by Charlie Mathews (@CharlesLeeZA) The Marketing Mice offer their take on the world of marketing, media and advertising. This week, they discuss who could be behind the new BusinessLIVE paywall campaign…
Charles Lee Mathews (@CharlesLeeZA) is a writer who likes to draw, such as this regular editorial cartoon — exclusive to MarkLives — in which The Marketing Mice offer their take on the world of marketing, media and advertising.
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by Herman Manson (@marklives) In our annual Agency Leaders poll for 2016, we also asked ad execs to take a broader view of the marketing environment and nominate the brand they would most want their agencies to work on (must operate in South Africa and excluding their current clients); which pitch consultant they would recommend to a client; and the industry body they rate the most highly.
1. The brand that agencies most want to work on in South Africa
Nando’s
Previously
In 2015 it was Coca-Cola. Nike was the runner-up. In 2014, the first time we polled this category, it was Coca-Cola, too, with FNB close behind Coke.
2. The most-recommended pitch consultant in South Africa
Yardstick
Previously
In 2014 and 2015, it was also Yardstick.
Runner-up
The Independent Agency Search and Selection Company (IAS)
Previously
In 2014 and 2015, it was also IAS.
3. The most-admired ad industry body in South Africa
Association for Communication and Advertising (ACA)
Previously
In 2015 the ACA and the IAB tied for top spot. In 2014, the ACA was the most-admired industry body by a good margin.
Runner-up
Creative Circle
Previously
In 2015 and 2014, the runner-up was the IAB.
How the poll works
The editors of MarkLives had a single vote in the poll. Runner-up(s) will only be named if they achieved a good nomination tally relative to the winner’s position. Contenders are named if they stood out significantly above other nominees, but weren’t able to close in on the winner’s tally.
by Charlie Stewart (@CStewart_ZA)Fake news is very much a mot du jour. Voted word of the year for 2016 by the editors of Australia’s Macquarie Dictionary, it is widely associated with politics, but its spread has profound implications for brands.
Surprisingly, for a phrase we’re all so familiar with, the term only gained currency towards the end of the recent US presidential election race (Google Trends shows interest in the phrase started picking up in October), when a bunch of entrepreneurs and online tricksters started creating sensational clickbait that played to American voters’ prejudices. Almost overnight, a cottage industry emerged — much of it run by teenage Macedonians — spinning stories that ranged from Hillary Clinton selling weapons to ISIS to the Pope endorsing Donald Trump.
Financial motives
Whether the content influenced the outcome of the US election is a moot point, but the publishers’ motive wasn’t political — it was financial: they’d spotted a flaw in Facebook’s algorithms and realised that they could use the social media platform to amplify stories, pushing visitors to their own websites where they could monetise the traffic by selling adverts.
Which isn’t that different to what happened a few years ago to Google when unscrupulous website owners figured they could manipulate the search giant.
They created millions of websites using stolen content which they then spammed with dodgy links. Unable to tell the difference between this flotsam and genuinely useful web resources, Google included the fake sites in its search results, encouraging people to click through to them. In a delightful irony, the owners used Google’s own AdSense programme to sell ads to the visitors. Web users, unhappy at the rubbish they were being guided to, voted with their browsers and switched in vast numbers to rival search engines, prompting Google to completely review the way it ranks websites (and penalises the ones taking shortcuts).
Changed the SEO industry
This changed the shape of the SEO industry for the better, forcing brands and their agencies to be more authentic and ethical in the way they optimised websites. I hope the fake news epidemic will lead to a similar change in the way brands and publishers use social media.
If brands are going to continue using paid media to amplify their content, they ought to be more aware of the reputational impact of being seen in a dodgy neighbourhood. That means media buying needs greater scrutiny and pressure must be put on the ad-placement networks to tighten up the criteria they use to select inventory.
Perhaps, although I suspect this is too much to hope for, the fake news debacle will cause the penny to drop in the quality vs quantity debate. Great content is hard to produce yet it delivers meaningful engagement. Wouldn’t it be neat if we made less of it but put more effort into it?
Change needed at publisher level
And change is needed at a publisher level. Social media platforms such as Facebook need to overhaul their content evaluation processes. Like many publishers, Facebook uses machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) to scan content, looking for keywords and context. Its AI bots have long been programmed to find and delete references to porn and terrorism but, until recently, it’s let pretty much anything else fly — regardless of veracity or editorial merit.
