I pay £297.50 per month, and my amazing wife, pays in excess of £3,000 per year to travel on the Southern Rail network.  All we ask is for some consistency. We can all take a bit of delay of a Tuesday morning, that’s fine, 10 mins here, even 20 mins there if we don’t want to get into work, or don’t have a job or whatever.

Today they face the ignominy of what is known in Social Media terms the #fail.

To fail.

I won’t bore you with the details; trusted Southern Rail commuters, and travellers else, have been there no doubt.  I invite someone from Southern to call me please – phone number on website.

If I may I’d like to say simply this.  It took me 3 fucking hours to get from Hither Green to Dormans today.  Shame on you Southern Rail. In the 24 hour 21st Century city that is London or LDN as its known by the futureproofers, what are you doing serving our travelling options?

All this talk of people interacting and socialising, and sharing and liking, well it’s all fucked up.  Face value everyone’s gone insular.  Staring down and in, not looking up and out.  Sharing their intimate thoughts and feelings with a handset, a little keyboard, and a small (though growing) screen.

This is only going to get worse.  Voice is last year’s app.  Content is king, as it has oft been, but combined with smartphone penetration maxing out, the interaction is virtual.  It isn’t human interaction anymore.  The absolute core of social activity has gone, and it’s sneaked out, or been nudged out of the way, in favour of device intimacy. I don’t even know what to call it.

The irony is this boom in social media.  Strip away all the bullshit and fluff, and social media is people engaging with other people.

I’m going to try this human interaction thing for a while, although I think I’m going to be very lonely.

I’m excited about what is going to happen this year, and beyond, and I’ve read some interesting predictions on what we as consumers and as marketers should look out for as, as Gartner predicted back in January 2010, mobile phones take over from PCs as the most common web access point worldwide::

http://bit.ly/80z8bi

Here’s a well worth the read piece by Matt Potter on The Drum giving us marketers some worthwhile insight into what we should be advising our clients on and preparing them for as 2013 and the mobile evolution continues (I don’t agree it’s a revolution anymore, it’s been going on so long, and there is little resistance).

http://bit.ly/ZgulbW

My simple stance is thus: mobile is digital, mobile is online, mobile is contemporary, and it is the future. And the future is here.

It also stands alone amongst the contemporary, digital, online channels, in that it invokes a personality, it takes on persona more than even Social media, in that it elicits individual and direct emotions from its owner: trust, reliance, companionship, vision. Your mobile knows you better than many, because you’ve made it an extension of you.

With the advent of a new generation of smartphones, and the emergence of 4G browsing speeds, the relationship is going to grow even stronger, so our challenge is to place our client’s messages in a relevant, timely, appropriate, and above all engaging way.

This is the evolution of the beginning, not the beginning of the revolution.

Cashback sites are incredibly popular with retailers. Why is this? Cashback sites bring retailers more customers. Quidco, for example, have almost 3 million members actively seeking deals, so there’s money to be made if the deal is competitive enough. Other cashback sites include Top Cash Back who are the UK’s only fee-free cashback provider, and Easy Fundraising who convert your cashback into a charity donation.

Cashback is a consumer no-brainer, but I advise merchants to tread carefully when devising affiliate strategies that rely too heavily on cashback and other deal sites.

Where does the loyalty lie?

Customer loyalty sits squarely with the cashback site, not with the retailer, so an over-reliance on discounts to encourage conversion doesn’t help the long term relationship between the consumer and the brand.

Being listed on a cashback site doesn’t drive a huge amount of awareness though. In order to get prime slots on the cashback sites, retailers are offered placements in high traffic areas of the site and are charged a tenancy fee, or a placement fee. So right away the retailer’s margin is being eaten into, before consumers have taken up the offer.

On top of fees they earn from affiliate networks, these fees represent a big revenue stream for the cashback sites – paid for placements. You see PFPs a lot on clients’ media schedules.

Who is the last referrer?

In addition the market-leading cashback sites have developed other products to drive more custom, such as toolbars. Once downloaded onto a user’s browser, this provides the consumer the opportunity to save money right before conversion, without needing to visit the cashback site.

By clicking on the toolbar, the cashback site becomes the ‘last referrer’, so he’s earning the affiliate bounty, and often penalising the referrer one up the chain, often a content affiliate plying his trade as best he can.

Cashback sites are regularly in the top percentile of affiliates for retailers’ affiliate programs, so the intrinsic value is there absolutely, and I fully support merchants partnering with cashback sites to get more customers, but I would like to see more consideration given to the referrer model.

I have encouraged merchants to separate out cashback sites from their affiliate strategies, acknowledging the loyalty is between consumer and cashback site, and treating them purely as effective customer referrer models, not the crucial last referrer tag that deems him worthy of the affiliate commission.  Of course a payment or reward needs to be made by the merchant for this transaction referral, but perhaps this ought to come from said merchant’s media budget?

By doing this, merchants can focus on driving loyalty with content affiliates, and adding an extra line to their digital media schedule, while allowing other affiliate verticals to legitimately battle it out for last referrer status.

