Hello and welcome to your weekly FWD.
At the centre of attention and creating (over) hype this week was the ‘weirdest event in internet history’ – the battle of the YouTubers, KSI and Logan Paul. Although, no one should be surprised that it was hijacked by pirates on Twitch. With YouTube charging $10USD to tune into the match, Twitch brought the game to the masses and indeed, ashore.
Advertising regulation was also full on, with Facebook removing 5,000 ad targeting options in a bid to prevent discrimination. “While these options have been used in legitimate ways to reach people interested in a certain product or service, we think minimizing the risk of abuse is more important. This includes limiting the ability for advertisers to exclude audiences that relate to attributes such as ethnicity or religion.” YouTube are also jumping on board with more non-skippable ads offered to advertisers. With more on the market being directed at larger catchments, how does this impact targeted marketing and segmented audiences?
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Hello and welcome to your weekly OMD FWD bringing you the latest tech news to warm up on this chilly Autumn day. We start this edition with Tinder’s hot ranking as the top grossing iOS app as a result of charging people to see who has liked their profile. Next up, the Amazon and Apple rivalry sparks up as they join major Hollywood players in a bid to win distribution rights for James Bond, while eBay launches the specialised Entertainment Shop.
Brands can now target their user-base on third-party sites through LinkedIn’s new Audience Network. Comparatively, Whatsapp will offer a free app to small-to-medium size businesses, but will charge the larger ones, as it tests a chat button on Facebook that opens a conversation directly with business.
HEADLINES
- Tinder has become the top grossing iOS app as a result of charging people to see who has liked their profile.
- LinkedIn’s new Audience Network allows brands to reach their audiences through their native ad formats which can run across third party sites.
- Amazon and Apple join the major Hollywood players in a bid to win distribution rights for James Bond, as EBay launches The Entertainment Shop, selling films, music, books, and video games.
- WhatsApp has introduced a free Business app for small-medium businesses (it will charge larger ones), as it tests a chat button on Facebook which opens a conversation directly with businesses.
INSIGHTS
- Learn what’s really on the nation’s minds with a list of the most searched for ‘how to’ questions in Google.
- A look at back to school shopping habits reveals 43% of shoppers will use their smartphones to do research, as retailers take advantage of ASMR.
- Find out what the fastest growing programming language is.
COOL
- Users across Facebook can help design Citroën’s latest TV ad, as they select their favourite scenes.
- Grolsch has used neuro headsets which have taken brain-waves stimulated by music and turned them into art.
- A new smartphone app could help diagnose Heart disease, potentially avoiding a 45-minute hospital procedure.
DEEP READS
- Google reveals a number of improvements to their Assistant features coming soon.
- Teens are spending more time on screen than ever, rather than socialising or exercising, which leads to greater risk of depression.
- There are over a million people helping to train AI, as one day it will be embedded into our everyday lives.
As usual, please share anything you find interesting using the hashtag #OMDFWD
Hello and welcome to an emoji-filled OMD FWD. Ever wondered about the performance of emojis in marketing? While the French were sceptical, the crying face Emoji achieved a 97% splurge in newsletter open rates in the UK. The Royal Opera House effectively joined the hype on WorldEmojiDay by using only emojis to tell the entire stories of operas and ballets, giving free tickets to those who correctly identified them.
In other news, Facebook is expanding its display ad beta test that lets businesses buy space between people’s chat threads. Amazon might also be entering the messenger domain with Anytime, a messaging app for Android, iOS and desktop that promises a few twists on the usual formula. Entering the video space, LinkedIn has started rolling out the ability to record and post native videos directly from its mobile app.
