The way things are at the moment the UK needs all the likes it can get. Luckily we have quite a few, according to a Deloitte study out today. It looks into the economic impact of Facebook across Europe and says Facebook is worth as much as £2.2bn to the UK economy and that the social network supports as many as 35,200 jobs.

The figure came as part of an Ad Boost programme that Facebook has announced, which will see it give away up to £4.2m of free advertising to help small businesses get started and grow their business on Facebook. Read More »

Remember the Qantas hashtag fail? Of course, you do. The Aussie airline saw the #QantasLuxury Twitter campaign spectacularly backfire late last year.

Now it is the turn of McDonald’s which has also been on the receiving end of a Twitter hashtag fail after it launched promoted tweet campaign that sought to share positive stories about farmers who grow the fast food giant’s food. Sadly for McDonald’s this quickly turned into a major piece of #McFail as it lost control of the hashtag and off it went. Read More »

Social networks have attracted a critical mass of consumers around the globe, so it’s only natural that brands are now flocking to social media as a marketing channel. Brands know there is a huge opportunity, but they are unsure of how to measure the results from their social efforts.

Which metrics should they use? Can social media provide measurable ROI? And how can it be effectively integrated into the marketing mix as part of a brand’s overall marketing strategy? Read More »

Please someone speak to Amazon about its ads and its use of leggy models and bikini clad babes. Amazon’s latest TV ad for its Kindle Fire tablet features Spanish model Karme Boixadera stretching her long legs in New York City where she apparently finds a package on a doorstep (at this point, we don’t know if its hers, but really who leaves an Amazon package on a doorstep in any city!!). Read More »

Samuel Adams is crowdsourcing a beer. I’m dubious(too many brewers and all of that), but it is an interesting social experiment. But is too much colloboration a bad thing?

Through a Facebook app, you get to choose the colour, clarity, malt, hops and yeast.  The crowdsourced beer will then be available in a select few bars in Austin during the South by Southwest Festival in March and at the Sam Adams Boston Brewery. Read More »