Todd Lowe

Some great reasons why magazine media fulfills both consumer and advertisers needs. Plus you’ll love this article from Peter Houston if you like Kermit the Frog too! 👇👇👇 #magneticmedia Magnetic Media UK #magzinesaregreat #advertiseinmagazinemedia

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Wise words from a wise person! Longtime agency leader and fellow Applecarter Tej Desai on how media agencies can elevate their plans to align with what the CEO/CMO really want to achieve. Check it out!

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GORP-core: Fashion Trend or Strategic Opportunity? The buzz around GORP-core has outdoor and performance brands buzzing—yet there’s a fine line between seizing an opportunity and falling into a trap. What started as a trend grounded in utility and function, but elevated by cultural pioneers, has led many brands to pivot toward a style-driven approach, catering to segments like the Luxury Lovers, Stormhunters, and Tastemakers. 🌍✨ But here’s the challenge: chasing style trends can push brands into a cycle of “what’s next?” 🔄 Without a solid anchor in performance and innovation, the focus on aesthetics can dilute authenticity, leaving core outdoor consumers—like the Functionalists (28% of the market)—questioning where the brand stands. When brands focus too heavily on lifestyle trends, they risk losing the trust of their largest and most loyal segment, those who value protection, performance and practicality. However, this shift doesn’t have to be negative. The key is balance. Brands can successfully expand their reach without alienating their core by staying true to what defines them—innovation, performance, and sustainability. Want to make sure your brand stays authentic and compelling 2025 and beyond? Let’s talk about how to craft a strategy that resonates—keeping you ahead of trends while staying true to who you are. Navigating these complex dynamics requires a clear strategy rooted in real consumer insights. At Above The Clouds Communication , we help brands find that balance—guiding them to make informed decisions on strategic marketing, messaging, and positioning to build long-term relevance and trust. In a time when consumer behaviors and trends shift rapidly, understanding what truly drives your audience is more critical than ever. Whether it’s embracing new opportunities or solidifying your core, it all starts with the right insights. #Outdoor #sports #Performance #BrandStrategy #GORPCore #OutdoorInnovation #Sustainability #FashionTrends #ispo #ispomunich #ispomunich2024 #strategy #marketing

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I speak with strategists, lots of them, most days, most of the day. The consensus is as we approach a seismic event in the U.S. next week, is that a performance-oriented focus has seriously wounded the appetite for great strategic thinking. That's certainly borne out through job losses that I'm aware of over the last year. Yes, the media and advertising industry is in the midst of structural change. This will continue for a few more years. And yes, there is a pressure on the C-Suite to make those numbers, so if the business emphasizes annual bonuses, of course decision making emphasizes a more transactional approach both brand and agency-side. The good news - As well as an industry facing structural change we have all been on the wrong end of an economic cycle. The good news, high inflation and interest rates are heading in the right direction and coming into 2025 as rates start to come down, as the tide comes in, all boats will rise, getting work should be relatively easier. The Really Good News/Endless Opportunity For Strategists Each week I hear about new examples of agency strategists either building completely new businesses from scratch or working for start-ups, non-profits or brand-side. Many of you have fear that your skills are not transferable and so beyond the agency business your opportunities limited. This is not true. Absolutely wrong. You might not have the same title; You might not use all the skills you've used, day-to-day, but your skills, as long as you can communicate the value they deliver, will always be needed. I ask you, what business new or existing, doesn't require expertise either to identify and connect with a target audience? Yes, I hear you mention 'technology!' Yes, it can do a lot and no doubt will much more! My belief is that as important as data is, while we are trying to understand and influence the behaviour of audiences that are human, the best understanding and work (even if it costs more) will always come from an 'emphasis' on human engagement. The possibilities for smart strategists are endless. This is why I'm optimistic.

