Interviews, insight & analysis on digital media & marketing

Reasons to be Cheerful: Mary Keane-Dawson, Group CEO, Takumi

Mary Keane-Dawson, Group CEO, Takumi

As the coronavirus pandemic has quickly become the new normal, NDA wants to celebrate the positives of our current situation.

We spoke to Mary Keane-Dawson, Group CEO at influencer agency Takumi to find out what she’s finding to be optimistic about at present.

What, if any, positive long-term impact on the digital industry will coronavirus have?

Focus, focus, focus from team Takumi in helping clients find tangible business solutions.

From our influencers we’ve seen incredible creativity turned around in record time that truly connects brands with the creator audience.

What have you been most heartened about in how your staff, partners, customers or clients have reacted to the new normal?

The commitment from both long term and shiny new team members has been extremely moving and very motivational for me personally.

Our clients have responded amazingly as they have stayed loyal to us.

Our influencers and creators continue to be the source of originality and entertainment which inspires and delights!

What technologies have you been most impressed with during this new situation and do you think conavirus will hasted their uptake or development?

Obviously Zoom gets all the limelight but I’m giving shout outs for Whereby, Jell and good old Salesforce. 

What, if any, positive long-term impact on the digital industry will coronavirus have?

In every recession there are winners and losers – and I should know as I can just about remember Callaghan and the Winter of Discontent, which ushered in the Thatcher Era.

My point of view is that digital will come out of this very well placed, but out will go the capital intensive ‘nice to haves’ such as cliched creative shoots in Ibiza, and in will come cost effective-quick-multiplatform-creative executions-at-scale.

What positive impacts on long term consumer behaviour shifts will it have?

They/we (for let’s not forget we are consumers too) will continue in growing distrust of the old left vs right politics and the traditional/established media brand/channels.

The coronavirus pandemic will hasten the rise of new media voices and I believe put democracy and diversity as well as a universal minimum wage as the key pillars of a meaningful society.

Finally, we will appreciate and pay our key workers, who are essential to our living long healthy lives, a proper wage.