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Our Monthly Round-up of the key pieces in Marketing for September – a shorter review this month.  Just six key pieces – if you missed any of them, have some time they are well worth a catchup. All our monthly reviews are available on our website. http://haiconsulting.com/category/views/

As we move into October, it’s back to business as usual. It’s Bond launch week here in the UK – we’re on hand to help you, shaking marketing performance & stirring your agency resourcing structures.

1. Our top pick this month comes from Rishad Tobaccowala, this really is a must read. His series ‘the Future does not fit into the containers of the past has been gaining traction over several months. And this piece is excellent edition 58 below, as is the following piece edition 59.

Here is the link: https://rishad.substack.com/p/how-to-thrive-in-the-modern-workspace

2. Second, we pick a piece by Nidhi Dave from singlegrain.com on the 42 Digital Marketing trends you cannot ignore in 2021. It’s a great digital trend summary.

Here is the link: https://www.singlegrain.com/digital-marketing/digital-marketing-trends-2021/

3. Third, It’s food, glorious food: Tom Kerridge is on a roll at the moment from Party in the Park to his latest opening Kerridge’s at the Corinthian Hotel in London. Good food comes with a premium. As Ritson explains the prices aren’t a rip off if that’s what the market will pay.

Here is the link: https://www.marketingweek.com/tom-kerridge-price-premium/?cmpid=em~newsletter~breaking_news~n~n&utm_medium=em&utm_source=newsletter&utm_campaign=breaking_news&eid=22899180&sid=MW0001&adg=FB9C7836-4BD5-4CD2-8851-76A3FC8A5592

4. Fourth, we pick a piece from Adweek by Andrew Bailey for The & Partnership on how they are using the office for competitive advantage.

Here is the link: https://www.adweek.com/agencies/how-thepartnership-uses-the-office-to-create-a-competitive-advantage/

5. Fifth, we highlight this month Stratechery.com. Ben Thompson is a great writer and there is always some interesting articles on here, a must for your back to work techdata reading stack.

Here is the link: https://stratechery.com/category/articles/

6. Sixth, we pick an excellent podcast from the McCann Worldgroup “Spontaneously Candid”with Kathleen Hall, Chief Brand Officer of Microsoft. Kathleen has a tremendous track record as the global brand steward for Microsoft – she talks openly how she is still fighting for emotional connection relationship with consumers, and she still balances quarterly ROI pressures.

Here is the link: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5idXp6c3Byb3V0LmNvbS8xODI2NjI1LnJzcw

Time for the Work: It’s a Pick of this month for Google and Uncommon London. Great to see this work breaking on the big screen, in the cinema on the opening night of James Bond’s – No time to die. https://www.creativeboom.com/news/uncommons-latest-campaign-for-google-celebrates-the-power-of-questions-around-uk-culture-and-identity/

Back to Henley: The much delayed Henley Music Festival was back in town this month and what a great do it was too. Running over five evenings – great music and comedy acts and great riverside entertainment, headed by Madness, each year it brings record crowds to the town, and a great party even for our returning Olympic Heroes.

We’re here to help you with your agency resourcing structures, agency reviews, evaluations and benchmarking to improve your marketing performance, so do get in touch if there is anything we can help you with.

Kind regards,

Will

Our Monthly Round-up of the key pieces in Marketing for August – we’ve chosen an excellent Marketing Webinar and five key articles this month – if you missed any of them, have some time they are well worth a catchup. All our monthly reviews are available on our website. http://haiconsulting.com/category/views/

As we move into September, it is still WFH for most of the larger organisations. It’s time to be looking at your agency resourcing and brand plans for 2022. We’re on hand to help and advise you – optimising the performance of your agency structures.

1. Our top pick this month comes from Marketing Mini MBA guru Mark Ritson. Mark delivered this Webinar in July ‘His 10 Biggest Marketing Heroes’ as a prequal to his Mini Marketing MBA series starting in September, it turns out Wharton is highly connected – it’s a good webinar. (1.38)

Here is the link: https://player.vimeo.com/video/585363713?h=d25c5eadb6

2. Second, we pick another piece by Rishad Tobaccowala. This one conflicts with Mark Ritson above – who sticks more to the tried and tested 1950’s Neil Borden’s Four P’s / Marketing Mix – the updated or rehashed 5P’s or 5C’s are never as good as the original in it’s tin.

Here is the link: https://rishad.substack.com/p/success-5ps?

3. Third, it’s always good to see Marketing spend heading upwards, we came across this piece on P&G sales and it’s super positive.

Here is the link: https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/365568/pg-sales-soar-as-retiring-ceo-extols-marketing-sp.html

4. Fourth, Here and Now – originally published in Campaign – Charles Vallance, founder of VCCP gives his view on Immediacy and it’s a very good read.