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M.T. Fletcher takes on agencies who can’t manage their margins and then abruptly dump team members ahead of the holidays. Fletcher points out that this behavior undermines agency culture and drives talent to independent agencies. It may also make holding co. agencies less competitive for new business as brands prioritize talent retention. #advertisingandmarketing #advertisingagency

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Isn't it time to clear the fog of "murky media" mistrust? Nearly eight years have passed since "murky media practices” made headlines. Yet, as Adweek’s recent report highlights, rebates and perks from media owners remain common, influencing media decisions and compromising clients' best interests. So, has anything changed? Many advertisers have recognised the importance of solid contracts and better governance, but dubious practices remain and marketers’ faith in their agencies often remains weak. But there's a ray of sunshine amidst the gloom! Many marketers are enhancing their measurement capabilities with Marketing Mix Modeling (MMM) and A/B testing to assess effectiveness firsthand. This shift toward robust measurement allows them to confidently gauge improvements in media performance based on solid evidence. Good measurement need a little expert guidance, but it doesn't need to be costly: simple tests can yield powerful insights about how media decisions affect performance, including brand equity. Let’s confront the mistrust and foster a culture where innovation is celebrated without being overshadowed by holding groups' margins.

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✅🖥️ Variety (5/22): “Last year, the writers strike kept boldface names from appearing at the upfronts. This year, everybody turned up the star power to 11. NBCU stuffed its presentation with performances from Little Big Town, Michael Bublé and Kelly Clarkson. Amazon went overboard with a nonstop parade of A-listers, including Reese Witherspoon, Will Ferrell, Jake Gyllenhaal and tennis great Roger Federer, with none other than Alicia Keys as the opening act (and yes, she promoted her Amazon line of skin care products). Disney also hauled out the heavy hitters: Ryan Reynolds, Michelle Williams, Sterling K. Brown, Steve Martin, Martin Short and Selena Gomez, just to name a few. Opening Disney’s upfront was Emma Stone, introducing CEO Bob Iger while getting in one more plug for her Oscar-winning film “Poor Things.” The sheer number of movie mentions (NBCU took time to debut the trailer to “Wicked”) felt unusual at an event traditionally tailored to ad-supported TV. But in the streaming age, everything’s for sale — and there’s nothing brands like more than cozying their messages up to the biggest names in showbiz. Sports franchises were put on a higher pedestal than usual as networks lean on live games to deliver the audiences that advertisers covet. Sports personalities, from Tom Brady to Jason Kelce to Dawn Staley, were all over the presentations. Fox made it clear to anyone in earshot that it has the Super Bowl next year and it has Brady, a bona fide NFL legend, joining the Fox Sports team in the booth for football season this fall. Disney used a hunk of its time to tub-thumb the future of ESPN. Netflix bragged about landing two Christmas Day NFL games. WBD pledged allegiance to the NBA even as the company is kneedeep in contract negotiations with the league.” ⬇️ #upfronts #newfronts #streamingtv #ctvadvertising

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The agencies that bag the best candidates have one thing in common: they move candidates through a (clear) interview process, quickly. I recently wrote a piece in PRmoment about hiring mistakes that scare away talent. An ever-expanding interview process is one of them. Here's the thing, in this market, good talent isn't available for long. Like any deal being made between two parties, time is of the essence. When jobseekers are interviewing, their priority (shock horror) is moving through an interview process quickly and obtaining a good job offer. If you're constantly pushing back interviews, adding in new stages or delaying feedback, you'll likely miss out on an excellent candidate. The attitude of "if they're not willing to wait we don't want them" is not conducive to hiring the best talent. Neither is holding onto an 'okay' candidate by delaying a decision just in case someone better comes along. Instead, set an interview process structure (I'd recommend 2-3 stages), communicate with the candidate what the process is, and aim to move them through the process within 3 weeks. Thoughts? Cheers Elizabeth Howlett for the feature. https://lnkd.in/eRJURjm4

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In this article about advertising holding company behemoths, you will not find one reference to clients or brands, but rather to the chess game of acquisitions that constitute greatness in the sad state of our industry. A good friend of mine works for one of these monoliths. She keeps telling me with great pride that they are a machine. I smile, and say: who wants to work for a damn machine? I left WPP in 2001 because I spent twice as much time dealing with spreadsheets, than I did directing the creative department to produce ideas that would benefit customers and build brands. To all those souls out there in the idea business, I will state the obvious yet ignored principle: great ideas build business, not the other way around.

