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ANA: Brands need ‘chief media officers’ to oversee potential conflicts of interest…
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The US-based Association of National Advertisers (ANA) has warned brands that, without the creation of a ‘chief media officer’ role in an agency, conflicts could potentially arise amongst third-party ad tech partners and agency rosters.

As a result of its recent ‘Media Transparency: Prescriptions, Principles, and Processes for Marketers’ report, other recommendations made by the organisation are: advertiser should have a disciplined and reliable process for managing conflicts of interest; marketers must implement disciplined internal processes to deliver contracts designed to ensure strict accountability, and senior management oversight; and to ensure that all contracts with media agencies include ‘robust language’ to provide full transparency.

 

Download and read the full report here

Young social users prefer political accounts over luxury brands…
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affilinet, one of Europe’s leading affiliate marketing networks, has revealed that young social media users between the ages of 18-24 are more likely to follow political accounts as opposed to luxury shopping brands.

The research, which surveyed 2,004 British residents and split into a range of age groups: 18-24, 25-34, 35-44, 45-54 and 55+ years old, was conducted to analyse and pin-point which social accounts different demographics are likely to follow, as well as the genre.

Director at affilinet, Helen Southgate, commented: “Social media is such a central part of millennials’ lives and it’s really insightful to see the accounts they follow. I think that this is a definite sign that young adults are tuned in to current affairs involving themselves in moneysaving, travel and politics. Brands wanting to target millennials can learn a lot from their social media habits and preferences.”

When the 18-24 year-old demographic was asked the question ‘What kind of accounts are you most likely to follow on social media?’

  1.        Money Saving – 25 per cent
  2.        Holiday / Travel – 20 per cent
  3.        Political Interest – 19 per cent
  4.        Health & Wellbeing – 17 per cent
  5.        Food & Beverage – 17 per cent
  6.        Pets / Animal – 16 per cent
  7.        Beauty – 8 per cent
  8.        Fashion – 7 per cent
  9.        Property – 6 per cent
  10.        Interior – 5 per cent

Wrike for Marketers ‘simplifies and frees’ creatives from technology overload…
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The project management application service provider, Wrike, has launched a brand new solution which aims to provide marketers with a ‘core management platform’, as well as added capabilities specifically designed to help define, execute and plan standout campaigns in a multichannel digital world.

Wrike for Marketers claims to support all phases of the marketing lifecycle; as jobs are requested with customisable briefs and ideas and content created with a document editor and the Adobe Creative Cloud Extension that notifies, assigns and brings focus to creative work.

Founder and CEO of Wrike, Andrew Filev, said: “I believe we’ve built the easiest way for marketers and creatives to manage their work from inspiration to delivery. A big pain point for these teams has always been the time and frustration required to transfer information between the various phases of projects. Wrike for Marketers integrates those phases into one continuous stream.”

Find out more about Wrike for Marketers here

Guest Blog, Sammy Blindell: Consumer trends – the essence of every living, breathing marketing strategy
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Your marketing strategy should be built around not only your brand, but around the ways your ideal customers will want to hear and learn about your brand. And guess what? Customers will want to change these ways often — at a rate that can easily fluster even the most astute marketer. What can you do to not only stay on top of breaking consumer trends, but to integrate that information into an evolutionary marketing strategy that works?

A strategic combination of A) data mining from others’ studies and conversations and B) a proactive approach to gathering your own breaking news, first-hand, will give every marketer what they need to craft a marketing strategy that outruns and outreaches the competition.

Consumer trends start here

How do males, aged 18-35, choose to consume news? How do females, aged 35-50, choose to spend a Saturday evening? What’s more important to a long-distance traveller: efficiency or comfort? And at what time of day are social media users most likely to like, retweet, comment and share?

These are just a few examples of questions that might help to reveal the latest in consumer trends.

And the answers are crucial. Why? Because those answers will help you to build and maintain a marketing strategy that speaks directly to them, solves their problems, predicts their challenge; all delivered in a package they find desirable.