In mid-November 2016, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg shared his thoughts on fake news, indicating that Facebook would be reviewing its evaluation criteria (read changing its AI algorithms). The impact was immediate. And rather embarrassing. Zuckerberg’s post disappeared. It had been deleted by an overzealous Facebook fake news bot. You couldn’t make it up. Could you?
I’m all for automation, and I love the opportunities that AI, machine learning and programmatic buying are bringing to the digital landscape, but I suspect it’ll be a while before we humans are out of a job.
Charlie Stewart (@CStewart_ZA) is CEO of Rogerwilco, a multi-award-winning independent digital agency best known for its expertise with Drupal, SEO and content marketing. A Scot by birth, he moved to South Africa in the early 2000s in his quest to support a winning rugby team — a search he’s reluctantly forsaken. Together with Mark Eardley, he co-authored Business to Business Marketing: A Step by Step Guide, (Penguin Random House, 2016) and may be found on LinkedIn. Charlie contributes the monthly “Clicks ‘n Tricks” column, which looks at how brands are using digital channels to engage their customers, to MarkLives.
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by MarkLives (@marklives) The hottest primetime television shows on SABC 1 in South Africa revealed: TV ratings for November and December 2016.
Last year, the Broadcast Research Council of South Africa (BRCSA) has changed its policy about giving away TAMS and now only monthly reports, highlighting the top 20 or 30 primetime shows on several popular channels, are available.
The Broadcast Research Council of South Africa (the BRC) is a non-profit, industry body that was incorporated in 2015 to cater to the audience research needs of the radio and television industry in South Africa.
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by Herman Manson (@marklives) Today we reveal which agency South Africa’s ad execs consider the most digitally integrated in the country.
Every year since 2012, MarkLives has been polling South Africa’s top agency leaders to find out what they think of their competitors, whom they see as effective managers and great creative leaders, and where they believe their future competition is likely to come from. First we announced the 2016 regional results from Cape Town, and last week we announced the 2016 regional results from Johannesburg. This week is dedicated to national results.
Today: Most digitally integrated ad agencies in South Africa
2016 Regional polls recap
Cape Town: Last week, we announced Ogilvy & Mather Cape Town. VML and Y&R Africa Group and King James Group were the joint runners up.
Johannesburg: Here the vote went to Ogilvy & Mather Johannesburg, with AVATAR and FCB Africa named joint runners-up.
The most digitally integrated ad agency in South Africa
VML and Y&R Africa Group
That the VML and Y&R Africa Group managed to beat strong integrated contenders such as Ogilvy & Mather South Africa and AVATAR indicates the level of excitement in the market at seeing how VML and Y&R’s integration strategy succeeds. It’s early days yet — too early for group CEO, Jason Xenopoulos, to really discuss the integration process — but, he says, the partnership between Y&R, Labstore and NATIVE VML is off to a fantastic start.
“In a few short months, we have won two major accounts as an integrated team: Edgars and Amstel,” he says. “Both were highly contested pitches against some of the country’s leading agencies… but Y&R’s awesome creative leadership capabilities and the group’s uniquely integrated offering won through.
VML and Y&R Africa Group is not a single agency: Y&R, Labstore, and NATIVE VML continue to operate as separate, individual agencies servicing their own clients, but the group structure allows it to provide an integrated service to clients who want it. “The teams are working well together and we have started to streamline the systems and processes required to operate in a truly integrated ways,” continues Xenopoulos.
“The biggest barrier at the moment is geography. The intention is to bring Y&R, Labstore, and NATIVE VML physically closer by co-locating the Joburg teams in one office park, but there are some basic logistical issues [such as existing leases] that need to be overcome first. The closer alignment between the agencies now means that Y&R is able to provide digital services to all its clients [in the same way that it’s has been able to provide shopper marketing expertise to existing clients through its partnership with Labstore]. Similarly, NATIVE VML can now provide clients with a truly integrated, through-the-line service, confident that it has all the backup necessary in terms of classical advertising and brand building.”
Previously
In 2015 Ogilvy & Mather South Africa took this title. In 2014, 2013 and 2012, it was Ogilvy & Mather Cape Town.
The runner-up
AVATAR
Only one vote separated AVATAR from the VML and Y&R Africa Group. AVATAR was launched by Zibusiso Mkhwanazi and Veli Ngubane in 2012. In January 2017, it was announced that Mkhwanazi and Ngubane had acquired a significant minority stake in M&C Saatchi’s South African agency network. This has allowed M&C Saatchi PLC to acquire a 20% stake in AVATAR from Avatar Investment Holdings.
