Mumbrella’s best opinion pieces of 2017
From LinkedIn Thunk Leaders to programmatic to the Gentlemen's Gin Club, there was a lot to have an opinion about in 2017.
Embrace the chaos – success doesn’t mean being a eunuch in a suit
Marketer – and former Mumbrella staffer – Cathie McGinn argues that the professional world has more to learn from the happy toddler in the BBC blooper than her stressed dad in his suit.
What’s going wrong in the world of advertising
McDonald’s, Dove and Pepsi all made significant missteps in 2017, but what was driving these spectacular fails? In this guest post, Adam Ferrier tries to uncover why brands are out-of-step with consumers.
An open letter to marketers: it’s up to you to save the media industry now
Mainstream media is close to crisis point, with revenues drying up and quality content in shorter supply than ever. Mumbrella’s Alex Hayes argues it’s time for advertisers to take some responsibility for resolving the problem.
How would you spin that? Don’t spin it, bin it
Back in July, Mumbrella reported on a pilot episode of a new Gruen-style public relations TV show ‘How Would You Spin That?’ Eleven’s Fee Townshend says it should go straight in the bin.
With the sacking of Alex Malley, Australia’s biggest content marketing experiment has failed
With the ignominious departure of Alex Malley from CPA Australia, Australia’s biggest and most expensive content marketing project has come to a drastic end. Unless they’re the founder, brands built around a CEO are a bad idea, argues Mumbrella’s Tim Burrowes.
The slow, painful death of a press release in 22 days
An anonymous digital marketer details the bureaucratic hoops a press release has to jump through before it can be released, stale and no longer newsworthy, to the world.
Leaving creativity to the creatives is a bad way to do business
When you’re not part of the exclusive creative club, getting your ideas heard can be challenging. Former agency suit Sarah Bailey states her case for why creativity shouldn’t end in the creative department.
Why The Gentleman’s Gin Club is not just ‘a group of mates having a drink’ but a symbol of the industry’s woes
The tone deaf example set by industry leaders with The Gentleman’s Gin Club is yet another own goal for an industry struggling to get to grips with issues around diversity, argued Mumbrella’s Alex Hayes.
From agency, to ad exchange, to publisher – every link in the programmatic chain is broken
Dodgy ads, baffled clients, impoverished publishers and an industry-wide existential crisis. Mumbrella’s Tim Burrowes argues the promise of programmatic advertising is dead.
Shifting our attitudes towards gender is the key to true ‘disruption’
Amongst the sea of creatives brandishing words like ‘disruptor’ around, there’s one simple way to innovate that Australian businesses appear to be missing: shifting their perception of gender. Bec Brideson explains.
My $18,000 journalism degree was a waste of time
Paul Maland is about to graduate with a Bachelor of Journalism, but $18,000 in HECS fees later, he argues he could have learnt the important information from a one-hour YouTube video and saved himself a lot of time.
How to be a Thunk Leader on LinkedIn
Wish to burn your personal brand into people’s brains? Nick Snelling reveals every tip and trick, laid out in quintessential listicle form.
