10 Digital Marketing Nuggets from iMedia UK 2013

Eric Ingrand, EVG’s VP of Content Marketing EMEA, recently returned from iMedia Summit (click here to find out about other locations where you can meet the EVG team.)  Below are a few important takeaways:

I’ve just come back from two exciting and eye-opening days in Eastbourne, in the UK. This is my second year at the iMedia UK Summit – a really well organized, annual conference, which brings together brands, agencies and experts in interactive media.

Some insights – and people – that caused me to sit up and take notice:

1. “Device fragmentation is a long-term trend,” said Geoff Ramsay, Chairman and Co-founder of eMarketer. “People use multiple devices to access the web, from smartphones and tablets to laptops, and from PCs to Macs. So be channel agnostic – spread your message widely as today’s digital consumer is everywhere.”

2. “Mobile is an increasingly bigger part of this picture,” Ramsey continued. “Mobile spending is predicted to rise to 13 percent of total online spending in the UK, compared to 4.8 percent currently. Smartphones are the new laptops, and they’re here to stay in one form or another.”

3. “If you cannot explain it to a 6-year-old, you do not understand it yourself,” said Ricc Web, head of social media experience at Nokia, referencing Albert Einstein. He continued by stating, “Brands need to communicate their essential message in a simple way. Customers aren’t simple, but when browsing the Internet they are busy and easily distracted. Simplification helps to sell your products, whether you’re B2B or B2C.”

4. “It’s your brand but it is their community – remember that,” said Keith Pape when discussing community management. “Vibrant, active communities on the web are those whose members feel they can have a real impact and voice. To engage consumers, you need to help them feel like part of the group.”

5. Paul Edwards, Executive Director of Futures at Manning Gottleib, predicted that Global e-commerce would double in 2013, up from 512 billion euros in 2012.

6. UK consumers spent more money online on average than any other nationality in the world. Higher even than the US, Germany or Swiss markets. I find this to be quite intriguing. Another parcel is knowledge I thought was interesting is that smartphone adoption in the UK is also the highest in Europe, which may be helping to fuel online sales.

7. “Smart homes – or connected homes – are here to stay,” said Luke Mansfield, Head of Product Innovation at Samsung. The company’s strategy is to adapt to existing homes and behaviors, and try to improve them through technology. The “internet of things” is an increasingly exciting field of technological innovation in 2013 and 2014. (This was the theme of the LeWeb conference in Paris in 2012 – and generally LeWeb predictions turn out to be true.)

8. Tom Ollerton, Marketing Director at We Are Social, gave a humor-filled presentation on the work they are doing for their customers, and presented a great social video iPhone app that is trending really well right now: Vine.

9. This quote really stood out to me. “Advertizing is pollution unless it helps people,” said James Hilton, co-founder of AKQA, who made this bold but true statement on the second day. That’s why quality content marketing is so efficient – people share great content if it’s useful to a friend, and forget it if it’s not. Other nuggets of advice from James included: “Ask yourself what is the purpose of your brand and how it is going to help people?” Lastly, simple but inspiring advice for entrepreneurs: “Be passionate about your product as much as your profit.”

10. Big data and content marketing are, by and large, two of the most trending topics in 2013. And it seems they’re linked. Once you’ve conducted your analytics and pulled sales data to find out the “who, what, when and where” of your product sales, you are then in a better position to target your content marketing at the correct demographic. Successful marketers are the ones who have a handle on data, technology – and great content.

Big thanks to the iMedia team for putting this together, particularly to Melanie Somers, Mark Hudson and Dan Brain. Looking forward to see you all next year.

Eric Ingrand – Vice President Content Marketing EMEA
eric@evgmedia.com
+33 6 83 85 99 87