7 August 2014

For the brands that P&G sheds, this is the start of a stronger chapter

Procter & Gamble announced this week that it will be cutting 100 brands – around half of its portfolio – in a move to focus on only its most profitable products.

Making flexible staff work for your brand

As the government debates the use of zero-hour and flexible contracts, brands are seeing that the challenges do not lie in the legislation but in ensuring staff are committed to the brand.

Q&A Matthew Williams – Mondelez’s UK chief marketer

Mondelez’s UK chief marketer discusses reconciling Cadbury’s rich heritage with using new tech channels, and the challenges facing today’s marketers.

Diageo believes in the power of design

Those familiar with my previous columns will know that I am passionate about brands having a rewarding relationship with consumers. I have talked about how this can be achieved through creating a real value exchange, or by the power of the personal touch; but one element that can never be overlooked is how brands can accomplish this through design and physical differentiation.

Mark Ritson: Why Procter & Gamble has to cull so many brands

It’s been a warm and wet Summer, even by English standards and my roses are out of control. Enormous, perfume-filled blooms have dominated the back garden for the past three months. But with the floral show now over, the CEO of Ritson Household plc has been dropping heavy hints that it’s time to “sort the roses”.

Roundtable in association with Mood Media

Our panel of marketers from retail brands tell how their mobile strategies are moving on from being purely transactional.

Neuroscience and marketing: what you need to know

Facebook and OKCupid have come under fire for attempting to manipulate people’s emotions but behavioural techniques can be useful for brands. How can marketers gain an insight into consumers’ minds while avoiding controversy?

Making transparent deals

Guidelines and contractual restrictions don’t always resolve the practical issues in a brand’s and agency’s relationship. More brands are making deals with buying platforms directly while the agency manages the strategic and tactical executions – this provides the brand with transparency and accountability in pricing and performance as well as control over how its data […]

What the agency hears

Tom Fishburne is founder of Marketoon Studios. Follow his work at marketoonist.com or on Twitter @tomfishburne See more of the Marketoonist here.

Teenagers can provide some surprising media learnings

Being the summer, I have had more time to chat with my teenage kids. As they have got older, they have become (a little) more interested in what I do for a living – perhaps as it starts to dawn on them that one day they too will have to enter the deep dark world of employment, and it would be wise to avoid the jobs that their parents do, as it seems like hard work.