Search

According to Louis Georgiou, managing director of Code Computerlove, 40 per cent of consumers in the UK now use their smart speaker daily, while a further 40 per cent use it at least once a week. He noted that the devices are being used for a wide variety of purposes, with two-thirds using them to play music or the radio, and half using them to access news and weather reports. However, relatively few people are using their smart speakers to purchase anything, with just seven per cent of users...

As the new Ad Tech and Standards Manager at IAB UK part of my role will be communicating the development of any technical initiatives that would benefit the UK industry. A number of the initiatives that we support come from the IAB Tech Lab and the purpose of this blog is to inform you on who the IAB Tech Lab are and how this plays into your IAB UK membership. Not to be confused with IAB US the IAB Tech Lab are a separate company under the IAB umbrella headquartered in New York. The IAB Tech Lab...

River Island has been making a huge social statement at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, using outdoor ads to promote its #LabelsAreForClothes campaign. The fashion retailer partnered with outdoor advertising specialist Clear Channel and UGCA to deliver the ads, which form part of its current campaign on diversity, and were displayed above Cannes' The Grand Hotel. This meant they took centre stage at the festival, and with a hashtag already incorporated in the ads'...

What is it? The IAB Europe Transparency and Consent Framework is the global cross-industry effort to help publishers, technology vendors, agencies and advertisers meet the transparency and user choice requirements under GDPR. It was developed by IAB Europe in collaboration with the digital advertising industry. It is designed to offer flexibility to comply with the law, and provide a way of collecting and transmitting signals of consent from an individual to third party vendors working with site...

BBC Sounds, a new smartphone that brings together the broadcaster's radio, music and podcast content in a dedicated space for the first time, has launched this week. The app is available on both iOS and Android, and includes existing features such as the content from the BBC iPlayer Radio app, as well as new additions like on-demand music playlists to suit different moods. Dan Taylor-Watt, head of BBC iPlayer and BBC Sounds, explained in a blog post announcing the launch that each app user's...

As mobile video advertising continues to grow, brands and agencies want to understand how to better optimise their investments in mobile video across Facebook and Instagram. To help our clients achieve maximum impact and drive efficiencies, Facebook's Marketing Science team undertake research and share insights into both ad creative and how to capture attention in feed to increase video performance. Study results are available on our Facebook For Business blog. Optimising reach through broader...

Cosmetics brand Benefit marked the launch of its new foundation by publicly tying into the concepts of wellness and self-care with a pop-up event titled the Hello Happy House. Taking place over the course of two days in London last week, the Hello Happy House provided a space where make-up lovers could relax, unleash some energy in a 'bounce room', play classic funfair games or be showered in glitter. All of these activities were designed to provide people with an escape from the stresses of...

Almost one-third (32 per cent) of B2B marketers have revealed they are not confident understanding artificial intelligence (AI) and how it could be used as part of their marketing strategies. This is one of the findings of new research from EverString and Heinz Marketing, which found that only 12.8 per cent of B2B marketers feel 'very confident' where AI is concerned. However, this technology could be helping marketers to personalise their customer communications, improve their data management...

A new mobile app has been launched by the NHS to coincide with its 70th anniversary last week (July 5th). The smartphone app enables patients to access appointment booking services and allows them to order repeat prescriptions without having to contact their GP surgery in person or over the phone. Patients will also be able to view the information held in their medical file by their doctor, and they'll have access to the 111 health advice service at the touch of a few buttons. All of this should...

Loops, a new Tinder feature that allows users of the dating app to add a short clip to their profiles, is being rolled out across the world. Initial trials of the Loops feature have seen singles who include a video on their dating profile increase their average conversation length with matches by 20 percent. In addition, users with a profile video also received an average of ten percent more swipes, improving their chance of finding a perfect match. At the same time, Tinder is increasing the...

