Advertising

Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 23 nov 2017

Customer data is key for effective decision-making in marketing and advertising. Even though technology has provided tools to collect and analyze data, and obtain valuable insights, both brand marketers and agency buyers are unsure of the transparency and effectiveness of the data their partners are providing. According to the recent study, 'More Data, More Problems: Trust, transparency, and Targeting in 2017' by Bazaarvoice and Ad Age, more than 75% of survey respondents admitted they are not fully confident that the data they're utilizing is hitting consumers who are in-market to buy. Additionally, 65% of respondents claimed they do not fully understand the origin of their data sources. Here are 10 important questions that one should ask the advertising data provider before embarking on a marketing campaign and get the best value from it - (1) What are the sources of your data? (2) How far does your data reach? (3) What percentage of your data is created from a look-alike model? (4) Which intent signals or behaviors place a user into an audience segment? (5) How do you maintain your audience segments? (6) Can you explain the process behind how you define your audience segments - and the data that feeds into them? (7) In which categories does your data best perform, and why? (8) For which metric(s) does your data best perform, and why? (9) Can you reach the same user across their multiple devices? (10) Does your data drive brand consideration and/or sales, and can you accurately attribute the performance lift directly to your campaign? If so, how? Read on...

AdAge: 10 Questions You to Need to Ask Your Advertising Data Provider
Author: Toby McKenna

---

Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 17 aug 2017

A research study by Strategy Analytics' AppOptix practice (AO) brings good news for B2B players as it finds that 50.4% of consumers use their personal smartphone for business purposes. Employees are using their personal smartphones to conduct business and installing public domain and company-sponsored apps for file sharing, data security, time sheets, expense reporting, and collaboration. B2B companies can identify these business users disguised as consumers to target their offerings. The study also found - 20.5% of business users utilize their personal smartphone over 50% of the time to conduct business; 20.8% of business users are compensated by their employer for their network/wireless operator charges. Author of the study, Prabhat Agarwal (Director, AppOptix), says, 'This research showcases and substantiates there are entry points for B2B players that are looking to offer business services to consumers...By analyzing combinations of apps, we can create probability profiles that identify likely users of business services.' Barry Gilbert (VP, Strategy Analytics), says, 'The business and enterprise user is a critical and lucrative market for mobile operators, device OEMs, and many enterprise software firms...' Read on...

Business Insider: 50.4% of Consumers Use Their Personal Smartphones to Conduct Business, Finds Strategy Analytics
Author: NA

---

Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 28 apr 2017

The rise of the mobile phones and mobile internet users worldwide is expected to result in growth of mobile advertising. But according to Celtra and On Device Research, mobile ads are unpopular with users - 60% of clicks on mobile banner ads being an accident, 71% saying half the ads disrupt the mobile experience and 69% saying that mobile ads obscure content. The research also finds that top-performing mobile ads (top 20%) follow some common principles, when followed (6 or more) by brands will lead to better ad performance - Logo presence on every frame; Human presence; Product shots; Placing branding at the top; Caution with dual branding; Single clear message; Video; Humour; Interactivity; Strong call to action. Alex Saric, CMO of Celtra, says, 'To effectively tell their stories, brands must ensure quality creative in their ads...By combining the guidelines from this study with a compelling story, and enabling such quality ads at scale, only then will advertisers realize the full potential of their advertising efforts.' Alistair Hill, CEO of On Device Research, says, 'These recommendations are rooted in robust quantitative analysis and as such provide a useful check list for mobile marketers to reference before embarking on a mobile brand campaign.' Read on...

