Walk Digital

The official blog from Walk Digital. Walk Digital drives business success through digital marketing best practice. We deliver Digital Maturity Audits, Digital Marketing Strategy and Digital Implementation. http://www.walkdigital.com https://twitter.com/WalkDigitalLtd https://www.facebook.com/walkdigitalltd

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We've Moved!

The Walk Digital Newsroom is as busy as ever but our blog posts have found a new home! 

The weekly themed blog can be found here, we're talking online video this week.

And here is our Digital Best Practice blog for analysis, hints and tips for digital marketing success.

Pay us a visit and keep ahead of the digital game.

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Go East and Prosper!

What to consider when marketing to China

China is an enigma.  As the digital revolution leaves it’s transformational footprint on this giant of the east, marketers are trying to understand the winning formula for attracting new customers within this 1.4 billion strong consumer market.

Yet, China is still an enigma.  On a basic level it is both considered a land of opportunity as well as a market to be feared.  One thing is for sure, digital is not the only changing influence.  A deeper look into the local nuances to be seen across the 22 provinces which make up this this hugely important global economy show a challenging but exciting picture.

Looking at China less as a single global player and more like a group of localised mini-cultures each with very individual needs and habits is the single most important thing to consider when considering marketing here.  Within the 22 provinces the changes in humour alone can be significantly different from one neighboring province to another – posing real challenges to any content media campaign.

Another key factor when considering China as a target market is the need to understand it’s not just the digital revolution, which is impacting change – it’s also economic and cultural – essentially pointing to a changing consumer. In 1990 only 26% of Chinese people lived in cities, today it’s 52%, by 2020 it will be 60% or some 850 million people according to Marketing Magazine.

So, before you even start to think about marketing in this country you have to factor in diversity of the consumer locally as well as the changing habits of the consumer given the groundswell of urban living.

Once you’ve managed to get your head around that there’s the trust issue you have to consider as well as mindset. Corporate governance issues abound in press, unsurprisingly to the point where only 2 Chinese companies listed shared in the US in 2012, the lowest number in years, and recently published stats from the authorities quote up to 2 million people employed to monitor internet activity, clearly mistrust is an issue on both sides of the border. Furthermore, the schooling system of China still talks to the teaching methods of memorise and repeat rather than think and imagine as mentioned by Junheng Li in an interview with Ana Swanson.

That all being said digital really is playing a huge part in paving the way for the future of China.  Digital technologies will feed imaginative minds at younger and younger ages, and as they become more accessible so will the speed of innovation rather than the legacy of 'repeat' and 'follow' change.  Added to this is the economic opportunity for startups, thinking Alibaba, who recently got into the lending business for entrepreuneurs and small businesses.  Duncan Clark, Chairman of the Beijing-based technology consultancy BDA is quoted as saying “With the push from the central government to reform the financial sector and promote SMEs and the private sector, I think there are some favorable tailwinds for Alibaba in this area at the moment".

There is a real opportunity for brands in China.  Just look at the growing advertising market. iResearch show China online advertising revenue reached RMB 75.31 billion in 2012, a 46.8% rise year-on-year, predicted to reach RMB 100 billion in 2013.  In addition, the rate of internet usage in China is now 44%, up 10% from last year based largely on the increase in usage and adoption of mobile and wireless devices, according to the China Internet Network Information Centre. 

For more stats on China check out this article from Simon Kemp it gives a great overview as at January this year.  

Amidst this almost tumultuous environment brands are really thriving, with an advantage over less trusted local brands.  The BBC recently reviewed and discussed research completed by Millward Brown on Western brands in China.  The following image shows the top players and who also share some insightful tips for success in China:  Be bold with your growth strategy, look beyond the obvious cities and quickly build local resource to help move things forward.

Source:  Millward Brown

China is an Enigma.  But that’s part of the fun.  Fear is not something to feel when marketing to China, respect for culture and equal respect for change will prove your most effective tools for success.  Go East!

Mel Ross

Visit us at walkdigital.com

Sign up to our Best Practice Newsletter

Sources:  BBC, China Digital Daily, Marketing Magazine, iResearch, Social Media Today, CKGSB Knowledge

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Know your Baidu from your Taobao

China’s equivalent to Western digital media platforms 

With a population of 1.4 billion, an internet population of 591 million (to put that into perspective, the entire US population is just 313 million!) and more smartphones than you can shake a stick at…China is a huge opportunity for Western brands.

But the road to the Chinese consumer is not an easy one. Outside of the censorship regulations and the fact that the government employs over 2 million people to police the internet, the media landscape is complex, difficult to navigate and for many, inaccessible.

China has built up it’s own digital universe, yet paradoxically is keen to bring Western brands into the fold, to have big, global brands advertise and have presence on local digital platforms and channels. This is down to perceived reliability and brand attributes not necessarily seen on a local level. When marketers and media specialists are used to the likes of Google and Facebook, clearly there are challenges in firstly, recognising what is what in digital media in China and then how to use these platforms effectively.

So lets have a look at what is what. If you want to reach consumers through…

Search

Then Google is not the answer! Google is blocked in China so Baidu is where you need to have a search presence. It’s the fifth most popular website in the world with in-market share in China of over 70%. And you’ll need an expert; language structure on PPC is very different to Google and for SEO, the Baidu spider is not as powerful as the Google bot and therefore does not crawl deeper than three levels within website structures. Incidentally, The name Baidu is a quote from the last line of Xin Qiji's classical poem "Green Jade Table in The Lantern Festival" saying: "Having searched thousands of times in the crowd, suddenly turning back, She is there in the dimmest candlelight." 

E-Commerce

Alibaba owned, Taobao.com is China’s equivalent of Amazon or eBay. Its half a billion users make it the country’s most popular e-commerce site.

Instant Messaging

It’s Tencent, not Whats App or Windows Messenger in China. QQ, their Skype-like flagship service has nearly 170 million users and it’s new WeChat platform has added near 400 million more registered users via mobile devices.

