#MarketingTitbits – cycling, Selfridges, marketing universities

1. How cycling became a mainstream lifestyle brand

Cycling has become a £1.4bn brand, but how did it happen? Check out Marketing Week’s article featuring exclusive interviews with Sir Bradley Wiggins and Team Sky coach Sir David Brailsford, as they reveal all.

Together, with Olympic golds and a Tour de France victory under their belts, it’s no surprise that they’ve helped to turn Britain into a nation obsessed with cycling. Brailsford believes that one of the top reasons for the surge in popularity can be attributed to Sky’s sponsorship and involvement with the sport, which has allowed cycling to market itself as part of people’s lifestyles. Cycling apparel sales are now worth £63m in the UK, and constantly growing.

To read more about the increasing success of cycling,click here.

2. How Selfridges uses digital to create extraordinary multichannel experiences

Multichannel marketing is vital for many businesses because it allows them to communicate with potential customers across a variety of platforms, providing flexibility and suitability. Selfridges has become a model for this, recently launching their new £40m website, as well as introducing interactive displays in their stores to suit the modern shopper.

Selfridges’ head of digital marketing, Claire Higgins, believes that social media is transforming their clientele, with personal shoppers building huge followings on sites such as Instagram and driving people to the stores that they promote. But other digital set-ups in store (such as their photo booths included in window displays, which links up with Google+) have driven a more personal experience for shoppers.

What do you think of Selfridges’ efforts? To see more on their multichannel journey, click here.

3. These are the 25 best universities in the UK if you want a job in marketing

If you’re looking to enter a career in marketing and are worried that your degree isn’t suitable for the industry, then don’t worry. It’s common for many executives in marketing or advertising to take a less straightforward academic route, with degrees frequently coming from areas non-marketing related. LinkedIn has put together a list of the top 25 universities to attend if you want a career in marketing.

Top of LinkedIn’s 25 best universities for marketing is The London School of Economics and Political Science. It also features others institutions, such as Bournemouth, Loughborough and Bath.

To see the full list, click here.