Brand Matters

Today's brands have become media companies with all the content they need to create, distribute, and amplify on a daily basis. Marketers need to think holistically about their content marketing efforts, instead of relegating it to only the Owned channels of the Paid, Owned, Shared, and Earned spectrum. Since influencers are both content creators and promoters, a great influencer marketing campaign helps branded content take off and inspire the holy grail that is user-generated content. 

What should marketers look for in an AI tech vendor for their brand? We looked at the hype surrounding AI and how companies can cut through it to find the right partners to help them take advantage of the AI revolution. The Next Great AI Advancements Will Come from Marketer-Vendor Partnerships (eMarketer)

When you look at the volatility on exchanges, it's clear cryptocurrency has a marketing problem. Branding plays an essential role in helping the public trust something new, but marketing promises should always be rooted in the product and the team. The cryptocurrency market right now is both undervalued and overhyped, and marketers need to be responsible with how they promote new coins and products.

Looking into 2018, influencer strategy will continue to be a vital skill for marketers to learn to support their brands. Measurability and ROI are essential to influencer marketing, and brand strategists need to collaborate with marketing and PR teams to fit the right influential voices into their plans everywhere from social media to events. Show Links 16 Skills Every Marketing Pro Should Master In 2018

Looking ahead at 2018, the Brand Matters show outlines three tech trends we expect to see next year: 1) artificial intelligence-powered virtual assistants; 2) compelling augmented reality experiences that digitally enhance the world around you; and 3) user smartphone fatigue as customers begin to feel stifled by the always-connected nature of our mobile devices. Show link Smartphones Will Continue to Take Over Our Lives – And Other Predictions for 2018? (Mobile Marketing Watch)

Brand Matters shares highlights this week from the Upside-Down Market Entry Roundtable session at TNW New York. The traditional way of expanding to new markets is too slow for the digital age. We need to flip the process upside-down and realize that our companies are already global brands and we are entering and guiding an existing conversation. Made with Descript

There's a new trend among companies marketing to consumers where instead of building a flashy brand, companies are choosing to have a minimalist brand identity. We look at three companies – Public Goods, Brandless, and Common Projects – and how they're using a lack of branding to their advantage. Show links Millennials And The 'Reverse Branding' Trend Public Goods Brandless Common Projects

This week's episode of Brand Matters discusses why it's important for brands to switch from a horizontal to a vertical mindset when it comes to creating content for mobile devices. We also recap some related insights from the App Promotion Summit in Berlin. Show Links Why Brands Need to Adopt a Vertical Mindset (MarTech Series) App Promotion Summit

This week's show recaps the Mobile Marketing Roundtable discussion from the Data & Marketing Association and Industry Index. We cover topics from mobile commerce, influencer marketing, to location intelligence. In our second segment, we discuss how today's smartphones are actually quite dumb. Artificial intelligence has the potential to make our mobile devices truly smart through anticipatory, contextual, and personalized experiences. Show links: Data & Marketing Association Industry Index Dumb Smart Phones - Adotas

We've spent close to a week with the iPhone, and it's the best iPhone Apple's ever made, but it's not quite perfect. We look at some of the issues with the device, like the autocorrect bug and FaceID challenges.

Brand Matters this week looks at Amazon's Treasure Truck initiative and how it's selling an experience rather than a product. For a company that hasn't been known for good customer service, it's a refreshing effort to add some fun and delight to the Amazon shopping experience.

Introducing the new Brand Matters show logo. We took the concept of a cattle brand and brought it into the digital age with a bit of bling. Show producer Sebastian Liu shares his thought process behind the graphic.

This week's episode takes a look at how to value a brand from a consumer perspective. When a T-Mobile fan offered to get a visible T-Mobile logo tattoo in exchange for an iPhone 8, CEO John Legere jumped at the chance. We look at what T-Mobile did right to build a brand that generates this unique kind of publicity. Show links: Android Authority: Would you tattoo a T-Mobile logo on your arm for a free phone? One man did Twitter: #TattooforPhilip 

For Brand Matters episode 6, we look at Google's fun new pop-up donut shops for the Google Home Mini and examine the latest mobile app trends from China that could head overseas. Show links: Donuts with Google eMarketer: What Makes Apps Thrive in China

Brand Matters goes over the With a Little Help from my Fans panel from Mondo NYC, discussing how data drives fan engagement to help you increase your fan base. We also look at Google's brand effectiveness for its October 4th Pixel 2 launch event.

For Episode 4, Josh Ong discuss the topic of Fans Take Center Stage from this week's Digital Music Forum panel. The show looks at the increasing importance that fans play in your digital strategy, and how to treat them as creative partners. Examples include Smule's Sing! Karaoke, the new Videobomb, and Live.me broadcaster Justina Valentine. Show links: NY Media Festival Sing! Karaoke Video Bomb Justina Valentine #FirstWorldProblems  

For Episode 3, we take a look at brand stories from Tesla and Netflix that show how a brand can demonstrate empathy, accessibility, and action to build a stronger connection with the public. Plus we also look at 3 practical tips for live broadcasting. Show links: (Segment 1) Billionaire Elon Musk responds to unhappy Tesla customer on a Friday night In internal Tesla memo, Elon Musk says the way most companies communicate is 'incredibly dumb' Hurricane survivor writes ‘SEND TESLA’ with the debris of destroyed home Netflix Ends Unauthorized 'Stranger Things' Bar With A Super Classy Letter (Segment 2) 3 Practical Tips for Live Broadcasting You Need to Know Right Now

Two major phones launched this week —iPhone X vs. Xiaomi Mi Mix 2, and we think one brand came away the winner. We also discuss the importance of internal communications for your brand.

The Brand Matters podcast is a new technology show hosted by Josh Ong, director of Global Brand Strategy & Communications, at Cheetah Mobile. The weekly show will discuss all things branding and technology. Today for Episode 1, we look at what goes into a brand and why should we care?