The blog

Koen Pauwels is a distinguished marketing professor at Northeastern University in Boston and BI Norwegian Business School. His passion for data and analytics has led him to the road of research and experiments, which have let him discover new insights in marketing productivity, metrics and social media. “As a kid, I loved pouring over maps, hiking through nature and playing with my compass. Just like the mission in Star Trek, I wanted to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations... but then I realized that all new lands had been explored and I turned my attention to the new worlds of science...” Today, we can find his work in numerous marketing journals, such as Journal of Advertising Research, Journal of Interactive Marketing, Marketing Science and Management Science. Eager to share his insights, he has also authored a book on modeling markets and on using these insights to improve decisions: It’s not the Size of the Data, It’s How You Use it: Smarter Marketing with Analytics and Dashboards*. “Today, I still feel a bit of that explorer in me. I get to peer into an industry and ask challenging questions, then go out and unearth the answers, to go where no marketing professor has ever gone before.”

In the first article of the VoiceTech series: ‘Voice Technology: more than a buzzword?’ the basics of this new and exciting technology were discussed. In the second article, ‘Why you should start with Voice commerce today’, we took a deeper dive into Voice commerce and elaborated on why you should start with it today. In this third and last article in our Voice Technology series we will explore the ‘how to’ side of Voice Technology and guide you through the first steps you can take to start seizing the opportunities that this exciting technology brings to the table. But let’s first take a step back and look at the bigger picture, and how can we do this better than with a short history class?

In the first article of the VoiceTech series: ‘Voice Technology: more than a buzzword?’ the basics of this new and exciting technology were discussed. In this second article, we go one step further and dive into the commercialization possibilities. Do consumers already buy goods or services via their Smart Speaker? And if so, how is their purchasing behavior? Should you choose to be present on Amazon’s or Google’s ecosystem? Or both?

‘Voice-activated technology goes mainstream’, headlines Chief Marketer. ‘There is no denying that voice is the future’, claims PWC. ‘Voice Technology is transforming our lives and businesses’, announces Forbes. ‘Voice Tech is taking over the world’, according to Huffington Post. Unless you've lived on another planet for the past year, there is no way you could have missed the hype around Voice Technology. Voice assistants are everywhere. Google already announced in 2016 that 20 percent of all searches have a voice intent. This is a number that keeps on growing. According to ComScore, 50% of searches will be done without a screen by 2020. Is this true? Should you be excited? Or worried? Is it the next big revolution or is it just another buzzword, soon to be forgotten? Let’s find out.

New technologies such as Artificial Senses and Virtual Reality are here to stay, and they will change our world dramatically. According to Ray kurzweil, leading innovator and futurist, "the pace of change will be so astonishingly quick that we won't be able to keep up, unless we enhance our own intelligence by merging with the intelligent machines we are creating”. Inspired by his visit to SuperNova, THoMers Florence and Laetitia listed 5 trends and technologies to watch.

Dear marketer, Are you actively working on the triple bottom line (Planet – People – Profit) of your products/services? I strongly believe that this is your responsibility as a marketer.

For this year’s ‘Weekend van de Klant/du Client’, a handful of grateful THoMers came up with a message we can’t wait to share with you. We hope this one makes you smile and thanks a million for achieving great marketing results together! Now… time to sit back and hit play:

Last week, THoMers got immersed in the latest technology at the SuperNova festival in Antwerp. Let’s call it the Tomorrowland for professionals, entrepreneurs, creatives, researchers, innovators and investors looking to connect, get inspired and empowered by technology and innovation. For whom tomorrow is unstoppable! SuperNova really was a one-of-a-kind immersive experience where visionary solutions, technologies and cross-industry insights came together.

Employees have become highly valuable actors in terms of social media and their impact on companies. Indeed, they can increasingly boost marketing, communication, sales and HR business results. Knowing the benefits companies can obtain by having their employees engaged on social media, they are highly recommended to develop employee advocacy programs that provide a focus point for all social media brand ambassadors.

Have you ever thought about plastic pollution while swimming in the sea? Pondered about slavery while enjoying a chocolate bar? Reflected on food waste while eating out at a restaurant? Although most people don’t consider world challenges while going about their day-to-day activities, these kept Boyan Slat, Teun Van de Keuken and Lucie Basch awake at night. The 3 entrepreneurs decided to take action and (co-)founded The Ocean Cleanup, Tony’s Chocolonely and Too Good To Go. Let’s find out how these start-ups have provided self-sufficient solutions to world-threatening challenges. In addition, we explain the advantages of a start-up structure and demonstrate why every company, regardless of its growth phase, should invest in sustainable entrepreneurship.