Digital Marketing

As consumer adoption of smartphones and tablets in the United States reaches critical mass, retailers are eagerly looking for ways to optimize their digital marketing campaigns across various devices. And, 40 percent plan to hire for open positions in marketing analytics in 2013, reflecting the need to wrestle down volumes of marketing data to create more effective interactions and an improved customer experience.

Unilever is extending its remit to cover digital display communications for Dove women, and to lead work on digital infrastructure and integration.

In a time when your brand's social media fanbase seems to mean everything, an interesting new survey from Forrester supports the notion that trust, and not buzz, is the key to building a strong brand. A survey of of 4,500 consumers showed that household name CPG brands did, in fact, outrank upstart brands. Find out which brands came out on top.

As we enter the second half of the year, the editors of CGT revisited the headiness that you read most. What do they tell us? You love a good list, especially if it predicts consumer trends OR ranks competitive products. Let us know what you think of these articles in retrospect. Did market predictions made ring true? Do the leading products still lead? Did key consumer trends take off or taper off? And what do you expect in the second half of 2013?

K'NEX partners with Export Now with plans to launch new products to the China market on a quarterly basis.

Philips partners with Indiegogo to host crowd funded campaigns; Philips to award $100,000 plus mentoring to the top ideas.

The viral contest developed by @WalmartLabs returns, offering more opportunities for American businesses and entrepreneurs to sell their products to millions of new customers.

More than 200 executives from leading consumer goods and retail organizations worked together to focus on how the industry can bring benefits to consumers through collaborative initiatives. The effort was triggered by the significant changes in society, consumer behavior, the environment and technology. In the end, two megatrends and three action plans emerged.