Marketing Week
10 January 2008
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4Th Screen signs WAP ad deals with Teletext and ANG
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Mobile advertising agency 4th Screen Advertising has signed deals with Associated Newspaper Group (ANG) and Teletext.
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Ad-Air names TBWA's Ward as first chief
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Ad-Air Group, the outdoor company, has appointed TBWA Worldwide executive vice-president Andrew Ward as its first chief executive.
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Advertising Association prepares for self-regulatory digital review
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
The Advertising Association (AA) is preparing to launch a review of digital media in an attempt to future-proof self-regulation of the medium.
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Advisory body to urge major government ad budget cuts
Wed, 16 Jan 2008
A new body set up to examine the effectiveness of Government marketing is to recommend a major reduction in advertising spend, particularly television advertising.
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Andrew Harrison predicts a bumpy ride during a year of change
Wed, 16 Jan 2008
As the Chinese say: "May you live in interesting times." Well, with the Beijing Olympics less than eight months away, it promises to be an "interesting" year in UK media.
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ASA condemns Littlewoods ads
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has condemned retailer Littlewoods for sending out a mailer encouraging young women to get into debt.
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Auto Trader to take digital sales in-house
Mon, 14 Jan 2008
Auto Trader, the motoring magazine, is taking its digital sales in-house from March 1. The move allow agencies to deal directly with the motoring website in when developing campaigns for their clients.
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Avoid the quick-fix bandwagon
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Brands are using environmental promotions to make short-term sales gains, but campaigns must be ethically 'watertight'. Only that way can long-term results be guaranteed, says David Benady
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BA dumps TMW and Lida after issuing global brief
Tue, 15 Jan 2008
British Airways has ditched its UK below-the-line agencies Tullo Marshall Warren (TMW) and Lida and is hunting a new agency to manage its global direct marketing and strategic loyalty requirements.
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BA launches "one click" offsetting scheme
Tue, 15 Jan 2008
British Airways has unveiled a new green initiative, backed by environment secretary Hilary Benn, designed to reduce the impact of aviation on climate change.
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Bang & Olufsen sacks chief over profit slump
Fri, 11 Jan 2008
Bang & Olufsen, the upmarket audio-visual brand, has sacked its chief executive Torben Sorensen after it was announced on Wednesday that the company had shed more than a quarter of its market value.
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Barclays to launch 5m loan campaign
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Barclays is attempting to overcome the "stigma" and controversy surrounding secured loans with the launch of a new product aimed at the mainstream market.
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Bellwether sounds cautious note
Tue, 15 Jan 2008
Marketing budgets were hit by growing concerns about the economy in the last quarter of 2007, according to the latest Bellwether report. The report, which is published today (January 14), saw the steepest fall in budgets in two years due to weak sales revenues, disappointing profits and the credit squeeze.
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BHF goes online to slam junk food ads
Wed, 16 Jan 2008
The British Heart Foundation has launched an online campaign warning children about the dangers of some of their favourite foods in an attempt to turn the tables on "junk food advertisers".
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BRC calms food price rise fears
Tue, 15 Jan 2008
The British Retail Consortium has lambasted recent claims of escalating food prices as "alarmist" and "unsupported by the evidence". The response follows claims that record increases in the cost charged by food producers will be passed on to consumers.
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Britvic faces supermarket delisting threat despite 2.4m Drench revamp
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Drench, the Britvic-owned water brand, is struggling to get listings in supermarkets, despite a £2.4m overhaul.
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Canon pushes Generation Green brand
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Canon is bringing its range of eco-friendly printer products and its environmental initiatives under a new brand. Generation Green aims to make it easy for consumers to identify and learn about its green products.
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Cello buys a share of Face to tap into youth market
Fri, 11 Jan 2008
Cello Group, the market research and consulting group, has bought 23% of market research and creative agency Face in a bid to tap into the youth market. Cello can buy the remaining equity of the business through a staged earn-out over the next three to five years.
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CHI wins 45m Euro brief for Carphone Warehouse
Wed, 16 Jan 2008
CHI & Partners has picked up Carphone Warehouse's 45m pan-European media planning and buying account without a pitch.
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Chief executive Blazey leaves PHD
Fri, 11 Jan 2008
Morag Blazey, the chief executive of PHD, has left the agency after 14 years. The Omnicom-owned media agency has already kicked off the search for a replacement.
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China's global brand hurdle
Wed, 16 Jan 2008
There will be a lot more than gold medals at stake when Beijing hosts the Olympic Games later this year. For 16 days in August, the eyes of the world will be focused on the Far East, presenting Chinese brands with the ultimate shop window in which to kick-start the process of becoming global players.
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Christmas period results please Sainsburys chief exec
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Sainsbury's has reported "pleasing" results for the Christmas period despite a tough quarter for retailers. The supermarket chain has reported a 3.7% increase in like-for-like sales, excluding fuel, for the 12 weeks to December 29.
