Marketing news

• Poised for growth, Acast brings on former Spotify executive Oskar Serrander as first US general manager

  16-06-2017 20:58
  
  Former Spotify executive Oskar Serrander has been hired to oversee the growth of the US market for Acast, the on-demand audio and podcasting company. Serrander brings more than 11 years of experience in media and technology companies in both Sweden and the US.
  He joins Acast to help spearhead US market growth.
  “We couldn't have asked for a better person to take on this role,” said Acast’s CEO and co-founder Måns Ulvestam. “Oskar has the perfect mix of experience to
  
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• Under Armour creates 80s style animation for Southampton FC's kit launch

  16-06-2017 19:00
  
  Under Armour has created an animated miniseries as part of its marketing around the new Southampton FC kits for the 2017/18 season.
  The Premier League club’s new kits have taken inspiration from 1980-1983 seasons worn by club legends such as Kevin Keegan and Mick Channon.
  In the build-up to tomorrow’s (17 June) unveiling of the new home and away kits, Under Armour has created an animated short in the style of 80s classics such as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and The Real Ghostbusters
  
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• Southampton FC creates 80s style animation for Under Armour kit launch

  16-06-2017 19:00
  
  Southampton FC has created an animated miniseries as part of its marketing around its new Under Armour kits for the 2017/18 season.
  The Premier League club’s new kits have taken inspiration from 1980-1983 seasons worn by club legends such as Kevin Keegan and Mick Channon.
  In the build-up to tomorrow’s (17 June) unveiling of the new home and away kits, Southampton FC created an animated short in the style of 80s classics such as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and The Real Ghos
  
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• Your company culture is only as strong as your team's belief in it, so here's how to hire the right people

  16-06-2017 18:13
  
  In my last column for The Drum I talked about how you had to live and breath your company values for them to be effective and meaningful. It’s a real bugbear of mine when chief executives, founders and managing directors blithely ignore the values they proudly place on their walls and websites.
  The article picked up pace online and provoked a lot of comment so I thought I would expand on the topic and share with you how we as recruiters work to a values driven recruitment plan.
  There are c
  
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• Kettle Chips hands creative duties to Barton F. Graf

  16-06-2017 18:11
  
  Kettle Brand Potato Chips has handed creative duties to NYC independent shop Barton F. Graf.
  The Oregon-based Chip brand previously worked with San Francisco’s Duncan Channon. Last fall, Duncan Channon created an election-themed campaign for Kettle called ‘Stir the Pot’ that poked fun at hot-button political issues.
  Kettle is the latest Snyder’s-Lance brand that Barton F. Graf has won. In 2015, the agency won creative duties for Cape Cod Potato Chips, Snack Factory P
  
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• How to avoid abandonment rates on travel websites

  16-06-2017 17:05
  
  Nobody likes trawling through thousands of websites before beginning a booking process, especially for something that should be as straight forward as booking flights and a hotel for a relaxing getaway. Yet, recent stats covering the range of abandonment rates for websites over the last three months of 2016 show that travel sites have some of the highest abandonment rates online.
  In spite of this, we know that web-based research is prominent in the digital era and that bloggers cannot source eno
  
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• Business on the Move: Starbucks, Direct Line, Ella’s Kitchen and more

  16-06-2017 17:00
  
  Starbucks is looking for a creative agency in the EMEA region for the first time. The drinks brand confirmed that it has briefed several agencies with a view to appointing a lead creative agency later this summer.
  The process, which is being run through Creativebrief, does not affect Starbucks’ global ad agency 72andSunny.
  Ella’s Kitchen, the organic baby food brand, has appointed marketing outfit Bigdog as its content agency, following a competitive four-way pitch.
  The brief, c
  
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• Latest from Profile Hub: Bosch, Imperial War Museum, Nokia and more

