Milo is a content writer and editor for Signal. He spends his days crafting high-calibre content with readers and results in mind.

As 2018 comes to an end, and we look back on the last twelve months, what really stands out is the central role data has played not only in the world of marketing, but also on the world stage.

Access to users’ data has given big brands unprecedented power (if they have the processes and expertise in place to harness it properly). And yes, with that comes great responsibility.

Of course, compliance was very much on marketers’ minds in the lead-up to the GDPR deadline in May. The new regulations were complex and somewhat open to interpretation.  As many brands scrambled to ensure their internal and external processes met the necessary requirements, our inboxes were flooded with last minute privacy policies and slightly desperate sounding pleas to opt-in again. And then everyone let out a big sigh of relief when it was all over.

It’s safe to say however that GDPR will continue to have an impact in 2019 and beyond. Writing on May 25th, the day the new laws came into force, Signal Business Partner Mark Collins advised that charities in particular now have to do much more to nurture mutually beneficial relationships with their audiences. This applies to other sectors too, as he points out:

“GDPR will (quite rightly) mean that every individual is more aware of their data rights, and they will be more likely to turn off this consent if their relationship with an organisation gives them reason to do this.”


But while the new laws are undoubtedly a big win for data protection, web usability has taken a hit due to general confusion over what best practice means (please, make the pop-ups stop!). Still, maybe the new ePrivacy regulation, which is likely to be finalised/come into force in 2019 will clarify things.

The regulation didn’t stop there. We’ve also seen the rules around influencer marketing clarified by the ASA, although, as our Outreach Manager Lauren Cormack writes, there is still room for interpretation there too.

Once more unto the breach - a very bad year for Facebook

Speaking of social media, Facebook were hit by mainstream news reports of one data disaster after another during 2018, no doubt further eroding public trust in how their information is being used (or misused) by big companies. 

The company’s nonchalant approach to user information in the past came back to bite them, when the Cambridge Analytica scandal came to light in March. CEO Mark  Zuckerberg ending up testifying in Congress - refresh your memories on the key points with this helpful summary from Planner Jamie McAdam. 

Facebook’s annus horribilis didn’t end there however, with news of further dodgy data practices coming thick and fast, including leaked emails that seemed to confirm that the company might not always have users’ best interests at heart. 

Meanwhile, even Facebook-owned Instagram, which previously seemed immune to its parent company’s run of bad juju (or at least negative press), has recently been shown to be a hotbed of Russian propaganda. More trouble at t’mill was hinted at when Instagram’s founders also called it quits this year, following the less than stellar launch of the IGTV platform (likely an attempt to reduce the impact of the TikTok video app, which is growing incredibly fast among young audiences).

Google didn’t escape either, announcing the abrupt closure of their social network, Google Plus in October. What had once been a much-vaunted threat to Facebook had of course been long abandoned by the search giant. Which made it a convenient sacrificial lamb when they eventually got round to disclosing a data leak that had come to light in the spring. CEO Sundar Pichai ended up in front of Congress anyway, where the questions being asked only highlighted a startling lack of insight amongst senior lawmakers into how the internet and technology actually works. Something that should be of concern for the big tech companies, given that increased US regulation of the sector now seems increasingly likely.

Big brands of course don’t have the same luxury as the US Congress when it comes to remaining ignorant of technological progress. The need for big organisations to adapt to our ultra-connected, data-centric world became even more pressing this year, and digital transformation showed impressive staying power as a buzzword. But as digital now permeates everything we do, it has become an increasingly meaningless term. 

Focusing on the idea of digital and data maturity can provide more clarity for brands however, not least in helping them identify the specific changes they can make to serve their audiences better, sooner.

The charity sector in particular faces a ‘change conundrum’, according to Signal’s Senior Planner Mark Dibden - with a current lack of commercial urgency reducing their likelihood to take action, despite the knowledge that the world is rapidly changing around them. But as he suggests, data analysis can help provide the clarity needed to move forward so charities can work out the scale and speed of change that’s right for them.

Breaking down internal silos was also a big theme at the Institute of Fundraising’s annual conference, as evidenced by articles from Senior Planner Maxine Horsman and Marketing Manager Lauren MacRae:

Collaboration, not competition - why charities need to challenge the silo situation

IOF Convention 2018 - challenging the fundraising status quo.

