How much abuse can a brand put up with?
The case of Gerald Ratner should serve as a reminder to every owner, president or CEO intent on hurling abuse at their brand
Stuart Smith on Gary Digby and ITV
Say what you like about him, veteran ITV sales director and professional rough diamond Gary Digby will be sorely missed. One rival put it this way: “Media buyers will now see ITV as an easier place to do their negotiations and will expect to save millions.” Digby has been closely associated with ITV’s Lazarus-like commercial […]
Is Unilever’s sustainability drive a hostage to fortune?
Unilever chief executive Paul Polman stands to reap rich rewards if his strategy based on sustainability pays off, but the risks are high. Ogilvy & Mather, which has just wrested the Unilever corporate brand development account from Fallon, will shortly unveil the fruits of its labour. New agency, new agenda – and top of that […]
Stuart Smith on festive TV campaigns
Up to 25% of UK retailers’ annual business is generated in the narrow period spanning the run-up to Christmas to the end of January. And this year retail expert Verdict reckons it’s going to be the best time to pluck the goose since 2007, if only because a massive hike in VAT will make all […]
Stuart Smith on ITV and CRR
It’s always refreshing to see a new broom sweeping clean, and Adam Crozier, recently installed chief executive of ITV, did not disappoint as he squared up to a House of Lords select committee this week. Among the insights he disclosed was an admission that ITV programmes were crap. Sorry, I’ll rephrase that in commercial media-speak. […]
Is Kraft killing the goose that lays the golden eggs?
Is the Kraft/Cadbury merger really working? Certainly, we are led to believe so by Kraft Food’s chairman and chief executive officer Irene Rosenfeld, who was over here last week rallying the troops. Back in September she told the Financial Times: “We feel terrific about the integration of Cadbury. One-third of Kraft’s top management is from […]
Crunch time for business sponsorship of the arts
Cuts to funding of the arts threaten to sweep away corporate support in its wake and throw the baby out with the bathwater. Sitting on the desk of culture secretary Jeremy Hunt is a document detailing the draconian budget cuts that the Arts Council England (ACE) will have to make in the wake of Chancellor […]
Why winning at Cannes means so much to WPP
If a Cannes award is the best measure of an agency’s creative prowess, then success next year is the only option open to WPP. As journalists well know, the most interesting nuggets of information are often to be found at the bottom of a press release. And WPP Group’s latest fact-packed compendium – out last […]
Big Society
What exactly does David Cameron’s vision of the Big Society amount to? The cynical, but evidence-based, conclusion is: spontaneous acts of unrewarded generosity by almost every segment of society except the state itself. This is a tactic that comes with its perils. According to Alan Bell, chairman of Bell Design & Communications: “There needs to […]
Little cheer for drinks industry in Lansley’s public health scheme
The legislative threat may have receded, but the industry will have to stump up even more cash – this time in “readies” Be careful what you wish for. Never have these word rung more true than for the beer, wine and spirits industry as it digests the implications of secretary of state Andrew Lansley’s recent […]
Who’ll be in hot seat when retail musical chairs comes to an end?
Leadership in the retail sector is not about the cult of individuals, it’s about the right strategy and executing it meticulously
Stuart Smith on the BBC and video on demand
If, like me, you are wondering why the Office of Fair Trading has given Project Canvas a clean bill of health after coming down so hard on Project Kangaroo, delving into the ruling may clear up the confusion.
Channel 4, ITV and Sky join forces to prove value of on-demand to marketers
The UK’s major broadcasters have produced what they claim is the most robust research around broadcaster video-on-demand to date, as they look to woo agencies and planners.
M&S, Tenzing, WPP: 5 things that mattered this week and why
Catch up on all this week’s marketing news including change at the top of M&S and WPP, and how a former Red Bull marketer is trying to change perceptions of the energy drink market.
M&S’s shake-up suggests its ‘one brand’ marketing strategy didn’t work
The decision to split responsibility for marketing into the two strands of its business might seem like a step backward for a retailer with such a strong brand, but it should enable it to move faster and focus more on what matters to customers.
P&G looks to even greater marketing efficiency to help tackle disruption
The FMCG giant wants to sure it is reaching the right people at the right time as it looks to fight off growing challenges from ecommerce, own-label brands and digital disruptors.