  16-06-2017 16:51
  
  The Drum loves great content and our Profile Hub enables agencies to self-publish their own news, insights, campaigns and case studies on The Drum website to build profile with our audiences.
  In this week’s Profile Hub Round-up we look at the return of the Nokia 3310 and nostalgia marketing, essential tools for SMBs, why online carousels are old hat, audience building for the Imperial War Museums and Bosch.
  Greenlight Insight: Nokia 3310 goes on sale in the UK - the impact of nostalgia in
  
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• Amazon continues its journey into food with £10.7bn acquisition of Whole Foods

  16-06-2017 16:28
  
  Amazon has made another telling move into the grocery market with the acquisition of Whole Foods in a £10.7bn deal.
  High end UK grocers such as Waitrose and M&S could be concerned, with the deal offering Amazon the chance to sell more premium food and drink ranges through Amazon Fresh. However, it’s fair to say the move won’t have as big of an impact in the UK market – Whole Foods has a much bigger store base across the pond (in the US it has 460 stores, here in the U
  
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• McDonald’s ends 41-year Olympic sponsorship

  16-06-2017 16:24
  
  McDonald’s has ended its 41-year sponsorship deal with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) three years early as part of a review of its marketing spend and a “new global growth plan”.
  McDonald’s and the IOC claim the decision was mutual, but it would seem a shift in priorities at McDonald’s precipitated the change. McDonald’s global chief marketing officer Silvia Lagnado says while the company has been “proud to support the Olympic movement”,
  
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• How meaningful brands became indispensable utilities for the modern world

  16-06-2017 16:21
  
  When I think of the old term ‘advertiser funded content’ (AFC), I’m reminded of my time as head of advertising at Vodafone in the early noughties, where – within the £70m brand advertising budget – I ring-fenced £250k for some experimental AFC.
  Through a specialist production company called New Moon (who went on to create the films which helped London win the summer Olympics bid), we had worked up some pilot footage for a sports and lifestyle TV show, ha
  
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• Amazon snaps up Whole Foods in fresh deal estimated at $13.7bn

  16-06-2017 15:57
  
  Amazon is to acquire natural and organic retailer Whole Foods Market in a deal estimated at $13.7bn. 
  Whole Foods' chief executive ​John Mackey will remain in his position, while Whole Foods Market’s headquarters will stay in Austin, Texas rather than moving to Amazon's HQ in Seattle. 
  The company will sit under Amazon's umbrella but its stores will continue to operate under the Whole Foods Market brand, with the grocer reassuring customers that the way it so
  
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• Uber, Instagram & Protein World: 5 things that mattered this week and why

  16-06-2017 15:52
  
  Uber tries to rebuild brand perceptions
  Over the past eight years, Uber has disrupted the taxi industry in 76 countries, its app is used by millions and it has grown to be worth nearly $70bn. But it has been plagued by scandal from the outset and things reached a head this week as CEO Travis Kalenick took a leave of absence amid the publication of a damning report on workplace culture, and allegations of harassment and discrimination.
  Against that backdrop, it is no wonder Uber is trying to do s
  
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• People on the move featuring Y&R Hong Kong, Time Out, Vice and more

  16-06-2017 15:47
  
  This week has seen another wave of appointments and departures at brands, media owners and agencies. The Drum has rounded up the key moves from the EMEA, APAC and North America regions below.
   
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  Dennis
  Dennis, the publishing group with over 30 brands including The Week and Cyclist, has hired Wired UK’s former digital editor Victoria Woollaston to head up its flagship technology brand, Alphr.com.
  As editorial director, Woollaston will manage the Alphr.com editorial
  
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• McDonald's walks away from Olympic sponsorship three years early

  16-06-2017 15:38
  
  McDonald’s has severed ties with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) after ending its contract three-years early.
  The US fast-food chain has ended its sponsorship with immediate effect after the two parties "mutually agreed" to end their 41-year long relationship.
  McDonald’s cited its reason for walking away from the deal early as part of a wider business strategy intended to facilitate global growth.
  In a statement, Silvia Lagnado, the global chief marketing officer at McDonal
  