WaterAid has partnered with Y&R to create a special Spotify playlist designed to be listened to during a four-minute shower - the length currently being recommended amid the heatwave. The charity's playlist is comprised of 40 songs that run for exactly four minutes each, with tracks including Material Girl by Madonna, Europe's The Final Countdown and the song that's currently ringing in everyone's ears, the anthemic Three Lions. WaterAid hopes to raise awareness of the importance of conserving...

The events team at IAB UK were recently honoured at the Conference Awards 2018 with a Bronze award for the ‘Ken Fawes’ stunt delivered at the annual Engage conference in 2017. Created in collaboration with the IAB’s Newsbrands members to highlight the vital importance of quality journalism, the ruse saw controversial editor, ‘Ken Fawes’ from the ‘Cincinnati Sentinel’ present on the main stage at the Barbican to the 1,100+ Engage attendees. During the presentation, which was clearly making many...

Ice cream brand Häagen-Dazs has recruited top tennis stars for its latest marketing campaign and is using their influence to raise the profile of its flavours during Wimbledon fortnight. The brand is working with players including Grigor Dimitrov and Laura Robson, who are using their social media profiles to take part in Häagen-Dazs' Champion v Challenger campaign. The concept pits tennis fan-favourite strawberries and cream-flavoured ice cream against the challenger flavour, cookies, and cream...

Digital mood board and ideas-sharing platform Pinterest has announced the rollout of several new features to make collaboration easier for users. Among these is a new chat function, which will allow Pinterest users to communicate and collaborate more closely on creative projects. In addition, new group activity feeds are being introduced across the site, which will allow people to easily view what's changed on their project since they last logged in. Users will also be able to add comments to...

The average consumer will spend 67 minutes each day viewing online video content this year, up from last year's 56 minutes, according to new predictions. Zenith's Online Video Forecasts 2018 anticipates significant growth in online video-viewing over the course of this year, fuelled in part by the new video capabilities of multiple social media platforms, smart TVs and the latest smartphones allowing for high-quality video streams. Online video consumption is expected to increase even further...

Marketing emails that contain emojis in their subject line are 66 per cent more likely to be opened than those that don't, new figures reveal. Research carried out by Leanplum for a new report titled 'Unlocking Engagement & Growth with Emojis' also led to the discovery that push notifications featuring emojis are 254 per cent more likely to be opened than those without. At the same time, apps that incorporate emojis are 26 per cent less likely to be uninstalled by users, the report found...

Designer fashion brand Versace is laying claim to producing the longest ever advertising image to date, which features 54 models posing in its garments side by side as part of its new A/W18 campaign. Photographer Steven Meisel shot the image, which has been designed to represent the diversity and inclusion that the brand offers, using models of various genders and ethnicities, including big names like sisters Bella and Gigi Hadid, and Kaia Gerber. The campaign has been titled 'The Clans of...

The IAB UK Leadership Summit is the central thought leadership event for senior marketing and advertising leads to come together to discuss and advance the interests of our industry through open discussions, debates and thought-provoking presentations. This exclusive event will major on providing strategic direction for the digital future as well as a first-class networking opportunity. The Platinum package includes: Hotel accommodation on Thursday Night (Mews Apartment) Executive car to and...

The IAB UK Leadership Summit is the central thought leadership event for senior marketing and advertising leads to come together to discuss and advance the interests of our industry through open discussions, debates and thought-provoking presentations. This exclusive event will major on providing strategic direction for the digital future as well as a first-class networking opportunity. The Gold package includes: Hotel accommodation on Thursday night (Suite) Access to spa facilities Access to...

The IAB UK Leadership Summit is the central thought leadership event for senior marketing and advertising leads to come together to discuss and advance the interests of our industry through open discussions, debates and thought-provoking presentations. This exclusive event will major on providing strategic direction for the digital future as well as a first-class networking opportunity. The Silver package includes: Hotel accommodation on Thursday night (Deluxe) Access to spa facilities Access to...