The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has accused retail giant Comet of deliberately ignoring its complaints about a national press ad for SkyDigital boxes and dishes. The authority claims Comet failed to reply to a recorded delivery letter notifying it of a complaint by rival Dixons (DSG Retail), as well as two follow-up letters. It further […]
Dark clouds are hanging over the BBC’s Weather Centre, where a climate of hostility has sent staff to scurry for cover
Media agency BJK&E is threatening to sue the More Group unless it pays compensation after failing to deliver a giant billboard of Kelly Brook modelling a Triumph bra.Triumph is one of BJK&E’s clients. The massive poster, measuring 35 metres by 15 metres, was due to have gone up on scaffolding in Holborn, London, for four […]
I read with interest your article on cause-related marketing, “Give and take” (MW August 26). I was delighted to see Marketing Week giving cause-related marketing its rightful recognition as a bona fide marketing activity borne out of business objectives, rather than a philanthropic add-on. After ten years of cause-related marketing experience working with global brands, […]
Readers under the age of 40 would have been horrified, nay astounded, to discover in last week’s edition of Marketing Week that Darren Hughes, founder of Liverpool superclub Cream, was also a founder of “Sixties rock group” Cream. Readers over the age of 40 would have been mystified as to why they hadn’t heard that […]
Lowe Howard-Spink has retained Weetabix’s £3.4m Frutibix account after a pitch against two agencies on the breakfast cereal manufacturer’s roster. LH-S, which has handled Frutibix since its launch two years ago, pitched against Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO, which handles Alpen, and Banks Hoggins O’Shea/ FCB, which holds the Weetaflakes and Weetabix Advantage accounts. It went […]
The RSPCA knows how to pick its celebrity helpers. It invited Pam St Clement, or Pat Butcher from East-Enders, to be on the panel of judges for its Chappie Scruffts Dog of the Year award, which seeks out the best mongrel dog in the country. In her capacity as judge Pam was looking for signs […]
Absolut Vodka’s latest promotional stunt shows the company knows its customer positioning well, namely the on-the-floor-of-the-khazi position. Bearing, or baring, this positioning in mind, Absolut is practically throwing its brand message down the pan by showing a perspex toilet seat created by Brighton design agency Bobo. Absolut commissioned the agency to design a seat to […]
J. Walter Thompson has created two new commercials for Nestlé’s Kit Kat, the first of a batch of short advertisements.
Mobile phone operator One 2 One has restructured its marketing department and split the operation into two units, consumer and business. The business unit will attempt to boost the number of corporate clients, which account for 350,000 of the company’s 2.7 million customers. One 2 One has appointed a director of the unit, David Henson, […]
CAT, the fashion label owned by Caterpillar, has launched its first global advertising campaign. The &£10m autumn/winter push runs across the UK, mainland Europe, Japan, Australia and also the US, which has previously run separate advertising. The campaign marks CAT’s cinema advertising debut. The ads will run in arthouse cinemas throughout Europe, accompanying the movie […]
Centrica has assured AA members that its takeover will not damage customer service. But its commercial concerns may jeopardise a privatised AA – especially its emergency breakdown service.
UK outdoor contractors are considering swapping some of their poster space for a stake in new media companies. Clear Channel International (CCI) is actively pursuing such a strategy. Poster companies’ interest in striking Internet deals comes three weeks after Channel 5 chief executive David Elstein revealed the station planned to give away airtime in return […]
The field marketing industry has branched out by offering door-to-door services to track down consumers. But it needs to formulate new codes of conduct.
Littlewoods has axed its online lottery game, Prizeball 4, only four months after its launch, dealing a blow to the pools operator’s plans to run the National Lottery. The company insists the trial of the technology involved in the game has been successful, and denies that the decision will damage its chances in bidding for […]