Experiential campaigns, when executed so that the brand's mission aligns with the values of customers, have the potential to not only drive sales, but create memorable and unique shopping experiences. Over the course of this summer, several brands capitalized on their event surroundings and found that the experience is what truly resonates with consumers. In June, Martini Media released a study finding that "affluent consumers are 47% more likely to make a purchase online compared to their non-affluent counterparts." When it comes to these digitally-driven customers, how do brands redefine the shopping experience and get them offline and back into …

Next month we'll be releasing the results from our 37th annual study of the lives, lifestyles and media habits of Affluent Americans. Each year, as we analyze the results, I'm always struck by the tremendous diversity of the Affluent population. In general terms, Affluents continue to skew "educated married White Boomer," but they nevertheless represent tremendous diversity in age, ethnicity, occupation and interests.

For many brands, affluent consumers are the holy grail of their marketing efforts. They're the consumers who will buy higher-ticket items, buy more often, and share information about their purchases with other affluents. But on the web, it's extremely challenging to figure out who they are. Seeing which users research high-end brands and products doesn't show marketers whether they're looking at a consumer of means or a daydreaming college student. To find the true affluents among all browsing consumers, marketers need to entice them to share information that reveals something about their interests and buying habits.

Recently, I had the pleasure of exploring the meaning of the words "luxury" and "luxurious" from the consumer's points of view. That review generated some interesting feedback from a number of readers who then asked if we had ever collected any insights regarding which brands luxury consumers would select as the #1 luxury brand and would those brands differ according to the consumer's gender. Well, we have asked and this review explores this interesting question among what many marketers consider the prime targets for luxury-oriented products and services--those adults, males and females, who live in the top 3% of U.S. …

The world is a big place, filled with diverse people. In turn, global branders have long been faced with decisions about how to take a finite amount of dollars and allocate them effectively over an expansive universe. Recently, these decisions have been made more challenging as a result of the Great Recession, when marketing budgets diminished while the need for growth and ambition has risen. And so, the question for branders has been heightened: "How do we gain more access to a big world with less financial resources?"