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• AOL’s digital prophet claims the ‘four Ps of marketing’ are ‘absolute rubbish’

  16-06-2017 15:25
  
  Photo by Jarle NaustvikThe ‘four Ps’ are a widely-adopted framework among marketers, with the likes of Tesco CEO Dave Lewis publically supporting their integration within big business.
  And in a February Marketing Week poll, which generated nearly 800 votes, a resounding 77% of marketers answered yes when asked if the 4Ps of marketing were relevant to their job today. However, it’s fair to say AOL’s digital prophet (a self-awarded title) David Shing isn’t much of a
  
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• Five brand commandments to market with a purpose

  16-06-2017 15:23
  
  Several brands have recently gone to market with purpose driven creative, Pepsi with Kendell Jenner, McDonald’s grieving child, and Heineken's Worlds Apart creative to name a few.
  This has caused debate within the industry about the function of marketing. Does it remain about increasing awareness and then changing people's preference so that we contribute to the bottom line through incremental sales? Or, can we make it about something loftier, something that changes the planet, someth
  
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• Amazon to buy Whole Foods for $13.7bn

  16-06-2017 14:34 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  Amazon is to acquire Whole Foods Market, the supermarket chain, in a deal worth $13.7bn.
  
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• JetBlue teams with NFL’s NY Jets for all-mobile ‘Boarding Pass’ ticket option

  16-06-2017 14:29
  
  The New York Jets football team is giving fans a new way to attend a season’s worth of games that isn’t the usual season ticket. The new Jets Boarding Pass, presented by JetBlue, takes ticketing fully mobile and allows fans to attend every 2017 home game while sitting in a different seat at MetLife Stadium every time.
  With the launch of Boarding Pass, the Jets become the first NFL team to offer their fans a season-long, 100% mobile subscription.
  The Boarding Pass is managed through t
  
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• How media brands are changing tactics to make the most out of audiences

  16-06-2017 14:20
  
  The print industry is under great duress. Print sales are falling, digital giants are swallowing up ad revenue like there’s no tomorrow and the proliferation of channels makes it more difficult to capture people’s attention than ever before.
  The latest ABC figures for May show that all national newspaper titles suffered a sales decline, except The Sunday Times, which was the only paid-for newspaper to record real year-on-year circulation growth.
  Media brands are eager to fight these
  
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• Can collaborative technology build creative confidence?

  16-06-2017 13:51
  
  Pablo Picasso once said, “Every child is an artist, the problem is staying an artist when you grow up.” This will ring true with most adults, where bias and fear of expression can limit the creative process. Our most expressive years are arguably during our childhood when we are free of judgement and more inclined to show creativity.
  As personalities develop, labels such as ‘extroverts’ or ‘introverts’, creatives or non-creatives begin to emerge. Although peop
  
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• Publicis' Maurice Levy talks Viva Technology and why he didn't buy Cannes Lions, a festival which has become 'too dominated by tech'

  16-06-2017 13:45
  
  Publicis Groupe chairman Maurice Levy has stated that Viva Technology - the conference and exhibition he has led for the past two years in Paris - is not being set up as a direct competitor to Cannes Lions, an event which he revealed he could have bought before Ascential acquired it in 2004.
  Speaking on the second day of Viva Technology - having hosted the likes of the French president Emmanuel Macron, Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, Alphabet chairman Eric Schmidt, Buzzfeed founder
  
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• Ad of the Day: Corona and Parley create heartfelt poem to the sea in stand against plastic pollution

  16-06-2017 13:19
  
  To celebrate World Oceans Week, Corona and Parley worked with Wieden + Kennedy Amsterdam to produce 'What the Ocean Gives Us', a poem to highlight the natural beauty at risk of contamination from plastic pollution. 
  The 60 second film is part of a commitment to protect 100 islands against marine plastic pollution by 2020. According to the campaign, if current trends continue, the oceans will contain more plastic than fish by the year 2050.
  “This project is about plastic. How it i
  
