Superstrength lagers make up nearly an eighth of the UK’s take-home lager trade, yet the brewers choose not to advertise them. These high-alcohol products achieve sales of 225m a year, using mainly direct mail and on-pack promotions. In importance, they rival the alcopops sector, at its height, and also reflect some of its moral ambiguity. […]
Leo Burnett has never been famed for its creativity – at least, in the UK – but it has recently made a couple of moves to change this. Not only has it bought a sizeable chunk of Bartle Bogle Hegarty, long-time holder of the top creative slot in Marketing Week’s annual agency reputation survey, but […]
Superstrength lagers make up nearly an eighth of the UK’s take-home lager trade, yet the brewers choose not to advertise them. These high-alcohol products achieve sales of 225m a year, using mainly direct mail and on-pack promotions. In importance, they rival the alcopops sector, at its height, and also reflect some of its moral ambiguity. […]
I find Robert Bean’s letter (MW February 5) fascinating. I also find it worrying.To argue that brands and branding are at the heart of communications and not advertising, and to “warn” the industry it will miss the boat unless it understands this concept is bizarre. Isn’t the consumer at the heart of all communication? In […]
Sunday Business, the national business paper which relaunched four days ago, has failed to reach its initial sales target. The title sold 75,000 copies, 5000 short of its target 80,000, according to Bert Hardy, chief executive of Sunday Business owner European Press Holdings. Hardy says: “Given that we anticipate selling 80,000 a week I think […]
Most people feel that companies are cynically “cashing in” on public sympathy through cause-related marketing, according to new Mintel research exclusive to Marketing Week. The report reveals that 60 per cent of the 1,492 adults questioned held this negative attitude, although Mintel notes that this could be linked to the recent death of Diana, Princess […]
Dixons Stores Group has moved its 108m media buying account into Walker Media in a move that reunites Christine Walker with the high street electrical retailer after a three-year break. Walker last worked with the Dixons Group, which includes Currys, Dixons, the Link and PC World stores, when she was chief executive at Zenith Media. […]
Calortex, the independent gas supplier, has attacked British Gas Trading’s “15 per cent off” advertising campaign, accusing the energy giant of “gross misrepresentation”. It has complained to the Advertising Standards Authority about the campaign. The company’s commercial director Neil Lambert says: “People may be under the impression they can get a 15 per cent reduction, […]
American Express has consolidated its direct marketing for all markets except the US into Ogilvy One Worldwide. Ogilvy One has gained the consumer business, which was resigned by Wunderman Cato Johnson when parent company Young & Rubicam won Citibank’s global advertising and direct marketing account last August. An Amex spokesman says: “We have been reviewing […]
Tim Martin has seen off some formidable opponents in his time, but now he may have met his match. In building a chain of 200 pubs, many converted from disused banks, supermarkets, and cinemas, Martin encountered the opposition of the big established drinks retailers, notably Whitbread, who challenged his planning applications at every turn. To […]
The producers of the sequel to Four Weddings and a Funeral, one of the most profitable British films ever made, have began a search for product placement deals to help promote the film on its release. A spokeswoman for the film’s distributor confirms that product placement specialist IEM has been appointed to arrange co-promotion deals […]
WPP, the advertising and marketing services group run by Martin Sorrell, made record profits in 1997 – up 16 per cent to 177.4m before tax. Turnover rose 2.9 per cent to 7.3bn and the group added 1.25bn in new billings. But analysts say world currency fluctuations wiped 20m off the profit figure, and turnover would […]
Grey Advertising is planning to relaunch its London office in an attempt to raise its profile as a creative force and improve its poor new business record in recent months. Plans for the relaunch are still at an embryonic stage but it is timed to coincide with the completion of an interior revamp of its […]
The media sector invests about 16m per year on standard industry research, an amount seriously questioned by many of those who foot the bill. On balance, I believe it is not so unreasonable a figure considering it provides a trading currency for 8.2bn of ad expenditure. The problem is the data is abused. It is […]
Pedigree Petfoods is trying to create some canine magic with a series of four ads for its Schmackos dog snacks directed by Chris Noonan, the director of talking animal film Babe. In the first of the commercials through Grey Advertising, an unsporty dog is rewarded with one of the Schmacko dried meat strips even though […]