**Due to a change in content strategy at DMS Insights, bylines are no longer used and most of the older content has been removed. Sarah’s stories have been recreated below, exactly as they were published.**
Consumers are savvier than ever, with more and more native tech users entering the workforce and controlling the narrative about what they expect from brands. Many modern consumer expectations can be met through personalized digital technologies that save money and time, and what is expected and can be delivered for car insurance is no exception. [...]
The surge in ecommerce, and shoppers wanting maximum convenience without crowds during the pandemic, has led to a dramatic increase in buy online pick up in store (BOPIS) capabilities and other in-store fulfillment options. The trend of consumers preferring in-person product pick up hasn’t gone unnoticed by Google, which recently announced changes to Google’s Shopping [...]
Many luxury brands have recently launched less-expensive offerings of their products, often done to expand the reach of brands, create broader awareness and engagement and scale revenues. In the case of a brand like Peloton, which recently introduced lower prices and new products, expanding the product line with lower-priced items can be a way to [...]
More and more brands and businesses are communicating their values via strong corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives. And, consumers are increasingly favoring companies that align with their ethics and take a stand on the important issues of the day. “When a company shares their consumers’ views and values and helps contribute to solving a problem everyone [...]
Many heritage and luxury brands have shied away from digital marketing strategies in the past, relying instead on marketing strategies that had worked for generations. However, the need for digital has been accelerated in 2020, and businesses are increasingly embracing digital marketing campaigns and strategies that can take their brands to the next level of [...]
Foursquare recently announced that they are the first MRC-accredited location intelligence company. This accreditation requires Foursquare to “adhere to the Location-Based Advertising Measurement Guidelines, issued by the MRC (Media Rating Council), the Interactive Advertising Bureau and the Mobile Marketing Association.” But what are the Location-Based Advertising Measurement Guidelines, and what is MRC location data accreditation?What [...]
Over the summer, Google launched a news licensing program that would pay publishers for “high-quality content.” According to Google, “This [licensing] program will help participating publishers monetize their content through an enhanced storytelling experience that lets people go deeper into more complex stories, stay informed and be exposed to a world of different issues and [...]
Brands are going bolder with digital marketing strategies, looking to engage consumers who are spending more time at home and online. Gamification, a popular marketing strategy before COVID-19, continues to gain momentum as a mobile-friendly approach for brands to keep consumers engaged for longer. Xfinity Partners With Pinterest To Promote Its Wireless Phone & Data ServiceIn [...]
Prior to the unprecedented crises of 2020, many of us enjoyed going to the grocery store multiple times a week, throwing dinner together at the last minute or opting to eat out when cooking wasn’t on the table. Since March, when COVID-19 came to America, many of those carefree habits and grocery shopping preferences have [...]
Google announced last year that they would be combining custom affinity and custom intent audiences into one streamlined solution called Google custom audiences, and it has arrived. Custom audiences is now available for Google Ads for Display, Discovery, Gmail and YouTube campaigns. According to Google, “With custom audiences you can use a single audience for [...]
Walmart recently introduced plans for an omni-shopping experience that will include digital shopping enhancements across channels. “We will be the first to deliver a seamless shopping experience at scale,” said Walmart CEO Doug McMillon. “No matter how you choose to shop with us, through your mobile device, online, in a store or a combination, it [...]
Microsoft recently announced the release of asset performance ratings for responsive search ads (RSA), designed to help advertisers gain a better understanding of Bing search advertising performance. What Are Microsoft Responsive Search Ads?Microsoft responsive search ads (RSAs), launched earlier this year, are ads that adjust to best match the queries of search audiences. Advertisers input multiple [...]
Google commands 95% of mobile search engine share in the U.S., with Bing and Yahoo! grabbing up most of the other 5%. Google’s role as the default search engine for Apple devices has helped Google maintain their massive market share, a privilege for which they pay billions of dollars. However, Jon Henshaw at Coywolf, a [...]
Shifts in consumer behaviors during the pandemic have led to a variety of unexpected consequences, like the decline radio advertising has taken because of less commuting. And, though digital audio is faring better than radio, trouble with campaign measurement has left some advertisers skittish. Understanding the factors at play with audio can help advertisers make [...]
Family photos this year may not reflect the usual trips and celebrations, but many families that aren’t able to be together are reminiscing with old photos and looking forward to future reunions. Personalized photo books, art objects and gifts for recording memories may be the perfect items this holiday season, especially when so many people [...]
Walmart is now in the insurance business. Recently, the mega-retailer announced the launch of Walmart Insurance Services. The new service coincides with the Annual Enrollment Period (AEP), October 15-December 7, when Medicare beneficiaries can add or drop parts of their Medicare insurance coverage and prescription plans.Walmart aims to streamline a notoriously cumbersome and frustrating experience. [...]
