Tablets - the behavioural impact in numbers

Industry statistics look at the influence tablet devices have on consumer behaviour.

Instagram - Facebook’s instant mobile strategy

With Facebook's recent acquistion of Instagram we look at what this means for brands.

Smart TV requires smart marketing solutions

As smart TVs become more popular we look at the problems these pose for marketers.

Unilever’s digital strategy targets game-players

At the start of April 2012, FMCG giant Unilever launched its new Magnum Infinity ice-cream with a digital game. The game in question is a sequel to last year's Magnum Pleasure Hunt, which attracted a very impressive seven million players worldwide and made it to the top of Twitter's trending topics the day of launch.

Morrisons prepares for multichannel future

With profits up 7% Morrisons has had a good year, but one way it has lagged behind its competitors has been in implementing a multi-channel strategy - however, this is now set to change.

This is not just an advert… this is an O2 advert

O2's new marketing campaign aims to change the way consumers thinks about mobiles - but how are they planning to achieve this?

Happy tweets and nice treats the key to Twitter

Mars' recent Twitter campaign for Snickers has caused a minor stir within the advertising industry, here we look at the campaign and other advertisers who have used Twitter to its full potential.

Mobile marketing: time to be an expert

With over 70% of people estimated to own a smart phone by the end of the year, now is the time to sort out your mobile marketing.

Real time bidding sees explosive expansion

New forecasts from International Data Corporation (IDC) indicate there will be a substantial increase in display advertising based on Real Time Bidding (RTB) by the year 2015. IDC’s growth predictions range between 71% in the US to 114% in the UK.

Searching for a solution

A survey from the IAB has shown that companies have still not really got to grips with digital.

Pinterest brings feminine touch to social business

New media start-ups come and go on a regular basis. But one that is causing bigger noise than most at the moment is Pinterest, an online bulletin board where people can put their favourite images.

Evaluating Facebook engagement

Anyone who has sat on an awards panel or listened to a corporate pitch will be familiar with the way that brands and agencies use raw digital usage stats to justify the success of their activity, but is this accurate?

Foursquare finds its business model – maybe…

When you think of Foursquare, you think of mobile, right? Well maybe not anymore. In late 2011, the popular check-in app unveiled a new-look website which seems to position the business as a local search engine.

DMA charts rising fortunes of email marketers

According to research from the DMA email marketing has rocketed in consumer approval ratings due to improved segmentation and better targeting.

MasterCard and its priceless marketing platform

MasterCard's Priceless marketing campaign is an excellent example of a brand utilising their knowledge of what makes their customers tick.

YouTube – the video-enabled social network

New figures from Experian Hitwise show that YouTube achieved one in four visits to social networks in December 2011.

CBS outdoor brings Bluetooth to London Buses

Outdoor advertising firm CBS Outdoor UK has announced that it is teaming up with mobile agency Blismobile to install integrated Bluetooth units on 100 London buses that operate in central London

Crowd-sourced ads – doing it the Doritos way

More and more big brands are looking at crowd-sourced ads as part of their consumer-facing communications strategy.

MerchantCircle unlocks online potential for small businesses

New methods are afoot in online networking to build a platform for small businesses to compete with major corporates

Twitter ups its game in the brand marketing space

Twitter has updated its offering to enable brands and marketers to target consumers more effectively

APA sees rapid rise in digital content marketing

A new survey has shown how organisations that have traditionally print as the bedrock of their marketing strategy have started exploring different ways of reaching out to consumers.

Tesco introduces augmented reality into eight stores

With Tesco expanding its augmented reality offering we take a look at the key benefits of this relatively new technology.

Automotive giants shift gear to social media

2010/11 saw a number of car manufacturers launch social media campaigns - here we look at some of the best examples.

Celebrity endorsement: AKA social media steroids

It has been shown that celebrity endorsement can increase sales by 40%, however how can you make celebrity endorsement on social media platforms work for you?

Walmart US goes local on Facebook

Walmart US is using Facebook to turn its own discount and promotion strategy into a local-level relationship between stores and customers.

Channel 4 unveils funky new ad formats

Channel 4 has announced two key developments for advertisers – demographic targeting and a suite of online video formats.

Pedigree dog adoption creates social success story

To make social media work for your brand, you need a powerful emotional connection with your target audience. That’s easier to achieve for some brands than others – but the simple fact is that you’ll only get consumers singing and dancing on your behalf if they like the sound of your song.

Google reports massive growth despite economic uncertainty

Now we know who has all the money… it’s Google. While banks, governments and consumers agonise over their debt, the Silicon Valley search engine giant has just generated revenues of US$9.72 billion for the third quarter of 2011 (up to Sept 30), up 33% on the same period last year.

Heinz shows FMCGs how to make the most of Facebook

Heinz's recent Facebook activity acts as an excellent example of how FMCGs can use social media.

How to get the best out of Twitter

As Twitter gears up for its commercial launch in the UK, we look at how you can utilise in your marketing strategy.

Can born again Myspace revolutionise branded content?

Justin Timberlake’s acquisition of Myspace may seem a little foolhardy, however with Specific Media also on board there may be some real potential to reinvent the brand.  

Packaging 2.0: how digital turns on-pack into an experience

A new digital media campaign from Cadbury which allows consumers to access an online game through their mobile phones.