Social

Looking for a Twitter equivalent, then look no further than Sino Weibo - the micro-blogging platform has 46 million daily users and generated $50 million in advertising revenue last year. A recent strategic alliance between Alibaba and Sino Weibo means that Taobao goods will be pushed into the Sino Weibo stream, a partnership that could bump up revenues to $380 million in the next three years. Such partnerships do not currently exist in the West.

What about Facebook? Mr Zuckerberg to date has failed to make any in-roads into China. The Chinese government blocks it with no apparent interest in changing this anytime soon. So what is the equivalent? Surprisingly it is instant messaging app WeChat that has filled the Facebook void. WeChat has 236 million monthly active users, which makes it only second in popularity in the world after What’s App and ahead of other platforms, Line, Kakao Talk, Tango and Viber. Whilst WeChat is a smartphone only messaging app, outside of free text chat and voice/video calls, it allows the user to create a profile and share moments with friends, much like a social network. It’s focus on introducing mobile payments, a social games service and expanding globally mean that we could see the platform really give Facebook a run for it’s money in the next couple of years. 

Video

Again, YouTube is blocked in China. The equivalent is YouKu. It is the world’s second-largest online video platform behind YouTube boasting 200 million mobile users and averaging 14 million unique users every day. Interestingly, Fremantle Media International signed a deal with YouKu in July 2013 to stream popular shows on the platform, including X Factor USA, America’s Got Talent and American Idol. As to be expected, there is less user-generated content on YouKu and tightened copyright policies than other video platforms.

And there are many other smaller players. The equivalent of Yelp is Dianping, China’s biggest consumer-reviews site, the equivalent to Wordpress for blogging is Lofter or Sina Blogs, for Wikipedia, it is Baike…the list goes on.

As per any approach to digital media strategy, knowing and understanding media outlets on a local level is an imperative. China is perhaps harder than many other markets because as a marketer, not only do you have to source the most appropriate platform, you then have to figure out how users respond on those platforms. China is a huge, fragmented country. What appeals in one city may not in another so having access to local knowledge on the ground is a pre-requisite to any activity – hence the recent moves we’ve seen from the bigger global agencies acquiring local digital ad shops.

And lets not forget, the East is also coming to the West. There will increasingly be lessons for Western marketers to learn and keep on top of the adoption and use of Chinese digital platforms that are increasingly becoming more and more popular outside of China.

If I were Mr Zuckerberg, I’d be quaking in my social boots right about now!

Stacey Perry

Visit us at walkdigital.com

Sign up to our Best Practice Newsletter

Sources: WSJ, Alexa, The Next Web, Wikipedia

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Digital Skills: The time for talking is over. The time for action is now

Take a look at the following forecast stats:

According to Zenith Optimedia Mobile advertising is forecast to be 37% of overall growth in global ad expenditure this year. 

Paid search is forecast to grow at an average rate of 15% a year to 2015, driven by continued innovation from search engines.

"We forecast internet advertising to overtake newspapers for the first time in 2013, and then exceed the combined total of newspaper and magazine advertising in 2015." Zenith Optimedia.

UK Internet traffic is predicted to rise by an average of 37 per cent every year between 2010 and 2015 according to a 2012 report by A.T. Kearney.

Between 15% and 20% of the book reading public will own electronic devices and up to 25% of books will be sold in digital form by 2015, according to a French study by Patrick Béhar and Laurent Colombani.

Boston Consulting Group predict mobile digital services will generate $1tr globally in 2015, with ecommerce worth over $540bn and advertising taking more than $100bn 

Phil Torrone predicts the open source market will grow to over $1billion by 2015. 

Totally amazing right?  We are in a digital world and things are going to be available quicker and faster; purchased and consumed in ways that today might seem almost absurd – I even bet Google Glass doesn’t feel that weird to you anymore but it did when we read the first press releases on it.

Well I’m sorry, but stop being so excited.  This glowing reference for the growth and opportunity digital technology and digital media are heralding is potentially doomed by one fundamental thing education, business and even governments have overlooked:  Do we have the skills to lead, build, develop, implement that the opportunity of this digital world affords us? The simple answer is no. 

When the numbers stack up so well why is this skills gap still so apparent?  Perhaps change has happened too quickly for us to really cope.  Let’s take a look at the business landscape:

The new digital business landscape

The business landscape is changing because of digital:

1)    Access to data across the business has grown exponentially.  Getting meaning out of that data needs skills across the whole company.  Mobile and social have become pervasive across businesses with skill and understanding becoming a pre-requisite for increasing amounts of employees regardless of department.

2)    IT is not just IT anymore – those skills are needed in other parts of the business, in particular in marketing.

3)    The breadth and adoption of expertise within the IT department is also being affected.  Multiple disciplines are more important than ever.  The lifecycle of IT is reducing by the year.  Gone are the days when a technology would be released, people would learn about it and all is good for a few years.  Today the pace of learning to keep up to date with new technologies is unprecedented.

Digital Skills Gap at Large

Digital is the fastest growing economy.  It is forcing businesses to rethink everything from structure, to strategy from product to competitor.  The gap between business need and skill to implement is of great concern.  However, there is another gap growing and that is within the education sector and the nurturing and inclusion of digital skills within the curriculum as early as primary.  According to OnePoll up to 80% of Britons feel they have inadequate digital skills and knowledge.  Without addressing this enormous statistic things will only get worse. 

Thankfully, change is on the horizon with government and private enterprise pushing this agenda out as far and wide as possible, www.go-on.co.uk is a great initiative dedicated to up-skilling digital across the country from individual to business.

You might read the stats above and wonder why, but research released last month by MIT Sloan and Cap Gemini show the lack of commitment and vision for digital at a senior level; Martha Lane Fox, UK’s Digital Champion says across the UK as a whole, 16 million people lack basic digital skills, while 7.1 million are not yet online.  Go-on.co.uk aims to reduce the digital skills gap and deliver a 25 percent reduction in the number of digitally illiterate people.  Furthermore, the growing convergence between marketing and technology is only going to exacerbate this.