AVATAR is more than a digital agency, explains Mkhwanazi, and it is more than a traditional agency. “We are an integrated agency with digital at the core, led by mass consumer insights. We are in a fortunate position that we were born as an integrated agency with digital at the core from day one, when the agency was formed in 2012. Communication, process and education between departments, offices and people is key so that the left hand and the right hand know what the other is doing. This ensures that our AvaStars in various digital and traditional departments work under a single strategy and idea, and are pulling in one direction.”
Previously
In 2014, Publicis Machine and FCB South Africa tied as runners-up. In 2012, it was Draftfcb South Africa (now FCB Africa).
The contenders
Ogilvy & Mather South Africa and King James Group (tied)
Previously
In 2015, Publicis Machine, FCB Africa and King James Group were all named as contenders.
How the poll works
Towards the end of 2016, South Africa’s agency leaders were invited to nominate their most-admired agency in SA, the most-admired creative leader in SA and the most-admired agency boss in SA. We also asked them which agency did the best at digital integration and which agency they saw as the one to watch in the future. Nobody could nominate his or her own agency or staff members. All the nominations were then tallied up for the final result. The editors of MarkLives had a single vote in the poll. The most admired agency of the year is disqualified from the One to Watch category; votes cast in its favour in this category is discarded.
Note: Runner-up(s) will only be named if they achieved a good nomination tally relative to the winner’s position. Contenders are named if they stood out significantly above other nominees, but weren’t able to close in on the winner’s tally.
An über-clever Financial Mail cover, playing on the popular money- and control-grabbing game, Monopoly, but illustrating its cover story of “White Monopoly Capital”. Have a closer look at the smaller details such as “Go Collect Billions”, and “Hide Profits in Offshore Accounts”! Truly brilliant — Financial Mail, move straight to GO and collect all the recognition you deserve for this one!
A post shared by Men’s Health South Africa (@menshealthza) on
Yes, Riaan Ellis is the perfect Men’s Health cover guy but the true showstopper is actually “rescue pup Stanley”! MH editor, Arthus Jones, came up with the concept of teaming up with DARG and giving his readers the opportunity to adopt one of two rescue pets to help them find their “Best Friend and (perfect) Training Partner”. A truly genius idea and noble concept and, after just a couple of days on the shelf, cover pup Stanley already found a new loving home! Unfortunately, the second rescue pup, Dizzy, hasn’t received a new home as of Thursday, 16 February 2017, so hopefully there’s a MarkLives MagLove reader looking for a new buddy… Read more about the whole project, and see more pictures, here.
Not only does it seem to have “34 mouth-watering” dishes, but MyKitchen also dished up a mouth-watering chocolate-overdose cover good enough to break and devour!
On 21 January 2017, a day after Donald Trump’s inauguration as the 45th President of the United States, the streets of Washington DC (and more than 600 locations all over the world!) were filled with Women’s Marchers. On all the pictures, it was a sea of pink as millions of people (not only women) wore pussyhats and pink. Also illustrated in the now-iconic pussyhat material, NYT Mag coverlines look at the “tensions within” this feminist movement.
Every so often, ZigZag surfs back onto the scene with a cover that tick all the boxes and shows us “what [magazine] champs are made of”. Bring it on, Summer!
MagLove by @MediaSlut is a regular slot featuring the best local and international magazine covers every week, recognising well thought-out, powerful and interesting (and hopefully all three-in-one) covers and celebrating the mix of pragmatism, creativity and personal taste that created each of them. The anonymous (for now) blogger behind MediaSlut knows way too much for his own good about media in South Africa, magazines in particular. His mission is to show when SA magazines fail but, most importantly, also when they succeed. If you’re looking for a library about SA magazines and news, this is your one-stop pitstop.
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by Andrew Allison (@andyallison) Skills development is one of the most effective of the six Marketing, Advertising, and Communications (MAC) Sector BBBEE criteria in delivering successful and sustainable transformation. The Department of Labour has recognised this by allocating 10 new skills development bonus points in the MAC Code, and agencies would be well-advised to make use of these.
