Monthly Archives: January 2009

Irish consumers will spend €92.5 billion this year, that’s according to the latest Central Bank forecasts. It’s a lot of money – but not as much as last year (€94.4 billion). One curious aspect of Irish consumer spending is how … Continue reading →

It’s tough for Irish retailers right now. Very tough. The latest CSO Retail Sales Index shows the volume of sales falling by -8.1% in November 2008 year-on-year. Some of this is due to a mixture of cross-border shopping, competition and … Continue reading →

At last, an application to connect digital natives with digital reclusives. Facebook are trialling a delightful application called Send With Peggy whereby young people on Facebook can write a post card online and a real one is then posted (free, … Continue reading →

A short history of advertising in three minutes and thirty seconds flat: The message: the biggest challenge facing brands today is relevance …

For those of you struggling to connect your corporate social responsibility agenda with the business challenges of a recession then here is an inspiring story. It’s from Starbucks, who have used the inauguration of the 44th President to launch a … Continue reading →

The latest Consumer Price Index (pdf) for December 2008 is good news for consumers and income earners: though probably not for the businesses selling to them. The fall back in inflation is quite extraordinary: from a little over 5% in … Continue reading →

This might save a euro or two for the Health Service Executive: just let all the doctors and consultants interact with patients directly online. The idea is called ZocDoc and it works as follows: Users simply search for the type … Continue reading →

Here’s one phenomenon bound to thrive in the recession (hat tip: Advertising Pawn) Video Gaming Trends View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own. (tags: marketing advertising)

A healthy reminder that there’s life beyond the recession – and lots (and lots) of business opportunities out there: via Future Lab

Here’s one to cheer you up – why marketers should have bigger budgets in a recession, with the numbers to justify it. Enjoy! Ads on Edge View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own. (tags: branding recession)