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• Morrisons fined after breaking regulations on sharing customers' personal information

  16-06-2017 13:01
  
  Morrisons has been fined for breaking the law on how customers’ personal information is shared after it emerged the supermarket giant had pushed over 130,000 marketing emails to people who had opted out of receiving them.
  An investigation by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) found Morrisons deliberately sent 130,671 emails to shoppers who had previously opted out of receiving marketing related news.
  Simon Entwisle, deputy commissioner of the ICO, said: “It i
  
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• AMV boss Snowball receives damehood in Queen's birthday honours

  16-06-2017 12:49 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  Cilla Snowball, group chief executive and chairman at Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO, has received a damehood in the Queen's birthday honours list.
  
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• Dragon’s Den success story Kokoso Baby launches skincare range with help from Daughter

  16-06-2017 12:25
  
  Skincare brand Kokoso Baby has launched its new range of natural and organic baby washes in collaboration with creative agency Daughter.
  The #LaunchedByMums campaign put parents firmly at the heart of a coordinated, single-day launch across digital and social channels on Monday 12th June – spearheaded by hundreds of mums and dads who were among the first to try out the new product.
  Lauren Taylor, founder of Kokoso Baby, said: “We’re all a
  
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• The way we target consumers needs to change if brands are truly to embrace diversity

  16-06-2017 12:20
  
  Jan Gooding talked recently about the commercial imperative for brands to embrace diversity by moving beyond stereotypes and reflecting the complexity of the world. Her challenge to the marketing industry is for us to embrace the differences between people to make better, more effective work.
  When I read it I did a little fist pump and thought to myself ‘YES!' – a senior client is raising the bar on the topic of diversity by talking about its commercial and cultural importance i
  
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• UK leadership team announced in MEC Maxus merger

  16-06-2017 12:03
  
  Jason Dormieux will take on the role of UK chief executive of the merged MEC and Maxus 'NewCo' agency when it launches in January 2018.
  Formerly MEC UK chief executive, Dormieux will lead a new management team which will include Anna Hickey, Maxus UK managing director, who will take on the UK managing director role of the newly merged companies, and Paul Hutchison, MEC chief operating officer, who has been named chief operation officer of NewCo.
  “We’re merging Maxus and MEC
  
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• Morrisons fined for ignoring customers' opt-out of marketing email

  16-06-2017 12:03 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  Morrisons has been fined for breaking the law about how people's personal information should be treated when sending marketing emails.
  
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• Why music festivals can still be an ideal match for brands

  16-06-2017 11:53
  
  Brands have long looked to get into bed with the festival circuit to associate their products with the free spirited approach of music loving millennials. The hopeless marketing romantic in me wants this to work out for them. But will it?
  Are festival goers really embracing festival sponsors or are they just using them for free Wi-Fi and a beer koozie? Do they still hold value for brands or has the lustre worn off?   
  The Biz
  Let’s start with understanding the audience question.
  
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• Mobile marketing startup Mobkoi acquired by You & Mr Jones

  16-06-2017 11:44
  
  Mobile marketing startup Mobkoi has been acquired by brandtech specialists You & Mr Jones as it seeks to augment its own offer in the field.
  Mobkoi specialized in custom mobile marketing campaigns for brands such as Bentley, Canon and Nespresso since the family-run startups formation three years, but will now benefit from the global footprint offered by You & Mr Jones with new offices in New York, Dubai, Singapore and Sydney.
  You & Mr Jones were attracted to Mobkoi’s relationsh
  
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• Tesco sales growth hits seven-year high as CEO insists it will try to keep prices low

