Stories by Rosalyn Page

The Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) set its sights on an online fan hub as a digital destination for gamified fan experiences during the recent winter Olympics.

No one would recommend starting a business as a pandemic hits. Yet that’s just what happened with beauty business, Boost Lab. Moving rapidly from the original retail concept to online was less of a pivot and more of a necessity for the brand.

“Quitline is always looking for new and innovative ways to engage and communicate with people who want to quit smoking or vaping,” Quitline manager, Lindsay Whelan, told CMO about its decision to adopt a new artificial intelligence (AI) tool.

Mentoring can be a transformational relationship, one that can lift career trajectories through powerful support and encouragement across industries and sectors. In particular, mentoring plays a key role in the development for nearly all executives.

What does a world free of bias look like? This year’s International Women’s Day theme is ‘breaking the bias’ and it’s about working towards a world free of stereotypes and discrimination that is diverse, equitable and inclusive. It’s a world where difference is valued and celebrated.

Backed by industry and government leaders, an Australian first initiative to champion equality in advertising has launched. ShEqual aims to positively transform Australia’s advertising landscape and is an initiative of Women’s Health Victoria, a state-wide not-for-profit, women’s health promotion, advocacy and support service.

“It’s been proven time and again that building brand equity has not just brand benefits, but genuine commercial benefits,” said Stake chief marketing officer, Bryan Wilmot.

“I’m a political campaigner, a political strategist and a justice reform activist,” says R/GA global CMO, Ashish Prashar.

SmileDirectClub, the tele-dentistry platform that connects customers to dentists or orthodontists in its network, wanted to go one step further in linking people with healthcare.

Sisters Chloe and Olivia Brookman, who had dreamed of creating something magical together since they were children, founded Olli Ella in 2010 with the goal of creating homewares, toys and apparel in a sustainable, environmentally conscious way.

Like many existing brands, Fight Gear Direct had reached a certain level that required shifting the focus from growing sales to sustaining sales. Yet a lack of focus in innovation across product categories or marketing and no real desire to continue growing an audience was holding it back.

With Covid shuttering businesses and driving down foot traffic, many, especially those in hospitality, were floundering as they grappled with the challenges of shifting to digital marketing to support online efforts.

If influencer marketing was the buzz of the last decade, then the creator economy is its successor, supercharged by growing ability for consumers to use social and digital platforms to directly connect with their own communities and audiences. But with such tools to now cut out the middleman, be it media company or advertiser, how do brands fit into this new creative puzzle?

Signet found itself facing the dual challenge of lifting customer sentiment and digital infrastructure capability in order to pursue growth.

As one of Australia’s oldest theatrical institutions, Theatre Royal Sydney might sometimes take its cues from theatre houses of New York and London, staging shows like Alanis Morissette’s Jagged Little Pill. But audiences could be surprised to learn this also extends to how it manages customer relations.