You can see the site here: http://www.redletterdaysforbusiness.co.uk

The client side team designed the site, then Pete worked his magic to build a custom CMS, using Concrete5, and a back end development piece that resulted in this fantastic site.

Key features include a live Twitter feed, a Downloads section, a Newsletter sign-up and an archive with lots of high res imagery within.

The client’s really pleased, and another feather in the cap for Hatmatic. We’re looking forward to working again with this superb client in the future.

Derry was a remarkable bloke. It has been a real pleasure to call him one of my best mates, and to meet him even, for him to have touched our lives. He was a giver. He was generous without expectation. He was a true Welshman, passionate about the nation, the team, and the heritage. He was reliable, honest, consistent, funny, clever, driven, loyal and compassionate.

I can’t believe he’s gone, but I’m trying to take some solace from the fact that he entered my life, despite it being for too short a time.

We met in 1983 when he moved from Cornwall to North Wales with his mum and his sister. He’s been a fabric of my life since then. 27 years, but that’s gone now, in a heartbeat – literally. My heart goes out to his mum, and family, and the friends and colleagues he’s left behind.

He won’t be forgotten, and I personally will use the memory of him and the way he was as an example to set, a bar to aim for.

He was fatally injured at the scene of a motorcycle crash on Sunday 3rd, October, on the Northbound carriageway of the A3 near Petersfield, in circumstances which have left his family and close friends in shock, and disbelief.

I wanted to just write this down because I can’t still get my head round what’s happened.

Dez Llew, Dyfed Steels, Dez Braech, Dez Wastrafu, Stick I Mewn. Gutted.

Rest in Peace Derry – gone but never forgotten.

I was chuffed and readily accepted. The challenge starts here really and I wrote my first piece this morning which I sent over to Chris and he’s already posted it on the forum, though I can’t make the link work – oh the irony!

Hmm maybe this: 3rd Party Viewing in All Walks of Life

Love the title – which Chris came up with – and hopefully I’ll get a bit more exposure as a result of the Forum, who knows.

The content of the first article is really just an opener, I don’t want to climb straight in with Multiple Attribution, or Voucher Codes, or anything about the UK Affiliate Industry right away… it’s a leaning in. We’ve been banging on about customer journey with a couple of our clients lately, and I think it’s a really important point to make. I’ve tried to make it a “from customer’s journey point of view”. Fuck knows whether anyone will care, but all the same it’s hopefully the start of something for me to air my views somewhere other than the usual rant I throw out of here.

Aaaaaanyway……

Some of the highlights are:

- Tame Impala (seeing them at Cargo next week!) – AWESOME!!
- Detroit Social Club – wicked lead vocals, nice riffs, big chorals
- Holy Fuck – awesome instrumentals
- Nick Cave – classic poems in music
- Grateful Dead – 60s American folk rock, not what I was expecting (MB)

Any suggestions welcome – ping ‘em in – we’ll play it and talk about you..!!

I’ve lived in that flat for nearly 7 years, and I’ve become a little bit set in my ways in there, though have to say i love it inside the flat, I’m not taken completely by its location, nor by the ground floor appointment, and the vertically adjacent neighbours. I know their noises better than I know some of my own. I’ll hear a noise from the kitchen perhaps and rush in to see what it might be. When I hear a sound from above that sounds like a body being sawn up, dragged across the floor and stuffed into a deep, heavy, wooden box, and the box then dragged to a hidden place, I am disturbed only by the interruption to my evening’s TV viewing, or book reading.

I’ve taken to watching movies or catch up TV on my laptop with good earphones, the screen resolution is excellent, and the sounds are too. I put the laptop on a neoprene cover on my lap so i don’t feel discomfort over time from the battery heating my lap up.

The convalescence from injury and subsequent chest infection forced a change in my habituals within the flat. Straight after the accident I had no use of my left arm, and as a left hander that was a struggle. I didn’t work at all for a whole week and that was unpleasant.

As a self made and self sustained man, not doing any work causes erosion. None of my clients were getting any work, support, insight, reports, nuggets, and that is a huge risk to my business, and livelihood.  The heavy duty painkillers I was taking were causing unpleasant side effects – nausea, itching, paranoia, hallucinations, and anxiety.  Awesome. I started to really worry about where my life was heading, what I was doing in that flat, why I had this strange routine, and why nothing really happened inside the flat.

When the coughing kicked in and I couldn’t sleep at night, things took a turn.  I went to the docs and picked up some antibiotics, which really put me off my food, not that I was eating a lot, but I started to get a bit depressed too I think.  Just too many things to deal with which were alien and personal. I was on a 7 day course which I completed sans alcohol though it didn’t specify not to drink, I just thought it would be a good idea.

Then it was Isle of Wight – a huge family get together to celebrate my Uncle & Aunt’s 60th birthday (twins). They threw a big party on the Saturday after their actual birthday, which was ok, but happened to be the 1st anniversary of Dad’s death, so it was a funny day for me personally, on top of the emotional journey I’d been on over the last few weeks. The camping was alright, though that took away any chance of early and complete recovery from the chest infection, and I smoked heavily throughout the weekend – I have no idea why, perhaps an inkling that I wanted somehow to subconsciously bond with Dave – my Aunt’s husband (3rd) and often a real battle to mix with. We got on fine so worth it defo.  Had a few good chats with him, which makes a big change.