From the sledgehammer heard worldwide in 1984 to the recent emphasis on privacy at a time when everything is shared, Apple has tapped into the collective headspace of billions of people around the globe. With few rivals in the last 20 years, Apple created a brand as recognized for its products as its marketing acumen. [...]
On October 15, the Medicare Annual Enrollment Period (AEP) will begin, running through December 7. During AEP, Medicare beneficiaries can make changes to Medicare Advantage insurance and prescription plans or add them if they previously weren’t participating in an Advantage plan. Medicare Advantage plans are private insurance plans available to beneficiaries already enrolled in or [...]
A recent National Geographic article explored the future of travel, which has been deeply impacted by the pandemic. As with so many industries, what travel will look like in the future is likely to be a mix of reverting to what is known and embracing new attitudes and implementations that offer better experiences. Digital marketers [...]
After a 16-month investigation into the digital economy, the House Judiciary Committee’s Antitrust Subcommittee has released a report proposing a series of antitrust reforms to the “big four” tech companies: Google, Amazon, Apple and Facebook. The suggested reforms in The Investigation of Competition in the Digital Marketplace: Majority Staff Report and Recommendations could put the [...]
The shift in behavior during the pandemic that required delivery of so many items has made packaging more abundant, providing valuable real estate that brands should make the best of to add value and meaning to their brand’s campaign strategies.A box, packaging or receipt offers up blank space that may be as valuable to brands [...]
As we head into the holidays and start to get excited about shopping, cooking and decorating, our feelings of joy are likely to be coupled with a little melancholy about all the ways that this holiday season may be different. Advertising strategies, including commercials from brands and retailers, are likely to reflect the realities of [...]
Frank Cooper III, global chief marketing officer of BlackRock, an American global investment management company, shared in his presentation at the 2020 ANA Masters of Marketing Conference: A Virtual Experience, how brands can effectively be purpose driven. To succeed in business right now and in the future, “a brand needs integrity, social license and commercial [...]
At 2020 ANA Masters of Marketing Conference: A Virtual Experience, Ryan Oliver, senior director of Twitter Next, offered an analysis of conversation data taken from Tweets sent during the pandemic. The study looked at 10 billion Tweets and 5000 survey responses. Conversation data can offer insights into “behaviors and need states” that appeared during lockdown [...]
Deborah Wahl, global CMO at General Motors spoke at the 2020 ANA Masters of Marketing Conference: A Virtual Experience about the pivot that GM made to provide PPE for frontline workers during the early stages of the pandemic in the US, and how the brand emerged stronger and even more inspired for the “all electric [...]
At 2020 ANA Masters of Marketing Conference: A Virtual Experience, Dean Aragon, CEO and global VP of brand at Shell Brands International, explained his philosophy on how brands need to humanize their marketing through deep-dive data insights and informed creative. “Marketers today have an abundance of big data, but not enough insight. We can’t reduce [...]
The accelerated growth of ecommerce in 2020 is having a major impact across the advertising industry. The surge in online shopping has led to significant revenue gains for ecommerce brands and retailers, brick-and-mortar stores adapting to new buying habits and advertisers increasing their digital spending. Additionally, eMarketer recently reported that many advertisers are increasing their [...]
The need for innovative and multichannel donor acquisition strategies is more important than ever for charities and nonprofits. Last year, The Chronicle of Philanthropy noted, “Charities that have been nurturing relationships with donors, communicating transparently and making the most of technology have laid a strong foundation to weather a crisis like the pandemic.” Here are [...]
“What we took for granted has changed,” said Marie Gulin-Merle, global VP for Google at the 2020 ANA Masters of Marketing Conference: A Virtual Experience. “Today, brands have to be hyper agile, hyper data-centric and hyper empathetic.” Gulin-Merle was addressing the ways in which brands need to adapt and think ahead after a year in [...]
The march of digital advertising across verticals continues. Although healthcare and pharma were more likely in the past to rely on traditional advertising tactics, there have been significant upticks in digital advertising spend for this lucrative industry. According to U.S. Healthcare and Pharma Digital Ad Spending 2020, a report by eMarketer, “The coronavirus pandemic restricted [...]
Triller, a short-form video app with a huge cache of music rights, is starting to make inroads with brands. Similar to TikTok, short-form video apps like Triller are attractive to younger users and brands looking for something different than the more established social media platforms. “Short video apps are the next generation of social media,” [...]
While there’s no question that having a robust and informative website is a fundamental part of brand building and engagement, effectively optimized landing pages can offer unique targeting and conversion opportunities for advertisers. Alex Kotlyar, vice president of product at Digital Media Solutions (DMS), notes that while websites may offer everything a consumer needs to [...]
