TARGETING ACQUISITIONS
23/12/21
National World, owner of regional newspaper publisher JPi Media, is looking for acquisitions, possibly beyond news, after announcing that trading in the second half of 2021 has been robust and ahead of expectations. There has also been rationalisation, with £5 million of operating cuts contributing to results.
CRYPTO CRACKDOWN
20/12/21
Adverts for pizza brand Papa John's and six cryptocurrency platforms have been banned by the Advertising Standards Authority. The ads were deemed to be taking advantage of consumers' inexperience of digital currencies and failing to illustrate risks. Papa John's had been running Bitcoin offers alongside its food products. Around 2.3 million UK adults are thought to hold cryptocurrencies, despite warnings from regulators about their likelihood of maintaining value.
LOSING TALENT
15/12/21
A third of marketing directors and managers say losing talent to close rivals is a major challenge and another third-plus report fewer applications for vacancies. The findings are included in new research by online professional network Linkedin, shared with media magazine Marketing Week.
VIRTUAL WORK EXPERIENCE
08/12/21
Book publisher Hachette is launching a virtual work experience course on publishing for under-18s in the regions. The scheme is aimed at bridging the gap between education and employment. It could involve up to 1,000 students from schools and colleges near Hachette's recently-opened offices in Bristol, Manchester, Newcastle upon Tyne, Sheffield and Edinburgh.
GOOGLE AND COOKIES
29/11/21
Google has replaced tracking cookies with a new data tracker and agreed to monitoring by the UK competition watchdog, the CMA. Meanwhile, third parties such as advertisers, publishers and technology providers will be given the opportunity to offer their views on early-stage testing.
YES TO YARIS
24/11/21
Car maker Toyota's best known model in Europe, the Yaris, has been boosted by changes in marketing emphasis, according to the company. Market share has increased by 1.6% this year, with "fewer features and more attitude, less tech and more energy, less car and more personification".
CHRISTMAS COMPLAINTS
17/11/21
Tesco's Christmas advertisement has shot to the top of the ratings as the most complained-about campaign this season. The advert has Santa Claus showing his Covid-19 vaccination passport and the Advertising Standards Authority has received a steady stream of complaints, centred on what is considered to be Tesco's encouragement of medical discrimination.
MEDIACITY MONEY
09/11/21
Landsec, the UK's largest property developer, has paid over £425 million to acquire a 75% stake in Salford's MediaCity, the mixed-use technology and media hub.
SUPER SALES
05/11/21
Supermarket Sainsbury's has announced a 5.3% increase in sales for the last six months, with online trading leading the way, producing an income of £5.8 million. There are 8.2 million users of its Nectar digital rewards scheme. Underlying profits before tax are expected to reach £660 million for the full year to March 2022.
CHAMPIONING SMEs
26/10/21
NatWest Bank and ITV have teamed up to offer exposure to small and medium-sized businesses. Mainly on television, the campaign will comprise mini-documentaries about a selection of NatWest customers. There will be out-of-home, social, digital and radio support.
RETURN TO GROWTH
22/10/21
The latest IPA Bellwether Report indicates that UK marketing spend levels are growing at the fastest rate for four years. Approximately one in four respondents to enquiries said that spending was up for the last quarter.
WEATHER OR NOT
14/10/21
ITV has launched a new weather targeting service to let advertisers go live, pause or adjust content according to climatic conditions. Advertisers will be able to activate messages according to users' local weather. An ITV deal with global weather metadata specialist Tomorrow.io allows minute-by-minute updates in each of its regions.
ONLINE-BORN SPENDERS
05/10/21
UK online brands without a bricks and mortar presence have increased TV spending by 37% in the last two years. According to new data from analysts Nielsen, exercise products such as Echolon and Peloton showed the biggest rise, up collectively by 279%. Used car services, which include Cazoo and Cinch, came second in the spending-rise table. Altogether, online-born UK businesses invested £560 million in TV advertising in the first six months of this year.
MOST VALUABLE BRANDS
01/10/21
The latest Brandz ranking of the UK's strongest performers in terms of marketing value shows Vodafone on top, followed by HSBS, Shell and Tesco. Fastest risers are listed as Royal Mail, Ocado, ASOS and Deliveroo, in that order. Leading newcomers are Just Eat and the Premier League.
