South Africa’s retail economy runs on predictable rhythms and nowhere is this more visible than in the country’s mid-market malls. Far from being discretionary or ‘nice-to-have’ shopping destinations, these centres serve as essential retail hubs for millions of South Africans who shop close to home, commute through connected commuter nodes and make frequent visits that sustain local economies. Retail accounts for [...]
Tara Turkington, CEO of Flow Communications, asks: What’s the point of using an agency? It’s a provocative question, but one that every organisation and agency needs to grapple with. The traditional model – where agencies operated as siloed service providers, responding to briefs and delivering outputs – is being disrupted. The world we work in today demands something different: integrated, agile [...]
As South African retailers prepare for the most lucrative period of the year, key insights show that businesses focusing solely on Black Friday and Christmas are missing out on significant revenue opportunities. The Digital Media Collective’s (TDMC’s) analysis reveals that successful peak season campaigns should span multiple high-impact periods rather than focusing on single events. The extended peak season now spans [...]
For decades, retail has been a fallback option rather than a destination. Yet this is the sector that employs almost one in five South Africans and contributes significantly to GDP. Behind these impressive numbers, however, lies a stark gap: more than three-quarters of the customer-facing workforce have no formal or transferable retail qualifications. The result has been chronic skills shortages, uneven [...]
The continent is in the midst of a profound shift in how entertainment and media (E&M) is created, consumed and monetised. This is according to PwC’s latest Africa Entertainment and Media Outlook – Perspectives Report 2025–2029. The report reveals that Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa are not only outperforming global benchmarks but are also redefining the future of media through mobile-first [...]
With online content becoming more dazzling by the day, it’s getting harder to wow people and harder still to make content that leaves any kind of lasting impression. Add to that the growing trend towards screen fatigue and digital detoxing, and the message is clear: if brands want to stand out, digital-only is not the way. But pairing it with a [...]
Unilever South Africa is a Bronze Sponsor of this year’s WesBank New Generation Awards. As a proud media sponsor of the awards, Modern Marketing interviewed Tamryn Taylor, Head of Marketing / Demand Generation: Beauty, Well-Being and Personal Care at Unilever, about its support for the awards, how to create the most impactful marketing campaigns, influencer marketing trends, and more. Why does [...]
Icandi CQ says PR professionals are the ones who keep brands human, relevant and credible in an increasingly tech-driven and fast-paced world. So, how do we stay ahead in an ever-evolving landscape? Challenge 1: Influencer Fatigue – Authenticity Over Sponsorships Influencer marketing has been a key component of modern communication strategies for some time now, but audiences are growing weary. They’ve [...]
With platforms such as ChatGPT becoming pretty much ubiquitous in the past few years, generative artificial intelligence (AI) has moved swiftly from the realm of science fiction into everyday reality. It already plays a big role in the advertising industry, with estimates putting the global market revenue of AI usage in marketing at around $47 billion in 2025. We may expect younger [...]
In the ever-evolving marketing landscape, few channels have sparked as much hype, and scrutiny, as influencer marketing. The Nedbank IMC interviewed Tami Ruschin, Founder and Director at Style ID Africa, a bespoke influencer agency and Nedbank IMC partner, to get her industry insights on this tricky but critical marketing channel. 1. What Makes Influencer Marketing Valuable? Influencer marketing can be an [...]