Varian: Say what to do, not what it is

This weekend I decided to clean my paper files. Tucked in between my notes on refining your research questions, or writing a PhD thesis, I came across this 2001 article by Hal Varian with writing advice. The article has various useful tips, both general advice about writing, and specific advice about writing three different types of … Continue reading Varian: Say what to do, not what it is

Protecting the rights of children as consumers of digital technology

There is a new initiative in the UK, the iRights, proposing guiding principles for the design and operation of digital spaces used by children, so that these young users of digital technology can fully benefit from the opportunities presented by digital technologies. I think that these principles are really helpful in moving the debate away … Continue reading Protecting the rights of children as consumers of digital technology

Our surveillance book has been featured on TV programme ‘Going Underground’

The Russia Today TV programme, Going Underground, has covered the book “The Private Security State - Surveillance, Consumer Data and the War on Terror”, in some depth. As you may remember, this book is the product of a large research project sponsored by The Leverhulme Trust, and led by Professor Kirstie Ball at the Open … Continue reading Our surveillance book has been featured on TV programme ‘Going Underground’

Young children’s use of tablets and mobile apps

The University of Sheffield has released the early findings from an ongoing study looking at the use of tablets and apps by children aged up to 5 years old. You can learn more about the project, and download the report, here. Some aspects of the study are debatable (e.g., the classification of the apps mixes … Continue reading Young children’s use of tablets and mobile apps

July 2015 round-up

July was a strange month, and yet very typical of this time of the year. I returned to my teaching and managerial responsibilities following the end of the sabbatical (including an office move), attended the Academy of Marketing Conference in Ireland, and had annual leave. My #5pm pictures tell a great story about this … Continue reading July 2015 round-up

RyanAir CMO says: It’s not cheap. It’s smart.

What do RyanAir, Aldi, Ikea, H&M and Amazon have in common? According to Kenny Jacobs, Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) at RyanAir, these are all brands that appeal to customers because they allow them to spend money smartly. It is less about “The brand is cheap. The customers are skint”. More about “The brand is … Continue reading RyanAir CMO says: It’s not cheap. It’s smart.

June 2015 round-up

All good things come to an end, and the sabbatical was no exception. As of July 1st, sabbatical consummatum est. As I entered the final month of my sabbatical, I told myself that I ought to not stop being on sabbatical before it was over. And, that was exactly what I did: June was a … Continue reading June 2015 round-up

Studying sentiment on Twitter is… complicated

Emotions are key to explain and anticipate consumer behaviour, and sentiment analysis offers marketers a way of measuring and summarising those emotions. Emotions displayed on social media conversations, in particular, are very appealing for research, as these platforms offer many opportunities to listen to the conversations in real time, with minimum disruption for the individuals … Continue reading Studying sentiment on Twitter is… complicated

Consumer Data and the ‘War on Terror’

The book that I co-authored with Kirstie Ball, Elizabeth Daniel, Sally Dibb, Maureen Meadows and Keith Spiller, has been featured in 'Research Reporter', the research newsletter of the Faculty of Business at Oxford Brookes University. The original article is here. Transcript below in case the link does not work for you. Surveillance, consumer data and … Continue reading Consumer Data and the ‘War on Terror’