Sherwin-Williams, influencer marketing and UGC trends: Why consumers were left shaken but not stirred

The story of a Sherwin-Williams employee who was fired after the company saw his viral TikTok channel focused on paint mixing has led to plenty of reaction around the decision, as well as discussion around wider influencer marketing and user-generated content (UGC) strategies.

Tony Piloseno, who worked part-time at a Sherwin-Williams store in Ohio, had built a 1.2 million-strong TikTok audience for his channel which showcased paint mixing. As reported by BuzzFeed, Piloseno was...

24 November 2020 | Branding

As eCommerce becomes more vital, the right content strategy is required – whatever your industry

The Covid-19 pandemic has forced marketers' hands in a variety of areas. One of the most evident is around the near-exclusivity of eCommerce - or, anything which isn't bricks and mortar.

Writing for this publication in July, Joel Davis, co-founder and CEO of Mighty Social, noted the need for change in messaging. "Take into account that during the crisis many consumers closely re-evaluated their consumption habits, what they define as essential products, as well as how to live...

17 November 2020 | Best Practice

How user-generated content can be more powerful than influencer marketing campaigns

User-generated content (UGC) is quickly becoming the most popular marketing tool ahead of online influencer campaigns. The public have become accustomed to reality stars and has-been celebrities flogging whichever never-used-gadget that they’ve been paid to promote.

Since the rise of the Insta-marketeer, the Advertising Standards Authority has prescribed new rules for promoting products and services through social media platforms and online blogs, where a paid promotion must be...

11 November 2020 | Content Marketing

In a year of Covid chaos, consistency and compatibility are the key watchwords for marketers

Session If you're reading this and not having a great day for whatever reason, then one surefire way to feel better is to look at 2020 prediction articles issued at the start of this year. MarketingTech's is a good example. To paraphrase Winston Churchill, never in the field of marketing predictions was so much gotten wrong by so many.

Okay, it is unfair to expect marketing executives to predict a global pandemic. In one way, of course, their forecasts were right around...

11 November 2020 | Campaigns

Q&A: Jake Athey, Widen: On common mistakes marketers make with DAM – and realigning content post-Covid

For marketing professionals today, a lot of the job depends on their ability to not let things get on top of them. Data and data sources are increasing, as are the number of tools at hand to deal with them. What companies need, therefore, is something to centralise processes and smooth out the rough edges.

Ahead of his session at DMWF Europe Virtual on 24-25 November, Jake Athey, VP marketing and customer experience at digital asset management (DAM) software provider Widen, spoke...

11 November 2020 | Content Marketing

Content creators: Here’s how to monetise digital content effectively

Sponsored If you’re a digitally transformed organisation in the brand, publishing or broadcasting space, or any digital content creator for that matter, chances are you’ve discovered that while having a digital content strategy and a platform to share it is one thing, monetising all that great content is another matter.

For digital content creators, monetising digital content is the last great hurdle on the journey to sustainability, with traditional revenue-generating...

2 November 2020 | Advertising

Three key ways the Covid-19 pandemic has changed digital advertising strategies

Covid-19 has changed a lot of things about the world in a very short amount of time. It has completely transformed the way that we interact with others, work, travel, and do just about every daily activity. It should come as no surprise that it has impacted marketing as well – and yet many companies have done little to nothing to adjust their digital marketing strategies as a response to the pandemic.

According to a report from Advertiser Perceptions, one-third of advertisers...

28 October 2020 | Advertising

How do you create a compelling digital proposition for 2021 after such an uncertain 2020?

If 2020 has taught us anything, it’s that things change quickly. And when things change quickly, a business needs to adapt and respond even quicker.

The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic over the last 6 months has seen changes that no one could have ever predicted: the global tourism industry facing the loss of 120 million jobs, the permanent closure of approximately 14,000 shops in the UK, and nearly half of people in employment in the UK working from home at some point this...

23 October 2020 | Best Practice

How brands can stand out on TikTok for the right reasons: A guide

All eyes are on TikTok; from users who can’t get enough of its content to the US companies making a bid for acquisition — and brands are waking up to the potential.

High on the list of attractions is scale. In just two years, the video app has gone from 55 million to almost 700 million monthly active users globally. Much of that growth is down to the pandemic-driven spike in demand for digital media, but it’s also fuelled by the specific appeal of TikTok’s short-form...

20 October 2020 | Branding

CMO Council explores the remit of earned media – and strained relations between marketing and comms

The Covid-19 pandemic may have forced a change in some respects, but a new report from the CMO Council makes it clear: marketing and comms are still too adversarial, and more media cohesion is needed.

In its report 'Bridging the Gap for Comms and Marketing', the council, alongside Cision, surveyed more than 150 brand leaders, as well as conducting interviews with executives from Schneider Electric, IBM, Nokia, and more.

Ultimately, marketing and comms don't really...

14 October 2020 | Advertising