New order: clients are changing, now it’s agencies’ turn
It’s nearly H2 already. Is everyone on-plan? 2018 always promised change, challenge and opportunity. VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity)…
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How to build up consumer trust in the age of GDPR
Data-driven marketing has always required a level of responsibility when it comes to handling consumer data, but GDPR has now…
Loyalty schemes can exploit GDPR to remain relevant
The past few months have been a turbulent time for the UK retail sector. Tesco defied the retail gloom by…
Busting Daily Mail myth of door drop apocalypse now
Far be it from me to act as a spokesperson for the door drop industry, but I do feel we…
For once, the Daily Mail is actually right about junk mail
I can’t quite believe I am going to write this, but for once I find myself agreeing with the Daily…
Spooner on…the early retirement of Sir Martin Sorrell
It is with great trepidation, a fluttering heart and trembling knees that I mount the huge curving staircase that leads…
Changing marketing landscape needs an agile approach
Marc Pritchard recently announced some interesting changes over at P&G. Moving marketers from “project” managers to “brand” managers, cutting the…
Modern-day classification: Who do you think you are?
In the days when I promoted Mosaic, our team used to share what we thought was an amusing anecdote. Marketers…
Segmentation techniques have changed, how about you?
The major changes in consumer behaviour, driven by the increasing influence of new technology, continue to precipitate a massive shift…
Cambridge Analytica: A question of ethics not legality
The news surrounding Cambridge Analytica and its apparent “data breach” has dominated the headlines for days. It’s a story that…
How to stop your company being the next data scandal
Data is under the spotlight yet again as the ICO ramps up its investigation into Cambridge Analytica, the UK firm…
GDPR: Making the case for using legitimate interests
With the exception of wilful cowboys, most organisations – whether they are a charity or a commercial business – probably…
Spooner on…where have all the old creatives gone?
Onward I trudge this bitter morning, knee-deep in the thick snow, stumbling, flailing, striving onward onward towards the cruelly-early-morning locomotive…
Use GDPR to reshape your customer engagement efforts
When GDPR comes into effect in May, data accuracy will certainly be crucial, but the ways in which the new…
We all have a legitimate interest in sound GDPR advice
So, at last a bit of welcome news from the ICO. Here it is in black and white in new…
Cut clutter before GDPR to build lasting relationships
Ask most people who’ve been with their partners for many years about the secret of their romantic success, and the…
Year Ahead: Technologies to drive human engagement
2017 was the year that personalisation, big data, IoT and the use of chatbots really came to the fore in…
Year Ahead: How life under GDPR will benefit us all
2018 promises to be the year when consumers will finally take control of how brands communicate with them. Remember, data…
Year Ahead: Why the data industry needs less and more
I’ve been working in data for over 30 years now, and I’ve seen so much change. The current rapidity of…
When will firms finally recognise truth about women?
One of the key takeaways from this year’s Women in Data conference was that, although the use of artificial intelligence…
Year Ahead: Time to put consumers in the driving seat
I recently logged on to Facebook and amended my settings. A few weeks ago I signed up to a school…
Year Ahead: Can you afford to ignore rise of blockchain?
Bitcoin has hit a new record high after passing the five-figure mark and investors in the cryptocurrency continue to shrug…
Year Ahead: Time to protect your brand from ID fraud
These days no one is safe from fraud. Even charities are a target with the third sector losing an estimated…
Year Ahead: Judith Donovan on the opportunity for mail
Debate has been raging for years over whether direct mail can really stand the test of time, especially in an…
Why GDPR could finally make online ads accountable
Almost daily, out comes a new GDPR nightmare, from the recent World Federation of Advertisers survey which revealed 70% of…
Bah humbug Spooner on… this year’s Christmas ads
The rain is lashing against the windows like a punishment here at Montpelier Heights, the classy, new, cosmopolitan nerve-centre of…
Programmatic turns snail mail to smart mail in a shot
History has taught us that one medium never replaces another. The advent of television didn’t spell the end of radio…
Time to smash through the toxic alpha masculine ‘norm’
“I find it astonishing that there’s already a profound gender imbalance, at every level, in an industry that didn’t even…
Too knackered to work? Eight top tips to get those Zzzs
Recent data from CV-Library found that a staggering 76.5% of marketing professionals admit that having a bad night’s sleep negatively…
How to prevent your firm from being the next Vanquis
The recent £75,000 fine against Vanquis Bank – issued after it was found to have sent 870,849 spam text messages…
Everything you need to know to execute global activity
There is little doubt that digitisation and globalisation have dramatically changed the way today’s brands go to market. In the…
Forget the fear factor, GDPR will be a force for good
Most marketers will have woken up to the fact that the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is set to…
Get set for DM 4.0: the age of data directed marketing
Relying on past behaviour to inform the future is not good enough anymore. Predicting the needs of the consumer, connecting…
BHS defies us all but the hard work has only just begun
It has been almost a year since BHS, the collapsed high street retailer, made an unexpected comeback in the entirely…
What can you do to bridge the data science skills gap?
Succeeding in today’s rapidly changing digital world – where the boundaries between physical and digital have disappeared – requires a…
Tomorrow’s C-suite for today’s business challenges
Specialist expertise has never been more valuable at executive level. The business landscape is becoming increasingly complex – frequent political…
Three simple steps to kick start a CRM programme
With the cost of CRM technology coming down and an increase in both the flow of consumer data and the…
Stricter data laws will give consumers renewed faith
The new Data Protection Bill has got one or two throwing their hands in the air and saying, ‘what’s the…
Why GDPR is a golden opportunity for small businesses
It has been well documented that the EU General Data Protection Regulation is set to transform the way personal data…
Future of personalisation is here – are you in the loop?
Personalisation and one-to-one marketing have been hyped as the ‘Holy Grail’ of consumer engagement. But those terms, like so many…
Why legitimate interests guidance is just the beginning
The moment we’ve been waiting for has finally come – someone has untangled the jungle that is ‘legitimate interests’, and…
Customer loyalty: how we can have our cake and eat it
The question “customer loyalty, is it worth it?” seems often a binary choice between spending marketing money on increasing market…
Is the 21st Century Woman represented at Cannes?
Last week, Cannes organisers Ascential announced that they are launching an advisory committee ‘to help shape the future’ of International…
Spooner on…Cannes, the Croisette and awards fatigue
The Gutter Bar, 4am. My Laird, Charlie McKelvey and I are both sporting kilts in the McKelvey tartan (as a…
Why website downtime can trigger a host of problems
We’ve all had to endure the frustration of trying to buy something online, only to be faced with a frozen…
Will AI sound the death knell for contact centre agents?
Unlike manufacturing robots – the industrial machines we see on automated production lines and in manufacturing facilities – service robots…
Spooner on…the precarious world of the freelancer
The other morning I was reading in my tatty-yet-beautiful, sun-dappled, miniature Brighton garden (reading quite guiltily, as I should have…
Why data analytics can provide that ROI ‘aha’ moment
In today’s market, organisations worldwide are under increasing pressure to work as efficiently and cost-effectively as possible, with departments looking…
How Bellwether shows this sector is proving its mettle
I must admit it is always gratifying to be right. The recent IPA Bellwether Report shows a clear shift in…
Why programmatic direct mail campaigns are the future
The premise of programmatic is a simple one. And for those of us in the customer engagement space, it’s a…