Field: Short-term focus on execution killing creativity
British marketing consultant Peter Field warns that brands and advertising agencies have become too focused on short-term marketing via digital platforms such as Google and Facebook.
In views that expand upon those he expressed at the Effies last Thursday, Field warns that budgets for creativity has fallen sharply, threatening the commercial justification for creativity in only a matter of years.
This emphasis on customer activation rather than brand building undermines effectiveness.
“These days it’s some kind of deal or offer. Their effects decay very rapidly, and you have to come up with another deal or offer,” he says in The Australian.
“One of the key benefits of a brand-driven point of view is that you start to improve the pricing of the brand. Roughly speaking the optimum mix seems to be 60% for brand building, and 40% for activation.”
Field also warns that hyper-targeted campaigns don’t work and that “a bit of waste is actually good” because it reinforces that a brand has got “something good going for it”.
He also says television is the primary driver of creative success due to its reach and the emotion it can generate.
Read what AdNews editor Rosie Baker has to say about how short-termism is poisoning the industry.
300 jobs tipped to go in News Corp’s ARM acquisition
News Corp’s planned acquisition of APN News & Media’s Australian Regional Media newspaper business could result in up to 300 jobs losses as the publisher looks to secure “back office synergies”, reports the Australian.
The cuts are expected to be rolled out over an initial phase, provided the deal is approved by shareholders and the competition watchdog. While there are no plans to shut the ARM titles, including The Gympie Times, The Chronicle or the Ballina Advocate, cuts are expected where there is a duplication of staff.
It is understood cuts will be aimed at back office, printing and distribution functions, with News Corp seeking to retain as many journalists as possible.
Telstra in talks over Disney SVOD
Telstra is reported to be in negotiations with Disney to exclusively distribute the DisneyLife SVOD service via Telstra TV, The Australian has revealed.
DisneyLife is expected to be launched in Australia either in late 2016 or early 2017 and it costs about $18 in the UK.
The local launch of Amazon Prime is expected to be pushed back to 2017 as Foxtel (HBO), Stan (Showtime) and other have already snapped local rights to the majority of premium content in Australia.
Amazon is pursuing the sports rights to major tennis and rugby events to draw customers to Prime, which is huge in the US with 63 million users and also popular in the UK.
Supercars accelerate into third position
Fox Sports' coverage of the 2016 Supercars series has reported a 36% jump in ratings this season and now ranks behind the National Rugby League and Australian Football League as the most popular sport on the pay TV channel, Fairfax Media reports.
Supercars CEO James Warburton also notes that there has been an 80 per cent increase in the number of videos that are viewed on the Supercars website. The Ten Network broadcasts six Supercars races each year.
Video views on the Supercars website have also soared by 80% while interactions on Facebook are up 30%
The Supercars are in the second year of a six-year $241 million broadcast deal with Ten Network and Fox Sports.
Hardly anyone listens to Facebook ads
Only 5% of people unmute video ads as they are scroll through their Facebook feeds, research undertaken by WPP’s Millward Brown on behalf of Facebook has found.
This creates a challenge for Facebook video ads that need to grab attention quickly and without relying on sound, MillwardBrown head of media and digital in the Africa, Middle East and Pacific region Mark Henning says, speaking to Fairfax Media.
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