Here is the link: https://www.vccp.com/news/2021/aug/here-and-now

5. Fifth, we all love a good beer ad, and who better to write this review than Jeremy Lee of the Creative Salon.

Here is the link: https://creative.salon/articles/best-beer-ads

6. Sixth, London startup Craig+Bridget are off and running – this is their latest punchy blog.

Here is the Link: https://www.craigandbridget.co.uk/blog/advertising-doesnt-work-please-buy-my-advertising

Time for the Work: It’s a Pick this month for Avanti West Coast and their feel good work by Adam & Eve London, inspiring and challenging creative work in a difficult category of travel. https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/avanti-west-coast-feel-good-travel-adam-eve-ddb/1725271

Media: Anthony Swede has written this reflective piece on the media industry and what it has taught him. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/five-things-working-media-agencies-has-taught-me-anthony-swede/?trackingId=9IzBnb%2BkFCVzAEJCQIa3GQ%3D%3D

Ageism in Advertising: is it the Kingdom of failure, an interesting blog on ageism in advertising and we thought it’s worth including, given so many agencies are ‘letting go’  creative wisdom. https://www.kingdomoffailure.com/post/get-off-my-lawn-ageism-in-advertising-a-giant-pain-in-my-ass

Back to Henley: It’s great to have the festival season back in Henley, we had a belated 5 day royal regatta in the second week of August, the TRAD boat Festival in the last weekend of August and the Music festival is yet to come. We loved this Henley picture which will be in the press next week – no Pitch consultant/Intermediary does a better boat trip.

Book Alert: Will Greenwood and Ben Fennell launch their book this week. World Class, how to lead learn and grow like a champion. A gifted athlete will identify space and opportunity faster than anyone else, a visionary leader will do exactly the same. In a team packed with difference, generosity is often the most precious commodity. Difference needs to be celebrated and embraced, it’s a two way street. Launching on September 2nd, you can pre-order a copy here at https://lnkd.in/dRm4-zdZ

We’re here to help you with your agency resourcing structures, agency reviews, evaluations and benchmarking to improve your marketing performance, so do contact us for anything we can help you with.

Kind regards,

Will

Our Monthly Round-up of the key pieces in Marketing for July – we’ve chosen five key articles and a really good podcast – if you missed any of them, have some time they are well worth a catchup. All our monthly reviews are available on our website. http://haiconsulting.com/category/views/

As we move out of lockdown – we look forward to picking back up with you.

1. Our top pick this month comes from Marketing Mini MBA guru Mark Ritson. Mark details the seven things Marketeers need to know before they answer the question, always outspoken and challenging the norm. It’s a very good read.

Here is the link: https://www.marketingweek.com/mark-ritson-answer-question-marketers/

2. Second, we’ve picked an excellent piece from Rishad Tobaccowala, this one is hot off the block – from yesterday. It’s the very latest (Edition 51) in his series ‘The future does not fit in the containers of the past’. He outlines the four questions – how to lead today.

Here is the link: https://rishad.substack.com/p/the-four-questions-how-to-lead-today?

3. Third, we’ve picked an interesting piece on the Tiffany brand and the wider fashion sector in general. Does keeping the brand up to date mean alienating loyal customers. Having done a stint at Asprey in New York myself in my early days of marketing, I so remember the top ten customers attributed to well over two thirds of the revenue. My best customer – none other than Yoko Ono.

Here is the link: https://www.marketingweek.com/tiffanys-brand-needs-an-update-in-fashion-that-means-alienating-loyal-customers/

4. Fourth, we’ve picked the podcast of the month, an excellent rendition from D&AD Chairman Tim Lindsay. I worked with Tim at Publicis London, he had a restless desire to always keep raising the creative bar. In this piece, he reveals his own all-time top 3 advertising campaigns and his hopes for the advertising industry’s role in the new economy.

Here is the link: https://thefuelpodcast.com/tim-lindsay-dad-creative-greatness-new-blood/

5. Fifth, what’s next on new office openings, and hybrid offices – this piece from the HBR is excellent. Will the office of the future be merely a ‘town hall’ style meeting place, from a personal standpoint, we rarely head up to London these days unless we have to.

Here is the link: https://hbr.org/2021/07/to-make-hybrid-work-solicit-employees-input

6. Sixth, we‘ve picked a piece by Korn Ferry on the Six Signs it’s time to Quit. With the job market so strong, experts say it’s tempting to leave if these conditions apply.

Here is the link:https://www.kornferry.com/insights/this-week-in-leadership/six-signs-its-time-to-quit

Time for the Work: It’s ITV this month, and “chapeau” Uncommon London for producing some great work for ITV through the year. A powerful message during the Euros – to stand together against racism, followed this week by ITV Studios the Trap – Drama v Reality https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1120942575103451

Media: Channel 4 and the implications, Ian Whittaker outlines what’s likely to happen. https://mcusercontent.com/0ea5309c987f33259cb269581/files/51284fc8-b72d-9763-08dd-49a843637edd/2021_07_05_Channel_4_and_the_implications.pdf

E-Commerce: Simon Andrews at Addictive writes an excellent blog Fix Lite. This the lite free version that comes out on a Monday, but even more compelling is the Tech and deep dives he does into New Tv and Merchant as part of his Friday Fix. https://mailchi.mp/addictivemobile/fixlite-monday-august-2?e=fcb1e7fb84

Back to Henley: We loved this Henley picture which appeared in the Mail Online during the heatwave, a super polished boat, shame about the fenders. A shoutout this month to Rebecca Poole – aka Purdy – with the river fairly quiet we helped her out filming for her latest single. https://youtu.be/4-3z_Tn34pM

Good news there is a 2021 Henley Royal Regatta from Wednesday 11^th to Sunday 15th August, do get in touch if you’re coming down, no other intermediary does a better boat trip!