The Drum: Logo, human presence and branding are key to top-performing mobile ads, says Celtra
Author: Benjamin Cher

---

Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 26 apr 2017

John Murphy, founder of Interbrand, first coined the term 'branding' in 1985 in his book 'Branding: A Key Marketing Tool'. He explains the value of brands and branding and its evolution through the years. According to him, 'Our view of a brand 25 years ago was quite prosaic and utilitarian. We viewed it as a business asset whose purpose was to enhance the earnings of the brand owner. We saw a brand as a product or service, or business, which had developed a personality that was appealing to consumers. This is still mainly true today, but with the development of branding has come a great deal of over-elaboration. Much of what is being offered by branding consultants today seems to be deliberately over-complicated...A good consultant makes the complicated simple, not the simple complicated.' He adds, 'A further trend, which I dislike, is to view branding as a kind of religious or life-enhancing process...It amazes me that brands, things developed to benefit their owners, have acquired such reverence. In practice, branding's reach has expanded greatly over the last quarter century, but the fundamentals have not changed much at all; and a great deal of the increased sophistication of the brander's art is illusory.' He cautions, 'Just remember that a brand is a differentiated product or service, or company, with a distinct persona. Treat it carefully and appropriately in order to reflect and enhance this persona. Even if you develop the most wonderful brand in the world, you may still suffer business failure. On its own, a brand can never guarantee business success; conversely, without a brand, business success may prove impossible.' Read on...

Campaign: Branding might be everywhere, but it's as simple as it ever was
Author: John Murphy

---

Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 09 jan 2017

According to eMarketer's Sept'2016 ad spending forecast, digital will overtake TV ad spending this year for the first time (Digital - US$ 72.09 billion; TV - US$ 71.29 billion), and will represent 36.8% of US total media ad spending. Scott Symonds, MD of media at AKQA, 'In 2017, digital will become the single largest media investment channel, passing television for the first time...digital is no longer just a test or an innovation budget. It needs to be expected to work as hard or harder vs. every other investment channel.' Experts from across the industry suggest ways digital marketing will evolve in 2017 - (1) Artificial intelligence gets smarter: Tom Edwards, Chief Digital Officer at the agency within Epsilon, says, 'From leveraging machine learning to accelerate sentiment analysis and domain-specific insights to cognitive computing solutions that automate experiences without human intervention to the rise of voice-based user experiences that will continue to expand in 2017 to deep learning that will fundamentally change how brands approach SEO to predictive API's that will expose access to predictive models to further create seamless experiences for consumers, cognitive and intelligent systems will play a key role in how we approach marketing in 2017.' (2) Measurement takes priority: Brigitte Majewski, an analyst at Forrester Research, says, 'The fundamentals have to take priority. Measurement and data are the only way for marketers to get control of a situation they have completely lost control of. They have to understand what part of the mix is truly working and that takes measurement...Once marketers get control of their measurement and connect the dots with the data, they can really start to do orchestrated branded experiences told in a sequence that makes sense.' (3) Turning up the volume: Audio-driven experiences will become mainstream in 2017. Trevor Guthrie, Co-founder of Giant Spoon, says, 'Giant Spoon believes the rise of voice-based AI - Google Home, Amazon Echo, etc. - will have a profound impact on computing and how consumers interact with technology. The next wave of computing will be driven by voice, and clients need to begin to build a voice strategy for their brands.' (4) Reestablishing trust: Forrester's Majewski says, 'The biggest difference in 2017 is going to be a focus on transparency. But now marketers have gotten much smarter and they can legitimately ask hard questions that they might have let pass before. They will really dig into the numbers from agencies and platforms - they are not going to let things slide.' (5) A clearer picture for digital video: AKQA's Symonds says, 'As video becomes untethered from television in terms of its primary investment opportunity or most likely viewing occasion, we believe it will continue to have exciting emerging opportunities in and around the space including augmented and virtual reality, 360 video, live video, programmatic innovations, etc.' (6) Social pivots back to sharing: David Song, MD at Barker, says, 'It will no longer be about paid, earned, and owned social but rather, how a consumer engages with a brand through its social channels. Social channels are and will continue to become more important than client websites.' Epsilon's Edwards says, 'Marketers will need to shift their strategy from one of personification of the brand to a seamless experience that is about simplifying and predicting needs while also empowering consumers to create their own stories.' (7) Cleaning up the landscape: Anna Bager, SVP and GM of mobile and video at Interactive Advertising Bureau, says, 'The days of static display banners are numbered. Consumer expectations for rich, relevant ad and content experiences are growing.' Gabe Weiss, digital experience and transformation leader at SapientNitro, says, 'I feel like there's been a significant maturation of understanding within leadership that the old-normal approaches no longer work. They have bought into designing approaches that work for their brand and for their customers. They will be more committed to delivering their messaging in all forms of content and fragmented channels to make an impact. They will offer engaging and unique experiences and not just yell at their audiences.' (8) Getting the message: IAB's Bager says, 'In the U.S., the rapidly evolving messaging space represents a tremendous opportunity beyond social media platforms to engage with consumers in a native way.' (9) Mobile evolves into people-based marketing: Kurt Hawks, SVP of cross-device and video, at Conversant, says, 'Additionally, as the digital and physical worlds continue to converge, a focus will be placed on the intelligent and responsible use of location data to better understand and anticipate consumer needs and track in-store visits. Mobile will finally evolve from a device to a set of behaviors that inform people-based marketing.' Giant Spoon's Guthrie says, 'We're finally starting to see UIs truly built for mobile instead of just converting what we're used to on desktop. I don't simply mean 'make it vertical' or 'make it short and snackable.' A few companies are completely reworking the structure - not just the details of the content pieces.' (10) Looking towards a post-broadcast, post-digital future: Giant Spoon's Guthrie says, ' The digital media bubble will pop this year. Media will bifurcate into massive networks that roll up many properties for scale and synergy or niche publications charging premium prices based on the strength of their brand. Media's middle class of independent venture-backed digital publishers will either get acquired or fold.' Jeff Liang, Chief Digital Officer at Assembly, says, 'Digital marketers can no longer think inside the box to reach and engage with digital consumers effectively. They must quickly adapt to how audiences are using new forms of digital media to avoid getting lost in the sea of change.' Read on...

