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Last month we hosted our annual Charity Golf Day at Cumberwell Park. With over 100 clients, suppliers, and friends of the agency spread across our traditional Golf Comp and our Non Golfers ‘scare the life out of the pro and passers-by due to excessive Pimms consumption’ we raised a wonderful £6,000 to be split across Young Lives vs Cancer and Children’s Hospice South West.

 

Heidi Houlihan from Children’s Hospice South West had the following to say:

“A huge thank you to Mostly Media for their very kind donation which could pay for one of our hospice nurses for a month which will help create precious memories for families in our care.”

 

Charlotte Rutherford at Young Lives vs Cancer told us that the money we raised could contribute towards:

– 1.5 months for a family to stay in one of their Home from Homes.
– 6 Financial Hardship Grants.
– 10 Compassionate Grants
– 30 Young Lives vs Cancer Registration Grants.
– 115 hours for their amazing social workers to spend with families facing a cancer diagnosis.

 

We can’t thank everyone enough for attending and donating to such brilliant causes. And a huge thanks to every single one of the Mostly Team who worked so hard behind the scenes to make the day the best it could be.

 

This year people came from far and wide with Hans Heide-Ottosen flying in from Norway and Mark Palmer from Australia… Now if that’s not pulling power, we don’t know what is!

 

Despite end of the world conditions our hardy guests battled the elements in a hard-fought battle with Jak Alcock from IMG triumphing in the individual stableford competition, and Camille Mendes, Andrew Mallandaine and Mark Wood winning the team event. Special mentions to Richard Twiggs for shooting the lowest gross score on the day (yet again because he is often the only ‘real’ golfer in attendance) and Keith Crisp who received the ‘Thanks for Coming Award’ of some Cider Vinegar for coming along and failing badly!

 

Final mention to Justin Hardy who sadly took a tumble, tore his quad muscle from his knee cap and ended up in Hospital for many hours before having an op rendering him out of action for nearly a year. Who said golf wasn’t fraught with danger. Get well soon Justin!

 

The event turns 18 next year and we’ll be pushing to make it our biggest fund raiser ever – so if you want to get involved please let the team know.

Last week we had the pleasure of hosting the Pimento 6pm club at our Mostly HQ in Bath. Held monthly at various locations, it’s a great chance for Pimento members to meet up, collaborate and celebrate being independent.

 

Stuart Smith outlined the work we do at Mostly Media to maximise return on marketing investment. This was followed by our very own brilliant James Budden who presented all the very latest on connected TV which became a great Q&A between agencies keen to learn more about how to use TV to scale business.

 

Thanks to all those who came and we’re looking forward to the next event!

James, our Senior AV Manager, gives his view on Paramounts rebranding of Channel 5…

 

Paramount is rebranding Channel 5 to just ‘5’. This is part of a larger plan to relaunch the public-service broadcaster across all platforms (linear TV, streaming, and digital) under one unified name, similar to what we’ve seen historically with the likes of All4 rebranding to Channel 4.

 

Key points:

  1. Rebrand: Channel 5 will become “5” in April 2025.
  2. Unified platform: My5 (Channel 5’s streaming service) will be integrated into the new “5” platform.
  3. Expanded content: The new platform will offer a wider range of content, including shows from other Paramount networks like MTV, CBS, and Comedy Central.
  4. Pluto TV: Will remain a separate service but will offer some curated FAST channels on the new “5” platform.

 

MullenLowe US founder Jim Mullen once said: “Of all the things that your company owns, brands are far and away the most important and the toughest. Founders die. Factories burn down. Machinery wears out. Inventories get depleted. Technology becomes obsolete. Brand loyalty is the only sound foundation on which business leaders can build enduring, profitable growth.” This is not the first, and almost definitely won’t be the last time we see ‘5’ rebrand themselves. That being said, I do believe throughout it all ‘5’ have managed to maintain their brand identity in the UK. It’s my go-to channel for easy viewing, whether that’s reality TV, Aussie soaps and or strange documentaries, it’s a safe place where you can switch on the TV and not have to focus on what you’re watching essentially.

 

Will the rebrand work? It’s obviously too early to say, but I certainly don’t expect it to have a negative effect, unlike what we’ve seen at Twitter (I simply refuse to call it the new name).

 

Credit: James Budden, Senior AV Manager

(Image: Shutterstock/Oleg Krugliak)

Our Media Exec, Cait, takes a look at the recent news that third-part cookies aren’t going to be phased out…

 

Have you ever wondered how ads seem to follow users around the internet? The answer lies in third-party cookies.