Back to business, what is the impact of this skills gap?  Well here are a few more stats:

The Size of the Digital Skills Gap

According to Gap Gemini, the shortage of digital skills in the current marketplace is unprecedented.  It is estimated that over 4.4 million IT jobs will be created around Big Data by 2015

The Digital Talent Gap.  Developing Skills for Today’s Digital Organizations

Research with the MIT Center for Digital Business has revealed that 77% of companies considered missing digital skills as the key hurdle to their digital transformation

On average Digirati are 26% more profitable than their industry competitors

The Association of Professional Staffing Companies (APSCo)

Permanent placements of marketing roles has dropped by 21% but openings have increased by 2%

OnePoll

Just 20% of the British workforce believe they have the right digital skills

The UK's technology trade association Intellect

Approximately 100,000 people are needed to enter the digital sector each year.

What can you do to help bridge the skills gap

We’ve talked about the compelling growth opportunity; we’ve talked about the concerning skills gap.  But when you really want to dig down deep and address this as a CEO or business leader or even team manager the ‘how to’ articles or whitepapers seem to fade into dust.

So here you are, an employer.  You get the picture but you want to know what to do about it.  Well here are our thoughts to help you transform digital (rather than digitally transform)…that comes later.  Because to go through digital transformation you must first transform your current digital beliefs, activities etc…

So, these are just a few things you should consider just to start addressing the situation – even before any big HR strategies are put in place: 

1)    Address your current teams – their skills their competencies

2)    Start to think about temporary resource to deliver results

3)    Look to your internal systems and processes and seek out ways to get your people talking to each other, to you, and vice versa.  Is there a blog that could be opened up to teams and the company as a whole?  Do you have a social network where people can share ideas and create?

4)    Encourage innovation in a way that is real and committed – there is a big wave of ‘un’ ways to do things:  Un-conferences, Un-meetings, (in a recent catch up with Mark Foden of Foden Grealy, he spoke about the benefits of un-conferences). Even in meetings, lose the pre-arranged agenda and get people to set them at the top of the meeting.  I’m not saying ditch agendas completely, I’m just saying give the attendees the voice to set the agenda themselves – you’ll learn very quickly who has the concern, who has the passion, who has the belief and who indeed might have the skill to push forward what needs to be done.

5)    At the recruitment phase you can also consider the following;

Ensure there is personal ownership of learning and development written into job descriptions – make this part of the interview process…personal ownership of learning and development are very important indeed.

Supported and committed – Yeah I know we live in a world where there is little enough time to chat with colleagues let alone devote an hour or two to personal learning – but to be honest, this is just a habit that needs to be inserted into the daily, weekly routine.  The only reason people don’t do it is because bosses and line managers have placed little value on learning when there is client work to be done, but frankly if it were the other way round I reckon there would be client work done, but more effectively and probably with a higher outcome and result.

Think really hard about more formal training.  Yes, when it comes to key skills and those requiring accreditation it’s a must – but there are those courses out there which have taken a more blended approach or indeed offer a boot camp option where you learn within 5 days for example rather than over a 6 – 12 month period… and let’s not forget, if you commit to a course which is 12 – 24 months in duration what exactly are you getting at the end of it?  How much do you think the world will have changed in that time – arguably leaving you with nothing other than a colourful addition to your trophy cabinet.

We all have a responsibility: 

Foremost as leaders we have a commitment to allow learning and drive the importance of it – in all its forms - throughout the organisation and leadership team. 

Ownership of your own personal learning is second. 

Third, in days of old (like 5 years ago!) pride in the letters after your name and the personal need to keep your knowledge almost secret, was how many people hung onto status.  In a digitally social world it just doesn’t work anymore. 

Sharing and openness is key.  The modern day business model has been totally shaken up we talk now about digital business models and social business models.  Isn't it only right we rethink our traditional learning and development methods and ideas too? Those who are redefining business and learning are those who are on a winning path.

Mel Ross

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Sources:  MIT Sloan, Cap Gemini, Go-on.co.uk, One Poll, APSCo, Intellect, Zenith Optimedia, Boston Consulting Group

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A Russian Riddle

How brands need to understand local digital players in Russia

Russia. A growing market for digital.

It was announced in March 2013 that Russian is now the second most used language on the web and with over 60 million internet users, the country boasts Europe’s largest internet audience. These factors combined with stable gross domestic product growth, declining inflation and a record-low unemployment rate are increasingly establishing the Russian digital consumer as very attractive to western brands.

But it’s a complex landscape for digital marketers to navigate. Local platforms and media are popular over the larger global players. Google is second to Yandex for search (Yandex has over 60% market share), vKontakte is the preferred social network over Facebook, in fact Facebook is only the fourth most popular social network with just under 8 million unique visitors per month, small in comparison to vKontakte’s 49 million.

And of course as in any market, the consumer is king and understanding local nuances, attitudinal differences and catering to the needs of the audience should be an imperative for any brand looking to attract and maintain attention.

Nevertheless, brands are dipping their toe in Russia from a digital perspective. After successfully launching 38 retail stores, M&S plan to launch an e-commerce platform later this year to build on it’s offline presence, Debenhams ran a Facebook competition that offered the chance to meet famous fashion designers at a store launch in Moscow, Clearasil has used vKontakte in the past for it’s Clearasil Goes Social campaign to appeal to teenagers, both Electronic Arts and Nokia are two of the most popular brands on YouTube and Greenpeace, Jaguar and HTC are three of the most followed brands on Twitter. 

So what should a brand be considering before venturing out into the unknown Russian landscape? Here are a few best practice tips: 

The Russian consumer does not trust online merchants easily. Cash on delivery is still the preferred payment method of choice so think about how best to build a brand in market for trust and loyalty purposes – or consider how you could logistically offer C.O.D or a locally preferred payment option.

Run SEM campaigns on both Yandex and Google. Take time to understand and research how Yandex works for both PPC and SEO. The search engines are very different in terms of set up and bidding techniques for PPC and both require separate approaches for SEO.

Russians are very active on social networks and as vKontakte is the largest, it is a safe bet for establishing a social presence. It has a ‘people search’ tool that allows you to understand a user group and target them accordingly. Odnoklassniki is the second largest social network and it should be considered if you are looking to attract an older audience.