We’re here to help you with your agency resourcing structures, agency reviews, evaluations and benchmarking to improve your marketing performance, so do contact us for anything we can help you with.

Kind regards,

Will

Our Monthly Round-up of the key pieces in Marketing for June – we’ve chosen four key articles and two podcasts – if you missed any of them, have some time they are well worth a catchup. All our monthly reviews are available on our website. http://haiconsulting.com/category/views/

We can’t wait for a return to more normal and offices reopening. With most post-lockdown brand plans in place, now is the time to be looking at your agency resourcing structures, evaluations and benchmarking performance. We look forward to picking back up with you.

1. Our top pick this month comes from McKinsey, an inspiring article on growth and the triple play of creativity, analytics and purpose, it’s a really well written and presented article.

Here is the link: https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/marketing-and-sales/our-insights/the-growth-triple-play-creativity-analytics-and-purpose?cid=eml-web

2. Second, we pick a splendid pod-partnership – we introduced Ben Fennell, CEO of the Growth House  to Ollie Phillips back in January. Boom – a fruitful pod-partnership. Ollie had a brilliant story to tell and The Growth House podcast is simply inspiring.  Ollie’s insights around the impact of positivity on sporting and business performance are as refreshing as they are engaging. Knowing both so well, I found it brought many truths home – a great life journey – so well told.

Here is the link: The Growth House Podcast: https://lnkd.in/dPB9Q34  (37 minutes)

3. Third, with the UEFA Euros in full swing there has to be a football theme and a good write up of the Coca-Cola – Ronaldo & Paul Pogba – Heineken moment, Mark Ritson is on the money with this piece and what it means for other brands.

Here is the link: https://www.marketingweek.com/mark-ritson-ronaldo-damage-coke-brand/

4. Fourth, we pick a couple of shorter Podcast (10 minutes) put together by the Marketing Society in their Starter for ten series. We have included two links: the first by Andy Nairn of Lucky Generals and the second by Melissa Robertson, CEO of Dark Horses. Andy talks on how to luck yourself, Melissa on the role of sports sponsorship and how smaller brands can unlock sports sponsorship potential.

Here are the links: https://podcasts.marketingsociety.com/episode/starterforten-andynairn https://podcasts.marketingsociety.com/episode/starterforten-melissarobertson

5. Fifth we pick a piece by Bayer CMO Patricia Corsi on the importance of feeling uncomfortable. She answers ten questions on inspiration, challenges and more.

Here is the link: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/bayer-chief-marketing-officer-patricia-corsi-feeling-schweitzer/?trackingId=sY47qPVztxXchDuJblNczA%3D%3D

6. Sixth, We all love a new car and their adverts but this piece that Robin Wight highlighted for us really does show the best 20 car ads of all time. Even if they did spell his name incorrectly, ‘It’s all in the detail Robin.’

Here is the link: https://www.hagerty.co.uk/articles/lists/the-20-best-car-adverts-of-all-time/

Time for the Work: Five years ago we managed the global review for SCA, which was rebranded to Essity, back then they appointed two of the bigger networks. Our pick this month goes to one of them AMV BBDO for outstanding work and Wombstories, it has just won the Grand Prix and Titanium award at Cannes. Great work for a great client and agency. https://www.adweek.com/creativity/behind-the-scenes-of-cannes-winner-womb-stories-and-its-masterful-framing-of-womanhood/amp/

Media: Grabbing your attention. A great piece on how much attention there is in the world. https://www.lumen-research.com/blog/how-much-attention-is-there-in-the-world

E-Commerce: We conclude with a logos chart, most agencies love a logos chart early in the deck. This one is a little different, an infographic that captures a start up map of companies with a Billions dollars valuation and all 21^st century brands. How many do you recognise? https://www.cbinsights.com/research/unicorn-startup-market-map/

Back to Henley: Got to love Oxfordshire and the attached writeup, but we are truly blessed to have nights like these on the river.https://www.telegraph.co.uk/family/life/face-oxfordshire-still-poshest-county/

We’re here to help you with your agency resourcing structures, agency reviews, evaluations and benchmarking to improve your marketing performance, so do contact us for anything we can help you with.

Kind regards,

Will

Our Monthly Round-up of the key pieces in Marketing for May – we’ve chosen four key articles, and two podcasts – if you missed any of them, have some time they are well worth a catchup. All our monthly reviews are available on our website. http://haiconsulting.com/category/views/

The pandemic has taught clients what they need:- fast, agile, and efficient working agencies.

We’ve included a bit of special in this Month’s Review, eight highlights from the Adforum Summit, held virtually. It’s where the agencies meet with 80 of the top consultants/intermediaries from around the world to update us on their leadership teams and latest developments.

1. Our top pick comes from McKinsey this month, on building new workforce skills at scale in order to thrive post the pandemic, and it’s a very interesting read.

Here is the link: https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/organization/our-insights/building-workforce-skills-at-scale-to-thrive-during-and-after-the-covid-19-crisis?cid=app

2. Second, we pick Ian Whittaker’s piece titled ‘The Return of Agencies’, Ian goes into some detail analysing the Agency Q1 results. Tankers v Speedboats, he has recently become a City AM regular contributor.

