AI-induced anxiety and SEO volatility among top 10 challenges for marketers in 2024  

Marketing and PR leaders are facing sleepless nights from a series of complex challenges in 2024, with SEO volatility, landing PR coverage, upskilling, and AI-induced anxiety around job security topping a list compiled following new research.  

With the marketing and PR industries already facing high burn out rates and poor mental health, and a new CIPD study reporting that 76% of employees have experienced some form of stress-related staff absence, the new data...

25 March 2024 | Automation

Digital Marketing Institute launches AI in Digital Marketing course to plug AI skills gap 

The Digital Marketing Institute (DMI), a provider of Digital Marketing Certification, has launched its first Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Digital Marketing course, following overwhelming demand from marketers. 

The decision to launch the course comes following DMI’s latest Membership Survey in 2023, which found AI to be the top skill members are looking to develop over the next 12 months.  

The course will bridge the AI knowledge gap for marketers of all...

20 February 2024 | Advertising

Bot clicks and fake traffic set to cost advertisers over $71bn in 2024

With ad spend growth slowing to 5.3%, new research reveals an emerging threat to dwindling budgets - invalid traffic (IVT).

In 2024, advertisers are set to waste over $71bn (£59bn)* on traffic generated by invalid activity, including bots and automated scripts -  an increase of 33% from 2022.

Conducted by leading marketing efficiency platform Lunio, the research analysed 2.6bn paid ad clicks and 104bn impressions from 60,000 ad accounts across the platform’s...

29 January 2024 | Advertising

63% of marketers lack a clear plan for cookieless personalisation

Despite Google’s announcement that it will begin phasing out support for third-party cookies in Chrome at the beginning of 2024, 63% of marketers still have no clear strategy for cookieless personalisation.

That’s according to a survey from Optimizely that highlights the urgent need for marketers to reassess their personalisation strategies for 2024.

The research, which surveyed 100 UK marketing professionals across the UK, found that more than half (54%) also...

20 December 2023 | Personalised Marketing

Digital marketing skills show positive growth but sector demands outpace professional development 

Core digital skills marketers rely on have improved but that the growing demands of new and evolving technologies are contributing to a skills gap across the majority of industries. 

This is according to research published by the training body Target Internet, in association with the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM).

This year’s report analyses data from more than 10,000 marketing professionals, gathered between 2018 to 2023 and highlights key short and...

24 October 2023 | Advertising

56% of UK consumers always accept cookies without thinking

A third (34%) of Brits admit that they have given up following cyber security best practice because it feels like an impossible task, according to research from Thales.

The research, which surveyed over 2,000 UK citizens, found an alarming level of consumer apathy when it came to keeping themselves safe online.

This apathy is closely tied to feelings of confusion, futility, and information overload. More than half (51%) expressed their struggle to grasp rapid...

11 October 2023 | Best Practice

47% of UK businesses are embarrassed by their website

Website design sketches.

UK companies are losing a considerable sum of money each year due to poor website experience despite spending a substantial amount on marketing technology.

This is according to research by Storyblok, a content management system (CMS) category leader that empowers both developers and content teams to create better content experiences across all digital channels

500 business leaders at mid-sized e-commerce companies in the US and Europe were asked a range of questions...

30 January 2023 | CMO

How Leicester City Council improved its online experience with website monitoring

A puddle in a street in Leicester.

Leicester City Council is a unitary authority responsible for local government in the city of Leicester, England. It consists of 54 councillors, representing 22 wards in the city, overseen by a directly elected mayor. It is currently controlled by the Labour Party and has been led by Mayor Sir Peter Soulsby since his election on May 6, 2011.

As a unitary authority, the council is responsible for running nearly all local services in Leicester with the exception of the...

17 February 2022 | Case Studies

How Deuren’s new website boosted organic traffic by 30%

With more than 25 years' experience in the door manufacturing industry, Deuren provides bespoke luxury doors to architects, self-builders, and property developers. With handmade, pre-hung door sets made to the exact configuration of a client’s project, the Yorkshire-based organisation is a trusted partner for those seeking beautifully crafted, bespoke internal, front, and garage doors.

The problem:

As with many manufacturers, Deuren previously relied on industry events...

25 January 2022 | Case Studies

Black Friday: 70% of retail marketers are concerned about technical issues

Someone using a smartphone next to a Black Friday sale poster.

As many as 70% of retail marketers are worried that their technology will hinder their success this sales season, despite the majority of them having invested in better digital shopping solutions following Covid-19.

This is according to the latest findings from digital experience analytics company, Contentsquare. The company’s latest Sale Season Report surveyed 300 retail marketers across the UK, US and France about their plans, concerns and the lasting impact of the upcoming...

3 November 2021 | E-Commerce