  • Step 1: Subscribe to trend-updating publications: There are professionals out there who have made careers from predicting the future behaviour of consumers, based on current trends and rising needs. In essence, they are in the business of “futures.” Not every prediction will be realised. Not every “coolest” thing will catch on. However, the chances of you getting an inside line to what’s up-and-coming any other way are slim. I suggest Trend Hunter to get started.
  • Step 2: Mine data from existing research: You probably already know that it’s imperative to conduct extensive research into the behaviour, problems and preferences of the ideal client; however, did you also know that the same should be done for consumers, in general?  If consumers are moving toward full telepresence (Skype, Facetime, Hololens, Oculus Rift) and away from audio-only communications (phone, GoToMeeting), then you can reasonably expect your target audience to follow—unless, of course, their collective set of values is in opposition to that move. Factors such as age, career and lifestyle will play parts in deciding if any consumer trend will apply to your target audience, and it’s up to you to decide what’s in and what’s out for them.
  • Step 3: Keep an eye on the competition:  Too many marketers use this advice in the wrong way. Don’t be that marketer. Instead, see what the competition is doing that its customers are responding to, then take the net result of that action and find a different, trendier way to deliver it. For example, if Acme Settlements is offering a 30-minute consultation over the phone, and experiencing an impressive buy-in rate as a result, look into consumer trends to find out how people of your target audience’s demographic prefer to communicate today—not yesterday. The phone serves its purpose, but isn’t there a better, more preferential way? The best marketer (a.k.a. consumer trend researcher) will find that way.
  • Step 4: Follow ideal clients’ daily routine:  As marketers, we are lucky enough to be privy to nearly everything everyone does every day (thanks to social media). This means that we have lots of opportunities to step into someone’s shoes, learn about how they choose to gather and digest information, and then deliver marketing messages that feed those needs.
  • Step 5: Make your marketing strategy a living, breathing entity: No marketing strategy can be stagnant and Every consumer trend should affect every client’s marketing strategy in a unique way: no consumer trend will play out the same way in two different marketing strategies. It’s up to you to decide (or experiment and then decide) what trends are likely to catch on within your target audience. You can even be the first to make it catch on…if you feel that all the conditions are right for the adoption of that trend within that niche. In this instance, it’s always better to be first than last.

Always remember: your marketing strategy is never simply about getting the message out there; it’s more about getting a message out there in a way that will attract attention, keep it and win over the ideal client.

Consumer trends are not only playing a big role in today’s marketing strategies, they are becoming utterly indispensable when creating and maintaining those strategies.

Are you willing to start following consumer trends? Or would you like to learn more about how to do it more efficiently and effectively? Then contact the marketing experts at How to Build a Brand.

 

Sammy Blindell is a brand psychologist specialising in brand strategy, design and communication. She uses her decades of experience in colour psychology, graphic design, marketing and online strategy to assist entrepreneurs in gaining industry authority.

Forum News: 5 successful negotiation tips to implement at industry events…
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Making the most of any time spent out of the office, and ensuring the meetings you partake in are as effective as possible, involves the expert ability of negotiation, which can make the difference between triumph and disappointment with what you set out to achieve.

  1. Look, Listen & Learn: If you talk too much, you won’t learn anything. Be the investigator – ask lots of open ended questions. Allow the other party to talk; then all you have to do is sit back and take notes to help with your decision.
  1. Be assertive: Ask for exactly what you want. Differentiate being assertive and aggressive; it’s getting to the point more quickly and looking after your business needs. Challenging everything is fine too. We all know both parties need to negotiate to formulate a win/win situation; however there are scenarios when companies really are just looking for a higher ‘cut’ rather than a long term profitable partnership, so it’s best to challenge everything to ensure you are getting the very best deal.
  1. Preparation is king: Have you thought about everything you need before you enter the negotiation as well as what the other party may be looking for? You can’t possibly make accurate decisions without fully understanding both sides of the agenda.
  1. Convey optimism: Entering any negotiation is an exciting process, so it’s important to show that you’re excited and be positive about the transaction. People who are optimistic, usually achieve more by expecting more. Suppliers would ask for more than they expect to receive and buyers offer less than they are willing to give – that way everybody walks away happy with the end result.
  1. No need to rush: The best negotiators most likely own the distinctive patient gene. If you rush your meeting, planning or negotiation, this is when mistakes will be made. Be flexible with time and if any steps to the negotiation are hurried, concessions will be made and the deal left on the table.