Here is the link: https://ianwhittakermedia.com/2021/05/11/monthly-in-depth-insight-may-2021/

3. Third, we pick a piece that first appeared in Campaign Asia, and being a fan of Byron Sharp, his name pops up in so many pitch briefs, we felt it was time to give you the Byron Sharp update.

Here is the link: https://www.campaignasia.com/article/byron-sharp-on-why-the-best-response-to-covid-19-was-to-stop-advertising/463898

4. Fourth, we pick a podcast from Founder and CEO David Jones and partner Emma Cookson of Brad tech firm, You and Mr Jones, one we always follow. David and Emma join Campaign Chemistry US to talk about the brand tech model of the future.

Here is the link: https://www.campaignlive.com/article/campaign-chemistry-mr-jones/1717932

5. Fifth, we pick a second podcast from the US with Paul Cowan. We featured his new book last month – Connecting with Clients. Paul talks about the power of self-awareness being the cornerstone of good client relationships, and the paucity of companies investing in training. It’s 18 minutes of listening – he also has a blog which he hopes will become a learning community.

Here is the link: https://deliberatedirections.com/paul-cowan/

6. Sixth, we conclude this month’s pick by including this fabulous piece by Rishad Tobaccowala on leadership this month. All part of his series ‘The Future Does Not Fit in the Containers of the Past’ edition 42, and once again an absolutely must read.

Here is the link: https://rishad.substack.com/p/youleader?

Time for the Work: We’ve picked the work for Google this month, brilliantly created by Uncommon London. Coinciding with the lifting of lockdown and the promise of school holidays, Google has partnered News UK and Channel 4 to help the British public get the most out of the summer. Brilliant! https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/google-what-searching-summer-uncommon-creative-studio/1717889

Media: We think it’s time you put Statechery in your media reading stack, there are so many good articles on here, it’s often difficult to choose one. https://stratechery.com/

Adforum Summit: For the last eight years, we have attended the Adforum Summit, this one was virtually delivered once again. We met with: WPP’s Mark Read, Ogilvy, MSQ Partners, The Richards Group, Giant Spoon, Accenture Interactive, McCann Worldgroup, Adstream, DDB Worldwide, and finally the new team from dentsu international – led by Global CEO Wendy Clark.

Eight Highlights from the Adforum Summit:

• Market Positivity – With agency Q1 results fairly positive across the board, market positivity is returning, clients are looking to return to pre-pandemic spend levels, configuration is key, though topline agency growth remains sporadic. The pace of change has permanently changed markets, growth now comes through experience and new relevance.

• What the Pandemic has taught clients – To seek what they need:- fast, agile, and efficient working agencies. Wendy Clark summed it up saying “It’s about giving clients what they need – not what we’ve got.” dentsu’s presentation was a strong message of connected and singular vision, taking complexities out of the agency’s structure.

• Diversity, Equity and Inclusion – We saw many agencies present their diversity, equity and inclusion goals, we saw some fantastic presenters from diverse cultures. We also saw some great new work, particularly strong was the  Mastercard ‘True name’ work through McCann which just goes from strength to strength.

• Creativity is the most powerful force in business – This was Bill Bernback’s view, but Marty O’Halloran and his DDB leadership team showed us how they were re-imaging the future – what that means today and how they will grow tomorrow. It’s built around work that you never thought you would see, it’s about unlocking growth – Unexpected Works.

• Experience – Companies are looking to pivot from recovery back to growth. For the first time the majority of consumers are choosing product & services on experience in a new value set ahead of price and quality. All are buying on values and are willing to pay more.

• Blending Creativity with Technology and Purpose – We are seeing a number of agencies pursue the blending to degrees of creativity with technology and purpose. Accenture Interactive showed us a game-changer in their pursuit of Jaguar Land Rover, an impressive top team they shared their new work showing a personalised customer experience with creativity and technology at its core.

• Gaming – 87% of internet users are playing online games in some shape or form, which offers huge opportunity for brands to reach this massive audience and we saw how several agencies are investing in new talent in this area. We saw an excellent case history from Chennai – India for food delivery service, Swiggy.

• Purpose – Clients are re-assessing the role of marketing, shapeshifting the organisation. There is a new customer obsession which is much more strategic and a re-assessment of touchpoints. Agencies are being pursued to provide ‘a click up’ for new growth, and new purpose.

Back to Henley: The Regatta Summer Fireworks have been the signature firework display in Henley for many years, but with the ever-changing Covid conditions we have decided to put them on hold this year. Our thanks go to Fantastic Fireworks, a great company who have safely supported us for many years.

We are here to help you with your agency resourcing structures, agency reviews, and benchmarking to improve your marketing performance.

It would be great to catch up on anything we can help you with.

Kind regards,

Will

Our Monthly Round-up of the key pieces in Marketing for April – we’ve chosen three key articles, an outstanding presentation, a podcast and a book preview – if you missed any of them, have some time they are well worth a catchup. All our monthly reviews are available on our website. http://haiconsulting.com/category/views/

We can’t wait for the 17^th May and a return to more normality, pubs and restaurants reopening – even a pint of beer inside, as clients look to reset their agencies and brand objectives.