We’ve also been busy breaking down internal barriers at Signal. In November we announced that Brightsource and Signal have merged, bringing together our expertise in digital, analytics and decisioning (Signal) with our expertise in automation and marketing operations (Brightsource). See Managing Director Barney Hosey’s article for more details. 

Earlier in the year, Signal’s Strategy Director Phil Adams announced our purpose and principles, and explained the process involved and why getting it right is so important:

“We believe that if we get the culture right, we’ll get the work and the client relationships right, and if we get those things right, commercial success will take care of itself.”


Our commitment to chasing a vibrant culture was exemplified by initiatives such as our annual Wellness Week and an incredible effort from our intrepid team of China Trekkers who raised over £7,900 for The British Heart Foundation.

As well as creating not one but two websites for The European Championships (one of 2018’s major international sporting events), supporting the Innovative Medicine Initiative and European Diabetes Forum, and continuing to support the world’s biggest arts festival, we were also involved in a few other happenings this year:

We were delighted to enter the Econsultancy Top 100 Digital Agencies list at number 23 this year.

We sponsored, and provided the creative for the Marketing Star Awards (spoiler alert - we’ve done it again for 2019), and even picked up an award for our social media success for Jim Beam. 

We donated our time and expertise to the BIMA Digital Day (the biggest ever in Scotland) and to create a brand new website for the football-themed charity Street Soccer.

The Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD) in May led to the formation of an in-house, cross-discipline accessibility team.

The D&AD Festival gave two of our creatives a boost of inspiration. And REACT Amsterdam had a similar impact for two members of our software development team. Meanwhile, two of our copywriters picked up storytelling tips from the Harper’s Bazaar Literary Salon.

We also had a good showing at DMA Scotland’s Copywriting Club. Signal’s Head of Media Technology Andrew Girdwood joined me to talk about how Signal uses AI. And our Marketing Manager Lauren MacRae gave the lowdown on ethical (and not so ethical) influencer marketing in the health industry. Thanks to our friends at Yard who kindly wrote up both events.

We were also delighted when The Drum called attention to our short film for The Famous Grouse and online dinosaur keeper game for Scottish Friendly. 

All in all, it’s been a busy year for us and our clients, and no doubt for all of our colleagues across the marketing industry. Here’s to another unpredictable year in 2019. But first, let’s enjoy a well deserved festive break!

2018 Marketing Review: With Big Data, Comes Great Responsibility

Looking back on an eventful year for marketers.

The traditional view of CRM (Customer Relationship Marketing) is too simplistic. Relationships, by their nature, are constantly changing - and our approach to communicating with customers must evolve to reflect this. 

In her recent opinion piece for The Drum, Signal senior planner Joie Chapple makes the case for viewing CRM not just in terms of making the most of which channels are being used, but also in terms of the overall customer experience: 

“All of this doesn’t mean the demise of email and DM as a key tool to build relationships. These channels can still help to build trust if they provide real value, but we need to use them in a way that considers the broader context of how a customer experiences your brand.”

Joie also addresses ways in which agencies can work together with clients to support and challenge them to create better experiences for their customers.

Read the full article at The Drum or below.

To find out more about how we’ve helped clients improve their CRM programme, read our case studies for npower and the British Heart Foundation.

Redefining CRM: relationships are about experiences, not channels

Agencies and clients often think of Customer Relationship Marketing (CRM) in very narrow terms, focused solely on what channels are being used. But most of us would agree that the opportunity to strengthen, change, or damage a relationship occurs at every brand interaction.

 Wouldn’t it be better if we all began to consider all of our activity; online, offline, digital, real life, and the product or service itself, to be a form of CRM?

Ask a typical agency or brand manager how they would define CRM and they would probably describe it along these lines: 

‘Direct communications between a customer and a brand, with the aim of building a long-term relationship with the customer, and delivered via email, DM or another 1-2-1 channel.’

 As our ability to analyse, interpret and utilise customer data has grown exponentially, so has a laser like focus on tailoring, automating and optimising CRM as a channel. And for many brands, this has undoubtedly improved the relevance and effectiveness of their communications.

 But the old definition is still too simplistic. If we really want our direct marketing efforts to connect with customers, we need to break down silos and think much more broadly.