Do not get lost in translation. Employ the best local translation services so that your message is not lost on your consumer. This is especially important if a campaign message involves puns or wordplay.

There are localised SEO, contextual advertising and paid search technology platforms available. It would be wise to consider hiring a local Russian agency who can access these rather than using a global company that does not have the appropriate software or knowledge.

Gamification is very popular in Russia, online marketing campaigns that have incorporated gameplay have been very successful and drive deeper customer engagement.

Russia has the greatest mobile phone subscriptions per capita among the BRIC nations. However, over half of consumers still use feature phones, not smartphones so consider accessibility in your mobile marketing strategy and do not focus on an iOS-centric approach.

Whilst Russia still has a long way to go in terms of becoming a digitally mature market, it is set for explosive growth in the next 5-7 years. Brands that invest the time now to understand the market and it’s audience as a building block in digital strategy will be the ones that succeed. A step-by-step localised approach will lead to effective results.

Winston Churchill’s famous quote “Russia is a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma” no longer holds true, we have everything we need at our fingertips to solve the puzzle.

Stacey Perry

Visit us at walkdigital.com

Sign up to our Best Practice Newsletter

Sources: Wikipedia, Comscore, The Drum, L2ThinkTank, Digital in the Round

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Digital Russia: Try before you buy

A Guide to creating a Digital Marketing Strategy in Russia

The real message to anyone thinking of entering into the world of digital marketing in Russia is simple:  Adopt a 'try before you buy' attitude to learn, experiment and understand before investing heavily and pushing any aggressive targets or agenda.

Three key reasons demand this:

Whilst Russia is socially active, the loyalty and market share of local social networks is over 50%, with the likes of Facebook actually market share actually being squeezed.  Yandex commands over 60% market share for all search and vKontakte (amazing Facebook lookalike but with some really neat features and functionality) is a clear winner amongst social network platforms.

The ecommerce landscape is growing, with the number of Russian consumers reporting recent online purchases increasing by an incredibly 93 percent between 2011 and 2012 according to the Digital IQ Index: Russia Prestigue 2013.  But this growth is not without it's challenges and uniqueness’s borne of economic reality and cultural legacy; only 17% of the 68 million Russian Internet users currently buying products or services online as mentioned in a recent interview with Anna Oshkalo, who runs a great Blog dedicated to digital marketing to the Russian market. 

Mobile still has a way to go.  With 1 in 2 people only owning a smartphone. The future is bright though as the number of mobile phone users in Russia reached 102.2 million in 2012, and is set to climb to 110.9 million in 2016 according to eMarketer.

 Smartphones are definitely increasing penetration in the market gaining market share in Russia, but still trail feature phone adoption by a significant margin, according to research from IDC. Part of the fast adoption rate is due to consumers in Russia who are turning to smartphones not to supplant older, internet-enabled devices, but to serve as their primary means of accessing the web.  More from eMarketer.

Source: IDC for Hi Tech Mail.ru

A slow starter; Internet penetration only surpassed 50 percent of the population in 2012 but still this market constitutes the largest regional online audience in Europe. 

Top Tips for a Digital Strategy in Russia

Digital marketing strategy for Russia needs to be skewed heavily towards local social platforms

Any ecommerce strategies need to look at innovative payment and delivery mechanisms. 

Mobile strategies would be best either put on hold for a short while or focused on awareness campaigns rather than investing in direct attribution campaigns. 

If you can break into this market you are set to take on some serious potential, the analysts are already saying Russia is set to be the largest European consumer market by 2020.  Go lightly, then go fast.

This word of caution comes with an exciting summary note: The news is good and forecasts are all trending upward as broadband speeds increase and the new middle class start to mature in their online habits.

Digital Russia is here to stay , and things are only going to get bigger!

Mel Ross

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How to become Digital First: Part 2

The three key subtleties businesses need to commit to for digital success

In this second article we look at the subtle things business leaders should think about to increase the ease of digital adoption throughout the organisation.  Before we head straight into these three areas here’s a summary of part 1.  

In an digitally transformed world you would have a digital vision, your business goals & your business framework would have been reviewed for a digital age and you are increasingly focused on your customer.

Teams across the business are adopting agile ways of working to address the changing environment to best achieve goals.

You are testing new ideas, new innovations – your own or others that might improve how you deliver to your customer what is a perfectly welcomed communication in context to that person and that moment in time.

Great, but does that mean you are equipped for change and all is good?  Well you are probably way ahead of your competitors by now, but there are some softer, more subtle aspects of business, which sometimes are more important than the more obvious operational and process driven changes...so read on.

Often times throughout history the soft skills and the true display of commitment within leaders have been those traits, which, have defined them as leaders.  Jack Welch of General Electric, even Alexander the great! both understood the need and power of participating and leading by example.  Abraham Lincoln and George Washington, two of the most famous motivational leaders of our times. Henry Ford and our very own Sir Tim Berners Lee are exemplary individuals who’s responsiveness contributed to global and economic change.

The same is the case with businesses wanting to embrace digital and become more ‘digital’ throughout the business, under the umbrella of a true and honest mindset fit for a digital world traits are powerful change agents:

Participation

Motivation

Responsiveness

Participation:

You have to be in it to win it!  Yep, nothing is truer in the world of digital. Even the world’s most influential and successful people are active in digital today.  Within the world of business, participation in digital at the top will increase trust and help cement the digital vision.

Motivation

Like most things, if there is a display of motivation at the top of the leader board there will likely be greater adoption throughout the business.  Digital needs to be on everyone’s agenda. Motivational leaders will ensure this.

Responsiveness

Realtime is a buzzword for many marketing and media people out there at the moment.  But for digital success the subtlety of being responsive is a huge.

Every business wants to succeed.  We are in a digital world.  Adopting digital ways of working are inevitable not choices anymore. 

A Clear Digital Vision communicated throughout the business is step one.

Adopting agile processes and being open to how today’s business model is really changing is step two.

Understanding what customer centric means for you in a digital world is step three.

If you implement these three steps and commit to participation, motivation and responsiveness the digital world and all it’s benefits are there waiting for you.