 

To utilise these tips, contact the team to discuss your attendance at this year’s Marketing Business Forum on November 8. 

Study unveils current omnichannel digital marketing status in the EU
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A recent study conducted by the international computer company, Teradata, has revealed the current state of omnichannel digital marketing in the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, France, Denmark and Italy.

The study primarily looked at three different digital channels: email, social and mobile; showcasing the current state of the market as well as indicating where improvements can be made.

View the full infographic here

Amazon experiments with personalised video adverts
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The managing director of Amazon’s software development centre, Graeme Smith, has stated that the group is currently testing the group is currently testing the concept of personalised video ads.

Although little has been said at the moment, it is thought that Amazon will tailor ads to individuals using graphics templates. Smith told the BBC: “I’m not able to share any more details of where, but potentially anywhere you can see a video is potentially somewhere you could consider running personalised video ads, right across the internet,” he told the BBC. It’s still very early days for this technology, but it’s something we are really excited about with a lot of applications.”

lastminute.com group launches media business for travel and lifestyle audiences
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The lastminute.com group has announced the launch of The Travel People, a new media business which aims to help brands and advertisers reach millions of European travellers through a network of leading online travel brands; including lastminute.com, Rumbo, Volagratis, Bravofly and Jetcost, and operate across 40 countries worldwide.

The Travel People claims to use powerful audience information and sophisticated ‘re-marketing’ technologies to engage its ‘rich’ customer groups on site, and to reconnect with customers while browsing other websites before, during and after travel.

Chief advertising officer at The Travel People, Alessandra Di Lorenzo, said: “This is a bold new chapter for lastminute.com group and I’m really excited to be part of it. The group’s diverse portfolio of online travel brands attracts 35 million unique visitors every month, so we’re uniquely equipped to help other brands both in, and out, of the travel sector to reach lucrative travel and lifestyle audiences across Europe.”

Learn more about The Travel People here

 

Guest Blog, Cain Ullah: Building partnerships in B2B: How to get buy-in…
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As an external partner in B2C, you are likely to focus on customer demand, experience and building products and/or services that they would want to use; it’s relatively straightforward. However, the challenges in the B2B space are different. It’s often services and systems rather than products, so business value can be more difficult to demonstrate, therefore selling the benefits and maintaining buy-in in such a partnership is often challenging. However, the rewards for success can be enormous.

Often, the biggest challenge in a B2B environment is getting stakeholder buy-in. Innovation in the B2B space requires influence from the right partners to help organisations make bold decisions around technology. Implementing a fresh approach to delivering new products and services can often mean new business practices, and having the support of the right internal stakeholders is essential in the tougher moments of initiating change. Using an empathetic approach and working collaboratively are effective tools to help your client build influence. Once stakeholder buy-in is achieved, it’s more possible to drive value beyond the project you are involved with, across the business and directly to customers. All of these elements need to be lined up to be able to reach the end goal of exceeding customer demand, creating exceptional customer experience and selling products and/or services.

 

WHY?

As a consultancy brought in to fix a business problem, Red Badger often sees similar issues in most enterprise-size businesses. Enterprises are simply not structured to deliver value to customers fast. By changing focus to driving value to the customer, a leaner, more collaborative and technologically bolder business model emerges.

 

HOW?

The most effective way to sell the benefits of change internally is to clearly illustrate a path to achieving the overall business objectives. This should be done by tackling smaller pieces of work first, drive value early and prove ROI; rather than trying to change a whole process, or replace an entire system. It’s okay to have lofty goals, but you must get there through a continuous series of small steps.