CLEANING UP
27/09/21
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), Britain's advertising watchdog, has vowed to take a tougher stance against brands that make misleading claims about environmental impact. It is releasing new guidelines; setting up inquiries into priority areas such as aviation, cars and foodstuffs; and researching into consumer understanding of carbon neutral and net-zero claims. The ASA is promising to "crack down on misleading and socially irresponsible environmental advertising" in future.
GEORDIE BBC
23/09/21
The BBC has set up a partnership with 15 local authorities in north-east England which will see investment in production, talent development and the creative sector. It will spend a minimum £25 million over the next five years and a new technical hub in Newcastle should produce 70 jobs.
DIGITAL PRIMARK
13/09/21
Clothing retailer Primark intends to strengthen its digital marketing capability in order to deliver more personalised content to the customer base. In newly-announced trading figures for the last six months, Primark's sales reached £3.4 billion and the operating profit margin topped 10%.
ASDA PRICELESS
03/09/21
The tagline "That's Asda Price" is being ditched for a second time, just one year after its relaunch. The supermarket, with 14.2% of the UK's grocery spend, is switching to campaigns centred on how it makes a difference to customers' lives. Talk will be of the quality of service and products rather than price.
BEAUTIFUL GROWTH
02/09/21
Cosmetics business Coty, with a products portfolio that includes Rimmel, Hugo Boss, Max Factor, Gucci and CoverGirl, has highlighted its "fewer, bigger and better" brand strategy as key to a recent return to sales growth and debt reduction. Latest quarterly figures show a global revenue of £3.36 billion and it promises to concentrate investment behind brands that demonstrate marketshare success.
NO COMPROMISE
26/08/21
Weetabix has remained consistent with its breakfast brand for over 90 years and been able to innovate without compromising brand values. That's according to marketing chief Gareth Turner, who said Weetabix has done nothing more than tweak its image, in order to avoid looking old fashioned.
BOOHOO SMILING
16/08/21
Manchester-based online retailer Boohoo has announced plans to invest £500 million over the next five years, probably creating 5,000 jobs. The company has said that for every new job, a further 1.7 are added in the wider economy. It added that 94% of its jobs and other benefits are in the regions.
INDIVIDUALS
09/08/21
A survey by digital asset management specialist OpenText has found that 62% of UK consumers are likely to purchase again from brands they consider are treating them as individuals. It reports a similar attitude across Europe – 70% in Italy, 63% Spain, 59% France and 55% Germany. The sampling in the UK totalled 2,000.
GOING NORTH
02/08/21
Hachette, the UK's second-largest book publisher, is about to open three new northern bases, taking London-based staff to offices in Manchester, Newcastle upon Tyne and Sheffield. Further relocation to Bristol and Edinburgh is expected. The company says it will also recruit locally for its new offices.
BETTING ON BRANDING
27/07/21
International bookmaker William Hill is about to make its biggest brand investment to date with a new advertising campaign, updated master brand and revised corporate identity.The mission is to become a global household name.
MARKETERS HIRING
21/07/21
UK marketers are confident about employment prospects, according to a new survey conducted for Marketing Week magazine. This follows a year of budget cuts, cancelled pay rises and redundancies. Overall, around 43% expect hiring levels to increase.
CONTINUING TO SERVE
14/07/21
In a new agreement between the BBC and the All England Club, the broadcaster will retain domestic coverage rights for Wimbledon up to and including 2027. It is the longest partnership in sports broadcasting history.
CUSTOMERS FED UP
07/07/21
Poor service blamed on Covid-19 is leaving customers fed up, according to new research. People have been tolerant of delays as businesses coped with restrictions, but patience is running out and complaints are at their highest level for 12 years, the UK Institute of Customer Service has found. Sectors with the biggest issues are public transport and local government.
DIXONS CARPHONE PROFITS
05/07/21
Electricals and telecoms retailer Dixons Carphone has announced profits of £33 million for the last financial year, having tripled its number of contactable customers to 9.6 million. The company has attributed the success to advances in customer relationship management. Group revenues have risen to £10.3 billion.
AMAZON STAYS TOP
24/06/21
Multinational Amazon has topped the Kantar Brandz list of the world's 100 most valuable brands for the third year in a row. Amazon's brand value has increased by 64% compared to 2020. Second in the list was Apple, then Google, Microsoft and Tencent.