After that, back to London, and the anxiety returned immediately the moment I walked into the flat – work, lack of doing any – have to get back into this, have work to do, like doing the work, can find more, and get paid more, like getting paid good money for doing good work, worries about why I wasn’t focused.  All this shit and a bottle of Pinot Grigio on a Sunday night.

Woke up with a cracked mouth and totally blocked sinuses, like a mad allergy. A reaction to my whereabouts.  Becoming allergic to myself even? No please not that.

Jumped on a train – with a few clothes, a book and my laptop – on the Thursday, Euston – Bangor 3 hours, been up here a week tomorrow, needed a breath of fresh air, change of scene, different beat, a new song.  Well it was all that and more for a couple of days, I sloped about with a real cloud over me, a real worry about a whole lot of things, and no smile, no stories, just a proclamation of exhaustion and the need to rest.  My family were good to me, caring, enquiring, thoughtful, not pushy, and then I was struck down with tonsilitis. I self-quarantined while my brother and his wife entertained visitors for the weekend, and I slept, watched iPlayer, read (the Dragon Tattoo book – it’s ace) and crept out slitty eyed into the light to get disprin fixes. 48 hour self imposed, docs Monday, antibiotics – good ones this time, throat’s not so sore now.

Cloud’s gone, sunshine is around, I’ve been working properly again since Monday and got a real desire to push this forward, picked up an improved contract, and potentially 2 or 3 bits of new direction, want to make it work, and loving working up here.  You can step outside and see the skyline.  There are bats at night.  No-one is upstairs, not where I work and sleep anyway.  I need for nothing save what’s in the bag I brought. All the crap piling up in my flat is worthless.  Except maybe the odd bit of mail, some books, bits of silver, and a box with some amber in it.  Couple of t-shirts, old photographs, paintings, my tea mug. There’s a pig in the garden here. Hens run about.  There are two cats.  And a rabbit.  There’s another pig coming soon.

I’m enjoying working remotely.  Satellite.

I’ve recently worked out why we are built the way we are. So two limbs top and bottom that both do the same thing, but opposing. Imagine if we had a strong hoppy leg and a smaller, leaning leg for standing around and directing and leaning. Like a bike stand as well when stationery.

I fractured a bone in my elbow last week. today’s the first day of proper typing, not one or two fingered right hand plonking. it feels good, though not got the CAPS lock yet. oohh there was one..

Am watching Series 3 Hustle and have to say it’s shit compared to Series 1 and 2. I’m on final episode and they’ve brought in Paul Nicholls (?) ex Eastenders for a shite Sheffield pretending to be cockney. Rubbish.

Sad to read today about the demise of dgm UK.  Gone into administration according to reports.  I’m surprised they lasted as long as they did.  the company was broken in 2004.  What a shame that a business idea with so much potential was handled by a megalomaniac, sociopathic, sycophantic despot. Ivan the Terrible had a point. What is wrong with killing those closest to you? Oh yes they are the people who believe in your idea. What happens without them? You make new deputies. How good are the new deputies? About half as good as the last lot. How many people worked at dgm is not testament to the successes of the business.

You didn’t think that did you?

That said the luminaries of my generation worked there: Fionn Hyndman, Peter Rowe, Nicky Iapino, Rob Berrisford, Christian Panayi, Natalie Perry, Kev Edwards, James Hawkins, Duncan Popham, Helen Collins, Chris Quelch. What about me Brownie come the cries from Luke Pursey, Nicky Applegarth, Simon Robinson, Ross Travill, Mumtaz Khamker, Spratt Ebako, Elizabeth Adeniji, Bruce Clayton, Chris Garner, Mandy Baker, Newaz Islam and Richard Way. (Not all at once though that could be something for the A4u Charity Auction run by of course none other than Kevin “The Wake” Edwards.)

I dumb it down on my CV these days, not that I use one.  Occasionally for volunteering purposes.  I put Deal Group Media plc. People ask about Deal Group Media plc; no-one asks about dgm.  Shit idea at the time (all in lower case, no capitals..) thought out by Adrian Moss and Adam (Marketing bloke, launched (lunched) Loaded). Nice try Simon Trigg; bad execution Andrew “007″ Dickson, bad idea Carl Davis.

Aaaaaaanyway my heart and the hearts of the crew at Hatmatic send our condolences to the guys at dgm – them’s the breaks.  May you rise from the ashes of administration and form a new company with no debts and no outstanding invoices. Ha – you fucking wish – “PAY YOUR BILLS” is the cry from the Steeple of Affiliates (just by Budden’s Hope).

Come back 2004 – here’s a chance to secure No. 1 spot.  What was that? “Affiliate Window? – Noooo – they’ll never go far… run by a chancer…”

Farewell sweet times, memories linger on (until the Co-dydramol kicks in at least).