First of all, empathise with the problem, the space and the customers. You have to understand your client’s customers as well as, if not better than, they do. Collaboration with the client throughout the lifecycle of the project from the very beginning is crucial, so that you are considered part of the team.

Then, don’t over-reach. It can be perceived as arrogant and easily backfire. Identify, target and tackle problems that are achievable: small and bite-sized. Each win that you can prove translates into another example of how you are driving value to their customers and reminds more stakeholders why you are important to keep on-board. To maintain customer buy-in, you have to maintain value.

As the saying goes, speed is of the essence. If you can produce tangible results fast, buy-in is easier to uphold. Results can be marked out as  helping to drive change, and, ultimately, the results will speak for themselves.

The ‘dos’ and ‘don’ts’ that every business working in B2B needs to be aware of:

 

  • Don’t take on challenges that are too big to win.
  • Do prove your value throughout.
  • Don’t forget that your primary focus should be on the customers; what their own end goals are not yours.
  • Do help them to be bold with technology rather than relying on the ‘enterprise’ solution.
  • Do have empathy for your client and understand their internal challenges.
  • Do have a level of pragmatism. Don’t be too dogmatic. When dealing with organisational change, you have to pick your battles.

 

Cain Ullah is a founder of Red Badger, with responsibilities including; strategy, culture, sales and marketing. He is extremely proud of Red Badger’s people and is focused on scaling quality and a lovely culture in the team.

 

Industry Spotlight: Nielsen launches Marketing Cloud to the European market…
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The global analytics and measurement company, Nielsen, has launched its Nielsen Marketing Cloud in Europe to enable global and regional clients the opportunity to improve marketing outcomes and reduce media waste across multiple platforms.

The service – which is immediately available in the UK and France, with availability to Spain and Italy expected in the coming months – claims to deliver ‘unrivalled’ consumer data and analytics; in addition to a full-suite of first-party data management; cross-platform media planning; marketing activation and real time campaign analytics applications.

Mark Zagorski, EVP, Nielsen Marketing Cloud, commented: “Our mission is to empower marketers to deliver more efficient and effective cross-channel experiences for their customers no matter where they are. With this launch, our global and regional European clients can now plan, activate and analyse marketing initiatives across multiple channels, harnessing proprietary Nielsen data and applications that are unrivalled around the globe.”

The Nielsen Marketing Cloud will provide European clients insights around their key aggregated customer characteristics, such as; gender, demographics, age, shopping behaviour, life-stage, and product purchase intent. In turn, this will allow marketers to leverage these insights and build their audience segments and activate them in real-time across all major media and marketing platforms including mobile, online, ‘over-the-top’ TV, video, social media, email and content management systems.

Additionally, Nielsen says that the Cloud has one of the largest global predictive device graphs covering over six billion devices, enabling all clients to establish a single omnichannel view of their customers and greatly benefitting all multichannel marketing operations.

Andrew Muzzelle, digital media director at AIMIA and advocate of the Cloud’s capabilities, said: “The Nielsen Marketing Cloud enables us to access very accurate audience-data across myriad consumer traits like purchase consideration and shopping behaviour, and to programmatically reach these tailored audiences at scale in the UK.”

He continued: “With the Nielsen Marketing Cloud we’ve been able to drive efficiency and effectiveness in our digital advertising campaigns. i2c worked with the Nielsen Marketing Cloud to produce an award-winning Carling campaign driving an amazing 4.1X campaign ROI, providing proof of its value.”

European clients have access to Nielsen Marketing Cloud’s core suite of applications, which include the Nielsen Data Management Platform (DMP), Data-as-a-Service (DaaS) and integrations with over 150 third-party media and marketing applications. Furthermore, additional Nielsen and third-party applications such as Nielsen Media Impact for cross-platform media planning, and Sales Effectiveness solutions will be available to clients in the coming months.

 

The Nielsen Marketing Cloud is currently being used by Nielsen global clients across industries including food and beverage, personal care, pet care, wine and spirits, digital media, cinema, broadcast, out-of-home and retail.