Wednesday, 1 March 2017, marks the one-year anniversary of the MAC Sector BBBEE Code updates. By the end of the year, all South African advertising agencies will have gone to verification at least once under its criteria. Indeed, it’s not really ‘new’ any more and, as with many ‘new’ things, the MAC Code has been the source of a fair bit of uncertainty in the industry — most notably due to its 2018 ownership target of 45%. But do not forget:
Agencies with revenue between R10m–R50m (QSEs) have 15 extra points available
Agencies with revenue above R50m (large entities) have 38 extra points available
10 new skills development bonus appoints, as per above
So, while some of the targets are certainly set higher than previously, the opportunities to score more and ‘level up’ have also increased.
Free workshop! RSVP by 20 February 2017
Success lies in long-term planning
Critically, agencies need to break out of the reactive, point-scoring, 12-month budgetary cycles that typically characterise their transformation efforts. One would hope that no agency runs the rest of its business like this. Transformation, as with any other strategic business objective, does not happen in convenient 12-month increments, and agencies need to obsess less about BBBEE compliance (driven by short-term thinking) and focus more on actual transformation (underpinned by long-term goal-setting and strategic planning). Transformation plans should look at least three years into the future, and ideally even further.
Once horizons have been broadened and goals set, a clear multiyear plan — with training and education (Skills Development) at its core — will very quickly allow for identification and nurturing of black talent, deliver higher-quality work to the agency and its clients, and create opportunities for internal career advancement that will consequently lead to greater diversity at a mid- and senior level (and, accordingly, better Management Control BBBEE scores).
Driving transformation through skills development
The MAC Code does not limit skills development efforts to employees: initiatives may extend to matriculants and graduates (feeding the business at entry level), as well as to freelancers and contractors, allowing agencies to score enterprise and supplier development points in the process of growing and developing their own value chains (which, in turn, will deliver improved preferential procurement results). And, provided an agency’s transformation plan is properly aligned with its workplace skills and employment equity plans, much of the agency’s skills development investment may be recouped through skills development levy rebates, SETA grants and attractive SARS tax deductions.
A three-year plan is not difficult to put together, either — your agency’s CEO and FD will already have some idea of what the next few years might look like, which means you have enough to estimate your future BBBEE target expenditure. The numbers will no doubt change, but setting down your plans and budgets over a three-year period will mean that:
You’ll only have to make periodic adjustments
There will be greater continuity from accounting period to accounting period
Much quicker and easier compliance and reporting in years two and three
Less time planning from scratch.
This will make it much easier to be proactive and forward-thinking, and will leave you with more time to ensure that your training and development plans succeed and that your business transforms. Knees will jerk much less frequently.
So ditch your BBBEE myopia immediately, and start embracing transformation as a journey, not an end in itself. You’re unlikely to solve it in year one but you can make massive progress by year three. And it will only get easier to plan and manage each year.
Andrew Allison (@andyallison) is head of regulatory affairs for the IAB SA and a director of both Red & Yellow and Mirum Africa (formerly Quirk). To learn more about how the MAC Charter may benefit your business, join Red & Yellow, the IAB SA, and Siyakha Implementation Partners for a free breakfast workshop on 22 February 2017, in Cape Town and Joburg. Email info@redandyellow.co.za or call +27 (0)21 462 1946 to RSVP by 20 February.
“Motive” is a by-invitation-only column on MarkLives.com. Contributors are picked by the editors but generally don’t form part of our regular columnist lineup, unless the topic is off-column.
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by Mark Eardley. The debased word ‘value’ is usually bandied about in a meaningless way. If a company claims to add value for customers or provide the best value or deliver enhanced value, precisely what is being added, provided or enhanced? It’s difficult to say…
The entire concept of value has become diluted by idiotic marketing-speak into something that sounds nice-to-have but is completely indefinable and intangible. But is it?
Value is definable and tangible
Value may be separated into its five factors — response, service, time, quality and price — and each one can be defined. Value may therefore be measured; once measured, it becomes tangible. It can then be managed, improved and presented in ways that will motivate customers to buy.
Any product or service may be qualified and quantified in terms of value’s ‘Big Five’. What you are selling may therefore be translated into the language of what customers are buying.
Speaking the language of value: an example
In the Shakespearian play, The Tragedy of King Richard the Third, Richard loses his horse in battle and is severely disadvantaged by having to fight on foot. In desperation, he cries out: “A horse! A horse! My kingdom for a horse!”
To understand the dynamics of value, think of Richard as a customer and what he requires from the Big Five.
