In this article written exclusively for ExchangeWire, William Hughes, Digital Media Account Director at HOME and The Wires Global 2021 judge, discusses data privacy from the strategic marketing standpoint. “The rain came down, the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat on that house; and it didn’t fall, for it was founded on the rock. Everyone who hears these words of mine, and doesn’t do them will be like a foolish man, who built his house on the sand.” – [...]

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In today’s daily news digest from ExchangeWire: Group Black launches with USD$75m (£54m) backing; Amazon demanding warrants from partners; and Retina raises USD$8m (£5.8m). Group Black launches with USD$75m (£54m) backing Group Black Inc., a collective of media companies with the shared goal of advancing opportunity and investment for Black ownership within the global media industry, has launched with USD$75m in backing from WPP’s GroupM unit. The collective will utilise a two-pronged approach when advocating for increased Black ownership within the ecosystem: [...]

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In a year that has truly emphasised the value of a budget, finding media that is worth spending on has never been more imperative. With buyers forced to scrutinise their strategies and to recognise the value (or lack thereof) of each element, the pressure to streamline and optimise the supply path has been firmly raised. In this exclusive article, Seun Odeneye (pictured below), managing director of Matterkind UK & Ireland, writes about this heightened concern, and offers his advice on [...]

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Over halfway through one of the strangest and most volatile years in recent history, and there are still plenty of challenges ahead for the ad industry. The IPA Bellwether report for Q2 2020 makes this clear, particularly with the notable finding that budgets have shrunk at their fastest rate in over two decades. With recovery expected to begin no sooner than 2021, some within the industry argue that now is the time for all players to explore and develop the [...]

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Never waste a crisis to affect meaningful change, they say. It’s easier said than done when an entire industry is still trying to figure out how to conduct normal business in this new reality.  Zoom, Google Meet et al are a help. But let’s be honest here, there is nothing more binding from a network-building perspective, than the face-to-face meeting, or the after-work pint in the pub, or – my personal favorite – the ‘power’ breakfast.  Is the virtual meeting to be [...]

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In today’s ExchangeWire digest: Ebiquity announces its initial financial results for 2019; McDonald’s moves its Mainland China media planning to Publicis Groupe; and the ad industry is showing a greater interest in B2B content.   Ebiquity release preliminary financial results   Independent marketing and media consultancy, Ebiquity, has announced its preliminary financial results for 2019. The results remain fairly consistent with those achieved in 2018, although it has seen declines in its revenue, operating profit, and earnings per share. Despite seeing revenue fall from £69.4m [...]

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Last week saw the publication of key advertising performance report, the Advertising Association/WARC (AA/WARC) Expenditure Report. ExchangeWire speaks to figures within the industry to get their thoughts on the report’s findings. Context and sentiment can help brands capture untapped audiences It’s no surprise ad spend has been reined in due to the uncertainty over COVID-19. Cutting back is a natural reaction as brands take time to understand new consumer behaviour and reassess what to have in market. In the mid-to-long-term, and with [...]

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In today’s ExchangeWire news digest: WPP is awarded management of Unilever’s mainland China account; Australia’s Prime Media Group reports a fall in April revenue; and NBCUniversal gets a restructure amid the Coronavirus. WPP wins Unilever’s mainland China account Unilever has put WPP in charge of its Chinese media duties. The move comes after a recently concluded review of the way the multinational FMCG firm’s media operations in mainland China. WPP will now take over managing the planning and buying of Unilever’s media [...]

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In this weekly segment, ExchangeWire sums up key industry updates on ad tech from around the globe. In this edition: the latest AA/WARC report forecasts a fall in UK ad spend; WPP braces itself as it sees Q1 revenues decline; Google sees its ad demand stabilise, sparking a spike in stock value; News Corp Australia partners with Flybuys to share first-party data; and Microsoft is rumoured to be looking to invest in Paytm. AA/WARC report forecasts ad spend to fall to [...]

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The IPA Bellwether Q4 2019 Report, released today 15th January 2020, has revealed a 4% overall increase in marketing budgets, the first such increase since the first quarter of the year. Growth is anticipated to accelerate through 2020 as the business cycle recovers from its current soft spell. Report highlights – Bullish expectations for marketing in 2020-2021 as a result of diminishing political and business uncertainties. – Internet advertising again cited as the primary driver of overall growth in marketing spend, with budgets [...]

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