1. Our top pick this month comes from the WFA Conference, and a inspiring concluding session by Mark Ritson titled ‘Growth and Peril in Purpose’. Mark has been a Marketing Week columnist for the last ten years and runs the Marketing Mini MBA programme. He has an outspoken way of challenging the marketing & advertising norm – in what he provocatively refers to as a industry run by arse-hats.

Here is the link: https://m.youtube.com/watch?t=193&v=0WJtoW71DPA&feature=youtu.be

2. Second, we pick Julian Douglas’s latest podcast as the new IPA President. At university Dougie ran a graduate printing press, before he got an opening into advertising landing at WCRS, and then sought to work at BBH on Audi, dismissing a career in derivatives. He’s always had a side hussle running a karaoke company, Lucky Voice – what he calls a distraction, but it taught him how to pitch and run a business. It’s an interesting podcast hearing about his singalong, an Oasis in the making.

Here is the link: https://soundcloud.com/the-ipa-podcast/ipa-president-julian-douglas

3. Third, we pick a piece from last month’s Harvard Business Review. The Covid-19 pandemic upended a marketer’s playbook, challenging the existing rules about customer relationships and building brands. One year in, there’s no going back to the old normal. Here are 10 new marketing truths and some key learnings.

Here is the link:https://hbr.org/2021/03/10-truths-about-marketing-after-the-pandemic

4. Fourth, we have for a long time been a fan of Simon Andrews of Addictive and his Friday fix. This is Fix lite which is the free version, but there are some good links here and the deep dives have powerful content, so why not subscribe to his service which is just £2 a week.

Here is the link: https://us1.campaign-archive.com/?u=80025f160be434835759d292b&id=9408043797

5. Fifth, we pick a piece by Andy Nairn titled, ‘Data is your rocket fuel’ whilst some Marketeers have said data is the new oil Andy believes this expression has been similarly used as pre-noucements for integration, personalisation and experience. It’s a good preview and he has a book out in June.

Here is the link: https://mumbrella.com.au/data-is-your-rocket-fuel-666755

6. Sixth, our book preview this month is from someone we’ve known for some time through different agencies and consulting projects. Paul Cowan’s new book is titled  ‘Connecting with clients for stronger, more rewarding and longer lasting client relationships’. The book contains new ideas derived from the world’s leading relationship experts. Insights from over 500,000 pieces of client feedback worldwide. With tips and guidance from an adman, organisational change agent, couples’ counsellor and co-founder of The Client Relationship Consultancy. Dip into short chapters and discover a valuable insight on every page. A must read for all agency folks out there.

Here is the link:

https://paulcowan.com/

Media: How Media consumption has changed over the last ten years, how many minutes do you spend on media, this is a good media read https://www.visualcapitalist.com/how-media-consumption-has-changed-in-2021/

Time for the Work: We’ve picked the new spot for British Airways in light of the fact we would all like to be flying again. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQIbrvWTPus But, we have also picked a super special ad that probably changed the world of advertising it was RIP for Nick Kamen this month and in the words of Sir John Hegarty this ad changed Nick’s life. https://www.linkedin.com/posts/bbh-london_levis-laundrette-ugcPost-6795748828201922560-tSYX

Back to Henley: Well it is at last beginning to brighten up here in Henley and a chance to be outside. No regatta booms to be seen, that’s delayed until w/c 9th August but we’ve picked this fabulous picture for you, taken of the river at dawn by local photographer Russell Cleaver.

We are here to help you with your agency resourcing structures, agency reviews, and benchmarking to improve your marketing performance, so do give us a call with anything we can help you with.

Kind regards,

Will

Our Monthly Round-up of the key pieces in Marketing for March – we’ve chosen four key articles, an inaugural speech made by the new IPA President, and a weekly blog – if you missed any of them, have some time they are well worth a catchup. All our monthly reviews are available on our website http://haiconsulting.com/category/views/ With lockdown lifting, more widespread vaccinations, groups of six outside, there’s hope that the economy will begin to bounce back as clients reset with their agencies.

1. Our top pick this month is an inspiring piece written by Rishad Tobaccowala on What is Strategy? This is part of his series: The Future Does Not Fit in the Containers of the Past, a brilliant series of blogs that are really worth following. It’s edition 31 this month and it’s ‘strategy fantastic.’

Here is the link: https://rishad.substack.com/p/strategy

2. Second, competing in today’s landscape requires connected, seamless commerce experiences across every step of the customer journey. This piece looks at the strategies for the new era of e-commerce – always on, and always present, it uses research from Forrester, this report highlights dentsu, it shows how each provider measures up and helps eBusiness and channel strategy professionals select the right one for their needs.

Here is the link: https://reprints2.forrester.com/#/assets/2/854/RES161672/report?sm=hxckbkpjah

3. Third, we’ve pick the inaugural IPA President’s speech made by Julian Douglas, aka Dougie. Dougie made his speech from Manchester on Accelerating agency opportunity 10x. We’ve always believed there is agency life outside the M25, it was refreshing to see Dougie take this stance to accelerate opportunity and promote the nation’s creativity.

Here is the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bck54JM3Gzo

4. Fourth, we picked a piece by Mark Ritson that appeared in Marketing Week last month. Mark outlines the 14 steps to an effective presentation and there are some good learnings.