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There’s a nugget in the October Omnicom earnings call that sheds some light on the IPG acquisition. It's about measurable outcomes. Of course, what we might call the Outcomes Era is not entirely new. But that’s exactly why Omnicom CEO John Wren’s remarks struck me. Because when an analyst asked him about his “view of the overall industry” and how it differs from a decade ago, outcomes, or more specifically the ability to measure them, is what Wren focused on: “Well, I think our product mix has certainly shifted as we've made investments in things like [commerce media platform] Flywheel, things like Omni. We can measure better than we could a decade ago. And anything you can measure, clients typically will sit and give you a very fair hearing about where to invest that money. So, I do think that the industry is in better shape than it was in the last five or six years.” This focus on measurable outcomes relates to Omnicom’s purchase of Flywheel, which helps CPG brands grow through digital advertising and marketplace optimization. “Today, the Flywheel Commerce Cloud platform manages tens of billions in product sales and billions of advertising spend annually across digital marketplaces,” Omnicom said in the acquisition announcement. In other words, Omnicom bought Flywheel for $835 million so that it could both better drive retail sales and, critically, measure its ability to do so. That strategy appears to be bearing fruit, both in helping Omnicom sign Amazon’s media business and in shoring up relationships with CPG advertisers. Here’s Wren again: “We're able to measure marketing spend for the very first time, and that's done with a rather important CPG client that we have, where we've proven that it's all measurable. And as we get other clients where we have the opportunity to do that, that's going to further distinguish Omnicom in terms of justifying media spend and ROI and investment in just the general area.” Flywheel is essentially a commerce media acquisition, and the thesis that “It’s all measurable” — i.e. media spend and outcomes — has driven the growth of one of the two hottest sectors in digital advertising, commerce media, over the past few years. Omnicom will lean in further there, partially chasing the prosperity Publicis has unlocked with its data and commerce media acquisitions, including Epsilon, CitrusAd, and (recently) Mars United. But in this context, the Omnicom-IPG deal also makes a little more sense because in acquiring IPG, Omnicom will get Acxiom: a data company, the corollary to Publicis' Epsilon, and the key to driving those measurable outcomes that Wren described as being at the center of Omnicom's strategy and vision going forward. We are in the Outcomes Era. Agency holdcos need to deliver measurable outcomes, not just reach or brand preference, to compete. And in that environment, obtaining and maximizing the value of an asset like Acxiom is table stakes.

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Interesting debate where I was happy to contribute in The Drum article on the recent Goldman Sachs AI report which raises important critical questions on use of #AI investments in the creative and marketing industry. My POV on it.... The arrival of #AI in marketing is a double-edged sword. AI tools and solutions bring unprecedented efficiencies and possibilities, but their general availability also levels the playing field. The Goldman Sachs report’s skepticism about ROI for non-tech businesses underscores a critical issue: how can any agency charge a premium or maintain better margins when everyone has access to the same AI capabilities? The key lies in how these tools are applied. Agencies can set themselves apart by their unique approach to integrating AI into their operations, strategies, and creative processes. The real value moves from the technologies themselves to the expertise and creative application of those tools. At Omnicom, we call this "Elegance at Scale." The challenge is bringing creativity back to AI as brands demand more customized content at scale. Often, content studios and one-off tools slow down, become more expensive, and lose quality when scaling. Agencies that invest in customized data analytics solutions, proprietary AI applications, and skilled talent can offer faster insights, faster creative sprints, and lower funnel efficiencies. By rethinking their costing models from FTE to pay-for-demand, agencies can also provide tailored strategies that a highly qualified, AI-savvy workforce can deliver, making clients willing to pay a premium for these enhanced integrated intelligence services.