Halting The Decline In Customer Acquisition Effectiveness

Compared to one year ago, there’s markedly less customer response to cross-channel and online advertising. What has caused this decline?

Case Study: How RAC Re-Energised Its Affiliate Activities

Improved dialogue with affiliates can improve online marketing performance and results, as shown here by the RAC.

ValueClick Adds Dotomi Dynamism For US$295m

ValueClick’s new acquisition has wide scope and experience in the creation of real-time digital display advertising.

O2 Media Makes Mobile Marketing A Priority

Taking advantage of, and aiming to reinforce its customers’ loyalty, O2’s “Priority Tickets” disseminates a variety of money-saving offers from a plethora of brands.  Similarly, location-based texting enables Subway to send special offers to customers whenever they are close to a branch.

Search Engine Optimization Part II: Why Great Content = Great SEO

We continue to shine light onto the dark art that is Search Engine Optimisation….

Is It Time For You To Take LinkedIn Seriously?

Do you routinely delete LinkedIn emails? Maybe this article’s for you.  A recent survey suggests LinkedIn could benefit your business.

Heineken Makes Its Play For Digital Drinkers

On your way to the pub, or have arrived early? You could browse the news app that Heineken and i have on offer.

Google+ Goes Head To Head With FaceBook

Can Google challenge Facebook with Google+, despite being late to the Social Media Party? 

QuidCo: Enabling Brands To Evaluate Rewards

Sometimes cashback and voucher schemes can seem more trouble than they’re worth. But one company making this kind of consumer incentive seem rather appealing is Quidco, a rewards-based website with 1.3million users. 

Tangible Injects Consumer Insight Into Creative Pitches

Consumer insight is an important part of creating a marketing strategy. Tangible have now identified the importance of this in creative pitching, allowing an immediate reaction to a proposal from the client.   

MyThings: How To Track And Convert Lost Leads

What can you do if a customer leaves your retail website without buying something? Well you could just wait for them to come back another day. Or you could go after them and persuade them to think again. MyThings illustrates the successful way to do this.

Corona Extra Adds Digital Dimension To Beach Life

How do you differentiate your product from your closest rivals? How do you entice consumers to choose your product? Cornona seems to have found the answer with digital dimension.

Is marketing under threat from new Data Protection rules?

As new Data Protection rules are being discussed Rosemary Smith looks at how this could affect marketing.

Building a website? How to Get Your SEO Right

The problem with SEO is that it can be much more difficult to optimize a website that’s already built; the ideal situation is to plan how to make your website irresistible to search engines right from the start. This is your chance to make something that’s optimized in every way conceivable; an ideal base for your off-site efforts. 

Qualitative market research and the online world

Is there still a role for focus groups and other face-to-face qualitative market research methods, now that we communicate so much online? Lesley Thompson discusses.

Facebook Taps Sharethrough For Social Video Advertising/Content Strategy

See a brand video within a game on Facebook? Soon you’ll be able to simply click on it to get Facebook Credits. This following Facebook’s collaboration with Sharethrough.

eYeka Delivers Creative Crowd-Sourcing To Big Brands

Want to develop a product more closely-aligned to your consumers?  Want to encourage the consumers themselves to present ideas? Peugeot and HSBC have done just that, using eYeka’s techniques to source consumer suggestions.

Ebookers Launches “First Social Media Travel Guide”

Ebookers Explorer is the new free app for travellers. You won’t just be able to book a hotel, you’ll get suggestions and recommendations from fellow social-media-aware travellers.

BA and e-Dialog Use Mobile Email To Promote Loyalty App

If you are one of BA’s frequent flyers, you can now track and manage your air miles through an app, the promotion of which saw BA win an award for innovation.

Business-to-business PR in a global media landscape

The increasing proliferation of broadband networks, mobility and the Internet is dramatically changing the way entire groups of people communicate.

Google, AOL, Blinkx Get Busy In The M&A Sector

There’s been plenty of deal-making in the online space over the last few months.  After Google’s acquisition of SayNow and fflick, we’ve seen AOL acquire GoViral for U$100m and video search engine Blinkx splash out U$30m in a deal to buy online advertising services company Burst Media.

Simply Tap Seeks To Transform Mobile Transactions

Research released this month suggests the Smartphone market is growing strongly.  According to Gartner, the sector will see sales increase by 57.7% this year, with the number of smartphone units by year-end up to 468m.

O2 Appoints Face For Real-Time Social Media Monitoring

In March, O2 announced that it was “putting real-time social media monitoring and insights at the heart of its business”, following the successful testing of a platform developed by Face, the co-creation agency.

Boden Encourages Its Consumers To BeAddictive

In March, fashion retailer, Boden launched a new community site which enables its users to interact with each other and engage with the brand.

Online ‘DIY’ research: Notes for the non-expert researcher

Chris Brookes offers advice on how you can conduct your own research.

Zoopla’s PPC Campaign Is Hot Property

McCain Reaches Busy Mums with Digital Strategy

Merchandise and marketing campaign

The UK promotional merchandise market is worth around £1bn and represents an array of products. 

Google’s Purchase Of Fflicks Heralds Social Network Switch

Elvis Spotted On Virgin Trains

Anticipated Mobile Growth For Domino’s Pizzas

Pringles Combats Online Broadcasting Boredom

How MORETH>N Used SEO To Improve Search Rankings

Hiscox Connects With Wi-Fi Solution, Linking Online and Outdoor