Marketing Dive: 10 ways digital marketing will evolve in 2017
Author: Chantal Tode

---

Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 19 sep 2016

Comedian John Oliver in one of the recent episode of 'Last Week Tonight' on HBO described journalism industry's 'dire straits' and analyzed the depressing financial state of journalism in 2016 and the subsequent tendency for news outlets to focus on stories that get the most traffic. Moreover, he emphasised the importance of traditional reporting via newspapers that often get quoted by TV news channels. He says, 'It's pretty obvious without newspapers around to cite, TV news would just be Wolf Blitzer endlessly batting a ball of yarn around. The media is a food chain which would fall apart without local newspapers.' On the current financial situation of journalism, falling print advertising revenue and digital journalism, he says, 'A big part of the blame for this industry's dire straits is on us and our unwillingness to pay for the work journalists produce. We've just grown accustomed to getting our news for free and the longer that we get something for free, the less willing we are to pay for it...If journalists are constantly required to write, edit, shoot videos and tweet, mistakes are going to get made. It is clearly smart for newspapers to expand online. But the danger in doing that is the temptation to gravitate towards getting the most clicks.' Read on...

the guardian: John Oliver examines journalism's many problems: The blame is on us
Author: Adam Gabbatt

---

Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 28 jul 2016

Packaging is an important component of product handling, logistics, advertising, marketing and selling. There are variety of materials that are currently in use for packaging. Environmental challenges arise due to the waste generated through discarded packagings. The packaging industry is exploring better materials that can reduce environmental footprint. In spite of scientific breakthroughs in developing new packaging materials, there are issues related to their performance and price, inhibiting their mass adoption and usage. Bryan Shova, packaging designer and industrial design director at Kaleidoscope, explains sustainability aspects of packaging. He says, 'I dream of the day when material science and manufacturing can deliver on the promise of zero environmental impact, high performance, premium finish and low costs.' He explains, 'The viability of true sustainability is a complex economic challenge, and the ugly truth is that few consumers, brand owners or municipalities are willing to pay the premium price for cutting-edge sustainable packaging solutions. True solutions will come through "systems thinking" that requires the material supplier, manufacturer, retailer, consumer and the municipality to share in the premium costs and labor required to design, collect and recycle packaged materials.' He provides 10 principles for designing sustainable packaging - (1) Start with commodity materials that are commonly recycled. (2) Design the package from a single material. (3) Focus on the product-to-package ratio. (4) Design for assembly at the point of manufacture. (5) Avoid gluing and laminations. (6) Design for distribution. (7) Eliminate secondary and tertiary packaging when possible. (8) Design for disassembly. (9) Clearly mark the materials on the packaging components. (10) Use Lifecycle Assessment. Read on...

