Briefings

Short guides on the latest thinking, developments and terminology in digital, marketing and technology

The rise of Pinduoduo: How a group buying app grew to rival Alibaba

Even if you haven’t heard of Pinduoduo, a budget online marketplace that currently ranks among China’s top ecommerce platforms, you’ve probably heard of its overseas equivalent, Temu. Since its launch in the United States in September 2022, Temu has expanded aggressively into dozens of other markets, and made waves with its omnipresent marketing and advertising, […]

snippet at top of serps

Will Search Generative Experience (SGE) really transform web search?

The date for a full roll-out of Google’s Search Generated Experience (SGE) is currently unknown. With the thorny issue of hallucinations and publishers potentially feeling alienated, not to mention generative AI not proving to be a major winner in search for rival Microsoft, what’s next for SGE?

on demand tv streaming

The changing CTV landscape

This briefing is part of our Digital Transformation Monthly series which looks at broad digital trends impacting brands. This edition examines recent developments in the worlds of streaming and CTV, in the context of the longer-term decline in broadcast TV viewership.

Ad targeting illustration featuring a large magnet pulling hearts, likes and money towards it. One person is sitting in the bend of the magnet with a laptop, another is standing next to it with a bow and arrow. Another is nearby with a clipboard. Images of a clock, a target with an arrow in it, and a video play icon surround the magnet.

The contextual advertising boom: What is it, and how can brands take advantage?

In an increasingly privacy-conscious web, contextual ad targeting is having a moment. Discussion website and self-proclaimed ‘front page of the internet’, Reddit, recently announced the acquisition of Spiketrap, an audience contextualisation company. As well as further building out Reddit’s advertising offering, the move to acquire Spiketrap highlights Reddit’s intention to capitalise on advertising that matches […]

A pale-skinned avatar with brown hair and glasses, wearing colourful pink, blue, purple and green clothing, hovers in front of a giant BMW iX which is floating at a slant. The two are suspended amidst a psychedelic landscape of strange shapes and jungle-like plants.

A metaverse reality check: What role for brands?

Many companies are eager to explore investments in the metaverse, but what is the best way to go about this? We conclude our three-part series, ‘A metaverse reality check’, by looking closely at the practical considerations behind metaverse investment, and consider what some major brands have been doing in this space.

Digital PR: An introduction to writer/blogger outreach

The disciplines of content marketing and SEO are intertwined. Generally speaking, content marketing concerns the creation and publication of content to engage an audience, while SEO concerns the research of topics being searched for by people using Google (or other search engines). Both content marketers and SEOs will also have a focus on creating link-worthy […]

desktop website

What is design thinking?

When people talk about ‘design thinking’ nowadays, they are referring to a specific definition: a methodology and organisational approach to solving problems and building products. Design thinking is about bringing these tried-and-tested methodologies to a wider audience and wider stakeholders across the organisation. Over the past few years, ‘design thinking’ has gone from being an […]

The business case for UX

Whatever the organisation’s relationship with UX, the goal should be the same: to make a product or experience that solves a problem for a user and delights them in the process of solving it. But what about building a business case for UX? Why invest in UX? Why and where is UX important? How do […]

What is digital shelf analytics?

With even more retailers now battling for space on the ‘digital shelf’ (i.e. the various places that we search, research, and buy products online) – being able to effectively capture the consumer’s attention is key. To increase the chances of this happening, retail brands must stay on top of multiple factors, such as ensuring product […]

An overview of the third-party cookie crackdown

In March 2021, Google announced on its Ads & Commerce blog that it was “Charting a course towards a more privacy-first web”. The blog post was a re-affirmation of Google’s commitment, first revealed in January 2020, to remove support for third-party tracking cookies in Chrome from 2022, and contained further details about how it plans […]

An illustration showing A/B testing, which provides evidence of what approaches are delivering

The test-and-learn approach in data & analytics: a beginner’s guide

The ability of an organisation to leverage data – either for singular marketing campaigns or wider business strategy – points to a degree of data maturity. It indicates that the process of becoming ‘data driven’ or undergoing ‘data transformation’ as part of a wider digital transformation programme – is underway. Engaging in testing and optimisation […]

The top half of Earth, showing much of Asia and Australia lit up interconnecting lights.

Amazon in Asia-Pacific: A 2020 update

Since its launch in Japan in 2000, Amazon has sought to slowly establish itself in some of Asia-Pacific’s biggest markets. However, the ride has not universally been a smooth one. Here’s how Amazon is faring in Asia-Pacific in the year 2020.

The changing face of social content

This is an edited version of a section in Econsultancy’s new Social Media Platforms Trends report, authored by Michelle Goodall, and covers changes to social content, from stories to AR and live video.

The growth of social messaging and chat

This briefing covers messaging trends during lockdown, growth of popular new apps, and wider trends in the space, and is an edited version of a section in Econsultancy’s new Social Media Platforms Trends report, authored by Michelle Goodall.

Influencer Marketing - Econsultancy's Internet Statistics Database

Influencer sustainability – the trends marketers need to know in the second half of 2020

Brands and businesses must constantly recalibrate how they work with influencers as social platforms change. This briefing covers the latest trends in influencer marketing, including Covid-19, ad spend, trust and TikTok. It is an edited version of the influencer section in Econsultancy’s new Social Media Platforms Trends report, authored by Michelle Goodall. Reduced adspend is […]

Face mask, viruses and vaccine

PEST, SWOT and scenario planning for marketers: a beginner’s guide

The Covid-19 crisis is an unprecedented event, the exact impact of which is impossible to foresee. However, those organisations that have dealt with the crisis best are those that had robust strategies in place for dealing with the unpredictable. There are a multitude of different tools available to help organisations consider and prepare for potential […]

You may also be interested in

Best Practice

Practical reports covering all the core elements of marketing tactics

Trends Reports

The latest marketing and ecommerce trends and innovations

Digital Shift Webinar

A quarterly look at the important developments, trends and innovations in digital

Dive into our topic hubs