What’s a Brand to do in 2022 Part 2 - with Oxford’s Giles Martin; SNL Alums Reunite; Podcasts Bigger Than You Thought; Audio Time Machine Discovered

Last week Oxford Road’s EVP, Strategy & Insights, Giles Martin shared Part 1 of his take on what marketers must think about as we dive into the next year; covering the areas of growing environmental interest, impacts of the post-pandemic work/life balance, and recent strides in attribution. This week, Giles brings it home with the final half of his analysis, the last chapters of his opus.

It Is The Worst Of Times,
It Is The Best of Times (Part 2)

4. The Collapse of the Funnel

2022 should see significant steps in the coming together of brand and eCommerce, in various guises. For brands that are not eCommerce natives, this is a major initiative and concern, with recent Gartner research indicating that optimization of digital commerce is the number one priority in terms of allocating marketing budget (12.3% of budgets, on average). Not surprising, perhaps, given the explosion in eCommerce and digital media use since the lockdowns.

Perhaps more immediately relevant for our clients, this trend can also be seen in systemic shifts in the way the media industry is coming to market, particularly retail media, which has traditionally focused squarely on performance. Now some retail platforms see an opportunity to close the loop between brand advertising and purchase, driving a new phase of growth…

Read the full piece HERE.

The Classifieds

The Other Wild and Crazy Guys

Live, from Los Angeles, it’s a new podcast! Saturday Night Live alums Dana Carvey and David Spade are hosting a brand new podcast with Cadence 13, to be launched this upcoming January. Originators of Church Lady and The Hollywood Minute, Carvey and Spade were seminal figures in the 90s era of SNL alongside icons like Adam Sandler, Chris Farley, and Phil Hartman. The duo has reunited to bring us exclusive interviews with SNL’s writers, band members, guests, and cast members in a bid to understand and appreciate the 50-year-old sketch comedy institution. Sure to have countless celebrity interviews and honorific odes to comedy legends past, this podcast is most likely to do well for an older skew client base seeking humor, and is open for testing in 2022. Hopefully, you will think of this show and say, “Well, isn’t that special,” before you seek details below.

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No Angels Earning Wings Here

Have you ever rolled your eyes instead of rolling out the wrapping paper? If so this is the podcast for you. Back for their annual 12 episode season, comedians Ashley Flowers, Holly Laurent, & Greg Hess look through holiday newsletters from very real friends and family to create intricate, hypothetical backstories that cut through cheery facades and obvious backhanded compliments. Adlarge’s hosts comb through Facebook posts, mailed letters, and emails, making for a show that is chock full of festive fun and seasonal sarcasm. Several of our clients who were looking for comedy opportunities in December have already booked, and there’s still time to test. If you are unwilling to venture all the way to the North Pole for a great holiday deal, just click the link below.

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In Case You Missed It

Podcast Interest Bigger Than You Thought

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Roadmap to 2022 Social Media 

So you’ve heard from Oxford Road’s experts on what to consider for 2022 in audio and video, but many of our readers are quite heavily locked into Social Media partnerships which, while not our primary focus, is something we monitor. This week, SocialMediaExaminer.com shared their list of predictions from 21 top marketing experts who share their predictions to help you prepare your Social Media marketing plans for 2022.

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(Great) Grandpa, What Did 1921 Sound Like?

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This Week in Great Podcast Reads

A Cycling Ad Read with a Competitive Edge

With so many self-proclaimed experts out these days, we’ll never be hard up for information on any subject or hobby.  While it can all be very daunting to sift through, a true connoisseur, like Craig Dalton on his podcast The Gravel Ride, is not hard to spot. As the name suggests, The Gravel Ride focuses on the many aspects of modern gravel cycling. It’ll get you up to speed on the sport if you’re new to it, especially with ad reads like this one for Competitive Cyclist, an online specialty retailer of all-things biking, with a testimonial that’s integrated into the show so naturally, you’d think it was just another segment. You can’t get next-level substantiation like this just anywhere.

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