Here is the link: https://www.marketingweek.com/mark-ritson-marketing-planning-14-steps/

5. Fifth, we picked up a trend piece from Gideon Spanier at Campaign, that we are seeing in other clients. With the ending of lockdown there is a need to shift brand consideration levels, a definite shift away from performance marketing to brand re-consideration. It will fuel a surge in above the line advertising again as brands optimise their media buying.

Here is the link: https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/airbnb-slashes-spend-permanent-shift-performance-marketing-brand/1708621

6. Sixth, Simon Andrews has been writing a fantastic blog Friday Fix, that we read and always try to share on a Friday morning. He gave us an Easter special for Fix Insider, fix Merchant+ and it’s a deep dive on retail, really worth a read and definitely one to follow.

Here is the link: https://mailchi.mp/addictivelondon.com/fixinsider-merchant-march-31

New Agency Alert: Last month we featured the US agency Proto, their positioning as an innovation agency. This month from London, we’ve picked a ‘very bright new agency’ Craig + Bridget who are seeking ‘your problems’ https://www.craigandbridget.co.uk/ To see their credentials click below. https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1z9m2h4o4Zr8ffCPJWqGOCIviNrlXeJYY50rkldu0O0c/edit#slide=id.p

Media: We came across an Ebook produced by DEG Digital on the 12 Digital Marketing Trends of 2021, it introduces the key shift that will impact your marketing strategy and it’s a good all rounder. https://www.degdigital.com/ebooks/2021-digital-marketing-trends/

Time for the Work: We’ve picked the outstanding brand extension work for Marmite – Dynamite this month. We’re a fan of the Chilli launch, great work by Adam and Eve for the Unilever brand, but also a smart bit of thinking by Autoglass. We love a good old fashioned ‘outdoor media build’, and a timely piece of guerrilla marketing. Great work folks.

Office Working: Will the office return, well hot off the press, this piece suggests the office will be more a place for collaboration, hot desks and zoom rooms going forward. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/30/business/office-return-space.html?smid=li-share

Back to Henley: A bit of a special this month for all watch lovers as British watchmaker Henley based Bremont have opened their new manufacturing and technology centre. They are now offering tours of ‘the Wing.’ We can’t wait to see the new factory, and the new ranges are just superb. There’s a virtual tour, a factory tour, we’re coupling it with a Slipper launch tour – do call us we can arrange it. https://www.bremont.com/products/the-bremont-tour

Have a great long Easter weekend. It will be great to catch up properly again. We are here to help you with your agency resourcing structures, agency reviews, and benchmarking to improve your marketing performance.

Kind regards,

Will

Our Monthly Round-up of the key pieces in Marketing for February – we’ve chosen just four key articles, a podcast and a book preview, if you missed them and have some time they are well worth a catchup. All our monthly reviews are now available on our website http://haiconsulting.com/category/views/  With lockdown lifting / more widespread vaccinations here in the UK, there’s hope that the economy will begin to bounce back and clients will reset with their agencies.

1. Our top pick is an inspiring piece on Transformation change with Wendy Clark, the newly appointed Global Chairman and CEO of dentsu. Wendy presented her vision to the Adforum consultants in December. Now Gideon Spanier, (and it’s chapeau Gideon this month – award winning writer) has written a very authoritative summary for Campaign. Wendy is hugely ambitious, there’s an absolute whirlwind coming through dentsu at the moment, it will be interesting to see just how the new global team settle and deliver.

Here is the link: https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/dentsus-wendy-clark-if-i-dont-use-position-change-face-industry-shame-me/1707732

2. Our second pick is Les Binet this month. There’s something for everyone in our monthly review, this one is a short podcast called “The short of it” Les talks about brand optimisation, share of mind, emotional appeal, the difference between short term sales gains vs long term brand building – the need to intertwine both, but also the need to aim for fame.

Here is the link: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=4OSr-Fwp7N8&feature=youtu.be

3, Third, we pick an article from procurement and the WFA. To drive improvement, marketing procurement needs to ensure that everyone is talking the same language. WFA’s Global Sourcing Board has created some common definitions for key terms and it’s an interesting read.

Here is the link: https://wfanet.org/knowledge/item/2021/02/03/Defining-world-class-standards-for-marketing-procurement

4. Fourth, we previewed Lucky Generals founder Andy Nairn’s book in last month’s review. In this exclusive extract from his new book, Go Luck Yourself, Andy explores the role of luck in building a brand and how a mathematician might approach marketing’s four Ps.

Here is the link: https://www.marketingweek.com/andy-nairn-brands-use-two-four-ps-tilt-odds-in-their-favour/

5. Fifth, we’ve become a great fan of  Rishad Tobaccowala newsletter: ‘The future does not fit in the containers of the past.’ How pertinent that in Edition 29 – Rishad writes in depth about ‘Scale’ and it’s a very good read, in fact we recommend all his newsletters.

