In a hyper-connected world, it feels like everything previously ‘insider’ is more available than ever: from behind-the-scenes access to the lives of public figures to travel experiences immersing people into worlds previously deemed unattainable. But while people embrace this community-based inclusivity and u...

Once a signifier of luxury or novelty, custom products and services are now within reach of the everyday consumer, thanks to the rise of artificial intelligence, algorithm-led platforms, and the COVID-era digitisation boom. Today, everyone wants to be the main character of their brand experience.

The success of ad campaigns is often measured by how many people see them. ButThe Wall Street Journal’s ‘Ambitious Hours’ campaign took a different route, exclusively targeting people with specific lifestyle choices – meaning the only people who saw it were the people that mattered.

Demographics have long been used to target advertising, but the internet has enabled ‘behavioural targeting’, based on the online behaviour of a user. A new study has shown that being flattered by the reasons we’ve been targeted for an ad may actually make us more likely to open our wallets.

It doesn’t matter what income you’re on, everyone spends in the struggle for status. From make-up to man-bags, protein shakes to plastic surgery, jewellery to private jets – we all splash cash in the name of vanity. And new research shows that these purchases could be worth as much as $4.5 trillion.

Selfies ruin trips to galleries, interrupt nights out, and feed an unhealthy preoccupation with looks. But they’re also being used to champion the individual and non-mainstream beauty. As brands launch selfie campaigns, can they engage audiences in a way that’s helpful, not harmful?