 Think about a brand you have a connection with. How did it form? How would you express it? How would you say it gets stronger or weaker? 

 Take my mum for example. She’s a lifelong advocate of a Center Parcs holiday. We’ve been going there as a family since shell-suits were acceptable and have photo albums dedicated solely to documenting our highly embarrassing badminton antics. A pretty solid brand-customer relationship, then. So, I asked her how she views it:

 “We get a discount every time we book because we’ve been so many times, and I like the little chat we have when we arrive at the arrivals lodge and that they can see we’ve been before – it’s great that they care about the memories we’ve created as a family. They are also really good if something goes wrong. I remember Dad once put the electric kettle on the hob (don’t ask) and within an hour they had replaced the entire hob, no questions asked. I loved the recent advert with the bears, it made me feel all nostalgic about when you were kids.”

 Note she did not mention the ‘CRM’ email she gets every fortnight, or the occasional glossy brochure.

CRM is not a channel, it is every brand experience

 If as customers we view relationships as experiences, not channels, and don’t silo the interactions we have with brands, why do we do so as marketers? It’s ironic that the activities we’ve historically defined as being responsible for ‘managing relationships’ may not even feature in a customer’s view of their relationship with a brand!

Of course, this differs dependent on the market, brand, product or stage of that relationship, and different experiences will play more of a role at different times.

Center Parcs is likely to have an easier job of delighting customers at every stage of the process because they are associated with pleasurable memories. While low engagement brands, who provide necessities such as bank accounts and home energy, need to work harder to engage customers – which makes getting CRM right even more essential.

 But with so many brands using the same tactics, it’s no surprise that people are either overwhelmed by the sheer volume of brand communications, or underwhelmed by the generic nature of a lot of the content. According to our email delivery partner Communicator, email unsubscribes doubled in the lead up to the GDPR deadline on May 25th and this doesn’t account for all of those who simply ignored re-permissioning requests.

If consumers aren’t finding enough value in these traditional forms of CRM, what’s next for us as agencies, clients and brands in our quest to build valuable and sustainable relationships?

Brands need a holistic Customer Relationship Strategy

All of this doesn’t mean the demise of email and DM as a key tool to build relationships. These channels can still help to build trust if they provide real value, but we need to use them in a way that considers the broader context of how a customer experiences your brand.

 It is about picking the right way for your brand to achieve its goals, not jumping to traditional CRM thinking as the answer by default. There is little point in investing in a specific channel if there are critical problems elsewhere having a much bigger effect on the way you attract, develop and retain customers.

We should be developing holistic customer relationship strategies that meet (or exceed) expectations - regardless of ‘channel’. It must be driven by need and desire, and by asking what kind of relationship you want with your customers, what do they want from you and how best can that be done at every relevant touchpoint?

Unfortunately, big organisations are often not set up to facilitate this way of thinking. Legacy structures can create silos and put invisible barriers between brand, sales, digital, retail, etc. An external catalyst is often required to break the inertia and implement new approaches.

Agencies need to play a fundamental role supporting and challenging their clients to create better customer experiences:

Bringing client teams together, when politics or structure make this a challenge;

Relentlessly championing the consumer, when it’s easy to forget who you’re talking to;

Taking a holistic view of experience, when the nitty gritty takes over the big picture.

If clients and agencies can work together to make this happen, we can collectively do a much better job of developing a meaningful, long-lasting relationship with customers – and finally do proper justice to the concept of CRM.

Relationships are constantly changing - and so must our approach to communicating with customers.

This is Part Two of an interview about last week's D&AD Festival with Signal's Matt Higgins (Art Director, Edinburgh) and Aaron McCarthy (Art Director, Cheltenham).

In Part One Aaron and Matt talked about their overall impressions of the event, plus Matt shared video footage to give us a flavour of what it's like to attend. 

What follows is their top 5 highlights from the event.

Signal on Twitter: "Day two of #DANDAD2018 underway ✏️… "

Milo: The Festival sounds pretty amazing. Do you have any particular highlights from the 3 days?

Aaron: “What about the cheese toastie Matt?”

Matt: “Best cheese toastie I’ve ever had. But let’s not include that in our top five."