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Exciting, depressing, or maybe both? As New York’s advertising scene thrives, opportunities constrict in other markets. It’s more proof of #WFH’s diminished power — and comes at the cost of diversity. See why NY is reclaiming center stage in Adland: #advertisingagency #creativeagency

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Failure is a part of the game in advertising. Whether it stems from a partner's decisions or campaign outcomes, taking risks means sometimes falling short. I love this article's insight into how to approach and leverage failure. As a leader I have always tried to make room for failure—it's essential for our growth as creatives. #creativity #agencylife #leadership #creativedirector

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My latest blog on the rise of digital media and the demise of long-term thinking. They don't need to be mutually exclusive. We live in a polarized, black and white age, e.g., "Everyone who doesn't agree with me is evil." Marketers seem to be reactionary in the same way: If I can do quant, why do I need qual? If I can increase sales with stunts and (sometimes) tactics that are disconnected from my brand, why wait around a few years? Especially considering the short tenures of most marketing marketing positions today. https://lnkd.in/em_TyFX6

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Very nice to be included in this gallery of most excellent strategic rogues.  And as I’m celebrating a decade of training people on all things creative briefing, mostly for D&AD, but also for the IPA (Institute of Practitioners in Advertising), APG, and SXSW (aiming to collect the alphabet here, do get in touch if you have more letters), I think there’s a point worth adding to the collection. Edward describes strategy’s “key product and artifact, "The Creative Brief" Respectfully, that’s not how I see it. Strategy’s product is… the strategy. What’s the (actual) problem. What are we going to do to solve it. How might we go about it. Why will it work. Etc. (You could of course argue strategy’s ultimate product is brilliant creative work but let’s leave that one for another day.) I think that treating The Brief as the key product and artefact of strategy is a massive mistake. And sadly it's the industry norm. It encourages strategists to see all their worth in the brief and spend ages polishing a template instead of thinking and talking to the team.  It encourages the filling in of boxes instead of the gestation of creative leaps.  It says “this document may never be changed”.  It demands that the brief’s creation is a solo process - Because This is MY Contribution As The Strat! MY toy! But collaborating on briefs, especially with creatives, is by far the better approach.  It preserves the pretty-but-unhelpful fiction that commercial creativity is a linear process. It discourages flexibility - so when ideas come back that are slightly-off-brief-but-brilliant they get rejected because The Almighty Brief Is All And Ten People Have Signed It Off Now Nigel For God’s Sake. Don’t get me wrong. A sensational brief is one of the best things our industry has to offer. Seeing creatives excited about a brief of mine is only one joy rung below watching Labradors leap into crunchy piles of autumn leaves. But. The product of strategists is the strategy. The brief is just one of the things we create to help make that strategy happen. (Other things include The Thinking; The Briefing; The Shaping; The Selling, etc.)  Ultimately, the process that goes around it is much more important than the document. The thinking, the questions, the conversations, and often the confidence to adapt or even bin the bloody thing, once we’re on our way to something creatively exciting. When I train people on briefs, that’s what I’m teaching. #sxsw #advertising #marketing #planning #strategy #creativebriefs

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This is hysterical…and scary accurate. As someone who grew up in the agency world and has received reems of feedback on my own work, is equally guilty of commenting on drop-shadows (sorry Bill), and is now client-side and has fed back to many agencies, I can relate to both struggles: 1) It’s hard to receive feedback graciously. I find it helps to prepare for it and then interpret it through a simple lens: feedback represents expectations and familiarity. It is important to present work through those lens, even if your intention is to go beyond them. 2) It is even harder to give feedback. The desire to return to what we know or what we expect is innate. Breaking from those expectations opens up your mind to new thinking. These days, my mantra is: “examine newness with care.” If it makes me or my target audience uncomfortable it's probably tapping into something new, so examine that with care. https://lnkd.in/gEZKCayj #uncovertheunexpected

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