This is a challenging and difficult time for everyone. We’re experiencing change beyond all bounds of any definition of ‘normal’. And it's especially hard when as the leader you are the one who's responsible for navigating your business through these turbulent waters.

Tried and tested best practice will make the best of whatever economic and political situation a business finds itself in - including the extraordinary circumstances we find ourselves facing due to the Covid-19 outbreak.

This year’s SXSW and Mobile World Congress, two of the largest networking events in the world, have been cancelled due to the spread of coronavirus. Massive brands like Facebook, Adobe and IBM have also announced that their annual conferences will be happening online instead of in-person. This situation is constantly changing.

The term 'marketing' is so commonly misused that Malcolm Johnston, one of our Marketing Directors in the UK, felt strongly to get everybody on the same page. Marketing can be looked at as an iceberg, where a small part of the outcome from analysis and planning is what we can see and that visible bit is known to marketers as the promotional mix. Yet, due to this element (which includes PR, direct mail and advertising) can be the most expensive bit of marketing, it catches the attention (and ire) of finance directors and ill-informed multiple pressure groups. Marketing is a lot more complex than promotion and is, both a function and philosophy within a business.

Should you outsource your business’ marketing or keep it in-house?  You may assume that we would answer this question with a solid ‘outsource your marketing to marketing experts’. But here’s where we might surprise you.  Marketing encompasses everything a organisation does to push sales and promote its brand; from advertising to direct marketing to digital marketing, market research, PR, product development - even distribution methods.