 

Imagine browsing a website selling sunglasses and checking out some stylish aviators. You don’t buy them yet but move on to a news channel or a different website. Suddenly, you start seeing ads for similar aviators and sunglasses on the other websites you visit, even though you never searched for them there. 

 

Here’s how third-party cookies made that happen:

  1. When you visited the sunglasses website, the site placed a first-party cookie on your device to remember your browsing activity within the site (e.g., viewed aviators). 
  2. The sunglasses website also uses a third-party cookie on your device which is like an invisible advertising service that tracks your general browsing behaviour. 
  3. As you visit other websites, the same advertising service can access the third-party cookie it placed and see your interest in sunglasses. 
  4. The advertising service uses this information to show the users targeted ads for similar aviators and other sunglasses on other websites, even though they never directly searched for them there.

 

Third-party cookies have been a fundamental tool in the digital advertising industry for over two decades, and after an announcement Google made in 2020 that third-party cookies would be phased out, a new announcement has just been made that third-party cookies will officially remain. 

 

In early January a test was conducted as part of the Google Privacy Sandbox initiative where third-party cookies were removed for 1% of Chrome users, or approximately 30 million people. The test results were not released but Privacy Sandbox Vice President, Anthony Chavez, emphasised that transitioning to a cookie-less browser would require “significant work from many participants and will have an impact on publishers, advertisers, and everyone involved in online advertising.” He also noted that the company has plans for “additional privacy controls” such as the addition of IP Protection to the browser’s Incognito mode. In contrast, Firefox disabled third-party cookies in 2019 and Safari in 2020. 

 

Third-party cookies were under scrutiny because they amass enormous amounts of personal data from users that is sent, traded and sold in the digital advertising industries, often without their consent or even their knowledge. Reasons like these are what led to the original decision for them to be phased out. 

 

Mostly Media’s View – 

The industry is rightly frustrated by the uncertainty from Google in whether third-party cookies will remain or be phased out, however, for advertisers there are pros to them remaining. 

First, adverts can be personalised and stay relevant to the user which is useful for more precise targeting. Secondly, site visitors will have a better user experience as websites can remember user preferences and login information, for example. Finally, user analytics will help website owners understand how users are interacting with their site, which can help improve its performance. 

We aren’t surprised by this reversal and are pleased to have some clarity from Google on the immediate future and their position on privacy for the remainder of 2024.

 

Credit: Caitlin Blue, Media Executive 

(Image: Shutterstock/MOLEQL)

 

We’re delighted to announce we haven’t just won one award at the Independent Agency Awards hosted by the Alliance of Independent Agencies at MAD//FEST. An award ceremony that celebrates the best work across the independent agency sector.

 

No, we’re thrilled to announce we won not one but two awards.

 

First up, and for the third time in four years, we won Best Use of Media on behalf of Crohn’s & Colitis UK.

 

Second up, and what an incredible nod to our culture, we won the coveted Freedom award for Client Service.

 

Kudos Tom Marshall and the team for an exceptional job well done.

 

To re-cap –

2021: Best Use of Media on behalf of thortful (DTC / Brand Response)

2023: Best Use of Media on behalf of Cawston Press | B-Corp™ (FMCG / Brand)

2024: Best Use of Media on behalf of  Crohn’s & Colitis UK (Charity / Performance)

2024: Freedom award for Client Service on behalf of Crohn’s & Colitis UK (Charity / Performance)

 

If you need a media agency that consistently delivers, irrespective of your market, and want best in class client service, then look no further, speak to us about how we can make your money work harder.

Thursday evening saw HMS Christopher Ward set sail down the Thames as a celebration of their 20th Anniversary of what has now become the largest UK-based watch brand.  With Mike France and Peter Ellis at the helm, the company has gone from an idea (born on a smaller boat on the Thames) and navigated the choppy waters of young start-up and a worldwide pandemic, amongst other things.  As Mike France said, “March 23rd 2020 was a day none of them will forget… would there even be a business to build?”.

 

It was a boat full of people of all ages who love the brand and have played a part in the incredible journey to date.  There was nothing better than listening to Jörg Bader Snr, CEO of Christopher Ward in Biel, Switzerland explain how the brand has gone from plucky start-up to rubbing shoulders and turning the heads of the worlds most established watch brands.

 

Hot off the back of winning both ‘Best Watch’ and ‘Brand of the Year’ at the 2024 T3 awards, its full steam ahead for the Christopher Ward brand, with the game changing Bel Canto and the stunning Twelve, continuing to change perception and win admirers across the globe.

 

Here at Mostly Media, we are delighted to have played a small part as their Media Buying partner since 2018 and look forward to where we sail next.