CHANNEL 4 SURPLUS
23/06/21
In the face of parliamentary calls for government-owned Channel 4 to be privatised, the broadcaster has announced a record surplus of £74 million in its last financial year. Annual revenue is expected to exceed £1 billion for the first time in 2021. It has also confirmed that its new national headquarters in central Leeds will open on September 6th, ahead of its target to create 300 roles in the regions by the end of this year.
ANNIVERSARY PLAQUE
08/06/21
National newspaper The Guardian has marked 200 years of publishing by unveiling an anniversary plaque at the site of its first offices, 3 Cross Street, Manchester. It launched there in May 1821 as the Manchester Guardian and remained in Manchester until 1970. The Guardian is now based at Kings Place in London.
FALSE PARAMETERS
02/06/21
The majority of marketing campaigns are evaluated separately by brand and performance, but they have been described as false parameters by a planner at a major agency. "Ignore these false boundaries and bring brand and performance together as one," Tom Roach of Jellyfish told the Marketing Society at its recent forum. "To the consumer it is all one campaign."
MARKETERS HIRING
24/05/21
According to a new survey by the Chartered Institute of Marketing and recruitment consultants Hays, marketing career prospects are on the up. The survey of over 700 professionals found that 67% of the sector's employers plan to hire new staff this year. At the same time, 60% of marketers are planning to change jobs. Of those, almost one-quarter will seek roles that allow full-time working for home.
AMAZONIAN
18/05/21
Amazon has announced that it will invest at least £10 million in the UK over the next three years. A parcels depot in Doncaster and fulfilment centre in Gateshead will be opened, creating 1,300 jobs. As many as 5,000 new trainees could be taken on.
SHOPPING TRENDS
13/05/21
A new report by YouGov states that although 81% of UK shoppers still go to supermarkets, more than half have said the recent online trend will continue. Nearly 40% said they intend to make more use of home deliveries and click and pick-up options, minimising the time spent in stores.
MOMENTUM BUILDING
05/05/21
Outdoor advertising sales house Ocean Outdoor has announced a 17.7% drop in sales and 50% reduction in gross profit for 2020. However, it maintains that momentum is building up again and it expects to see payback from a £6.4 million investment into new areas. The out-of-home advertising market fell by 61% last year.
CAUTIOUS CONFIDENCE
29/04/21
Public confidence is on the increase, but new coronavirus variants and inflation are giving some cause for concern. These are among the findings in the latest GfK Consumer Confidence Index. The report states that: "On balance we are moving in the right direction and people have shown they will respond very positively to any good news by opening their wallets."
LESS ORGANIC GROWTH
21/04/21
Consumer products multinational Proctor & Gamble has reported a 4% increase in organic sales for its latest financial quarter. However, this is the lowest organic growth for six quarters. Costs increased in the period, slowing earnings. Proctor & Gamble brands include Head & Shoulders, Pantene, Gillette, Old Spice, Pampers, Tampax, Daz and Fairy Liquid.
COCA-COLA STRATEGY
15/04/21
Coca-Cola has revamped its main brand packaging to bring everything in line with the refreshed Coca-Cola Zero Sugar design, all part of what it describes as an integrated "one brand" strategy. It is the first packaging update for five years and will be consistent in all markets.
B&Q BRAND BUILDING
08/04/21
Launching a new advertising campaign, multiple retailer B&Q is looking to increase its brand equity and shed its "big orange box" image. The "We Will Grow" television campaign is aimed at creating an emotional connection with customers, capitalising on the popularity of gardening.
STRENGTHENING SALFORD
01/04/21
The BBC has announced a clutch of new appointments and commissions at its Salford centre in Greater Manchester. The "writer's room hub" is to have a new head of writing, there will be a commissioning editor for northern England and BBC Drama has plans for extended output from the Salford base, with a series of original programmes.
60-YEAR-OLD DOG
24/03/21
Dulux is planning to capitalise on the lockdown-enabled home decorating boom with a new campaign promoting the company’s Simply Refresh range of paints. It also celebrates Dulux’s 60 years with its Old English Sheepdog mascot. The famous dog has been a centrepiece of Dulux adverts since 1961.