Response is critical to Richard. He needs to know that someone understands his challenges and can solve his pressing problem. His environment has changed, his needs altered and he wants a supplier who recognises this and can react accordingly.
As for service, what he won’t appreciate is a pre-sales status report telling him that a proof-of-concept will be presented before close of battle. He wants the attention of people who have the authority to ensure that everything possible is being done to provide the fastest solution.
Time definitely matters to Richard. Although he doesn’t say specifically when he needs a horse, you know he needs one immediately — if not sooner… Above all else, reliably rapid supply is his primary buying motivator.
Is he bothered about the quality of the horse? Well, yes and no. He’s not that interested in features and benefits. He couldn’t care whether it’s a carthorse, a racehorse, a grey mare or a black stallion. A half-decent, possibly saddled horse with a bit of go will meet his brief and serve its purpose. The unfamiliarity of a camel or a yak probably wouldn’t fit the bill…
Finally, Richard’s adamant that price is not an issue. Normally, it would have to be clear, rational, structured and competitive. Right now, total cost of ownership, ROI, discount structures, payment terms and cost comparisons are irrelevant. Just supply him a horse.
Richard’s story highlights the importance of understanding how customers’ needs change according to circumstances. It also shows that customers don’t always spell out exactly what really motivates them to buy.
Develop customer insights that matter
When the ‘Big Five’ are listed in order of their typical importance to customers, response is at the top, followed by service, time, quality and price. If it’s last on the list, why all the fuss, all the time, about price? To answer that question, it helps to see price as a mechanism for measuring the extent to which the other four factors contribute to a customer’s success. Price always becomes a barrier to sales and a threat to margins if customers don’t see the benefits of those contributions.
Aspects of products and services that do not create measurable value have no monetary worth. That blunt fact emphasises the importance of customer insight.
Far from being a buzz-phrase, customer insight is essential if you want to understand what motivates the buying decisions that create your sales, protect your margins and side-line your competitors.
Mark Eardley advises B2B companies on how to govern their marketing to attract and retain profitable customers; several of his clients have grown to become market leaders. He is the author, together with Charlie Stewart, of Business-to-Business Marketing: A Step-by-Step Guide (Penguin Random House), which offers practical, actionable advice on how to make marketing make money. Find him on LinkedIn.
“Motive” is a by-invitation-only column on MarkLives.com. Contributors are picked by the editors but generally don’t form part of our regular columnist lineup, unless the topic is off-column.
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by Herman Manson (@marklives) Today we reveal which agency is believed by fellow ad execs to be the “one to watch” in 2017 — the agency from which they expect great things in the year ahead!
Every year since 2012, MarkLives has been polling South Africa’s top agency leaders to find out what they think of their competitors, whom they see as effective managers and great creative leaders, and where they believe their future competition is likely to come from. First we announced the 2016 regional results from Cape Town, and last week we announced the 2016 regional results from Johannesburg. This week is dedicated to national results.
Cape Town: Here the vote has gone to VML and Y&R Africa Group. No runner-up was named.
Johannesburg: The ones to watch in 2017 in Jozi are both R\VERBED and The Odd Number. The runner-up is AVATAR.
The one to watch in 2017!
OFYT
This year, our one to watch for 2017 is a close three-way race between OFYT, AVATAR and The Odd Number. A mere one vote separated OFYT from its two competitors, but it was enough to push the agency into the lead.
OFYT picked up a number of accounts last year, including Airbnb, Metropolitan (BTL and internal), AutoPedigree, and projects from Bidvest Car Rental as well as KWV Wines (PR). “[We] had a strong growth of almost 20% [last] year, mainly in the last six months, which we were very pleased about in a tough year for the industry,” says OFYT strategic director, Jonty Fisher.
“…[T]he prospects for the new year look incredibly bright, both for Old Friends Young Talent and Kasi Friends Kasi Talent [a new agency operating in the township space — ed.],” he continues. “We’re developing a tight-knit team of eager young talent and multi-disciplinary highly experienced old heads that is itching to get stuck into 2017. We do feel that 2017 is our year to break out!”
Previously
Promise and Y&R Group tied as our One to Watch in 2015. In 2014, it was Publicis Machine. In 2013, it was MACHINE (which merged with Publicis Worldwide in 2014 to become Publicis Machine).
