There's an increasing need for companies of all sizes to be agile in today's changing economy. Relying on an outside agency to complete critical projects takes longer and can cost around 20-30% more in markups alone, a luxury many companies can no longer afford. As such, many companies are starting to bring capabilities that would traditionally be outsourced to an agency in-house.

Marketers who run paid social understand that in order to maximize reach and results, you should diversify your ad formats on Facebook and Instagram. While they have been quick to enjoy the success of tailoring advertising to Instagram, there is a relatively new ad format many brands have overlooked or are yet to adopt: Instagram Stories.

The Hispanic grocery retail sector has also taken center stage in the frenzy of merger and acquisition activity over the past year. Consumer demographics and the broader acceptance of ethnic merchandise have clearly fueled part of this activity but as growth occurs so do the operational and merchandising challenges most grocers face. Let's look at five key issues that cross-cultural grocers will need to address to remain competitive in the age of the omnichannel shopper.

Scrolling through Instagram, I sift through ad after ad for boutique clothing brands, celebrity-endorsed makeup ... and vitamins? Personalized vitamins in candy colors delivered right to my doorstep.

We're witnessing a massive transformation of advertising technologies. Advertisers modify their marketing strategies, adjust new ad placement approaches, and maximize ROI with new ad formats.

Emerging technology is constantly changing, opening new paths for brands to truly connect with consumers. With the rise of shoppable media, augmented reality, voice services, wearables, mobile wallets and chatbots (the list goes on), brands are seeking new and interesting ways to enhance the consumer experience.

JPMorgan Chase was running ads on more than 400,000 websites when it learned that less than 3% of those sites were leading to any activity beyond an impression. Chase reduced that to just 5,000 websites, but still saw the same results. This is because Chase was missing one critical step - determining which sites were the most relevant for its brand.

It should come as no surprise to hear that U.S. Hispanics make up the majority of soccer viewers. What is surprising is just how much Hispanic fans dominate soccer proceedings: According to Nielsen, Hispanics were responsible for 68% of soccer viewership in 2017 - and that was before the World Cup even started! Approximately 89% of the U.S. Hispanic population plans on watching the World Cup at some point (if they are not already), which means that brands have plenty more opportunities to tap into the excitement of this highly engaged audience.

The top soccer players on the planet are now at the FIFA World Cup in Russia, but a group of equally dedicated and focused athletes will compete for their own trophies and face their own challenges next week at the 2018 Special Olympics USA Games in Seattle.

Personalization has emerged as a top priority in retail. Brands and retailers are investing in data and technology to deliver more tailored experiences across their digital and in-store experiences. By 2022, personalization will push a revenue shift of $800 billion to the 15% of companies that get it right. However, despite this opportunity, personalization is rarely meeting expectations. In our recent survey of 1,000 consumers, over half said a personalized home page would be useful, yet less than 20% said the recommendations they saw were relevant. Consumers want personalized experiences, and brands and retailers are trying to deliver. So, what …