Of course, the complexity of moving to a digital first way of working is not to be taken lightly; at Walk Digital we are committed to helping businesses succeed in a digital world. 

To see some examples of how other brands and leaders have succeeded check out the following links:

Burberry

Starbucks

GE

Oreo

Walk Digital Team

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How to become Digital First: Part 1

A vision to stand the test of time. How a digital vision should be one that embraces change.

It can be so confusing reading articles, research papers that want you to adopt change, embrace change and trust change to progress in the world of digital.

If all we did was to accept and adopt a change mindset, businesses all over the world would be in potential chaos!  Yet, the digital world is changing exponentially and that means dealing with change is inevitable.

How can we as businesses, as marketing departments and teams find an anchor to manage and navigate through this sea of change?

Without needing to invest in a huge change management project there are some really important things you should and could be doing now to benefit more from the digital world around you.

Spend time to clearly understand what your digital vision is.

But how do you do that?  First revisit your business framework:  Who you are, who your audience is, what your mid to long term goals are against your short term cash requirements.    

Know what your business goal is.  Your digital vision and goal become the anchor.  These are the things that remain unchanged. 

Understand and commit to becoming more customer centric.  When the 'how', 'when' and 'where' are determined by your audience engagement levels increase. Your audience will steer you in the right direction.

Storytelling:  Content creation should not be a disparate, uncoordinated group of activities across the business. It should be seamless stories told to different audiences in context for that audience and travel from device to channel over time.  Being able to communicate stories that are relevant and contextual to your audience is what you want to aim for.

Test and optimise.  At any level of the business having a test and optimise methodology is vital, because one size does not fit all.

Recognising the structure of today’s business will likely be redundant in a decade.  This is a reality that many businesses are still slow in realising.  Those who do are watching for trends in this area and adopting a test scenario when they see relevant to them and their business.

Learn about being agile – contrary to popular belief Agile Methodologies are not an excuse to flit from one idea to another without any need for justification – quite the opposite.  Agile thinking by it's very definition allows you to adapt, iterate and meet the changing environment without losing sight of the goal and keeping true to the vision.  So you see, goals and vision are really important.

These are just a few pointers to help you start to get into the mindset of being digitally first.  For further reading check out the following research papers: MIT Sloan & Cap Gemini, IBM, Booz & Co

Walk Digital Team

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Peter Voser, CEO Royal Dutch Shell discusses how staff and employees can drive innovation

Walk Digital: Report Summary

IBM: Leading Through Connections. Insights from the Global Chief Executive Officer Study, 2013

IBM bi-annual study gauges the CEO perspective on emerging trends and issues. This report presents the 2012 findings further to 1,700 face-to-face meetings with chief executive officers in 64 countries.

 The question: How are CEOs responding to the complexity of increasingly interconnected organisations, markets, societies and governments – what we call the connected economy?

Here are the key findings:

There has been a sudden convergence of digital, social and mobile – connecting customers, employees and partners in new ways. This is putting pressure on organisations to adapt to technology but it is also paving a way for innovation.

Technology now tops the list of external forces impacting organisations over and above everything else – even the economy.

There is an expectation that technology will drive the most change in organisations in the next 3-5 years.

CEOs are seeking collaboration from their employees – there is a recognised need for internal connectedness and cross sharing in a world that is changing rapidly.

Collectively, CEOs are investing in customer insights over any other functional area. Understanding individual customer needs is of the highest importance – social is seen as the primary means to engage customers within five years.

Being open and collaborative with partners is growing in importance, despite the competitive risks this brings. Data integration and collaboration tools will allow for new sources of revenue.

CEOs leadership agenda shows 3 clear areas of focus. Customer obsession, Inspirational leadership and Leadership teaming across the C-suite. This will ultimately drive results for the business.

So what does all of this mean? There’s a recognized need to transform communication within organisations by creating a new open, transparent environment that promotes learning and has the full support of the leadership team. One vision across all employees is an imperative.

Deriving insight from data and understanding the consumer holistically, inside and out and using social platforms and technology to get to know and engage them is pertinent to the success of any business moving forward.

And finally, finding a way to collaborate and connect with external partners, in particular in terms of data sharing and research will drive revenue and innovation.

Download the full report here

Stacey Perry

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Sources: IBM

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2014 Must Be The Year Of Digital Transformation

It is said that CEOs without a clear vision for digital transformation could be losing businesses millions, but it's more than just the role of the CEO. His or her role is one of the most central drivers to adoption, but it is under developed management in general that is a large cause for a global lag in digital transformation across companies of all sizes and all industries.  

Research released recently by MIT Sloan Management Review in partnership with Cap Gemini Consulting surveyed Senior and Middle Management across 1,559 businesses internationally to discuss this known business imperative and what to do about it - Digital Transformation.

Part of the research also asked questions about the digital maturity of the business and found that only 15% fell into the mature category! whilst a whopping 65% fell into the least mature category.



Clearly, the world is going through a huge technology change as people, device and platform are becoming more connected...and businesses need to keep up or risk toppling against the furore of competitive digital disruption.  A sobering thought for any business not putting Digital Transformation on the Executive Agenda because Digital Disruption is more than just your current competitors pushing you out of position it's new Digital Disruptors from places you possibly cannot predict.  James McQuivey's book is a good read to get your head around this.

As a marketing director the need to integrate with operations and technology should be daily agenda points. Every employee needs digital awareness and training support, that needs to be driven from top down and through HR.



In the report, 78% of respondents said they were aware of the critical need for their business to adopt digital but still there is a lack of traction to get started.

We are not saying it's easy but for any company to survive the following three areas are mandatory for you to succeed:



1) CEO commitment and participation. Not just agreement but as a CEO you really need to understand digital, create a vision, share and participate in it.


2) Audit your digital ecosystem.   You will be doing some things, some people will be innovating in silo.  Situational analysis is best starting point.  Swift progress comes with knowing where you start from


3) Skills.  Don't worry too much about structure yet, get to know who has skills and who has the competency. They will be advocates and they will make it easier for you.