1. Caroline Pay - Do Not Watch This Talk!

Matt: "For me, the talk I enjoyed the most was Caroline Pay, joint CCO at Grey. She was just so refreshing, because she’s so down to earth, she’s extremely funny, she’s very straight-talking, and she made me feel like it’s okay to stick up for what I actually think we should do. Oh and she had a ton of great work to show for it.

Signal on Twitter: ""Don’t do what you’re told, and definitely don’t do what you’ve done before". Words of wisdom from Grey's CCO Caroline Pay. 

#DANDAD2018… https://t.co/f8LN7vgjkk"

For example, when answering a brief, you sometimes think too much about ‘oh, the client may not like that’, or it’s not quite what I was asked to do. But if you think it’s a great idea, stick up for it and push for it a little bit. Be on the right side of passionate. She gave me the motivation to do that more. 

And there’s so many people at her kind of level that can be a bit annoying to listen to, because they think they’ve got the industry all figured out, they’re kind of snobby when it comes to advertising. She just seems like.."

Matt: “Yes, real. She was a very real person.”

Aaron: “She had my attention for the whole 45 minutes. Some of her favourite creatives are people that don’t follow the rules and come up with amazing ideas because of that. The title of her session was ‘Don’t Come to this Talk’ and the first thing she did was get everyone to applaud each other for breaking that first rule.”

Caroline Pay On Breaking The Rules | D&AD Festival 2018

2. Ben Priest - The Importance of Getting Things Utterly Wrong

Matt: "Ben Priest of adam&eveDDB talked about all the mistakes he’s made and why they were important, and he was hilarious too. he made me feel that if I make mistakes, it doesn’t mean I’m shit at my job."

Signal on Twitter: "Learning why it’s important to get things wrong with Ben Priest, Creative Director of adam&eveDDB.

#DANDAD2018… "

Aaron: "It was quite refreshing to know that as one of the main figureheads at adam&eveDDB, he initially didn’t think that the Penguin John Lewis ad from a couple of years ago was actually any good. It was his colleagues who ended up convincing him to get it in front of the client, and then the client cancelled a trip to China to get the idea to run.

So again, he was laying down the fact that he makes mistakes as much as anyone else, because that ad went on to be one of the better ones."

3. Jeff Goodby - How Vandalism Will Save Advertising

Aaron: "For me, Jeff Goodby, who is a veteran ad guy from America, was also immense. He was relaxed, and had the same appeal as Caroline did, in that he seemed very real. His talk was about taking inspiration from the rebellious, humorous and surprising nature of “vandalism” in advertising.

Signal on Twitter: "Next up - Jeff Goodby is going to tell us why our futures are dependent upon a sense of fun and why we all need to be more naughty to be more famous.

#DANDAD18… https://t.co/DazDYoEQol"

One of the biggest and best ideas that he showed, which got a round of applause on the biggest stage at the D&AD, was an ad for Cheetos, where they played on the fact that Cheetos aren’t perfect, they’ve got imperfections, they’re all bobbly and in different shapes. And then tied that in with those stories you see in the tabloids where someone’s found a crisp that looks like Jesus. It played into that and people’s desire to see into things that aren’t really there. 

So they created this Cheetos museum, where people would send in pictures and send back Cheetos. One looked like the Statue of Liberty, and somebody found one that looked like Harambe clinging to a tree, and they put it on ebay and it sold for $100,000 dollars, because people were so infatuated with all these Cheetos that looked like other things. Cheetos were also paying prize money for the best ones. And they even held an exhibition of them at Grand Central Station. It was such a simple idea, but it blew up in the media."

Cannes Lions 2017: Cheetos Museum, Cheetos (Goodby Silverstein & Partners, San Francisco)

Aaron: "We also went to a series of Judge’s Insight Panel talks on different categories from the D&AD Awards. The judges talked through their favourite ideas and it was really nice to see what they think is award-winning work. A lot of the stuff that seemed to be most appealing was things that are authentic and emotional, and human."

Matt: “Yeah, anything that cast real people with a story that strikes a chord. I think D&AD are really strict with what they award, so it’s not just about having a good idea, it’s also about how that idea is useful and the craft that goes into it. 