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Coca-Cola denies axing Diet Coke "hunk"
Wed, 16 Jan 2008
Coca-Cola has rubbished claims it is planning to drop the Diet Coke "hunk" from its advertising. It was reported earlier this week that Coca-Cola Great Britain would ditch the brand icon as part of a move to realign its marketing strategy with the US.
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Diet brand recruits ex-W&K managing director
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Amy Smith, the former managing director of Wieden & Kennedy in London, has been appointed as managing director of diet brand Jenny Craig in Australia and New Zealand.
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Disney promotes UK head to international role
Tue, 15 Jan 2008
Disney Channel UK managing director Rob Gilby has been promoted to head the broadcaster's operations across Asia-Pacific. Gilby takes the new role of senior vice president and managing director for the region for Disney-ABC International Television as part of a restructure.
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DoubleClick launches rich media solution
Mon, 14 Jan 2008
DoubleClick, the digital marketing services provider, is launching a solution to help advertisers evaluate the effectiveness of rich media campaigns.
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EDF invests in new-generation power stations
Fri, 11 Jan 2008
EDF, the German-owned energy company, has announced plans to invest in four new nuclear power plants after the Government's decision to press ahead with plans for new-generation power stations.
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EMAP springs final surprise with B2B sale
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
The break-up of EMAP, one of the UK's foremost media players, has been a drawn-out affair but few expected the development we got. Just as the media world was heading off for its Christmas break, the final piece of the EMAP empire, the business-to-business and events division, ...
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EMI to allow brands to sponsor artists
Tue, 15 Jan 2008
EMI, the ailing record company, is planning to offer brands the chance to sponsor its artists for the first time. The plan aims to boost flagging revenue at the company, which is owned by private equity company Terra Firma.
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Enerygwatch calls for Competition Commission meeting with providers
Mon, 14 Jan 2008
Energywatch has called for the "big six" energy providers to be referred to the Competition Commission as average energy bills rise to more than £1,000 a year. The move follows a price increase on both gas and electricity by npower earlier this month.
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EU MPs moot laws to curb online marketing tactics
Wed, 16 Jan 2008
The European Parliament is to consider statutory controls for online marketing, and in particular behavioural targeting – a growing online trend that tracks website behaviour for advertising purposes.
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Ex-First Choice marketer to spearhead VisitLondon drive
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
VisitLondon, the tourist body that promotes the capital, has appointed former First Choice marketer Sonia Oliver to the role of marketing manager for the domestic market.
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Five appoints ex-Lowe London head
Fri, 11 Jan 2008
Five has appointed Lowe London head of planning Carl Ratcliff (pictured) to bolster its marketing team, following the departure of marketing director Jane Scott last year. Ratcliff, who previously worked at Five, takes the title head of brand strategy and marketing, and will report to Lisa Opie, managing director ...
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Former Kia chief to relaunch Ssang Yong
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Former Kia UK chief Paul Williams has been appointed to spearhead a relaunch of SsangYong, the Korean car marque that went into administration in the UK at the end of last year.
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Freesheets feel the cold over Christmas
Fri, 11 Jan 2008
The freesheets suffered sharp drops in circulation in December, according to the latest Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC) figures, as Londoners left the capital for the holiday period.
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FSA uses TV ads to push traffic light labelling
Mon, 14 Jan 2008
The Food Standards Agency is launching a new TV advert to promote its traffic light labelling system. The campaign breaks today.
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Getmemedia aids Football League hunt for partners
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
The Football League has signed up to Getmemedia.com, the online marketing and media ideas directory, to find three official partners for the 2008/09 season.
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GMG Radio launches in-house S&P team
Tue, 15 Jan 2008
Guardian Media Group Radio (GMG) has poached OMD UK head of radio John Walker to lead a newly launched in-house sponsorship and promotions (S&P) team. He will join the company in early spring.
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GroupM UK appoints commercial director of entertainment
Tue, 15 Jan 2008
GroupM UK, the WPP Group-owned media network, has appointed Richard Foster as commercial director of entertainment. He joins from Fox TV Studios, where he was senior vice-president.
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Havas acquires media independent BLM
Mon, 14 Jan 2008
Havas, the sixth largest marketing services company, has acquired independent media agency BLM for an undisclosed amount. The French company will rename the agency Arena BLM as part of the deal, which aims to increase its UK footprint.
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How the lowly iphone will call an end to our seller-centric ways
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
This Christmas's must-have item, and its me-too copycats, will usher in mobile, real-time marketing, but not in the way we're expecting...
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Is the plug being pulled on the bottled water industry?
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
The news that campaign group Sustain is calling for all government departments to ban staff from drinking bottled water on its premises comes at a vulnerable time for the bottled water industry, which has been hit by a welter of adverse publicity in the ...
