When the New Millennium Exhibition Committee gave a very limited insight into who will sponsor, and what will fill, the Millennium Dome, its new logo attracted little attention. However, when the Diary began to ponder the identity, there was an air of familiarity about it. At first it was attributed to the overtones it shares, […]
Granada will pump 150m into the Travelodge budget hotel chain over the next three years to build new city centre sites and revamp existing hotels. Travelodge is considering a first move into TV advertising. It is looking for a broadcast sponsorship deal to raise brand awareness, with Granada increasing Travelodge’s ad budget to 3m this […]
Against the background of a troubled economy, the recent performance of the French press could represent a positive indicator for the future. According to figures from the French research organisation Secodip, France’s printed media posted a growth rate of 11 per cent in 1997. Not only does this better TV, but, more significantly, it is […]
Former senior executives at Interbrand Newell & Sorrell are setting up a “think tank” consultancy.
BT has hired a new managing director for its mobile phone subsidiary Cellnet.
For as long as most of us can remember, the debate about the viability of a national sports paper has rumbled on. Its advocates cite the success of Gazetta and L’Equipe as the role model and its detractors point to how well the nationals already cover sport and the growth of specialist magazines. Four days […]
Hindsight is a wonderful thing. And there must be someone at Publicis Paris who wishes its latest international new business brochure could be pulled. Publicis London is showcased in a double-page advertisement which reads “Rubber, chains and pain. You’ll love it.” The copy goes on to talk about a “no-nonsense” campaign which it says is […]
Railtrack launches its first advertising campaign at the end of this month. The privatised rail maintenance company will seek to promote the refurbishment of its railway stations. The 2m press and poster campaign (MW March 5) will attempt to reverse negative public perceptions about the company, which last week faced a barrage of criticism about […]
Mattel’s UK managing director Denis Horton has left the international toy company to pursue “other professional interests”. The move was widely expected, following disappointing performances by the company’s two flagship brands, Barbie and Fisher-Price, in the UK. This was despite high- profile promotional campaigns such as Barbie’s “pink month” last November, which included painting a […]
An advertiser-funded programme put together by money transfer company Western Union goes on air on ITV this Saturday. The 30-minute programme, called Western Union World Football, has been produced and distributed by CSI. CSI is one of the biggest sports TV programming production companies in the world and was recently bought by Lowe’s Octagon group. […]
P&O Stena Line, the newly merged cross-channel ferry company, will spend 15m on a relaunch campaign, which starts in the summer. As a teaser, the company is launching a poster campaign in the South-east at the beginning of March, using a temporary tag line “new company, new policy”. P&O Stena hopes to finalise a new […]
Rude and unhelpful staff are the biggest single hurdle to developing customer loyalty, according to an Air Miles UK survey exclusive to Marketing Week. The survey found that 54 per cent of the 1,000 people interviewed were most likely to become disloyal because of rude and unhelpful staff. Young people in the 18-to-24 age bracket […]
Almost before the ink had dried on its 25m cheque to buy Melody Radio, EMAP was investigating the prospect of mounting a bid for Atlantic 252 (MW February 26). But to buy the Dublin-based Atlantic will cost EMAP, or any other suitor, between 40m and 100m. Capital Radio and Chrysalis are also believed to be […]
Leagas Shafron Davis has axed 12 jobs, as part of a restructure designed to give the agency a financial lifeline. It follows the loss of the 10m Royal Sun Alliance account last year, an expensive office move and mounting six-figure debts. A team of accountants from Coopers & Lybrand has been brought in to advise […]
The reluctance of Whitbread and other beer marketers to use above-the-line marketing communications as reported in your Cover Story “A test of strength”, (MW February 19), should not be seen purely as a reaction to political correctness. All markets have different communication requirements and below-the-line methods can be more effective when building a relationship with […]