PROMOTING NEWS LITERACY
22/03/21
The Wall Street Journal, leading a group of top newspapers and magazines as part of National News Literacy Week, is developing a news knowledge campaign to explain and articulate the difference between opinion and news. A spokesperson said: "The labelling of opinion or news content is not as pronounced in a digital experience, compared to print, so we decided it's important that we help our readers and future readers to better discern the difference between these two content types."
EATING BETTER
08/03/21
Sainsbury's is dropping its "Live Well For Less" slogan in favour of "Helping Everyone Eat Better" as the supermarket switches emphasis from price to value. It considers the new phrase to better represent a policy of offering healthy, sustainable and affordable food. There is also a desire to be seen as reducing any negative impact of its business on the environment.
WHEN COOKIES GO
04/03/21
Google Chrome will remove support for third-party cookies during next year and has announced it will stop tracking people who browse across multiple websites once these cookies are phased out. It has said it will neither build other identifiers to track individuals nor use them in products.
ROADMAP GUARANTEE
02/03/21
ITV and Sky have reacted to advertisers' demands for added flexibility in booking space this year. They are guaranteeing free deferments for campaigns that might have to be shelved if the Covid-19 lockdown is not lifted in accordance with the government's recently-announced roadmap to recovery.
SIR ALEX'S STORY
23/02/21
Amazon and Universal have secured the UK rights to a new documentary about former Manchester United football manager Sir Alex Ferguson. "Never Give In" will launch in cinemas on May 27th and through Amazon Prime on May 29th. It will start with Ferguson's childhood in Glasgow, go through his playing and managerial career, then deal with the time since he retired from management, including his brain haemorrhage in 2018. Son Jacob directed the documentary.
BIG CHUNK FOR DISNEY+
15/02/21
The latest quarterly financial report for streaming service Disney+ shows that it signed up nearly 95 million subscribers in its first year, three years ahead of target. Disney's streaming success offsets a difficult period for its theme parks and film studios, forced into inactivity by the pandemic.
NOT FLUFFY
10/02/21
Responding to a National Union of Journalists' press release claiming that the restructuring of BBC local radio would lead to "fluffy stories and more music", BBC England's director Helen Thomas said the commitment to news is staying as strong as it has always been. She commented: "Providing local news and information is at the heart of what our local radio stations do and always will be. Any suggestion otherwise is completely untrue and misleading."
MAKING ANALYTICS WORK
05/02/21
Guinness and Smirnoff owner Diageo has credited the use of marketing analytics for its recent 1% overall sales increase. The growth was triggered by investment and performance in the US market, compensating for a weak showing in Europe.
MORE EXPANSION AT JD
28/01/21
Sports and leisurewear retailer JD Sports is considering an equity placing of up to £400 million to help fund further acquisitions, after completing a deal to take over Shoe Palace in the US. Expectations are that its latest pre-tax profits will be at least £400 million.
LOCAL MORRISONS
25/01/21
Supermarket Morrisons is to strengthen its policy of focusing on a British supply base. Chief executive David Potts is also calling for major suppliers to produce and package more food in the UK, less in mainland Europe.
REDUCED DRASTICALLY
22/01/21
UK advertising spending in the last quarter of 2020 was reduced drastically. There were sharp declines across all sectors and the net balance was minus 62.9%, according to the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising's newly-commissioned Bellwether report.
SKY HIGH ALIGNMENT
20/01/21
International Airways Group, owner of British Airways, is reviewing its global advertising and marketing agency relationships to being about what it has described as "further alignment". The British Airways advertising account is one of the most prestigious in the UK.
MOBILE GAMING
11/01/21
New research by Facebook has shown that the UK mobile gaming market has grown by 50%, or 8.6 million new players, since the onset of the pandemic. Facebook's online gaming arm surpassed one billion hours of participation for the first time in the third quarter of 2020. Puzzle games are the most popular.
VIOLENCE CONDEMNED
08/01/21
Britain's Chartered Institute of Journalists has condemned the violence by Donald Trump supporters at the US Congress in Washington. Rioters chased working journalists and trashed their media equipment, in what the Institute described as "a stain on democracy".
COCA-COLA JOBS TO GO
05/01/21
Coca-Cola GB has started a consultation process as a precursor to shedding around 100 jobs. The losses are expected to be in marketing, communications and public affairs, although there will be some relocation of people. In 2019 Coca-Cola announced that it would be restructuring its global business into five categories, halving its business units and cutting around 400 brands.