Unconscious bias and the declining relevance of brands and advertising

The Brexit vote revealed a divided UK, one which is replicated to a large degree in how agency employees view the world compared with the people they are creating advertising for.

In 2017, Trinity Mirror carried out extensive research which revealed that brands and advertising are losing relevance and are increasingly out of touch with most consumers. Andrew Tenzer, Head of Group Insight at Trinity Mirror, and Ian Murray, co-founder & Partner at House51, which carried out the research, explained why at the Media Research Summit (London, June 2018).

Tenzer began by observing that the advertising industry is rather different to the people it tries to reach and target. While 18-40 year olds represent 35% of the UK adult population, they account for a whopping 84% of the advertising industry workforce....

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