Read the research here

Mel Ross

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Sources:  MIT Sloan Management Review, Cap Gemini, Amazon

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The Digital Paradigm shifts Luxury to new heights

What has the digital revolution meant for luxury brands

An explosion of luxury reports are being released onto the market with fervour to equal any investment banking boom!  The reason for this? Digital.

Well Burberry have been the Luxury brand to really show what a full digital strategy can do for a luxury brand and it’s sales.   However, not without it’s critics claiming they have forsaken their target audience for the upcoming new Millennial.…well its working for Arhendt’s, and perhaps it would be good for other luxury brands to think about this growing audience too.  Even Hermès only this week launched and app targeted at the younger audiences. 

Look at the Luxury Market.  In the UK alone the luxury sector is forecast to almost double in size over the next five years from £6.6 billion in 2012 to £12.2 billion in 2017.  During 2013 digital spend budgets are set to increase by up to 83% based on the 2013 Luxury Interactive Report: Yet if we all think about what Luxury, or indeed Luxury shopping means to us it probably inspires images of Rodeo Drive, Personal Assistants and champagne in the dressing room – where’s the real opportunity for Digital? Well just look at e-commerce which is increasingly leading demand, as a pure sales vehicle and as a branding mechanism, outpacing the overall sector with 25% growth for the past three years. 

An unsurprising silent revolution has been happening all on it’s own.  The digitalisation of the world of affluent (I don’t actually like that word).  Shullman Research Centre, the rich love to do their shopping online 

Whilst previously apart of the mysterious world of invisibility (A few will stay there without doubt), more and more affluent ‘rich’ people are adopting digital to enhance their day-to-day world.  So why not the area of commerce and luxury shopping experience?

The key to remember here is that traditional marketing only needed to put all Luxury audiences into one group – those who look for personal service.  Now, in a digital world there is a need to understand the Luxury Shopper in far more detail to be able to connect and engage with them in a meaningful way.

There are those who buy a Luxury item as a special one off purchase.  There are those who buy Luxury because they can afford it and it’s lifestyle to them.  There are also those who are serious high end luxury shoppers – perhaps even those who do not actually make the purchase, but they still need to know what they want right?  They are probably on digital right?  So even they have a place for digital marketers to learn about and to target and to engage.

The world of digital has forced – and will continue to force - luxury brands to reassess who their target audience is.  The new luxury generation is the millennial and the growth opportunity in China is in constant debate - regarding the latter you only need look at a brand as iconic and renowned for the physical experience as Harrods to see how digital has become vital to their marketing mix with their recent launch of WeChat social media account that conveys its latest content to Chinese customers.  

Gone are the days where a Luxury brand has the time, money or luxury (forgive me) to create and decide who their customer is.  Their customer is younger, their customer is global.  Now they must understand how to maintain their brand story in a way that resonates with new audiences, digital audiences.  Luxury knows no laurel to rest upon, digital disruptors are coming in from the side – the world has irreversibly changed.

Notwithstanding, with all this change in the luxury goods market nothing stops me wanting the new season Hermès Birkin bag - I'm going to check it out online.

Mel Ross

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Sources:  wbresearch.com, Hermès, Shullman Centre, pmdigital.com

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Once upon a time....there was a luxury brand

Exploring digital as a vehicle for storytelling

The luxury brand sector is growing, in fact according to the Annual Luxury Benchmark survey from Walpole it is set to almost double in size over the next five years and be worth £12.2bn in the UK alone by 2017.

This is being driven by a number of factors, improving economy, the international buyer (particularly from China) and the affluent next generation consumer.

Maintaining digital innovation across all brand touchpoints in this space therefore is key. Luxury brands will need to find ways to engage the digitally savvy consumer whilst maintaining their heritage and the exclusivity that luxury has always afforded – no easy task when digital is already a mass market medium and shows no signs of slowing. Standing out in the vast web ocean is a challenge and luxury brands will need to commit to their digital story and ensure it is indeed a story that will resonate with both their existing brand advocates and new customers.

Luxury brands tend to always have a legacy, from Burberry’s roots in outerwear for explorers to Louis Vuitton’s humble beginnings as a peasant who escaped to Paris to seek his fortune, luxury brands have uniqueness in their heritage and leveraging this has always been important to build trust and faith in the product the consumer is buying, imperative given the high value price tag! But how do you pass on the story to the next generation? A generation that is less loyal, who should know the brand story but do not have the time or inclination to seek it out. Building an association that will resonate with them means being agile in storytelling and it means being able to deliver experiences that make a difference to their lives whilst still being true to the brand. And most importantly these experiences need to be delivered digitally.

Many luxury brands have really taken to digital, 85% of luxury brand marketers will increase their digital marketing spend in 2013, which shows a level of awareness and commitment to digital not seen in other verticals.

And there are obvious areas of investment. One being visually led technologies and platforms. Just this week, we’ve seen Gucci urging luxury brands to leverage the potential of video at the Luxury Retail Summit 2013, Fendi is promoting it’s A/W collection through slow motion film, Jimmy Choo is pushing it’s new sunglasses collection through a fast-paced video and shoppable image slideshow, Jaguar celebrated 1m Facebook likes via an employee ‘thank you’ video.

Instagram has proved popular with luxury brands, Burberry, Gucci, Tiffany & Co., Hermès, Oscar de la Renta amongst others are all very active on the popular photo/video sharing network. Why? Because luxury brands have inherently visual stories to tell. Burberry uses the platform to reinforce it’s ‘Britishness’ by showcasing photos of the London skyline and key landmarks, Hermès shares exclusive product shots, Louis Vuitton shares preparation imagery for it’s runway shows. 

Mobile is also emerging as a key digital touchpoint for luxury brands. Cartier has just released their latest edition of Art magazine via an iPad app, providing “users an authentic brand experience in a new medium”. You can download it from the iTunes store here. Hermès launched a how-to app this week on ways that a silk-scarf should be tied. Mercedes-Benz has released a 24/7 roadside assistance app. According to the L2: Think Tank Digital IQ Index report, 88% of hotel brands now feature a mobile optimised site.

