Marketing
Inflation? Brands need empathy and consumer understanding
Inflation worries consumers because their income won’t buy as much. It worries businesses because it squeezes their margins. The first thing to recognize is that brands cannot promote their way out of trouble. Starting a price war erodes margins faster, re-educates consumers about where the price point should be in a category, and immediately destroys value.
Retail Spending Continues as Spending on Activities Rises
U.S. consumers have started to spend on in-person experiences again, but the pull-back on general merchandise retail spending that is expected to coincide with it has not played out. At least, not yet. Experiential spending reached 91% of 2019 levels, as of the end of 2021, but general merchandise retail spending remained elevated 19% above pre-pandemic levels, according to The NPD Group. Some diminished demand has been evident, with retail unit sales declining in nine of the first ten weeks of 2022, when compared to last year. However, revenue rose in excess of 5% in four of the same ten weeks.
The Immigrant Archive Project collects the stories of coming to call the U.S. home [PODCAST]
The Immigrant Archive Project, a collection of oral histories from the nation's immigrants, will be housed at the Library of Congress. NPR's Debbie Elliott speaks to archive founder Tony Hernandez.
The U.S Ad Industry Stages a Remarkable Comeback from Covid-19
Lockdowns during the height of the pandemic were devastating to the U.S. ad industry, as they were for the economy and society as a whole. But advertising has made a remarkable recovery with growth now nearly in line with spend projections from before the emergence of Covid-19.
The CMO Survey: The latest results [REPORT]
The 28th edition of The CMO Survey examines the issues top of mind for marketers including the latest focus for marketing activities, spending, jobs, and performance.
1 in 5 Black Americans Find Black History Month Promotions Offensive [What The US Hispanic Market can LEARN]
As February comes to a close, brands big and small have concluded the discounts, sales, and promotions they launched to commemorate Black History Month 2022. While these promotions are ostensibly meant to celebrate Black history, do Black people believe that the promotions are held in good faith, with the intention of supporting the Black community?
Brand Allies: Seeing Multicultural Consumers As People First, Not Dollar Signs [PODCAST]
Multicultural marketing is finally being embraced as a necessity, not a nice-to-have. Marketers have traditionally been interested in marketing to diverse audiences around the release of Census data when they realized the changing demographics of American consumers.
The five zeros reshaping stores
Shoppers are reshaping the retail landscape faster than ever before. Nearly 40 percent have switched brands or retailers during the pandemic, and more than 80 percent have new shopping behaviors. More than half of those who used a new channel or service such as “buy online, pickup in store,” for example, said they would continue the practice post-COVID-19. As such, the omnichannel consumer has never been more powerful. They make purchases 70 percent more often and spend about 34 percent more than people who shop exclusively in store
ANA calls on Marketing Industry to combat Online Hate Speech
Ninety leading marketers, agencies, media companies, social media platforms, trade groups, and NGOs have pledged to take definitive action to combat online hate speech through their support of the ANA’s #EngageResponsibly initiative.
How to make marketing change management more successful
There has been an incredible amount of change within marketing departments (and of course businesses overall) over the past 2 years.
Why grocery advertising has never been more effective
Ad spend will yield better returns today than before the pandemic, as consumers are more receptive than ever.
Modern marketing dilemmas: Where does performance marketing meet brand building?
We unravel the criticism against Marketing ROI as a key metric, and explore how to get the balance right between short and long-term measurement.
5 Steps to Restructure Your Marketing Organization [REPORT]
Many marketing leaders are still feeling the long-lasting impacts from the pandemic, which has forced their organizations to be more agile and creative, even with restricted budgets.
Unlocking the core antagonists of resilience: The personal realm
How self-awareness and self-mastery are paramount in C-suite leadership
Estimates of Undercount and Overcount in the 2020 Census
Census Bureau released results from two analyses about the quality of the 2020 Census counts. While both showed the strength of the count for the total U.S. population, each analysis revealed that the 2020 Census overcounted or undercounted various demographic groups.
49% of Marketers say they are looking to contextual advertising to replace cookies
GumGum published the results of a survey that found 49% of brand marketers are looking to contextual advertising to replace cookies in their marketing efforts.
Gaming The Metrics: How The “Made For Advertising” Industry Thrives
Every ad-supported media company makes trade-offs between long term revenue and short term revenue. TV and radio shows, mobile games, and webpages can all boost short term revenue by increasing ad loads. But that short term tactic drives away consumers and advertisers, creating headwinds for long term growth. It’s a natural check that balances the competing needs of media companies, marketers, and consumers.
Want to produce great work? Stop treating your advertising agencies like dirt
A really fun thing about working in marketing is that anyone who has ever seen an ad reckons they know how to do your job.
Second chance for marketers in Second Life
No, this is not a reference to the current metaverse that marketers are going gaga over, it is the title of a blog post I wrote back in 2007. But you know what? I think the marketing issues raised in the post are just as relevant to marketers today as they were then. If you are going to spend your budget on setting up shop in the new metaverse, perhaps you should figure out how your brand will add value to that experience. By Nigel Hollis
Authentically connecting your brand with Gen Z and Millennials [REPORT]
As the Gen Z audience grows more powerful, how can brands successfully optimize their connection with them... whilst remaining loyal to Millennials?
