breaks down. Today, he shares a story that highlights just how chaotic things can get, complete with a touch of Australian absurdity.
A hilarious and cautionary tale about a PR disaster at Samsung Australia when two water buffaloes escaped during an unauthorised photoshoot in Sydney. The local PR team only discovered their company's activities when a journalist called asking about the animals that were now charging through Newtown's busy streets.
 • Samsung's global team arranged a photoshoot with water buffaloes in Sydney without informing the Australian office
 • The PR representative learned about the incident from a journalist while watching helicopter footage of the escape on live TV
 • The crew members reportedly fled the scene in a golf buggy
 • Fire brigade eventually cornered the buffaloes in someone's backyard
 • Despite the chaos, no one was hurt in the incident
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A hundred stories in, and the sharpest truths are hiding inside the worst moments. We mark our rather large milestone with a definitive countdown of six unforgettable marketing screw-ups.

From an automation update that unleashed 450,000 emails on VIPs in under an hour to a six-figure exhibition stand misspelling “software,” we explore what really fails in campaigns: governance, proofing, and the quiet processes no one posts on LinkedIn.

We also pull back the curtain on the risks of live media. PR veteran Greg Matusky relives a national TV interview that swerved into “walking away from the devil,” then explains why controlled transparency can neutralise future scandal. 

Then there’s the money. Futurist Tom Goodwin breaks down a £15m launch that drove 37 downloads, a painful lesson in TAM realism, conversion friction and the false comfort of a spreadsheet. We talk common-sense planning, incrementality testing, and why some search spend is just paying for credit you didn’t earn. Topping the list is a war-zone media scrum where a shaved head and a beard still added up to “David Cameron.” What followed was a masterclass in crisis poise: clear lines, steady voice, and a quick call under impossible pressure.

If our top six resonate, follow the show, share it with a teammate who’s firefighting this week, and leave us a review with the lesson you’ll apply first.

And if you’ve got a mistake worth learning from, email [email protected], we always love to hear them.
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Let me introduce you to Ann Wright, a journalist, BBC producer and PRCA-approved media trainer with years of experience behind some of the UK’s biggest live events and investigations. She’s had an impressive career, but not without a few wild turns and difficult lessons along the way.
While working on "UK's Worst Hair Disasters", Ann went undercover at a Norfolk salon with secret cameras to expose their terrible braiding service. What she uncovered was shocking: staff openly smoking marijuana and drinking whisky while working.
• She spent eight hours in the salon chair receiving ginger-coloured braids for her brown hair
 • The stylists ran out of hair during the process and had to send someone to another salon to get more
 • Extensions were sealed with cigarette lighters instead of proper tools
 • She developed painful blisters from the poorly installed braids
 • She had to sleep with the extensions in overnight before having them professionally assessed
 • The salon eventually shut down after the investigation aired
Another mistake in her career came when she agreed to a Huffington Post interview about producing royal weddings for the BBC without getting the proper approval. The article was never published, but BBC management were furious. That decision effectively ended her working relationship with them for good.
Ann’s story is one of bold journalism, unforgettable undercover work and the reality that even experienced professionals can find themselves in difficult situations.
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In this episode, we’re joined by Rachel Massey, Director of Marketing at Huthwaite International. She talks us through one of the most stressful moments of her career and what it was like to deal with it in real time.
We dig into a cringe-worthy marketing mistake involving a high-profile exhibition stand with "sofware" misspelled across the entire structure, leading to three days of anxiety while hiding the error from company executives and thousands of visitors.
• Six-figure exhibition stand at Excel London featured a prominent spelling mistake that went unnoticed by everyone except a competitor
 • Decision to avoid drawing attention to the typo rather than attempting a last-minute correction
 • Psychological impact of spending three full days at an exhibition expecting to be called out at any moment
 • Revelation that many people don't notice spelling errors in familiar words because our brains fill in what we expect to see
 • Additional stories of marketing mishaps including press release errors and mass mailings with embarrassing typos
 • The universal experience of having to sometimes employ the "ostrich approach" when mistakes can't be fixed
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She went globally viral. Overnight, she faced death threats, abuse and media frenzy reaching across continents. This is the story of how PRCA CEO Sarah Waddington rebuilt, refocused and reshaped the PR industry in the middle of chaos.
In this episode of Embracing Marketing Mistakes, Sarah Waddington CBE breaks down the viral moment that changed her life, the hidden pressures of PR leadership and the uncomfortable truths about misinformation, trolls and industry standards.
We cover her journey into strategic advisory, the fight against fake experts, the realities of agency life in a tough economy and the role PR must play in repairing a fractured society.
Whether you’re a PR leader, agency founder or senior marketer, this is essential listening.
Is your strategy still right in 2026? Book a free 15-min no obligation discovery call with our host: 👉 [Book your call with Chris now] 👈

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