Packaging Digest: 10 ways to design sustainable packaging with intent
Author: Bryan Shova

---

Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 17 jul 2016

In today's highly competitive and fast paced world of business, innovation can be a differentiating factor and a source of strategic advantage. It can help businesses to stay ahead on the success curve. Risk-taking is an important component of innovative thought process and activity. Val DiFebo, CEO of Deutsch New York, suggests three ways to encourage employees to take risks and build an innovation seeking organization - (1) Explore Unchartered Territory: Encourage risk-taking by rewarding and applauding new ideas and by listening and building when teams want to do things that don't exist. Explore the uncharted territory strategically and patiently. (2) Support the Ideas: Provide support financially and practically. But budget carefully for risks involved. Be realistic when evaluating returns on these investments. Encourage employees to take calculated risks. (3) Be Passionate: It takes courage and passion to introduce new idea. Ask employees to bring ideas they are passionate about. Asking people to be a bit vulnerable encourages risk-taking and can be tremendously rewarding, as well as provide an element of team bonding. Accepting failures of the past and learning from them minimizes the risk of repeating them in future. A smart risk is well thought out and demonstrates that employees have looked at other options and genuinely believe that the risk is worth the gain. Read on...

Fortune: The One Thing Every Company Gets Wrong About Innovation
Author: Val DiFebo

---

Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 30 jun 2016

E-Commerce strategy once was a source of competitive advantage and differentiating factor in business. But now it is an essential strategy for businesses to connect and engage with their customers and, market and sell their products and services online. AJ Agrawal, Founder and CEO of Alumnify, suggests 4 affordable marketing strategies to boost e-commerce efforts and stand out from the competition - (1) Start Testing More On Facebook: Utilize split testing or A/B testing to evaluate advertising effectiveness and save cost. Continue the process until best results are achieved. One tactic you can implement in your testing is to prequalify leads. (2) Use The Right Influencers: Word of mouth generates twice the number of sales as paid advertising. Invest in reputation marketing and word of mouth marketing. Use the right and relevant influencers. (3) Invest In Your Email Marketing Campaign: 44% of customers click on promotional emails and then make a purchase. Build email list and invest in email marketing campaign. Finally get a group of brand ambassadors from the list and initiate word of mouth marketing through them. (4) Retargeting In The Right Style: Use retargeting to highlight and establish that unique selling point to convince them to buy and not go to competitors. Use data analytics to understand customer behavior. Segment your adds based on user interactions with site. Keep testing advertising effectiveness until best results are achieved. Continuous testing of marketing strategies and improving upon them will help in differentiating from competitors and attract customers. Read on...

Forbes: 4 Marketing Strategies To Take eCommerce To The Next Level
Author: AJ Agrawal

---

Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 16 mar 2016

Organizations invest money, time and efforts in branding to build their credibility and reputation. In the online world with expanded global reach, social media and changing dynamics of customer relationships, there are further challenges that the organizations face to keep and sustain their brand image. Moreover there are also steps that are required before embarking upon creating and developing a brand. John Lincoln, Co-founder and CEO of Ignite Visibility and professor at University of California San Diego, explains 8 branding mistakes that should be avoided for brand value and business success - (1) Not Getting a Trademark. (2) Not Vigorously Searching Google and Doing Proper Research. (3) Not Coming Up With a Good Domain Name. (4) Picking a Name That Competes With a Well-Established Brand. (5) Picking Color Schemes and Visuals That Aren't Relevant to What You Do. (6) Not Checking Cultural References Around the Name. (7) Not Checking the Name's Translations in Other Languages. (8) Check Potential Stigmas Associated With the Name. Read on...

Huffington Post: 8 Branding Mistakes That Can Result in Major Setbacks
Author: John Lincoln

Latest             ⊲ Newer Posts             Advertising             Older Posts ⊳             Last

---

the3h | glomc00 | ilmeps | mawdesigns | anasmark | ilmeds | read | contact