It’s clear that digital is being adopted by luxury brands but the story must come first and be amplified through digital versus the other way around. Yes, digital is unique as a medium but it is just the vehicle. This is a great and inspiring video from Burberry on how they share their brand vision through compelling storytelling to the millennial consumer and the link back to ‘Britishness’ in everything they do. 

To quote Angela Ahrendts “I don’t think the world is ever going to want to stop hearing stories.”

Stacey Perry

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Walk Digital Company Introduction

Walk Digital is a digital auditing agency. We drive business success for our clients through Digital Marketing Audits, helping them build and deliver best practice digital strategies and plans.

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Walk Digital Best Practice - #This is for everyone

Digital Transformation - you can't hide anymore

The buzzword all business leaders are starting to rally around trying to apply to their own organisation is Digital Transformation.  Using digital technology, techniques and strategies as enablers to optimise every aspect of the traditional business model to survive in a digital world.  

And now it's official - no one is immune it.  Digital Transformation knows no boundaries, doesn't discriminate by company size or by product and service. It welcomes any business, anywhere doing any thing into the fold.

We've all heard the famous quotes about fear and the need to drive through that fear to see the results at the other end.  Well, Digital Transformation is a bit like that.

You really can no longer hide and say:

I know digital, but what we do doesn't really need digital to succeed.

We are already doing digital, we've got a website and it's making money!

Digital is a fad, just another way for vendors to sell their wares

Or even,

We are digitally mature, what we do is already digital.

These are all statements we have come across talking to customers. Which points to a key step you must complete before embarking on any transformational journey:  Indeed, the fundamental job for any CEO, or C-suite digital champion is to level out the playing field at the top, then across the whole business.  And what I mean by that is ensuring everyone's digital definition and understanding is the same and is shared.

Without this basic, fundamental step Digital Transformation will have a long hard journey and one which could lead to confusion rather than success - which alongside survival of course, is the single motivator to make this change.  So before you even consider external consultants and significant investment into digitalising your business world go and talk to your colleagues, your employees, your stakeholders and get to know what they think Digital Transformation means, then spread the word of what it truly means for your business and gain a common ground.

Taking this first step will also open your eyes to the biggest output Digital Transformation creates - A social business.  As you travel on the journey of Digital Transformation silos will disappear, the notion of customer centricity will become pervasive throughout the organisation and a new sense of honesty and transparency will strengthen engagement levels internally and externally which in turn will convert into greater sales.

When Digital Transformation is broken down into component parts it becomes digestible and achievable.  The scariest part is knowing where you are today. Once you have a shared view especially amongst the leadership team the obvious next step is to know where exactly you are in terms of digital.  A Digital Organisational Audit gives you an in depth Situation Analysis of your business and all it's digital touch points.  It will show you strengths and weaknesses, gaps and opportunities.  It will often also give you quick wins to kick off the journey and motivate everyone early on in the piece.

The results of an Organisational Audit will give you the necessary information and guidance to create a strategy and plan.  See Diagram below.   

The message is clear.  The digital world requires organisations everywhere to redefine how they approach business on a day-to-day basis. 

Everything is moving to a greater level of transparency and shared ownership. Just look at how the ownership of the customer has change: Ownership of the customer used to be the fight between sales and marketing. Digital Business Model requires every area of the business to be customer centric; Finance, HR, Technology. 

Take the first step, ask the question amongst your peers, your trusted colleagues start the journey, you'll survive, you'll even probably win against your competitors if you start today!

Mel Ross

Walk Digital

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Walk Digital Best Practice: Know where you are

‘Digital’. It is now touching all areas of businesses from marketing to sales to customer service to HR. It cannot be escaped, the world is digital and advances in technology are moving at a rapid pace.

Organisations need to be in a position to adopt digital to continue to drive results, sales, reach their customers, optimise processes and communicate with their employees and stakeholders. But there is a problem. Digital isn’t fully understood, the impact on the business from digital isn’t fully understood, how do you adapt, transform and use digital to your advantage in order to maintain a lead on your competitors and remain successful in the digital age?

Take a step back. Before moving forward into the digital minefield you need to know where you are right now. You need an audit. Yes, the very word might send shivers up your spine but without a full evaluation of your digital footprint, you cannot expect to be able to make informed decisions on how to build a digital strategy for the future. Knowing what is working and what is not working and assessing how digital is driving business success across strategy, capability and footprint will open your eyes to strengths and weaknesses within your organisation and create a clear view of how digital can power results moving forward.

Once you have an understanding of your digital eco-system and assets you can start to identify costs savings, evaluate the platforms and technologies you are using and work out if you are really using best practice to reach your customers in your marketing efforts. You will see how silos are most likely barriers to digital success and unearth why targets are not being met.

The audit process brings all of this to the fore, findings of which can then be used as a platform to build the most robust and effective digital strategy. One that will empower your organisation, that will bring your people together, that will increase efficiencies, that will be innovative and deliver welcome communication to your audience. Most importantly, it will be a strategy that drives sales, that engages your consumer and drives on-going revenue. Adapting for your digital consumer has never been more important than it is now.

Time is of the essence. Those who do not start to transform for a digital world will fall behind. The audit is the first step to digital maturity.

I’m not telling you it is going to be easy, but I am telling you it’s going to be worth it.

Stacey Perry

Walk Digital

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Anyone remember the Sony Discman?

The digital gap in the Millennial generation

If you’re aged anywhere between 13 – 33, you are part of the millennial generation. Now lets face it, there is clearly a wide chasm in terms of age here – today’s 30 year old experienced life as a teenager very differently to today’s teenager and whilst Gen Y is very often referred to as the first digital generation, technology has come a long way.

Being a teenager in the 90s just doesn’t even compare to being a teenager today, I mean check out what popular game Grand Theft Auto looked like in 1997 and how it looks now in 2013. A picture speaks a 1,000 words right?!

And this isn’t the only example. None of the following existed before the year 2000, are you ready? The iPod, iPhone, Wii, MySpace, Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn, YouTube, Twitter, iPad, Xbox, Skype, Camera Phones, Blackberry (bless them!), 3D TV, Broadband, Groupon – the list goes on.

