Ok I’m bored in the house, I’m in the house bored, bored in the house, I’m in the house bored… And now onto Sunday Rundown #24 🙂

Marketers told to ‘hold their nerve’ as budgets drop at the fastest rate since the last recession

When someone asks you which news you want first, you always pick the bad ones first, right? Even if that is not the case, here is the bad news first – NO BUDGEEEETS!

The latest IPA Bellwether survey shows the coronavirus pandemic has caused broad-based cuts to all forms of marketing activity, but this is a “high-risk strategy” and marketers are being urged to think twice before pulling spend. UK marketing budgets have experienced their biggest reduction since the 2009 global financial crisis as emergency measures to stem the spread of COVID-19 puts a sudden halt to consumer and business spending.

Coca-Cola ‘pauses’ marketing spend over ‘lack of ROI’

Coca-Cola has “paused” marketing spend across its business as it sees a reduction in ROI. And you guessed it, it is as a result of the coronavirus outbreak and subsequent lockdowns.

CEO James Quincey told investors that the soft drinks giant has seen a “significant and profound impact” on its business, resulting in the halt of the majority of its marketing. Nevertheless, Coca-Cola’s demand is doubling in e-commerce sales in some markets.

“We’ve been through challenging times before as a company, and we believe we’re well-positioned to manage through and emerge stronger.”

CEO James Quincey

Instagram adds stickers for restaurants to sell gift cards and food delivery

Instagram is trying to make it easier for small businesses to spread the word about how people can support them during the COVID-19 pandemic. The company announced that business and creator accounts can now include stickers in their stories. These stickers will direct people to a website where they can order food delivery or buy gift cards.

Tapping the sticker will bring people to a website where they can complete their order. Businesses can also include stickers that link out to a fundraiser built on Facebook.

Google will tell who pays for ads

In 2018, Google announced a new identity verification policy for political advertisers. The policy requires all advertisers that want to run election ads on Google platforms to confirm their identity. Google displays that identity in the ad unit so that users can learn more about the election ads they see. Since introducing this program, Google has verified political advertisers in 30 countries.

To provide greater transparency and equip users with more information about who is advertising to them, Google is extending identity verification to all advertisers. As part of this initiative, advertisers will have to complete a verification program in order to buy ads. Advertisers will need to submit personal identification, business incorporation documents or other information to prove their identity. Beginning this summer, users will start to see disclosures that list this information behind the ads they see.

Bonus links

Thanks for taking the time to read our Sunday Rundown #24. If you have a story that you want to see in this series, reply to us below or contact us