It’s very hard to tick every box with a piece of creative work. You can  see that these people don’t always agree with each other. They are all at the top of their game, they’re not quiet about their opinions and they’re all there to put their case across as to why something should win. That’s when you realise how much it takes to win one of these awards."

Aaron: "I’ll tell you what else was awesome - Pixels of Fury."

Matt: "Oh yeah, that was brilliant. It’s a weird mix between a night out and a bit of work. So you’ve got designers onstage, who have 20 minutes to design a poster that’s for a cause they  believe in. So they’ve got a blank page. And 20 minutes with a whole crowd of people that are drinking, egging them on. So it’s tense."

Aaron: "And it’s all up on big screens - literally everything they were doing. It’s basically a ‘rap battle’ for designers."

Matt: "Yeah, there’s a DJ, the music’s pumping, and there’s an MC running around trying to talk to them and he’s shouting out to us. Plus free booze and free food - it was cool."

Matt: “Yes, so I went to a photography masterclass with Mr Perou, who’s a legendary fashion and portrait photographer. He started his career off as a fetish photographer, and you can see the influence of that in all his work. If you look at his portraits, even of big celebrities, there’s something a little sinister about the way that they look.

He was really cool but there were some technical issues. But what you did see, was a massive massive name in photography, standing in front of you, taking the pictures, directing the models - and it was very cool to be part of that. 

I would have liked more of that. I don’t know about you Aaron, but it felt like that sort of stuff was nice to break up the talks. There was also an Adobe area where you could go and use all of Microsoft’s latest computers and tablets.

Aaron: "Yes - I would have liked to have done more, however a lot of the hands-on stuff was either rammed or already pre-booked. One workshop I didn’t actually go to, but was premiered at the end of the event, was the Straight8 filmmaking session. It’s a competition that runs yearly at Cannes Film Festival where you have to film using a Super8 camera, and they come up with a concept for this workshop and they had to film it there and then.

And there’s no editing allowed, so they come up with lots of techniques to get around that. For example covering half the lens in black so it only exposes the film on one side, and then they’ll put the film back in again and expose it a different way so you get merging, overlapping imagery.

It would have been really nice to have done more of that kind of stuff which you can throw yourself into and immerse yourself in. Because as good as the talks were, at the end of the day there was so much to take in that it was approaching information overload and I just wanted to dive in and start making things."

D&AD Festival 2018 - Our Top 5 Highlights

The best bits from the 3 day celebration of creative advertising and design, as chosen by two members of our creative team.

Two members of Signal’s creative department, Matt Higgins (Art Director, Edinburgh) and Aaron McCarthy (Art Director, Cheltenham) won tickets to attend all 3 days of the D&AD Festival last week at the Old Truman Brewery, London. 

Having followed their updates on Twitter throughout the event, I was excited to find out more, so I grabbed them on their first day back in the office to ask them all about it.

A big thanks to Matt for sharing his excellent photos and video footage from the event.

First of all, for those who don’t know, what exactly is the D&AD Festival?

Aaron: "I’d say it’s a celebration of creativity - all aspects of it, from filmmaking, to copywriting, to animation, to product design. Everything that somebody has put some blood and sweat and tears into, and put their emotion into it, laid out for people to enjoy. 

And then there are talks that back it up and show how different people have different ways to generate ideas - and get them out there into the world."

Nice! So what was it like to experience the event for the first time?

Matt: "It was amazing. Working in an agency, you have your successes and inspirations on a day-to-day basis, and then you have all these websites that you go on now and again, where you read about all this great work. 

But it makes a massive difference to be there in person and hear about these massive campaigns from the people who worked on them, and to be there with people like you from various other agencies is a lot of fun. 

Each talk was roughly 45 minutes to an hour, and when you’re there, it goes incredibly fast. All the speakers have got their own style and attitude, and what everyone’s saying isn’t repetitive either. Everyone’s got a very different approach to how to be successful as a creative, or a designer, or whatever it is you might do.

It’s a lot of very talented people coming together that have contributed in some way to what the D&AD stands for, which in terms of awards is obviously one of the biggest accolades you can get in the creative industry. To get all of that in one big place is so, so inspiring."

Aaron: Being amongst like-minded people was definitely what made it such a great experience for me too. As part of a creative department within a bigger company, you feel like not everyone understands what it is you do day-to-day and how difficult idea/content/creative generation can be. 

