Mikael Friis

I love data. I also enjoy staying healthy, so I’ve joined the two things I enjoy the most and put together a Health Stack for myself. And isn’t the most important “business”, your body? A healthy body and mind are essential to one’s well-being. Granted, the mind is a bit too hard to run casual diagnostics on, so for now I’ll keep monitoring and setting Growth plans for my body. The setup I’m using and describing in this post are all beginner level and there are definitely better technologies out there, but as any Marketer, we can’t always invest in the top programs from the start, but will have to learn by trial and replace as we get along.    Testing is in the fore-front of everything I do.   The Marketing Stack A marketing stack is a group of technologies that marketers leverage to execute, analyse and enhance their marketing activities. A company’s chosen marketing stack is often quite different as each app/technology serves its own purpose that allows compan...

Many people will probably look at the title and be perplexed, because why would you not brand your own direct response campaigns? Isn’t that the purpose; Not only to generate sales but build the brand to support retention? I would completely understand their point of view. On the other hand, there are huge advantages by running unbranded DR campaigns. First off, you are not limited to brand guidelines. Secondly, it’s easier to run Black Hat campaigns…. (Yes, I mentioned “BLACK HAT” and it sounds grim, but it doesn’t have to be).   If you have ever run a Black Hat initiative, you will know that they can be hugely successful (often only in the short run). They tend to have an expiry date just when the performance peaks.     Not Sticking to Brand guidelines Brand guidelines are in place for a reason, a very good reason to be honest. If Coca-Cola started using Pepsi colours in their marketing, this would confuse the consumer. If they started using a tone of voice ...

I remember playing around with QR codes back in 2016. The possibilities for this technology saw no limits. A few larger brands included it in their big-budget campaigns and then... nothing. It wasn't adopted by the people. Following, it was always kind of added as an after-thought on out-of-house advertising banners. Sometimes completely unimaginative with a link-out to the company's frontpage.  So what is the reason for this post? An ode to a fallen technology? ON THE CONTRARY Due to recent world events (read COVID-19) the technology has been dusted off.  The UK population is being re-educated on how to use QR codes by frequently being prompted by the NHS covid-app to use their phone to scan in public places. 👩‍🏫 According to a study by the European Journal of Social Psychology from 2010, it was found that it usually takes between 18 and 254 to form a new habit. It was also concluded that it takes about 66 days for a habit to become automatic 🔁 By 28 September 2020, 12.4 m...

Are you building an e-mail list but not sure where to get started? Look no further! By extracting publicly listed e-mail addresses you can get super targeted prospects in minutes.  This is nothing different than visiting a website and taking down contact details. By following this guide you are simply automating the gathering process.  DISCLAIMER: I don't take responsibility for the use of the data gathered. Make sure to use the data in accordance with local laws. Combine this with locations and LinkedIn job-titles and the e-mail list is getting hot!   To shed some light of the possibilities with this technique, see the suggested build below (if you just want to test right away, scroll down to -  Type this in Google )   intitle:[ *JOBTITLES* ] " *LOCATION* " [" *E-MAIL PROVI DERS* "] -intitle:"profiles" -inurl:"dir/" site: *LOCAL LINKEDIN SITE* JOBTITLES: CEO, CFO, COO, Manager, Head Of, Doctor etc.   LOCATION: Germany, London, New York, Del...

Consider you want to generate leads online and your preferred marketing channel is Facebook. Targeting and creatives are catered for, but you are unsure of the data collection process. The main objective is to get leads that are likely to convert at the lowest possible price. How should you proceed? As always there is no right answer to this, however there are certain things to consider before deciding on a lead gen model. Let’s start looking at each of the models and the pros and cons associated with using them. Lead ads By far the easiest setup. No website required. Facebook lead ads hold the lowest barrier to entry. All that is needed is a Facebook page and access to an ad account.   PROS Less friction: People don’t have to leave Facebook to submit their information.  Pre-populated form: Essential details (i.e. name, e-mail, phone number) will be populated by Facebook. From being served the ad, it is possible to submit data with only 2 clicks.     F...

Image by A3DigitalStudio from Pixabay The learnings of this post are mostly personal. Sometimes we need to open up about the times we did not meet the expectations of others and acknowledge that we could have done better. The event below is a prime example of a situation were I didn't live up to my managerial role. “When you make a mistake, there are three things you should ever do about it: admit it, learn from it, and don’t repeat it.” – Paul “bear” Bryant My team and I were working on a large campaign for an international client with a large budget (million+). The project was exhilarating and everyone were determined to deliver world class results. The scale of the campaign was greater than a team of our size would normally handle, but our Director ensured us; if we just worked hard, we would be able to deliver. Not long in this campaign, something TERRIBLE happened. Some of the budgets for the social channels were mixed up and campaigns were set live, resulting in ...