Marketing

I have seen ‘brand’ referred to as if it were something to rank alongside production, supply chain and capital; a part of doing business rather than something reflective of how people remember their interaction with a brand. But to do so diverts attention from the importance to shaping and framing those memories to best effect.  by Nigel Hollis

Many global brands are facing the inescapable fact that it is a particularly tricky time to be in the consumer goods business. Following decades of solid and dependable growth, the future started getting hazy in 2012. That is when, despite steadily rising global demand, a series of events began taking a toll on large consumer products companies’ revenues and profits.  By Matthew Meacham, François Faelli, Eduardo Giménez and John Blasberg

Sir Martin Sorrell, the industry’s most prominent agency spokesman, now has the difficult job of explaining, on behalf of WPP and of the industry in general, why revenue growth has been so difficult to achieve and what can be done about it.  Since its peak in 2015, WPP shares have fallen 28% in value.  In the main, Sorrell points his finger at “major customers, who are holding back ad spending to cut costs, and the long-term impact of technological disruption and the short-term focus of zero-based budgeters, activist investors and private equity.” By Michael Farmer
 

Transparency is a big word for an important idea, but I’m curious if it will actually have an impact on the advertising business. If you casually peruse articles about advertising published in the last few years, you’ll see a steady increase in the volume of people talking about transparency, but if you dive one layer deeper, you’ll find it’s still just talk — not a business practice for most companies.

You’ve seen the growth numbers. You’ve seen the purchasing power. You’ve seen the large multicultural successes in 2017 such as Coco. And you’ve been hearing it for years now. You know you have to start tapping into the multicultural market for the future of your brand or business. So what’s stopping you?

I recently proposed to a group of CMOs that short versus long-term was a meaningless distinction and that successful marketing is requires building and triggering memories across the buying cycle so that people are predisposed to buy your brand and pay the price asked. Here’s why.  by Nigel Hollis

The simultaneous use of second-screen devices—smartphones, tablets and desktops/laptops—while watching TV has increased year to year and will continue through at least 2019.  However, 2018 will be the first year in eMarketer’s forecast in which the use of desktops/laptops in this context declines.

We’re moving from a time of scarcity to an era of abundance, experiencing megatrends that are changing commerce, transportation, and healthcare: connected consumers, on-demand services, internet-enabled connection and commerce.  So why do people wring their hands and get so worked up about the future of media? As it turns out, scarcity was perhaps the one thing that made media relevant, reliable, and even resilient.

Marketing is not fully represented by the career-stressed Chief Marketing Officer.  Marketing is not the digital/social specialist or the advertising manager.  Marketing is not the head of promotions or the brand manager.  Marketing is the network of corporate executives, loosely connected by money, expertise and objectives to achieve improvements in shareholder value, presumably from higher product growth rates.  Marketing is the CMO, the heads of Business Profit Centers, the head of Indirect Procurement, the CFO, the CEO and their media, creative and other ad agencies.  By Michael Farmer

Blasted with a constant firehose of information every single day, consumers are trying to filter the noise more efficiently than ever. If you know anything about System 1 thinking, you know just how automatic it is for the brain to tune out what’s irrelevant.

Some 70% of US agency and brand marketers said they “agree” or “strongly agree” that influencer marketing budgets will increase in 2018.

In many countries, consumer sentiment has improved since 2015. Consumers have become more bullish about their ability to spend.

In the latest episode of “Behind the Numbers,” eMarketer’s demographics analyst, Mark Dolliver, and resident millennial Connor Anovick chat about millennials—and how digital behavior varies among younger and older ones.

How many of you are purely digital marketers?  How many of you have ever tried direct mail?  

The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) released research that shows how consumers are creating their own “personal prime times”—points of highly concentrated engagement throughout the day, which offer valuable advertising opportunities across a range of content verticals and digital screens.

For a decade, emerging markets have ignited the global economy, contributing more than 80% to its economic expansion. Today, these markets consistently perform a remarkable three to four times better than their developed market counterparts in the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry.

In the latest episode of eMarketer’s “Behind the Numbers” podcast, analysts Debra Aho Williamson and Nicole Perrin dig into influencer marketing: How influential is it, really? And are marketers taking the opportunities (and the risks) seriously?

Brands might be more self-aware than you think. Some 40% admit personalization is creepy—at least according to a December 2017 survey from InMoment, a customer experience provider.

More than nearly any other fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector, the beauty industry is guided by trends. And over the last few years, multiple trends have emerged with the promise that they will redefine the future of beauty. From balayage to activated charcoal, it seems like the next big thing can come from just about anywhere. And while that’s more true than ever, how are you supposed to know when something really is a thing, and when it’s just a flash in the pan?

Recent industry surveys suggest that more than half of marketers are considering switching advertising agencies. In the perfect world, a marketing team and its agency (or agencies) provide mutual value in a long, healthy, fruitful relationship. By Marcos M. Sanchez – Managing Partner – Princeton10, LLP