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#MarketingTitbits – Influential Brands, Marketing Predictions, Success Advice

microsoft-predictions-success1. Microsoft ‘surprises’ as it tops The Guardian’s poll of the most influential UK brands
Surprisingly, it beat the likes of Amazon and Google in a new poll by The Guardian, subsequently being named the UK’s most influential brand – who would have thought? Microsoft’s move to imbue more social values in its marketing is being offered up as the the ‘primary driver’ for its success in the poll.

Surveying 2,000 UK consumers, covering 200 of the biggest brands, the results were unexpected. The results were defined by the respondent’s perception of a brand’s position for each of the following criteria – commercial influence, how a brand impacts purchasing habits and its impact on society and their audience. Not only did Microsoft surprise us marketers with their winning score of 58.3, but the runner up, with 54.7 points, was TripAdvisor, perhaps equally unlikely, closely followed by Amazon with 53.9 – more expected!

To read more about Microsoft’s success, click here.

2. Marketers’ 2016 predictions: from the video explosion to the next ‘new normal’

The marketing industry is changing rapidly and shows no signs of slowing down, forcing marketers to adapt to thrive. 10 of the industry’ best and brightest have been asked to share their predictions for 2016 – enjoy!

Gavin Patterson, Chief Executive at BT, predicts that the year ahead is full of ‘busy-ness’, where marketing will be an important way of communicating with consumers and businesses. On the other hand, Nicola Mendelsohn, Vice-president of Facebook, believes that video will become even bigger, where people can discover the world through sharing content.

Click here for the full 10 predictions for 2016.

3. 20 entrepreneurs share the advice that made them successful

Regardless of how success is defined, it can be a gruelling task for businesses to achieve it. Entrepreneurs can generally agree that it takes confidence, passion and drive to accomplish goals, and to recognise success once achieved. With this in mind, 20 of the most successful entrepreneurs share their best advice on how to succeed in business.

The renowned Bill Gates believes “success is a lousy teacher. It seduces smart people into thinking they can’t lose”, meaning success is worked for, not given. Other business fanatics like Steve Jobs says “You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future”.

Want more advice on how to achieve success? Click here.

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#MarketingTitbits – Innovative Entrepreneurs, British Brands, Facebook Emojis

innovation-british-emojis1. 10 traits of the most innovative entrepreneurs
Entrepreneurship fits perfectly with innovation – producing new ideas, providing better solutions and pioneering new products. The most successful entrepreneurs aren’t just the hardest working, but the most innovative too.

If entrepreneurs aren’t flexing their innovative muscles, then success and breakthroughs are difficult to achieve. Innovation is becoming more and more important to brands as markets are becoming more demanding. To this end, Entrepreneur have put together 10 ways to be more innovative, to help get you innovating.

If you want to learn how to be more innovative, click here.

2. 32 classically ‘British’ brands that aren’t actually British

British brands are recognised all over the world for their authenticity and quality; however, these days many are now not owned by British firms or individuals. Many think that Harrods is a quintessentially British brand, but previous owner, the enigmatic Egyptian Mohamed Al Fayed sold it to Qatar Holdings, who currently own it.

HP is the most British brand around, and has been for quite some time. It has been the most popular sauce in the Houses of Parliament; nevertheless it is now owned by Americans – purchased by Heinz in 2005.

To see the 32 iconic ‘British’ brands – no longer british-owned, click here.

3. What Facebook’s new emojis mean for marketers

Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the last through years, the chances are you will have used an Emoji or two to compliment a post or message. Finally bowing to pressure to introduce a ‘dislike’ function, Facebook have turned to the Emoji to satisfy a demand amongst Facebook users to convey more than a ‘thumbs up’ in response to a Facebook post. The new feature on the platform will enable users to reply to a post with one of 5 emojis: Love, Yay, Wow, Sad and Angry.

The new emoticons provide brands with a real opportunity to encourage their users to reply with a feeling or emotion, rather than just a like, comment or share. Facebook are always looking for ways to improve their user’s experience, and this new feature will be ranked as a major update to the platform.

Click here for more information.

