What was your first job?
My first job was as a lifeguard, red shorts and all.
Which gadget can’t you live without?
My Kindle, I spend so much of my free time reading everything I can lay my hands on.
What inspires you?
I am inspired by people’s ability to change. The world around us (not just retail or marketing) moves forward with such pace and energy that we need to always be better than yesterday just to stand still. That’s what drives me to do what I do every day.
What is going to be the biggest innovation for 2020?
The way we measure performance. Cookies are becoming increasingly irrelevant; attribution models are not the panacea we were led to believe. As an industry, we need to focus on the right measurement metrics to make sure that businesses continue to grow in a world where micro-measurement is becoming cloudier. Unlocking this in 2020 will help brands to grow and free themselves from their current measurement paralysis.
Your favourite brand, and why?
I am a typical male shopper – once I find a brand I like I buy in bulk and never stray far. At the moment my wardrobe contains not much else than Levi’s jeans and Blundstone boots.
Best ad campaign of all time?
I think the milk marketing board did a great job in the 80s. Even now, whenever I drink milk I still can’t help saying “who are they?”. I’m sure lots of ad campaigns are still remembered fondly 30 years on but I can’t think of any others that were so simple (or so low budget).
What is the single biggest thing retailers need to focus on for success in the current climate?
Ensuring they understand how much they should be spending to acquire a new customer and then spending it. If a brand ever stops recruiting enough new customers, even in uncertain times, they can never be as strong as they were yesterday.
Kevin Davis has over 20 years of experience in the retail sector, both in consultancy and client side roles, ranging from small start-ups to FTSE 100 retailers. Kevin is passionate about ensuring all analytics is truly actionable by our clients and that no matter how complicated the question is, the answer should always be simple and understandable.