In what Jonathan Katz, chief media officer at Digital Media Solutions (DMS), calls “a perfect storm,” the many unpredictable and high-impact events of 2020 have caused Facebook advertising prices to spike. “We’re dealing with COVID-19, a ton of brand dollars initially exiting Facebook, the election booming, and then as the election got closer a lot [...]
Around the country, many Americans are getting excited about the holidays, decorating and shopping earlier than in prior years, likely mustering up their holiday spirit after a tough 2020. As Thanksgiving approaches, consumers, brands and retailers contemplate the best way to celebrate. Ecommerce sales are already booming leading into the Thanksgiving holiday, and brands are [...]
In 2020, ecommerce became the darling of shoppers who needed safe, efficient ways to shop, and brands that needed to meet new consumer behaviors while scaling sales. Meeting the demands of going digital in 2020 requires quick thinking, smart advertising strategies and alternative revenue options, with subscriptions becoming a more scalable and popular option for [...]
The events of 2020 have caused an upheaval of lives across the country. Many brands focused their efforts on helping kids and families navigate the challenges of homeschooling, quarantines and social unrest, with digital strategies that used social media channels, purpose-driven advertising and content marketing. By reaching audiences at the right time, brands were able [...]
Click campaigns are advertising campaigns allowing brands to drive traffic to either their websites or dedicated landing pages, with advertisers paying by the click. Typically, click campaigns are initiated by users clicking on ads, often from websites or search results pages, with users then being driven to specific destinations determined by advertisers. After arriving on [...]
Although Singles Day originated in the early nineties, the unofficial holiday’s popularity really took off in 2009 when Chinese retailer Alibaba turned November 11 into a retail bonanza. Since then, Singles Day has become a huge retail event in China, and more recently around the world. In 2014, Singles Day helped Alibaba break the Guinness [...]
As digital advertising continues to be leveraged by more and more brands, it’s important to understand the difference between traditional digital advertising and digital performance advertising. Although performance advertising can be a component of digital advertising, it offers unique benefits to brands that strictly traditional digital advertising cannot. By focusing on ROI and measurability, performance [...]
For many families and individuals this year, health and wellness has been a top priority. The pandemic and lockdowns have led many people to consider the quality of their health, both as it relates to COVID-19 and the impact of quarantines on overall well-being. This introspection by consumers during a global health crisis has caused [...]
Recently, Twitter, after a period of beta testing, announced the broad introduction of Twitter carousel ads. Although carousel ads are popular on other social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram, this format is a new addition for the wildly popular microblogging site. “Carousel ads are designed to help drive better performance by providing a more [...]
During the holiday season, many brands amplify their feel good and charitable endeavors, and this year is no different. Several brands have embraced “pay it forward” strategies that offer ways for consumers to give back with every purchase, whether it’s to a friend or a charity. Brands that can elicit good feelings from consumers may [...]
Over the course of the last year, many brands and retailers have embraced ecommerce strategies to meet consumer demand, a fact that is likely to help Cyber Monday sales. Cyber Monday was created in 2005 as an online alternative to the brick-and-mortar Black Friday sales, but in recent years the online retail holiday has become [...]
The rise of ecommerce during 2020 has increased online shopping while turning many consumers into omnichannel shoppers searching for good deals and convenient delivery options. CPG brands have seen unprecedented growth in online sales this year, with many shoppers going online multiple times a week for CPG products. According to an analysis of CPG sales [...]
The holidays are upon us, and this year is a year unlike any other — for shoppers, brands and retailers. And, despite not knowing how this holiday season will play out, data and analytics about behaviors and preferences can help brands get in front of consumers at the right moments. Recently, Digital Media Solutions® (DMS) [...]
In 2020, ordering online and relying on ecommerce has been critical for consumers who couldn’t, or wouldn’t, shop the way they had before the pandemic. The positive impact of this shift to online purchasing has been unprecedented for many retailers. The Q3 earnings reports from Walmart, Target and Kohl’s show the immense impact digital strategies [...]
In a year when brands and retailers needed innovation to stay ahead of the curve, especially with ongoing changes to consumer habits and regulations about in-person shopping, strategic partnerships offered a variety of benefits, particularly in ecommerce. “Partnerships target a range of goals, from boosting retailer omnichannel and procurement capabilities to enhancing consumer-facing experiences. They [...]
In 2020, many people took stock of what mattered to them in their lives, which included prioritizing families, health and overall well-being. Throughout the year, there was an uptick in searches for and enrollment in life insurance, and many insurance brands have responded to this shifting consumer interest by launching meaningful advertising campaigns. Health and [...]