Advertising best practice, evidence and insights

From Ask Jeeves to information peeves – why online search matters

Opinion • Jon Buss, September 2020

The launch of Google Search was a game changer. Twenty-two years on, brands need to get search right more than ever, says Jon Buss.

Is online marketing ‘the new rent’?

Opinion • Grace Kite, September 2020

In 2020 online advertising is neither new nor under-analysed, and yet there remains a fundamental misunderstanding about the role it plays, says Grace Kite.

WARC Talks 360: E-commerce and the future of effectiveness

Article • WARC Webinars, September 2020

Brings together expert contributors for their advice on how to best navigate the shift in e-commerce strategy.

Maximising your digital availability to grow your brand online

Article • Gemma Spence, WARC Webinars, September 2020

Explores how brands can grow online in the competitive e-commerce landscape.

The significance (& seasonality) of search

Article • Jonathan Jagard, WARC Webinars, September 2020

Jonathan Jagard explores the e-commerce landscape, including why search matters and how brands can adapt to these shifting search dynamics.

Will COVID-19 ultimately strengthen the duopoly?

Opinion • Arnaud Créput, August 2020

Publishers and advertisers need to start thinking in terms of private gardens rather than walled gardens if the duopoly is not to emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic even stronger than before, warns Arnaud Créput.

Decoding decisions: Making sense of the messy middle

Article • Research on WARC, August 2020

Looks at the mental processes that have been activated by the abundance of the web.

How BIC is developing its e-commerce strategy

News • 10/08/2020

BIC, the pen brand, is focusing on issues like customer journeys, product assortment and packaging as it adapts to the demands of an increasingly complex e-commerce ecosystem.

Why marketers should embrace Share of Search as a metric

News • 07/08/2020

Share of search provides a useful metric that any marketer can use as a surprisingly accurate proxy for the important, but often expensive, calculation of a brand’s market share, says a leading planner.

The Wrong and the Short of it

Opinion • Tom Roach, August 2020

Short-termism and long-termism are both just wrong-termism, says Tom Roach. Let’s end the false choice between long and short-term marketing tactics, maximise the compound effects of getting them working together in harmony, and start to close the value-destroying divide between ‘brand’ and ‘performance’ marketing.

BIC’s five-point “SPARC” formula offers a roadmap for e-commerce success

Article • Geoffrey Precourt, Event Reports, ANA webinar, July 2020

BIC, the pen brand, is using a five-point plan to inform its e-commerce strategy, and so drive progress on an increasingly vital sales channel.

Share of search: The most important metric you’ve never heard of

Article • James Hankins, WARC Exclusive, August 2020

Introduces ‘Share of Search’ and presents several useful and applicable techniques to help establish a nuanced picture of a brand’s context versus its competitor set.

How FMCG brands can respond to change after COVID-19

Opinion • Jess Smith, August 2020

The pandemic has changed consumers' behaviour and there will be further changes in their wants and needs in the months ahead.

Three-way points for navigating e-commerce in a post-pandemic world

Article • Alex Zhang, WARC Best Practice, July 2020

Brands are now looking to transform the way they reach customers, but not all transformation is always good - here are three steps to adjust to the post-COVID e-commerce world.

What’s working in search

Article • WARC Category Intelligence, August 2020

Global strategies, campaign updates and trends in search.

Search marketing amid a crisis

Article • Bertie Miller, WARC Exclusive, July 2020

Examines the short- and long-term impact of the pandemic on online search behaviour.

The State of the Industry: Mobile Marketing in EMEA 2020

Data • WARC Data, July 2020

Summarises the findings of WARC's latest mobile marketing survey, conducted across EMEA on behalf of the Mobile Marketing Association, to assess how advertisers and agencies are using, and planning to use, mobile in their marketing activities.

Flight search lifts off as domestic travel drives demand in China

News • 24/07/2020

As some countries begin to show some success in dealing with COVID-19, individuals in China are once again considering the possibility of resuming travel in the near future.

The CMA’s digital advertising market study is a crucial snapshot of the industry and its failures – this is why you should care

Article • Sam Peña-Taylor, WARC Exclusive, July 2020

Explores in-depth the findings from the Competition and Markets Authority’s landmark study into digital advertising in the UK.

How FMCG brands can blend traditional retail and e-commerce post-COVID-19

Article • Ed Cox, WARC Exclusive, June 2020

COVID-19 has prompted many brands to beef up their e-commerce presence or direct to consumer strategies to supplement traditional retail channels.

OMO Sensitive: Tough on Stains. Gentle on Skin.

Case Study • Tahaab Rais, Anna Sadykova, WARC Prize for MENA Strategy, Entrant, 2020

Laundry detergent brand OMO Sensitive adopted a multi-channel approach in Saudi Arabia and the UAE to win share and boost take-up among new mothers.

Google will pay some publishers for news content

News • 26/06/2020

Google has developed a licensing initiative that will see the internet giant pay participating publishers for high quality news content, while helping them build stronger relationships with readers.

Digital dominates discovery in APAC, while mobile sites trump mobile apps

Article • Low Lai Chow, WARC Exclusive, June 2020

The APAC region will continue to lead in adoption and use of digital and mobile channels for purchases, long after COVID-19 lockdown measures are lifted.

How to prepare for playing in the Google Privacy Sandbox

Article • Jack Shearring, WARC Exclusive, May 2020

Explores the impact of Google’s decision to phase out third-party cookies from its Chrome browser.

Racold: Mind Your Language

Case Study • Sabiha Khan, Aakash Chatterjee, Provit Chemmani, WARC Awards, Entrant, Effective Innovation, 2020

Water heater brand Racold exploited Indians' e-commerce mistypes to spell a disproportionate increase in sales vs money spent in the highly competitive online market.