But being at that event, where everyone is all about creativity and idea generation, and craft, and design, has brought it home to me that everyone has the same struggles and we’re all in it together."

Matt: "Yeah, in agencies the creative department is treated like “you guys go and have fun.” Everyone thinks you’re just walking around having a laugh, but Aaron’s right -  when you’re at a thing like the D&AD Festival you realise we don’t actually have it easy. Because as a creative, you torture yourself to come up with good ideas all the time, and you constantly second-guess yourself. You constantly think, “Am I good enough  to do this job” - but what people there make you realise, is it’s normal to feel like that, and if you don’t then you’re probably not pushing yourself hard enough."

Aaron: "Absolutely - a lot of it was about making mistakes and breaking rules and how that is the way to do it. It’s not about getting it right first time. You can’t be afraid to get things wrong. 

I think as creatives, you’re putting yourself out there, every time you come up with an idea and present it to somebody, you’re laying a little piece of yourself down for somebody to rip it apart, and a lot of the D&AD Festival was about realising ‘that’s fine’. You know, let that shredding of an idea happen, and let it help you craft the next one."

So did you get any advice on how to make that easier, or do you just have to expect that as part of the job?

Matt: "I think it was more reassuring you that that’s normal. Because the reality is, our jobs can be fun. It’s what you make of it."

But we’ve also got that other side to it where mentally it’s quite tiring and it can be challenging. And when you’re there at the D&AD and you’re seeing all this great work, you realise what it’s all for. And it just makes you want to try even harder to reach that level."

Aaron: "It was also helpful for me, in giving me more of a drive to be as successful as the people who are giving the talks. I had so much admiration for, not just being up on the stage and giving an awesome presentation, but that I could potentially be in their position if I just applied myself the way they’ve applied themselves."

So what would you say to other creatives who are thinking about attending?

Matt: “I would see that festival as a tool which is going to give me a yearly dose of inspiration, in a big way. 

You get inspiration, obviously, at work all the time, especially if you’re looking at work that’s been done all over the world. But when you go and it’s all condensed into that 3 day thing and it’s laid out the way it is, and you’re socialising, you’re going to talks, you’re meeting cool people, many of whom are famous in the industry.

It’s going to recharge your batteries and you’re going to come back to work and it’s going to make you aim for something much higher than you ever have before, which is obviously to win a Pencil."

Aaron: “For me, that is one of my goals, to get a Pencil. The Festival is a massive shot of creative caffeine. So I’m buzzing, coming into work today I’m like, we need to set ourselves up to win awards and do the best work we can for clients. 

How will you keep that buzz going throughout the year?

Matt: I think it’s got to come out of your own work now. After you go to something like that, you’ve got to see an improvement yourself, in how you approach a brief, how you deal with problems and of course, having better ideas.

And if you get a hint that you’re improving as a professional creative after something like that, that’s well worth the money. So I think I will see a benefit, and I was already in a meeting this morning and I feel I was definitely a lot more positive and proactive. I was also more aware of other departments and how that work is going to affect them so I could try and solve any potential problems and setbacks."

Aaron: “For me a lot of it was about the fact that as a creative you’re going to be faced with challenges along the line. But if you believe in your idea enough, you’ve got to try and push it through as best you can.

As creatives, I don’t think we shout about what we can do enough, we don’t blow our own trumpets enough. And the best way we can do that is by showing that we believe in our own ideas."

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D&AD Festival 2018 - A massive shot of creative caffeine

Find out what it's like to experience 3 full days at the D&AD Festival, according to two lucky members of our creative team.

The social giant has come under a lot of scrutiny recently due to concerns that it was used by Russian advertisers to influence the 2016 US election. And evidence came to light in March that up to 87 million people’s data were improperly shared with the political consultancy Cambridge Analytica.

The fallout from those revelations is still continuing, with the company announcing several changes to how its advertising platform works. CEO Mark Zuckerberg is also testifying before US Congress twice this week.

It’s been an extremely fast-moving story, with new developments every day. So, we’ve highlighted the top five things you need to know below:

On 17 March, details about unethical use of Facebook user data by the political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica came to light. The data was used to build voter profiles for political targeting in order to influence the US election and the UK’s vote on leaving the EU. 