I guess what I am trying to get at here is that there are almost two generations in one. Yes, the ‘older’ millennial did grow up with technology but they had to adapt to it and grow with it – the younger millennial is not doing that, the younger millennial is almost a native, they most likely do not remember a time when they couldn’t access all of the above. Facebook launched in February 2004, any millennial born in the 80s will remember this vividly, anyone born in the 90s, probably not by the time they are at an age to use it.

So why is it important for marketers? We’ve read so much on targeting the millennial, they are your next customer, they are going to spend billions in the next few years and this is all true. And their expectations are high. The older millennial has gotten used to expecting good customer service, to using technology to access information rather than older traditional methods, they are more demanding, speed is of the essence, they’ll happily complain about you across social media. But beware, if you think these consumers are tough, wait for the younger ones to mature. Those who are coming of age should be on your radar now. They are even more tech savvy, they are not nostalgic, they are acutely aware of their marketing power and influence. Whereas you might get a certain amount of tolerance from an older millennial, you will not from a younger millennial. Which means that brands have to adapt and quickly. Best practice in digital audiences is personalisation, both of these ‘segments’ (and even this is too broad) need a different strategy, approach and message.

But, get them on side and they will love you. This generation despite the view of narcissism, laziness and somewhat delusional qualities are and will change the world. They are more open-minded, confident, self-expressive, and receptive to new ideas and ways of living than any generation that has preceded them. And this is largely down to technology and the opportunities it presents.

Millennials have grown up in an environment where technology provides a platform for customisation and immediate gratification in all aspects of life. This has translated across to brand experience. They are talking, sharing, they will happily advocate a brand if they believe in it. More and more, they are using brands as identifiers of who they are and how they want to be viewed by their network.

Become their trusted friend and they will always be there for you.

Stacey Perry

Walk Digital

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Sources: Mashable, Forbes.com

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Thank you Millennials for changing my world

Businesses adopting digital are thriving thanks to Millennials

I’m pretty ambivalent to all those opinions and articles being written about the good and the bad of Millennials.  Every generation before them and - I guarantee - every generation following them, will have good traits and contributing factors to the world as well as weaknesses and negative impacts.

Why ambivalent?  Because aside from the obvious groans about their unnerving bravado and confidence they are reshaping the business world. Reshaping it for the better.

The dawn of digital really crept up on us and has meant that businesses have been slow in adopting the benefits of this brave new world for fear of letting go of the old world.  The main business model we are familiar with today was borne essentially out of the Industrial Revolution.  It was pioneered and established to fit and fuel the actual revolution itself.  We are in the midst of a new revolution – the Digital Revolution.

But the key change to this new revolution is that it is the populous whom we need to look to, to understand what the new business model should look like to fuel the new revolution - not the pioneering stealth of the few but the pioneering groundswell of the masses.  And who is at the centre of this populous?  The Millennial generation.  They are the first net natives, they are the generation who have been borne into a world that is digitally social by default.  These facts provide us as business leaders and business owners with the clues to creating the new business model for a digital age. 

Whilst the Digital Revolution, sometimes called the third industrial revolution, is said to have begun somewhere between the late 50s and late 70s, we are talking here about the foundations that would support the real change which has been happening over the last 15 years – driven by habits, needs and aspirations of the Millennial growing up.

What exactly have they done?

What the Digital Revolution has given rise to is a new way of thinking about business.  The Social Business Model is the new business model.  It is one that speaks to openness, to change as a constant, to experience as power over product description and price, it is a business model that has realised the home of the word social is not in the realms of media and marketing but at the very heart of business itself fully enabled by the Digital Revolution.

Social encompasses mobile, customer centric, personalisation, experience and also a closer connection between technology and human being.  All this we have the Millennial generation to thank for pushing us through the barriers of fear and silo, the barriers of hierarchy and the learned to a world where experimentation abounds, where integration and sharing are far more powerful than holding onto knowledge and content as currency to display power.  We are in a world where learning is the new constant.  And it works!  Look at Citibank and how they are listening to Millennials to help drive their business more and more towards being digitally mature, embracing such concepts as reverse mentoring to help current leaders get into their minds and therefore opportunities that abound by learning from this generation.

The Social Business Model also knows no boundaries.  As discussed by Chris Horton as part of his article on Digital Disruption.  This is a really powerful concept, where everyone is considered equal in a digital world until their actions deem otherwise, not their ethnicity, social standing or location.

We must all embrace the social business model, learn how to become more digital.  However, I offer up a warning here too.  To embark on the journey to transform your business to a social business or a digital business is not about throwing caution to the wind, seeking risk around every corner and change without substance.  Whilst the social business model is based on openness and change you must ground this by digital best practice to ensure success.  Adopt best practice across all your digital touch points and you to be able to best manage change, monitor change and use change to your advantage both in terms of efficiency and increased sales.  Furthermore, this social, changing, digital world is also extremely complex when you consider the data available and the data required informing social connections and change for the better. As Angela Ahrendts CEO of Burberry is quoted as saying:

"Consumer data will be the  biggest differentiator in the next 2 – 3 years. Whoever unlocks the reams of data & uses it strategically will win." 

So new skills, new structures and continuous learning are all key parts of becoming a digital business, a social business.

To those of you who still need to be convinced with numbers just look at the following stats that clearly demonstrate digital business models must be adopted, digital knowledge must become a priority for optimal economic progress.

Digital Skills.  Study by Development Economics and commissioned by O2, the failure to increase the workforce could cost the UK up to £2bn per year

Digital Inclusion.  A report from the EU E-Inclusion Team estimates benefit of digital inclusion across the EU in the order of between €35-85 billion over five years. 

Offline to Online.  According to UK Government Digital Strategy report between  £1.7 and £1.8 billion a year could be saved by moving to online.

Emerging Markets. Digitization in emerging countries could deliver US$6.3 trillion in additional nominal GDP and 77 million new jobs over the next 10 years

So, Millennials I salute you.  Just don’t get too cocky ok?

  Mel Ross

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Sources:  Huffington Post, Harvard Business Review, Wikipedia, www.go-on.co.uk, Booz & Co