Nick Phipps

Trust is everything, and our new UK report with London Research shows just how powerful it is, especially in the finance sector. 78% of UK consumers are influenced by customer reviews, and our reviews can make a big difference. In fact, ads with Trustpilot signals are 14 times more likely to be clicked, and websites using them see an increase in trust, brand affinity and conversions. Check out the full report: https://lnkd.in/d5pe4-77.

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Is Google moving closer and closer to becoming an affiliate platform.. And the likely Google Checkout 🛒 Google’s launch of AI mode in the UK brings forward a lot of questions around the future of search and what this means for brands and retailers There will be a lot of content here, so I wanted to give another perspective on this as I’ve always had an inkling that Google may want to move to an affiliate model.. And with the changes to search, I can only see more and more reasoning for this to happen.. As Google sends less traffic through to retailer sites - with higher intent , there’s a growing case for them to operate an affiliate model 🔍 Google already 🔹Dictates how much you bid in a pretty black box auction 🔹Dictates how and where to serve your ads 🔹To some extent chooses what your ads look like 🔹Decides which advertiser to prioritise to the user  🔹You basically already agree a set cost / return with the Google (tROAS, tCPA) 🔮 Search in the future 🔹Conversational search gives less control to the advertiser. You can no longer just pay to play  🔹Google needs to adapt to the users search behaviour (AI mode searches already 2x longer than traditional Google search) so how can they auction this when they need to serve only a few relevant picks 🔹Google will then display only a few relevant ads to reflect the more intent driven query 🔹Google needs to charge more due to less ad clicks, but can justify this with the higher intent 🔹Brands will have less exposure, less control over when ads show. An affiliate model would be sufficient I’d suggest that combined, all of these create an optimal environment for Google to monetise through an affiliate model Most importantly this would then also massively facilitate them being able to quickly move into on Google checkout 🛒 (whilst keeping advertising spends). Google tried this with the Buy on Google programme. It was US only and never really took off and was discontinued in September 2023 🛍️ But with the rise of TikTok Shop📱, ChatGPT likely launching through Shopify 🔗 - we’ll surely see Google move into this space again where the consumer shops within Google (with Google then taking a commission) 📊

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“The only cases we have seen where huge transformation with AI doesn’t also deliver significant double-digit year-one savings are when the client isn’t looking at a big enough piece of their business to transform.” A great piece in The Drum from Brandtech Partner and Head of Emerging Technology Rebecca Sykes on the big conversations she’s having with brands as they scale Gen AI across their marketing. Link in comments 👇

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We’re thrilled to announce Brave Bison’s acquisition of leading strategy and insights consultancy MTM!         With an impressive client roster featuring the likes of Google, Samsung Ads, Figma, Formula E, England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB), Sky Sports and BBC, MTM is a trusted audience strategy and insights partner for major global businesses. 🌎      MTM helps some of the biggest names in technology, entertainment and sport scale new business models, evolve products, shape positioning and reframe their relevancy in line with rapidly evolving consumer behaviours, cultural trends and commercial realities. As they join the Brave Bison universe, we become “uniquely positioned to help tomorrow’s super brands capitalise on complexity,” as our CEO and Executive Chairman Oli Green puts it.       Operating alongside but independently from our existing marketing and technology divisions, MTM will form our new insights and consultancy division. This will combine MTM’s depth of industry knowledge and breadth of research methodologies with our agile operating model and proprietary AI tooling across Brave Bison, SocialChain and Engage Digital Partners.      Welcome to the herd team MTM! We can’t wait to get started together on this new chapter. 🤝    Read more here: https://lnkd.in/ejHDNS93

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IPA Bellwether: 16 marketers on balancing short-term and long-term goals UK marketing budgets saw the fastest expansion in a year during Q2 2025, with a net balance increase of 5.5%, reversing the Q1 decline of -4.8%, according to the latest IPA (Institute of Practitioners in Advertising) Bellwether report. The rebound was driven largely by short-term channels like sales promotions and direct marketing, which both hit their highest net balances in over a year. PMW spoke to a panel of marketing experts on how to balance tactical gains with long-term brand building and why over-reliance on short-term tactics could limit future growth in a still-uncertain economic landscape. Read on via the link in the comments. With insights from: Digge Zetterberg Odh Frontify Rachel Macey Kantar Media Owen Hanks Measure Protocol Victoria Usher GingerMay Sam Panzer Talon.One Will Frappell Charlie Oscar Dan Brink UniLED Software Paul Samuels AEG Daniel Todaro Gekko Dean Nagib Azerion Lauren Maynard FutureBrand Marko Johns Seedtag Harry Darlington Medialab Group Chris Daly CIM | The Chartered Institute of Marketing Sara Vincent Utiq Adam Biddle GH05T #performancemarketing #IPAbellwether #data #adtech #brand

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Given the grim revelation that large, well-known agencies including Stagwell have been polishing the image of genocide (follow the brilliant Zoe Scaman and The Drum for updates on this), it’s more important than ever to ensure partnership decisions are made on the right factors - and made together as a team. To help make this possible, we’re sharing our Here I Am Studio Ethics Assessment Tool. It’s a practical framework designed to help us evaluate potential partners or projects against clear criteria. It: ⛔ Starts with automatic exclusions including genocide, labour exploitation, surveillance and capitalism. 📈 Scores projects across areas like systemic impact, involvement of affected communities, and whether the work would legitimise harm or drive positive change 🚦Produces a clear outcome: ✅ Accept | ⚠ Conditional | ⛔ Decline We encourage teams to complete it together, take the time to ensure you are using accurate information, and use the output as a guide, not a hard go / no go rule. Some projects - like polishing the image of genocide - are a clear red line and easy to rule out. But others are murkier, harder to unpack. That’s where this tool can help: guiding discussion, weighing concerns against potential positive outcomes, and giving teams a structured and collaborative way to decide together. So, if you don't already have an ethical assessment framework - take ours! And, if you have any questions on how to use it, or ideas for making it better, please do let us know. https://lnkd.in/efHZC2RF

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UK ad spend is rising faster than the economy. The latest Advertising Association / WARC Expenditure Report has dropped and it shows that adspend is up 8% in Q1 2025, led by growth in search (+12.3%) and online display (+10.1%). That gap says a lot about where marketers are placing their bets: short-term performance, measurable outcomes, and formats that can flex with shifting priorities. It also reflects the pressure brands are under. With sluggish GDP growth and tighter scrutiny on budgets, advertisers are looking for ways to do more with less - reallocating spend toward agile, efficient digital channels. But that shift only works if the underlying infrastructure can support it. Without full visibility into how spend is delivered and what value it returns, performance-led buying can quickly become performance assumed buying. That’s where transparent, efficient programmatic systems make a real difference. When every impression is trackable and every pound accountable, brands can react faster, spend smarter, and build trust into every transaction. More ad spend isn’t the full story, how that spend works is what really matters. Read the full AA/WARC Expenditure Report here: https://lnkd.in/eermZHYX

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