Stories by Brad Howarth

US-based artificial intelligence startup, Sanas, has been working to unpick the nuances of accents to make communication easier for people from different backgrounds. That could have huge implications for any marketer who wants to improve customer experience through voice channels by helping both customers and staff be better understood.

When Julie Mathers founded ecommerce business, Flora & Fauna, in 2014 after a lengthy career in retail, she did so with the intention of creating a business that was both better and kinder.

For some advertisers, even Facebook and Google have their limits. Such was the case for Australian-born personal hearing device maker, Nuheara, whose narrow target audience was challenging its ability to grow direct-to-consumer business using standard digital channels.

Marketers inherently understand the importance of customer loyalty and engagement and are usually more than willing to invest in technology that will enhance customer interactions. But marketers rarely have full control over big-ticket purchasing. And that means needing to build business cases that stack up in the eyes of their c-level peers.

One of the great benefits of digital media is the speed at which an idea can be brought to market. So when Sportsbet general manager of marketing, Tim Hernadi, heard that a video of Indian cricketer star, Virat Kohli, smacking balls around in the Adelaide nets had gone viral, he knew this was something his team could jump on.

Any business that has been around for more than 100 years must know a thing or two about being sustainable, at least in the traditional sense of the world.

Among the many sectors affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, fundraising has been hit especially hard. But one charitable organisation found a way to keep funds flowing through the depths of the pandemic and beyond, by working with a community that is generally considered hard to reach by marketers – online gamers and streamers.

One of the lasting legacies of 2020 will be the boost it gave to digitalisation projects in Australia, as consumer flocked to the Internet to buy groceries, order food and entertain themselves.

In a world that seems to be inevitably drawn towards digital service delivery, few sectors have shown the same level of resistance as building supplies. Even the market behemoth of the retail side of the hardware industry, Bunnings, only got its ecommerce act together in 2018.

Every day 48 per cent of Australians wake up with heel, arch or general foot pain. But despite this, more than half will never visit a podiatrist. This knowledge is part of what inspired integrated footwear and retail company, Atomic Group, to ramp up its online presence for its orthopaedic shoe line, Homyped.

One of the silver linings of 2020 was the way marketers stepped up to assist their colleagues in sectors in need. So in September of last year, Share With Oscar launched a new campaign to alert its customers to the availability of unused hotel parking spaces around Sydney.

The marketing sector is no stranger to enthusiastic debate, but the battle between privacy advocates and the holders of customers’ personal data has become especially impassioned.

Long before COVID-19 made it an essential service, Menulog faced a challenge. Australia’s original online multi-outlet food ordering service had come under pressure from well-funded arrivals such as Deliveroo, DoorDash and Uber Eats, which had connected better with Gen Z consumers.

There’s much to be said for the commercial benefits of providing exceptional customer support. But no matter how that support is provided, there is always a cost somewhere.

An irony of the data age is that while it is mostly B2C brands lauded for their data prowess, the companies supplying them with analytics tools tend to be B2B. And for this latter group, that means they don’t always get the bask in the glory of what they enable.