September 23rd, 2009
Coca-Cola’s marketing will evolve into content management as the soft drinks giant pursues “a far more aggressive digital presence”, according to Coke’s top marketer Joseph Tripodi.
Speaking to Marketing Week at the launch of Coke’s 2010 FIFA World Cup marketing plan at FIFA headquarters in Zurich, executive vice-president and chief marketing and commercial officer Tripodi said “dramatic changes” in the nature of consumer engagement are driving the shift in the way the business interacts with customers.
September 14th, 2009
‘People need Internet access to be able to function equally in today’s society, and that most basic right is not being given to them’ says Owen Geddes of Freerunner; a project launched with the direct purpose of opening up genuine, no catch wi-fi access to a broader audience. In a bid to further demonstrate their commitment to their aims, it has just announced the opening up of a scheme designedto provide free wireless connection to 50 community groups. All they need do is email connectmenow@freerunr.com or call 0800 860 0815 explaining where and why the community group justifies free access by the 25th of September. And if that wasn’t enough, they’ve also partnered with charity donation site, justgiving with the aim of providing 500 charities with free connection. Watch this space…
Source: Third Sector, T3
September 14th, 2009
Looking up?
Hal Varian, Google’s chief economist is claiming that the latest searches on their site point to a rosier future. Brand Republic reports that searches for “negative” information, such as unemployment benefits, started to fall in March.
Meanwhile, they say, the results show an increase in searches for homes and estate agents, pointing to a potential upswing in the housing market.
We were interested to see that these new metrics, alongside the more traditional economic indicators are all hinting at less cause for despair, if not better times ahead.
google, indicators, search, upswing
September 7th, 2009
Something to get you going?
It was certainly a buzz to see the Whitbread trading update today. The overall business reported a 2.4% increase on total group sales.
Interestingly, the main kick came from total sales of Costa Coffee growing an impressive 18.4% in the 24 weeks to mid-August this year.
It shows that there’s definitely life on the UK’s high street, and that certainly went down well with the morning cup of Java at Greenshootsblog.com.
coffee, high street, increase, Sales growth, Whitbread
September 4th, 2009
New car sales in the UK enjoyed a second consecutive increase, up 6% during August, according to the latest Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) figures.
The rise has again been attributed to the Government’s successful car scrappage scheme, with the SMMT reporting that 67,006 cars were sold during the month.
The upturn follows a 2.4% rise recorded in July – the first monthly increase since April last year.
September 4th, 2009
A record surge in confidence among business professionals indicates Britain’s recession is at an end, according to research.
Optimism among professionals in the third quarter hit its highest level since the start of the financial crisis two years ago, the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) said.
The confidence measure jumped to 4.8 at the end of June from -28.2 in March – the biggest improvement since the survey began in 2003. The institute predicts that the economy will grow by 0.5% this quarter, breaking five quarters of falling output.
ICAEW chief executive Michael Izza said the findings suggest that “the UK recession is at an end”.
He added: “While there is no doubt that the UK economy is on its way to recovery, we shouldn’t underestimate the challenges ahead for businesses.”
