Name of the game remains response rate
Ruth MortimerThe challenges facing the direct marketing industry range from what to name the sector to the impact of social media. Five specialists discuss the hot issues
Ruth Mortimer on surviving scandal
Ruth MortimerThere’s a way to come back from a scandal.
Tasty additions will keep a brand fresh
Ruth MortimerIf Mark Ritson was standing in the election for sharpest business columnist, he’d probably be celebrating a landslide victory. Since we announced that Ritson was joining us here at Marketing Week, our own campaign to inspire marketers has received a boost. You can read his first column.
‘Political supermarketing’ sweeps into British aisles
Ruth MortimerWant the latest on the election campaign? Then head down to your local supermarket – but should groceries and politics mix?
The camera never lies
Ruth MortimerBrands are starting to catch on to lifelogging – a technique that uses a tiny digital camera to capture every moment of a consumer’s day and take insight gathering to a higher level.
Ruth Mortimer on going Fairtrade
Ruth MortimerWatching TV the other night, I noticed an interesting phenomenon. An ad for Galaxy chocolate proclaimed that people could feel great eating it, not only for the taste but also the fact that it had joined up with the Rainforest Alliance (RA). For those of you unclear on the significance of this, the RA is a scheme that aims to make businesses more sustainable and fair. In other words, it’s a logo that Galaxy can use to show it is trying to act in a sustainable way.
Take a chance on wheel of online chat fortune
Ruth MortimerThe random nature of fast-growing online chat site Chatroulette can help marketers understand just what consumers want.
Drumming up a bigger bang for less buck
Ruth MortimerBrands may be spending less on corporate hospitality but the real issue facing suppliers is laying on tailor-made experiences that exceed expectations.
This dummy run surely sets a new standard in hoaxing
Ruth MortimerWhat have new freesheet The London Weekly and origami paper got in common? They are both designed to fold quickly
Brand image at forefront of innovation
Ruth MortimerExclusive research by Marketing Week reveals agencies and their clients agree the impact of design on campaigns can only increase.
A-list stars give brand campaigns the x-factor
Ruth MortimerA study into the effect of Cheryl Cole’s endorsement of L’Oreal products appears to demonstrate that brands in need of a sales boostmust reach for the stars.
Sponsors turn blind eye to moral crimes
Ruth MortimerIt isn’t often marketing lies at the heart of a story about celebrity scandal. But the allegations that England and Chelsea captain John Terry has been having an affair – and failed to keep this out of the press through a super-injunction – may have entered the public arena due to the player’s profile as a sponsorship vehicle, rather than a husband.
Best of the blogs
Ruth MortimerRuth Mortimer on brands to watch
Step forward and select the right direction
Ruth MortimerAs direct mail’s star continues to rise among the public, six DM specialists answer questions posed by Marketing Week about the sector’s burning issues. By Ruth Mortimer
Ruth Mortimer: Kraft and Cadbury: the chocolate war begins to melt….
Ruth MortimerSo it appears that Kraft Foods has finally achieved its takeover of British confectioner Cadbury. Some say the price – nearly £12bn – is at the low end of what many financial analysts felt the brand was worth.