Here is the link: https://rishad.substack.com/p/scale?r=8wtij&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email&utm_source=copy

6. Sixth, our book preview this month is currently the best selling business book in the US (January) and is releasing here in March. Traditional business models no longer work in the new normal. Written against the backdrop of the global COVID-19 pandemic and the further wave of consumer, business and societal change it has unleashed, ‘Digital Business Transformation’ is an important and timely contribution to business thinking and practice. Drawing on decades of experience helping businesses transform, author Nigel Vaz, CEO of digital business transformation company Publicis Sapient, shows established companies how to immediately adopt new ways of working and build new channels to connect with customers.

Here is the link: https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/Digital_Business_Transformation/NQkLEAAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0

New Agency Alert: The ‘new kids’ on the block need a mention this month though this is no boyband –  but the immensely talented breakaway from R\GA  called Proto. It has begun it’s journey and with these credentials they are transformational, and certainly ones to watch. https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/14dH6g0wphri5ZQT0ktZPn6KMXHyJO0F5lMwn2kaCRCQ/mobilepresent?slide=id.gbcf4cf07ca_0_45

Media: Facebook had a bit of tiff with Australia, or was it the other way round. London ad legend, and our friend Nicola Mendelsohn gives her side of the story and defends Facebook’s decision. https://about.fb.com/news/2021/02/the-real-story-of-what-happened-with-news-on-facebook-in-australia/

Time for the Work: If you’re looking for an Advertising Roadblock who would you speak to for advice? Congrats this month go to the well devised: Take the vaccine –  Ad road block. Who to call for assistance? Robin Wight – back to his best. https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/bame-groups-took-grassroots-takethevaccine-campaign-national-tv-adland-learn/1708378

Back to Henley: This month we have a new opening in Henley – British watchmakers Bremont have moved into a new state of the art factory. When I saw this one coming through the Henley Planning Committee a few years ago, I did feel we had to be brave and this could be iconic. It’s now come to fruition and the brilliant new factory has just opened called ‘the Wing’, designed in the shape of an aircraft wing. https://us.bremont.com/blogs/blogbook/the-home-of-british-watchmaking-an-update-on-our-new-headquarters

We are here to help you with your agency resourcing structures, agency reviews, and benchmarking to improve your marketing performance.

Kind regards,

Will

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Our Monthly Round-up of the key pieces in Marketing for January – we’ve chosen just four key articles, a piece of academia, and a book launch, if you missed them and have some time they are well worth a catchup. All our monthly reviews are now available on our website http://haiconsulting.com/category/views/  It’s been a pretty busy start to the year, quite a few media reviews are in progress, as clients look to ramp up activity and build back better.

1. It’s a top pick this month for Rishad Tobaccowala and his piece 8 Management Lessons. One of the smartest writers in the industry at the moment, this is part of his series: The future does not fit in the containers of the past – Edition 22 – It starts with: there is no substitute for hard work!

Here is the link:

https://rishadt.wordpress.com/2021/01/10/8-management-lessons/

2. Second, we pick an interesting piece on how technology has brought changes to marketing, but are these changes here to stay, written by Professor Ian Ryder for the Worshipful company of Marketors, and sent to us by Murray Chick.

Here is the link:

https://www.marketors.org/blog/technology-has-brought-changes-but-are-these-changes-good#.YAcYskY2UTk.linkedin

3. Third, has the pandemic transformed the office forever? This is a really interesting piece written by John Seabrook in the New Yorker, with comments from R/GA’s CEO Sean Lyons – it questions ‘what’s an office for’ and goes on to show team-based, open-plan layouts and satellite office are the future. But with so many now working from home, the hybrid office seems a logical approach. It concludes – without the people the office is merely an empty shell.

Here is the link:

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/02/01/has-the-pandemic-transformed-the-office-forever

4. Fourth, we pick a piece written for the HBR, by Christine Moorman and Torren McCarthy, on why CMO’s must adapt their social media strategy post pandemic. As the Covid-19 pandemic pushes consumers to spend more time online, social media becomes an increasingly important part of the connection between brands and their customers.

Here is the link:

https://hbr.org/2021/01/cmos-adapt-your-social-media-strategy-for-a-post-pandemic-world

5. Fifth, we listened to Sir Martin Sorrell being interviewed by David Wheldon, in the WFA Interview included in last month’s review. Sir Martin mentioned you can get an A+ at the Harvard Business School if you then mentioned the great George C Lodge case history, well we did some digging and found the case study link.

Here is the link:

https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/profile.aspx?facId=7116

6. And Six, it’s chapeau this month to Lucky Generals founder Andy Nairn, who has just launched a book called Go Luck Yourself, through Harriman House. It’s all about the role of luck in building a brand and is packed with inspiring and practical ways to stack the odds in your brand’s favour. For an extra bit of karma, Andy’s giving all his royalties to a great organisation called Commercial Break, who help working class kids get a lucky break into the creative industries. You can pre-order it now from harriman-house.com/goluckyourself or from Amazon https://bit.ly/GoLuckY

Time for the Work: We’ve picked the hard hitting creative work for the NHS this month. With cross-agency collaboration between MullenLowe, OmniGOV, freuds, MMC and 23red
 it features hospital staff and Covid-19 patients and it reminds the public of the extreme pressures still facing the NHS. https://youtu.be/a0fsW5V3QV0

Ecommerce: A shoutout for Econsultancy’s Ashley Friedlein and Richard Robinson for their webinar this week on Digital and Marketing Trends 2021 and Beyond. A well attended and thought provoking session. https://vimeo.com/505133268/3db3e8f3b8

Back to Henley: Well it’s an absolutely stunning place to live but congrats this month go to all these eateries round Henley that have just been awarded their new Michelin stars and plates status. We can’t wait for them to re-open. https://experiencehenley.co.uk/michelin-stars-plates-are-shining-bright-in-the-area/

And finally: There are massive implications for brands, as they accelerate their online customer experience and ecommerce capabilities exponentially. We have seen three years of the digital transformation journey in six months – consumers are relying on online and contactless experiences more than ever, which is creating a surge in digital signals. For marketeers, it’s a time to review, take back control, be agile and build back better.