  16-06-2017 11:40
  
  Tesco reported a 2.3% rise in UK like-for-like sales for the 13 weeks to 27 May – its strongest performance since 2010 and sixth consecutive quarter of growth. It also means it beat analyst forecasts of 1.9% growth.
  The big four supermarket has benefited from convincing shoppers to return from its rivals, with its first-quarter performance boosted by a 2.7% rise in food sales. And these numbers have particularly resonated with shareholders, with Tesco’s shares up 3% this morning &nda
  
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• Noel Edmonds escalates Lloyds Bank compensation battle via sardonic ad

  16-06-2017 11:16
  
  Deal or No Deal presenter Noel Edmonds is putting his relationship with the banker to the test by dramatically upping the ante in a bitter battle to land a £53m compensation payout from Lloyds Bank.
  Edmonds has reworked the current Lloyds commercial which 'celebrates the resilience of the British people' to hammer his point home, subverting the bank’s logo with a pooping black horse mascot and a large ‘honesty countdown’ to complete the compensation process by the end of
  
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• Amaze head Wendy Stonefield lands Delolitte Digital leadership role

  16-06-2017 10:39
  
  Amaze chief commercial director Wendy Stonefield is to join Deloitte Digital as a director as the design and development agency looks to steal a march on the marketing services industry.
  Deloitte has become increasingly aggressive at targeting the agency market, in common with other professional services giants such as KPMG, Accenture and EY, through a combination of new hires and acquisitions.
  Amaze was purchased by St Ives in 2013 as part of the print giant’s own reorientation toward mar
  
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• Dennis hires Wired’s Victoria Woollaston to lead tech brand Alphr

  16-06-2017 10:30
  
  Dennis, the publishing group with over 30 brands including The Week and Cyclist, has hired Wired UK’s former digital editor Victoria Woollaston to head up its flagship technology brand, Alphr.com.
  As editorial director, Woollaston will manage the Alphr.com editorial team and work closely with the other tech brands within the Dennis portfolio, including IT Pro, Cloud Pro and Expert Reviews.
  Woollaston joins Dennis from Condé Nast-owned Wired, where she has been digital editor fo
  
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• Haymarket acquires British Media Awards and Digital Media Strategies

  16-06-2017 10:29 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  Haymarket Media Group has bought the British Media Awards and the Digital Media Strategies conference portfolio from Briefing Media.
  
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• Wins this week: Sky Bet, American Express, Emirates

  16-06-2017 10:28 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  Campaign's round-up of account moves across advertising and media.
  
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• AI-powered virtual assistant wins LVMH Innovation Award at Viva Tech

  16-06-2017 10:26 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  Start-up Heuritech, an AI-powered virtual assistant capable of spotting the latest fashion trends, has beaten out 500 other applicants to win LVMH's first Innovation Award, announced at Viva Technology Paris 2017.
  
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• Chinese bike sharing company Mobike expands into Europe with UK city launches

  16-06-2017 10:22
  
  Chinese bike sharing company Mobike is set to launch in the UK this month as it kicks off its European expansion.
  The Tencent-backed company will roll out its distinctive orange bikes in Manchester and Salford from the end of the month. The move is part of an overseas expansion from the Tencent-backed company, which aims to expand its business into 100 cities globally before the end of the year.
  Mobike, which launched in Shanghai in 2016, has quickly grown across China and launched its service i
  
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• Tabasco unveils BBQ beard-pinny in collaboration with 'hipster lifestyle brand' Urbanology

  16-06-2017 10:13
  
  The rise of trendy urban hipsters with copious facial hair has driven a concurrent shake-up of the once staid wearables market – evidenced by the unlikely development of a 'beard-pinny', a waterproof coat capable of protecting people's perfectly groomed facial hair from the worst summer can throw at it.
  Devised by hot sauce brand Tabasco and Urbanology, the limited-edition garment is retailing for just £15 and forms part of a wider collection of handmade products – pr
  
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• Nestlé chews over sale of US confectionary arm to bolster health credentials