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Jamie exposes risks of celebrity-led advertising
Wed, 16 Jan 2008
Supermarket brands looking to get closer to consumers by using celebrities suffered at the hands of their chosen stars last week. Speculation began to mount that Iceland would be dropping former Atomic Kitten singer Kerry Katona from its advertising after she was criticised for allegedly smoking ...
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JJB refunds football fans
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
JJB Sports is compensating football fans that it overcharged for replica shirts after being found guilty of involvement in a price fixing cartel. The move comes after consumer group Which? started legal proceedings against the retailer to win back consumers' cash. JJB will pay £20 per shirt to every ...
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John Lewis tops consumer poll
Fri, 11 Jan 2008
Consumers have voted John Lewis their favourite UK retailer, according to a new report from analyst Verdict Retail. The department store chain knocked sister company Waitrose into second place in the Consumer Satisfaction Index 2008.
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Just the thing to raise the spirit glass and get you on your feet
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
We're barely into the second week of 2008 and the research pundits are already on our case - but this time I agree with every word they say...
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Kenya Tourist Board seeks funding boost after violence
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
The Kenya Tourist Board says it has no plans to run down its UK marketing programme in the wake of the violence that has swept the nation.
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Landwind set to appoint Spirit to handle 20m ad account
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Landwind, the Chinese car brand launching in Europe this year, is poised to appoint Spirit Advertising to handle its £20m advertising account after a protracted pitch.
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Lastminute in 4m consolidation plan
Wed, 16 Jan 2008
Lastminute.com, the travel and leisure group, has called a review of advertising across all of its brands as part of a move to consolidate its advertising and digital accounts.
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Lowe poised to win £150m Walls business from McCann
Fri, 11 Jan 2008
Lowe London is tipped to win the £150m Unilever-owned Walls ice cream global business from incumbent McCann Erickson. It is understood that the decision is due to be announced later this week.
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Macdonald Hotels raises focus on DM in overhaul
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Macdonald Hotels and Resorts is increasing its focus on direct marketing and consolidating its below-the-line budget into a single agency as part of an overhaul of its marketing strategy.
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Marketing Week/Ball & Hoolahan Marketing Salary Survey 2008
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Marketer's salaries rose by 6.7% in 2007, taking their average income to 48.627. But the temptation to progress a career by moving up and out remains very strong and employers must offer additional benefits that will increase staff loyalty. By Roy Hoolahan and David Reed
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McCann Erickson takes on Hovis and Quorn business
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
McCann Erickson has won the Hovis and Quorn accounts after retaining its place on the £26m Premier Foods roster. It will also retain Mr Kipling, Cadbury Cakes, Sharwoods and Bisto.
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McCann set to gain 80m Sony Ericsson account
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Sony Ericsson is understood to be close to handing McCann Erickson its 80m advertising business. The decision comes after months of speculation that the mobile handset manufacturer is planning to review the account.
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Monarch bids to distance itself from low-cost rivals
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Monarch, the low-cost airline, is repositioning as the "low fare airline that cares" in a bid to distance itself from rivals easyJet and Ryanair.
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Morrisons market share jumps to 11.4%
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Morrisons has won the Christmas battle between the major supermarkets, according to figures published by TNS Worldpanel. The retailer's growth in market share for the 12 weeks ending December 30 is the highest for any grocery retailer in the period.
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National Schools Partnership wins milk for teenagers task
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
The Milk Development Council has appointed the National Schools Partnership, after a five-way pitch against four undisclosed agencies, to create a campaign targeting teenagers.
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New campaign - The Welsh Assembly
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
The Welsh Assembly is launching a new campaign to encourage back pain sufferers to stay active in a bid to reduce the number of lost work days, and burden to the health service, caused by people resting bad backs.
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Online: where context is king
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
As the world goes online, advertising budget allocations are reflecting the trend. However, the massive scale and shifting user patterns make the internet a challenging medium for marketers
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Orange chief exec lures trio from Virgin Mobile
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
New Orange UK chief executive Tom Alexander (pictured) has moved quickly to strengthen his senior management team with the appointment of three former colleagues from Virgin Mobile. Alexander joined the France Telecom-owned operator to run its UK busin...
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Predictable but polished succession plan from BBH
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Advertising agencies are not known for showering one another with praise, but if there is one agency that is almost universally revered it is Bartle Bogle Hegarty. And, after 25 years, it is not just BBH's "wow factor" work that has won it so many admirers. The agency is also seen ...
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Purnell plays down threat of watershed ban on ads
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
The Minister for Culture, James Purnell, appears to have ruled out a 9pm watershed on food and alcohol advertising on television in favour of focusing on "personal responsibility".
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Ready for takeover?