We are here to help you with your agency resourcing structures, reviews, and benchmarking to improve your marketing performance. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to call – it will be great to catch up soon.

Kind regards,

Will

Our monthly Round-up of the key pieces in Marketing for December – we’ve chosen three key articles,  a 2020 strategy and creative review and a podcast for this final 2020 review. If you missed any of them and have some time they are well worth a catchup. We finished the year with tier lockdowns, news of the Oxford/Astra Zeneca vaccine and a positive Brexit deal. We expect a fast start to the year in terms of agency reviews as brands re-boot. This month we’ve included our Adforum Worldwide Summit highlights, which took place virtually in early December.

1. Firstly, our top pick is from Stratechery, a brilliant review of strategy in 2020 and a fabulous website full of great marketing content. You are what you read, we thank Lucy Jameson from Uncommon London for highlighting Stratechery to us.

Here is the link:

https://stratechery.com/2020/the-2020-stratechery-year-in-review/

2, Secondly, we picked the December Harvard Business Review issue and a piece – Is your marketing organisation ready for what’s next. This gives a framework for aligning growth strategies given the sweeping technology changes.

Here is the link:

https://hbr.org/2020/11/is-your-marketing-organization-ready-for-whats-next

3. Thirdly, the work from anywhere model continues – Will smart companies begin to look at permanent remote working and hire supersmart graduates lowering internal costs, or will the open office make a comeback. This piece looks at how the pandemic may change how we staff and support our businesses.

Here is the link:

https://www.pressreader.com/uk/the-sunday-telegraph-money-business/20201220/281479279015129

4. Fourthly, we picked a podcast between marketing legend David Wheldon in conversation with Sir Martin Sorrell. It’s part of the WFA series, this one has some key learnings for 2021.

Here is the link:

https://wfanet.org/knowledge/item/2020/12/16/WFA-Better-Marketing-Pod-Ep-3-In-conversation-with-Sir-Martin-Sorrell

5. Fifthly, we picked Rishad Tobaccowala for his substack. This time it’s an insightful piece on growth and change. All his pieces are a must read and they just get better and better.

Here is the link:

https://rishad.substack.com/p/growth-and-change-are-about-people?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email&utm_source=linkedin

6. And sixthly, (well we started with a strategy review) we finish the year with an excellent creative review. Which brands and which agencies stood out from the crowd this year.

Here is the link:

https://creativepool.com/magazine/inspiration/best-advertising-campaigns-of-2020.24275

Time for the Work: We’ve picked work by Coca-Cola this month, crowned the most effective Christmas ad of 2020. Nostalgia, warmth, and love seem to be the magic ingredients, it’s simply very good marketing. Coca-Cola are now reviewing their global roster – is it to satisfy a higher bar or a more demanding client. https://www.marketingweek.com/coca-cola-crowned-most-effective-christmas-ad-2020/

Adforum Worldwide Summit: In December the worldwide intermediaries & consultants (65 on most days) gathered for the 10 day virtual Adforum Worldwide summit. Insightful presentations from 28 leading agencies – each showing how they have helped clients to thrive and not just survive the pandemic. This was the year that the world went digital first. The majority of products and services are now digitised. A year when media billing is more digital than traditional. And people are demanding a greater degree of humanity from the businesses and brands that serve them.

Our five key highlights from the summit:

• The key global challenge CMO’s seek is a better understanding of consumer behaviour, and real time ability to pivot the business. Post covid – what will permanently have changed forever and what may spring back.
• We noted outdated thinking, that 90% of CMO’s are using existing strategies from previous recessions to evaluate & re-monetise their businesses.
• A group of frontier CMO’s roughly 10% are successfully growing brands with confidence, using experimentation, test and learn strategies to harness growth.
• For agencies, virtual meetings/pitches are here to stay, a work from anywhere model, agility, hyper-empathy, configuration, broader consolidation, leadership, in essence fewer partners solving bigger problems.
• 2020 was a monumental year for change – the pandemic has brought forward at least 3 years of technology adoption in 6 months. Clients need to manage this change, but perhaps the biggest change has been the drive for racial equity and social justice.

Back to Henley: Henley is now in Tier 4 of lockdown, everyone tried to have the best Christmas they could. Gabriel Machin, our world-class butcher has had a phenomenal year of growth. Our client Majestic has had a record breaking Christmas. The river maybe swollen at the moment, but as we roll into the new year, is this great sunset a sign of the good times and the year ahead.

Happy New Year to you all. We are here to help you with your 2021 change plans and agency roster alignments. We will happily chat through how we can help and support you.

Kind regards,

Will