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- A new FMCG trend report anyone? 20% of food searches are for those everyday items
- Presumably, Amazon plan to enter the ‘recipe box’ market as a result
- How emoji usage increases engagement for the most traditional of digital communications
COOL
- Twitter and Royal Opera House combine to celebrate the emoji in a novel way
- A favourite, KLM have introduced a luggage tag that offers local tourist advice on the go
- Ocado are trialling delivering online food shop being delivered by a robot
DEEP READS
Just in time for this summer’s Olympics in Rio, Facebook has launched its very own Snapchat-style camera. It comes at a time where, despite strong business success, Zuckerberg’s social platform has recently seen a 21% decline in the amount of posts shared per user and a rise in competition from rival Snapchat. According to the company, “people are increasingly sharing via videos and photos”, so this measure has been taken with the aim of boosting the number of posts uploaded daily. So now, when someone wants to share what’s on their mind, they will now be given the option of an open camera. After all, video is definitely on the rise. Please do share anything interesting you spot on Twitter with #OMDFWD
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Tim Shank can guarantee he’ll never leave home without his keys. Why? His house keys are located inside his body. Shank, the president of the Minneapolis futurist group TwinCities+, has a chip installed in his hand that can communicate electronically with his front door and tell it to unlock itself. Shank is one of a growing number of “biohackers” who implant hardware ranging from microchips to magnets inside their bodies. Some biohackers use their implants in experimental art projects whilst others who have disabilities or medical conditions use them to improve their quality of life. Whilst the long-term health risks of the practise are still unknown, many biohackers claim that, if done right, implants can be no more dangerous than getting a piercing or tattoo. With 25% of Australians found to be “at least slightly interested” in paying for purchases through a chip implanted in their bodies, it looks like we could be looking at a very advanced future for contactless payment. As always, share anything interesting you spot with #OMDFWD
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This week in OMD FWD. As the world’s fastest growing digital language, emojis are increasingly playing a vital role in marketing leading to a growing demand for more accurate measurement on their impact. From ordering a Domino’s using a pizza emoji to hashtag generated emojis promoting the latest Star Wars film, emojis certainly create noise with millennials, but do they deliver ROI? Read, learn and share away….!!
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We recently caught up with OMD’s Steve Blakeman to delve a little deeper into his path to OMD, how he recently became LinkedIn’s Agency Publisher of the Year and the advice he has for anyone wanting to kick-start their publishing portfolio.
Could you explain your role at OMD and how you ended up doing what you do?
I’ve been back in the UK for around seven months now and I am Managing Director – Global Accounts, specifically holding responsibility for the global Renault Groupe account.
Prior to returning home, I lived and worked in Singapore where I was CEO for OMD APAC for four years. This was a hugely exciting and successful period for OMD in which we doubled our billings, won over 1000 industry awards and were named ‘Media Agency of the Year’ at the Cannes Lions and Festival of Media Asia awards 2013. However London was calling and when our daughter won a scholarship at a stage school in the UK, after appearing in the world tour of ‘The Sound of Music’, we knew it was time to return home to the smoke.
Congratulations once again on being named LinkedIn’s Agency Publisher of the Year. How did you get started?
I’ve always been a keen writer and a regular contributor to industry trade publications, but it was Andy Goldman, Global Agency Lead for LinkedIn, who persuaded me to repurpose these articles on LinkedIn. Despite my original scepticism, I was overwhelmed with the response and viewing figures, particularly when one of my articles achieved over 140,000 views. Not only that but the audience went from being local, to regional, to global. In December, I was named ‘Agency Publisher of the Year’ for EMEA and one of LinkedIn’s top 10 marketing and social writers for 2015. Now LinkedIn is always front of mind when I write.
For all our budding publishers out there, what advice do you have for them to get started?
Write about what you love, and what you’re interested in. If you’re not engaged in what you’re talking about, your readers won’t be either. However it is important to step out of your comfort zone, so read voraciously and be inspired by the exceptional content that is out there. The challenge is finding the time, however I travel a lot and still manage it by writing on planes and in airports, as well as constantly making notes and bookmarking websites on what interests me. The main thing is to get started, so if you’re looking for some inspiration, you might want to check out some really interesting articles by this Blakeman bloke who works for OMD.
What is it about the world of media and marketing that you find so exciting?
After almost 30 years in the industry, I can honestly say that the one aspect that attracted me to the industry in the first place, is the same reason why I still find it so exciting today. It’s dynamism. The relentless progress and constant change is what keeps the industry so vibrant and stimulating. Oh, and the media owner parties, of course.