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Santander's courting of Alliance & Leicester shows recognition of the former building society's significant market share, despite its recent lack of investment in branding, says Catherine Turner
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Red Bee brings in former Carlton chief
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Red Bee Media has appointed former Carlton Screen Advertising chief executive Adam Poulter to executive commercial director.
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S&N rejects Heineken/Carlsberg takeover bid
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Scottish and Newcastle (S&N) has snubbed a 7.80 per share takeover bid from Heineken and Carlsberg, although the brewer has not ruled out accepting an offer of over 8 per share.
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Sainsburys leads the way in chicken welfare
Mon, 14 Jan 2008
Sainsburys has become the first major supermarket to announce that it will axe intensively-farmed chickens across its entire range and adopt the RSPCAs Freedom Food welfare standard for all broiler chickens.
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Sainsbury's uses press ads to defend animal welfare record
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Sainsbury's has launched a press campaign defending its animal welfare record in the week the supermarket and its rivals were slammed for failing to take part in a debate about battery farming chicken.
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Secrets behind a long-life event
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
For live events to fulfil their potential, serious consideration must be given to how their reach can be extended through the use of online, video and interactive tools. Ian Whiteling reports
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So what's the Big Idea?
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
In the digital world - where brands and targets interact without ads - much-lauded proprietary tools face an uphill challenge, says David Wethey
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Tesco fails to impress
Tue, 15 Jan 2008
Retail giant Tesco has reported a 3.1% rise in the Christmas trading period, falling short of City expectations. The lower-than-expected sales, in the six weeks to January 5 period, shows a slower sales growth than rival Sainsbury.
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The Sun’s circulation figures reach record low
Fri, 11 Jan 2008
The Sun’s circulation fell below 3 million for the first time in 34 years, despite dropping its cover price to just 20p in the South East, according to the latest figures from the Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC).
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Thomas Cook takes on new Club 18-30 boss in office move
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Thomas Cook has appointed a new general manager for its youth holiday brand Club 18-30 as it moves to Peterborough.
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Through a glass too darkly
Fri, 11 Jan 2008
Once upon a time it was the Governor of the Bank of Englands raised eyebrow that was sufficient to move markets. Now we have Sir Stuart Rose, chief executive of Marks & Spencer, instead. When, this week, he tipped the wink that his companys performance wasnt all it might be, he instigated a stock market panic virtually single-handedly.
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Times Media names EMAPs Settle as marketing development head
Mon, 14 Jan 2008
Liz Settle has joined Times Media as head of marketing development and will report directly to sales and marketing director Katie Vanneck. Settle joins from EMAP and has been briefed to create a strategic customer framework to bolster the Times' brand.
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Titan promotes UK head of marketing to global role
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Titan Worldwide, the outdoor company, has promoted UK marketing director David Etherington to senior vice-president and worldwide marketing director.
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Toyota plans hybrid versions of every model within car range
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Toyota is planning to offer a hybrid version of every model in its car range to help it achieve its goal of selling 1 million hybrid cars a year.
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Universal McCann gains 1m Brazilian tourism brief
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Universal McCann has been awarded the 1m media planning and buying account for the Brazilian Tourist Board. The agency won the business without a pitch.
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Virgin Atlantic tests sustainable fuel for commercial aircraft
Mon, 14 Jan 2008
Virgin Atlantic is testing sustainable jet fuel on a commercial aircraft for the first time. The airline will fly one of its Boeing 747s on biofuel in a demonstration flight from London to Amsterdam in February.
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Virgin Radio expands into branded content creation
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Virgin Radio is to compete directly with both radio production companies and advertising agencies with the launch of a division that will make branded content for clients.
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Vivid buys global rights to Dragons' Den i-Teddy toy
Wed, 16 Jan 2008
Vivid Imaginations has bought the global rights for i-Teddy, the musical teddy bear discovered by BBC2’s Dragons’ Den. The toy company is now planning a major marketing push behind the musical teddy bear.
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Waitrose to spend 50m on expanding its brand
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Waitrose is doubling its ad-vertising spend this year to more than 50m as it aims to make the brand accessible to more consumers.
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What lies ahead for Bogle's successors?
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
It's a tribute to the creative energy and international importance of so small a company as Bartle Bogle Hegarty that the appointment of a new group chief executive should make a major splash in the Financial Times this week. After all, the company is not even publicly quoted, and the one ...
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Whyte plans own business venture
Thu, 10 Jan 2008
Departing McCann Erickson chief executive Stephen Whyte has ruled out another job in advertising, and says he is planning to launch a business start-up.
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Zavvi shifts focus to online sales
Fri, 11 Jan 2008
Zavvi, the music retailer, is restructuring its board in a moved aimed increasing its focus on online sales. Marketing director Steve Kincaid will now become e-commerce director and trading director, Mark Noonan, will become commercial director with responsibility for marketing.