The story was a scoop by the New York Times and The Guardian/Observer newspapers, based on information from whistleblower Christopher Wylie. 

Cambridge Analytica whistleblower: 'We spent $1m harvesting millions of Facebook profiles'

In Zuckerberg’s testimony to Congress on the 9th of April, he explained that the user data was acquired in 2014 via a ‘personality test’ app which was able to access detailed information on the friends of those who used it. This happened shortly before Facebook changed the rules about data sharing by third party apps.

Zuckerberg’s testimony also states that Cambridge Analytica falsely certified to Facebook that the data was deleted. But Facebook made no efforts to verify this.

if you're a Facebook user, you can find out if your account was affected here. (Mark Zuckerberg has admitted that his own personal Facebook profile was one of those affected.)

Mark Zuckerberg has admitted that the Cambridge Analytica incident was “a major breach of trust” and that Facebook has not done enough to safeguard user’s personal information, or mitigate the possibility of the platform being used for nefarious purposes.

The company published full page apology ads in response to the Cambridge Analytica revelations in a number of national newspapers, and is now notifying users whose data was misused by the firm when they log on to the Facebook app or website. Zuckerberg’s testimony to congress also includes a personal apology:

 “...IT’S CLEAR NOW THAT WE DIDN’T DO ENOUGH TO PREVENT THESE TOOLS FROM BEING USED FOR HARM AS WELL. THAT GOES FOR FAKE NEWS, FOREIGN INTERFERENCE IN ELECTIONS, AND HATE SPEECH, AS WELL AS DEVELOPERS AND DATA PRIVACY. WE DIDN’T TAKE A BROAD ENOUGH VIEW OF OUR RESPONSIBILITY, AND THAT WAS A BIG MISTAKE. IT WAS MY MISTAKE, AND I’M SORRY. I STARTED FACEBOOK, I RUN IT, AND I’M RESPONSIBLE FOR WHAT HAPPENS HERE.”

As well as official demands that Facebook be held to account, negative sentiment about Facebook has increased, with the hashtag #DeleteFacebook soon trending on Twitter, as well as #WheresZuck (when the CEO failed to publicly acknowledge the scandal for several days).

Elon Musk, Cher and a number of other big names announced they were leaving the platform, and even advertisers began getting cold feet, with  Mozilla Corp. and US auto parts retailers Pep Boys suspending their ads.

Polls also indicate that public trust in Facebook has plummeted. According to Reuters/Ipsos, less than half of Americans (41%) trust Facebook to obey U.S. privacy laws following the scandal, compared to 66% for Amazon, 62% for Google and 60% for Microsoft.

4. Facebook has already responded by removing third party data aggregators

Facebook is cutting off third party data aggregators like Axicom and Datalogix, which are all the clever (but frowned upon) and highly specific targeting options. 

It's a big step backwards in terms of the options available to marketers, and according to TechCrunch, marketers will have to certify that they have permission for any  outside data they use to target ads on Facebook using the Custom Audiences tool. It’s still not clear how Facebook will verify this however.

“FACEBOOK WILL ASK ADVERTISERS TO CERTIFY THEY HAVE PERMISSION FOR WHATEVER OUTSIDE DATA THEY USE TO TARGET ADS ON FACEBOOK. BUT FACEBOOK MAY NOT BE ABLE TO VERIFY THAT CLAIM, IN THE SAME WAY IT DID NOT VERIFY CAMBRIDGE ANALYTICA’S CERTIFICATION THAT IT HAD DELETED THE DATA IT IMPROPERLY OBTAINED ON MILLIONS OF FACEBOOK USERS.”

The company also introduced improved privacy tools for users, but these would most likely have to be introduced anyway, at least in Europe, due to GDPR.

5. The backlash may start to affect other tech companies

Social spending by advertisers is forecast to increase despite concerns over data misuse. It’s possible that Facebook’s competitors, particularly Google and Twitter, will benefit if they continue to provide more attractive options to advertisers. But in the long-term, it could herald the end of self-regulation for tech companies. 

Apple CEO Tim Cook is among those calling for tighter regulation of tech companies, but then unlike its competitors such as Facebook and Google, Apple doesn’t rely on monetisation of personal data as its income comes from hardware and paid services.