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#MarketingTitbits – entrepreneurs, branding, Pepsi

social-apple-pepsi-smaller1. Insights from the world’s best social entrepreneurs
There is a new type of entrepreneur emerging, one who see business as a way to fight poverty and focus on developing products that the third of the global population who live on less than $2 a day can benefit from. These people are known as social entrepreneurs and include the likes of Sam Goldman, Jordan Kassalow and Prema Gopalan. For them, creating products to improve the life of the people who need it most is not only a huge business opportunity, it is a moral duty.

Their mission is to change the world and they have shared some of the strategies they are using to do just that.

  • Hiring local individuals who have the drive to change things in their community but also know the local market is a key to success
  • Think about the bigger picture and how the impact of your product can go further than what one organisation is doing
  • Encourage competition, it means that more people are trying to solve the same problem that you are
  • “You have to be dedicated to a cause. It’s mission, not money, which is the great motivator of people.”

To find out more about the social entrepreneurs who are changing the world and how they are doing it, click here. 

 

2. How Steve Jobs ignored the rules of branding

Steve Jobs, the co-founder, chairman and CEO of Apple Inc. was an inventor, marketer and once upon a time was an entrepreneur just like you. Apple Inc. has been named the most admired company in the United States by Fortune Magazine and the world’s most valuable brand in the Omnicom Group’s “Best Global Brands” report.

To acquire this status, Jobs changed the rules of branding; he didn’t pursue the standard checklist and knew that imitating somebody else’s success would never yield success. The brand that is ‘Apple’  maintained consistency in their products, operations and services and left their competitors to create naff computers with colourful lids and rubbish ads that made the simplicity of Apple look even better.

Steve Jobs taught marketers that “You must deliver a great business. The brand will be the words and emotions people use to narrate it.” To read more about how Apple changed branding as we know it and what tips you can take away from this, click here. 

 

3. Pepsi Max do augmented reality

Last month, Pepsi Max surprised London commuters with an augmented reality experience. They set up a camera and played the normalities of the street onto a screen next to the bus stop bench but added a few extra features to the scenario.

They have recorded the reactions as tigers chase passers-by and flying saucers appear in the sky. To watch the video, click here.

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#MarketingTitbits – entrepreneurial must-read books, Flipagram, Amazon at 20

reading-flipagram-amazon-smaller1. 10 entrepreneurial must-read books to kick off your summer reading listProfessors from the University of Michigan, Len Middleton and Jim Price, have compiled a list of their favourite entrepreneurial reads, ranging from traditional success stories, to those focused on the psychology of taking risks or facing rejection. So, whether you’re on a plane jetting off on holiday or sitting back on your lunch break, now could be the perfect time to reinvigorate your entrepreneurial spirit.

The list includes inspiring stories of inventors that have shaped a nation, insights into the future of medicine, how being crazy could work in your favour, the importance of character and more. Whatever you’re interested in, you’ll be sure to find something that piques your entrepreneurial interest.

Take a look at the full list of must-read entrepreneurial books here.

2. Is Flipagram the next big social platform for brands?

You may not have heard of it yet, but in 2014, Flipagram burst onto the scene and grew faster than Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat did in their first year, hitting 33 million active users per month. With the latest social media platform aiming to hit the 1 billion mark, will it become the next big thing?

The app allows users to create short videos from photos or video clips and set them to music, as well as link these clips to external sites. The platform presents an opportunity for brands and has already been integrated into social media campaigns by the likes of Jack Daniels and Uber.

Take a look at how Flipagram could be useful to your business here.

3. Amazon at 20: The brand, the challenges and the future

Amazon has been celebrating its 20th year in business, but what has made the ecommerce brand so successful? According to the consensus among marketing experts, advertising has little to do with it.

Verdict analyst, Patrick O’Brien, and M&C Saatchi’s chief strategy officer, Mark Sinnock, both echo each other’s views and believe that Amazon is far from a “classic advertising brand”. Thanks to the scale of its online operation and the combination of personalisation, targeting and retargeting, the brand has grown to become increasingly powerful and dominant within the market.

What do you think their success is down to?

Click here to find out more.

 

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