February 2011

Brands, Social Media and Analytics: It's All About Customers' Relationships With Each Other

Last year Douglas Rushkoff took on the conventional wisdom of brand marketers at the Pivot conference. Earlier this year we posted his talk and it caused a good bit of debate about the nature of so-called "brand conversations" in social media, and the future of branding itself. This is an important topic as social CRM solutions begin to proliferate. According to Gartner, 4/10 of the businesses it polled are planning to roll-out social CRM initiatives within the next five years.

A presentation by branding agency Face takes a different view and advocates a synthesis of data-driven social media analytics and qualitative methods such as ethnography to make branding relevant in the social media age. The presentation quotes Mark Earls saying "Consumers' most valuable relationships are not with brands but with other consumers."

First TV product placement goes to Nestlé and ITV

Nestlé coffee brand Dolce Gusto will make history today on ITV1's 'This Morning' when it becomes the first brand to be featured on a UK-produced television programme in a paid product placement deal.

Ofcom lengthens ad breaks for single dramas Brands sign up for product placement deals Product placement television awareness campaign launches Think BR: Product placement - more than just a bolt-on And the point to product placement is? ASA extends remit to include digital marketing from tomorrow New business leagues (25 Feb 2011) Digby takes Global Radio consultancy role

Capitalism for long run

The near meltdown of the financial system and the ensuing Great Recession have been, and will remain, the defining issue for the current generation of executives. Now that the worst seems to be behind us, it's tempting to feel deep relief—and a strong desire to return to the comfort of business as usual. But that is simply not an option. In the past three years we've already seen a dramatic acceleration in the shifting balance of power between the developed West and the emerging East, a rise in populist politics and social stresses in a number of countries, and significant strains on global governance systems. As the fallout from the crisis continues, we're likely to see increased geopolitical rivalries, new international security challenges, and rising tensions from trade, migration, and resource competition. For business leaders, however, the most consequential outcome of the crisis is the challenge to capitalism itself.