  16-06-2017 09:29
  
  Transnational food and drink giant Nestlé is considering a sale of its US confectionery arm, which includes brands such as LaffyTaffy, Butterfinger and Nerds, in order to bolster its health credentials.
  Such a sale would fit with Nestlé’s stated ambition to become more focused on health and nutrition as increasingly diet-conscious consumers turn away from processed foods toward fresher alternatives.
  This shift in emphasis has already seen Nestlé sponsor a $50k hun
  
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• News Corp complains to Europe about Google after WSJ suffers plunge in news referrals

  16-06-2017 09:10 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  News Corp has made a complaint about Google to the European Commission after the Wall Street Journal saw a plunge in referrals by the search engine's news service.
  
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• Dormieux named UK CEO of MEC-Maxus merged agency

  16-06-2017 08:42 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  MEC UK chief Jason Dormieux will take charge of the combined MEC and Maxus agency in the UK when it launches in January.
  
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• Singapore government rejects appeal by tech and media giants to support Pink Dot

  16-06-2017 08:32
  
  The Singapore government has rejected the appeal by tech and media giants to support Pink Dot Singapore according to a report by Today.
  The companies wrote in to the Singapore Police Force last week to request permission to support the event without listing their sponsorship.
  A Ministry of Home Affairs spokesperson reiterated the government’s stand saying, “foreign entities should not fund, support, or influence events that relate to domestic issues, especially political issues or co
  
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• Get ready for Cannes: Everything you need to know

  16-06-2017 08:30
  
  What you should see…
  Wake up with The Economist
  The Economist is once again hosting a series of events to kickstart your day at Cannes. Each morning throughout the week it will bring together three top global marketers, to discuss key industry topics around brand safety and transparency in the post-truth era, as well as the changing role of the CMO. Speakers include P&G chief brand officer Marc Pritchard, Diageo CMO Syl Saller and Samsung CMO Marc Mathieu.
  Marketer
  
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• Media and entertainment marketers most confident about growth prospects

  16-06-2017 08:06 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  Marketers within the media and entertainment category are the most confident about growth in their category.
  
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• Buzzfeed founder Jonah Peretti on addressing The Trump Dossier and how media needs to raise the bar

  16-06-2017 08:04
  
  Buzzfeed founder Jonah Peretti has said that while he views Facebook and Google as being part of the problem when it comes to rise of fake news, he does also believe that as they increase revenue sharing methods with publishers, they are also going to be part of the solution.
  Speaking at Viva Technology in Paris, Peretti spoke about the future of online news, claiming that the biggest difference between Buzzfeed and 'traditional' media organisations was that it saw the need to "serve our audienc
  
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• Buzzfeed founder Jonah Peretti on addressing The Trump Dossier & how media needs to raise the bar

  16-06-2017 08:04
  
  Buzzfeed founder Jonah Peretti has said that while he views Facebook and Google as being part of the problem when it comes to rise of fake news, he does also believe that as they increase revenue sharing methods with publishers, they are also going to be part of the solution.
  Speaking at Viva Technology in Paris, Peretti spoke about the future of online news, claiming that the biggest difference between Buzzfeed and 'traditional' media organisations was that it saw the need to "serve our audienc
  
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• Thomas Barta: Customer experience is a marketer’s biggest leadership challenge

  16-06-2017 08:00
  
  Looking for buzzword bingo ideas? Just listen to virtually any CEO speech on customer experience (CEX). Although there has never been more CEX talk, the reality for customers often seems to be the exact opposite of what is said.
  An airline says it flies “the friendly skies” but violently drags a paying passenger off one of its planes. Many hotels claim to put the customer first but happily talk guests into inflated currency conversion charges: “Do you want to pay in y
  
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• Tesco like-for-like sales up 1%

  16-06-2017 07:48 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  Tesco has reported a 1% rise in group like-for-like sales, a growth for the sixth consecutive quarter.
  
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