Perhaps more surprisingly, Zuckerberg told CNN he is open to Facebook being regulated.

“I ACTUALLY AM NOT SURE WE SHOULDN'T BE REGULATED. I THINK IN GENERAL TECHNOLOGY IS AN INCREASINGLY IMPORTANT TREND IN THE WORLD AND I ACTUALLY THINK THE QUESTION IS MORE, WHAT IS THE RIGHT REGULATION RATHER THAN "YES OR NO, SHOULD IT BE REGULATED?"

Zuckerberg's below response suggests he doesn't seem to have a full grasp on the impact of the new GDPR regulations however.

Motor Vote on Twitter: "Rep. Peters: "What do you think the Europeans got right? What did they get wrong?"
Zuckerberg: "I think the GDPR, in general, is going to be a very positive thing for the internet." As for what they got wrong, "I think I need to think about that more.""

As Facebook continues to change the rules, marketers will need to adapt to the new conditions.

Despite the volume of issues already raised, the fallout from the Cambridge Analytica scandal still feels like the tip of the iceberg.

Facebook’s process of weeding out everything wrong with their data and privacy processes is very much ongoing. 

And while this is all happening in Facebook’s garden right now, it would be surprising if this didn’t start to drift into other social channels like Instagram (who are owned by Facebook and have the same ad engine) and Twitter (who have the same 3rd party data aggregators). 

Google is also unlikely to be immune. Only this week it has emerged that YouTube has been accused of illegally gathering data on children. 

With plenty of activity around this issue still to come in the next few weeks, one thing is for sure; marketers will need to be fully aware of the changes as they happen, and adapt accordingly. 

 "HOW MARKETERS RESPOND TO ALL OF THIS IS, QUITE LITERALLY, THE BIGGEST QUESTION OUR DISCIPLINE HAS FACED IN DECADES." , MARKETING WEEK

For the full story: a timeline of how the scandal unfolded in the New York Times.

Read Mark Ritson's excellent analysis of the implications for marketers at Marketing Week.

For Facebook’s version of events, read Mark Zuckerberg’s pre-prepared testimony to Congress.

The Drum has summarised the key takeaways for media professionals from Zuckerberg's 9th April Congress hearing.

And HubSpot have published an excellent summary of the House Energy and Commerce Hearing on 10th April.

Thanks to Signal content writer Milo McLaughlin for co-authoring this article.

5 things you need to know about the Facebook data scandal

Zuck is having a 'mare. Read our condensed guide to the fallout so far from the Cambridge Analytica scandal.

We're always delighted when Signal gets a shout out, and we've recently been mentioned by some big names.

And what better place to share the news than on our own blog?

(We’ve also tried yelling about it from various rooftops, but that doesn’t tend to work as well.)

Check out our four most recent appearances below:

1. Atos appointed Digital Media Provider to Glasgow 2018

"Atos will be working in partnership with Edinburgh-based agency Signal to design and develop the Glasgow 2018 and European Championships websites.

Atos and Signal previously combined their expertise and experience to ensure the digital success of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games.

As part of the inaugural European Championships in 2018 around 3,000 athletes will visit Scotland for six events - Aquatics, Cycling, Golf, Gymnastics, Rowing and Triathlon – while a further 1,500 athletes will compete in Berlin as part of the European Athletics Championships.

Attendances of up to 250,000 are expected at venues across Glasgow and Scotland, with a potential TV audience of up to 1.03billion."

2. User Research Isn’t Too Expensive - InVision blog

Signal’s senior UX Designer Caroline Smith shares her team's guerrilla approach to conducting user research on a tight budget for Nando’s. She's had some great feedback on the post already from readers.

"This post is a real-world case study to help illustrate how you can create a more efficient learning process by incorporating guerrilla methods into your user research—hopefully debunking the myth that it’s too expensive and too time-consuming.

Read on to find out how my team at Signal took this approach in order to evolve and revise an outdated website navigation for our client, a chain restaurant famous for its flame-grilled PERi-PERi chicken." 

3.  Developing the digital skills to change career - The Scottish Government/CodeClan

Claire Smith, one of our Back End developers, recently wrote an article for The Scottish Government’s Engage for Education blog about her experience with CodeClan, the UK’s first accredited digital skills academy.

Milo McLaughlin

Content Writer

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