Over four in five marketers say leadership expect more with less
Over four in five (81%) marketers say their business’s leadership expects them to deliver more with fewer resources.
Despite the increased pressure being piled on marketers, many do not feel empowered by their organisation to deliver. Just under a fifth (19%) say they spend more time reporting than executing, while 21% say they are stuck justifying their work instead of actually doing it.
Marketers also report feeling they are at a distance from where decisions are made. Three in four (75%) say business leadership makes key decisions without consulting those closest to the action.
There is also a feeling that too much complexity exists in modern marketing. Nearly one in five (17%) marketers say their business does not fully understand the complexity of modern marketing, while 16% feel under constant pressure to prove the value of their work. Meanwhile, 15% believe too much marketing has become unmeasurable.
Source: Optimizely
Nestlé named most valuable food brand for 10th year
Nestlé has been named the most valuable food and drink brand globally for the 10th year running, according to research from Brand Finance.
According to the figures, the food giant has a brand value of $20bn, and despite having experienced a 4% decline versus last year, remains over $7bn more valuable than the brand in second place, Lay’s, which has a brand value of $12.7bn.
Coca-Cola is the most valuable non-alcoholic drinks brand, according to the Brand Finance figures. Its brand value increased by 32% versus 2024 to $46.3bn. Coca-Cola’s brand value is more than double that of the second most valuable non-alcoholic drinks brand, Pepsi, which has a brand value of $22.bn (up 12% from last year).
Brand Finance makes its calculation of brand value by calculating the net economic benefit that a brand owner might achieve by licensing the brand in the open market. It also estimates brand strength, which aims to capture the efficacy of a brand’s performance on intangible measures relative to its competitors.
As well as emerging as the most valuable brand in the non-alcoholic drinks category, Coca-Cola was also ranked as the strongest brand within this segment, with a Brand Strength Index (BSI) score of 93.4 out of 100.
Brand Finance identified chocolate brand Lindt as a “brand to watch”. The chocolatier ranks among the top 10 most valuable food brands globally and the top six strongest food brands. The research also looks at brands’ ability to command a price premium. Lindt scores a 10 out of 10 on “price acceptance” in key markets including the UK, Germany, France, Spain and Switzerland.
Source: Brand Finance
Interest in women’s football jumps following England victory
The proportion of adults in England who say they are interested in women’s football has jumped following the Lionesses’ victory in the Euros last month.
Just under three in 10 (31%) adults in England say they are at least fairly interested in women’s football, up significantly from 17% before the Euros. The proportion saying they are very interested has doubled from 4% before the tournament to 8%.
The uptick in interest is particularly prominent among women. Around one in three (30%) women say they are at least fairly interested in women’s football, up from 13% before the Euros. This means that interest in women’s football among women has more than doubled following the Euros.
The research from YouGov also tracked a smaller increase in interest in football more generally, from 35% to 40%. The gap between adults in England who are at least fairly interested in football generally versus those at least fairly interested in women’s football has narrowed since the Euros (from 35% versus 17% before, to 40% versus 31% post-tournament).
Whether this increased interest in women’s football will persist in the months following the major tournament remains to be seen. Across the 2023 Women’s World Cup tournament, YouGov tracked a similar uptick in interest in women’s football, with 34% of English people saying they were at least fairly interested after the final, where Spain beat England, up from 21% at the start of the tournament.
Source: YouGov
Summer fails to bring about retail footfall boost
July failed to bring about any boost in shopper numbers for retailers, with total UK retail footfall decreasing by 0.4% year-over-year.
This drop was more modest than the 1.8% decrease seen in June, but still presents bad news for retail brands looking for any boost from the summer. It was the second consecutive year in which footfall in July has dropped.
High streets and retail parks saw the biggest drop in footfall, with each seeing 1.7% drops in July versus the previous year. Shopping centres recorded a more modest decline of 0.3% in the month.
Footfall in Wales moderately increased in July, by 0.3%. However, England, Scotland and Northern Ireland all saw declining footfall. Footfall in England fell by 0.3%, there was a 1.3% drop in Scotland, and the largest decrease of 3.0% in Northern Ireland.
Source: BRC-Sensormatic
Over half of US consumers say tariffs will impact holiday spending
Over half (51%) of US consumers say the current tariff situation will have a moderate or significant impact on their spending over the holiday season.
Electronics, toys and groceries for holiday meals are the product categories consumers believe tariffs will have the strongest impact on. Indeed, half (50%) of consumers say tariffs will have a “strong” impact on electronics. Just 4% believe tariffs will have no impact on this category.
US consumers see categories like alcohol or spirits and beauty and personal care as being less likely to be affected by tariffs. However, even in the alcohol category, 62% of consumers say tariffs are likely to have a strong (28%) or moderate (34%) impact.
Perhaps due to uncertainty around tariffs, many shoppers are planning their shopping ahead of time. Almost half (47%) of US shoppers say they are starting their holiday shopping earlier to spread out their spending, while 46% say they are planning to take advantage of deals earlier in the year. Overall, 87% US shoppers say they are planning to start their holiday shopping at the same time or earlier than last year.
Source: Assembly