The runners-up (tied)
AVATAR and The Odd Number had the same number of nominations, so are named our joint runners-up this year.
AVATAR
The Odd Number
AVATAR experiencing rapid growth over the course of 2016, picking up significant business, doubling revenue, increasing profitability by 300% and staff count by 33%. It also agency opened an office in Cape Town, headed by Mthunzi Plaatjie, as well as a new online video production studio as part of a creative studio. The FM AdFocus Awards announced it as its medium-sized agency for 2016. In January 2017, it was announced that its founders had acquired a significant minority stake in M&C Saatchi’s SA agency network. This has allowed M&C Saatchi PLC to acquire a 20% stake in AVATAR from Avatar Investment Holdings.
Since launching in 2015, the agency has grown from the two founding partners, Xola Nouse and Sibusiso “Sbu” Sitole, to a team of 18. Existing clients include BBC Worldwide, VIP, MSQ Health, Multichoice and Health Systems Trust. It most-recent account wins include Brand SA, the official custodians of Brand South Africa (one of two ATL agencies), and Heineken (TTL agency for one of its innovation brands, Sol). The agency won a Bronze and Gold Loeries, a Gold Pendoring and shared the Pendoring Umpetha Award last year.
Previously
In 2014, Ogilvy Johannesburg/Gloo and FCB South Africa (now FCB Africa) tied as runners-up.
The contender
Promise
Promise announced an empowerment deal in late 2016 which saw Verushen Reddy acquire a 26% equity holding in the Promise Group; it saw the agency’s BBBEE rating improve from Level 5 to Level 2 on the new codes. Promise launched in 2005 and approximately 90 Promise staffers make up the team in Johannesburg currently. The agency’s client base includes brands from AB InBev, Edcon, AfriSam, Renault SA and Virgin.
Previously
In 2015, the contenders were King James Group, King James II, M&C Saatchi Abel, 34, NATIVE VML and FoxP2 Group, with a special mention to Kilmer & Cruise.
How the poll works
Towards the end of 2016, South Africa’s agency leaders were invited to nominate their most-admired agency in SA, the most-admired creative leader in SA and the most-admired agency boss in SA. We also asked them which agency did the best at digital integration and which agency they saw as the one to watch in the future. Nobody could nominate his or her own agency or staff members. All the nominations were then tallied up for the final result. The editors of MarkLives had a single vote in the poll. The most admired agency of the year is disqualified from the One to Watch category; votes cast in its favour in this category is discarded.
Note: Runner-up(s) will only be named if they achieved a good nomination tally relative to the winner’s position. Contenders are named if they stood out significantly above other nominees, but weren’t able to close in on the winner’s tally.
by Remon Geyser (@remongeyser)Christmas season — a happy, cheerful and dream-filled time. Or is it? We kick the year off with Pick n Pay and King James II’s “Chapter One — Let’s go on holiday” execution, a more-realistic take on the holiday period that highlights everything that normally goes wrong and that was MarkLives Ad of the Week late November 2016. From the beautiful music of Ladysmith Black Mambazo to forgetting to put on sunblock and tollgates not accepting cards, let’s see how this TVC would do in in other parts of Africa.
First thoughts
We asked our marketing, creative and advertising professionals in Kenya, Ghana and Nigeria for their take on this execution. Here are their first thoughts:
Mostly positive but, surprisingly, there are just as many that are negative. Clearly, PnP was successful in showcasing those little irritations we have when going on holiday. Is this a good or bad thing for the brand, though? Let’s find out…
The panel was ultimately conflicted as it portrays real life with an element of dark humour, while bringing up the Christmas cheer. When probing further on these emotions, it became clear that the panel was split on if this was a good or bad thing for the brand. The TVC did a great job in highlighting the happiness, cheer and excitement of going on holiday. The music created the mood of Christmas extremely well, which worked extremely well for the brand to convey the message of “it’s Christmas time”. However, the characters and their facial expressions, albeit done brilliantly, create a mood that is sad, gloomy and just dampens the holiday spirit. This, in turn, could hurt the brand, as people do not want to be miserable when shopping, especially in other African countries. People want a happy experience; it needs to be a joyful outing. This makes us realise that, even though this ad is a real hit here in South Africa, we need to be careful with our humour when it comes to going further north.
Creative gauge
The music was a real hit for our Pan African panellists. Even though the music will assist in brand recall, very few had heard of Ladysmith Black Mambazo (LBM) and saw them as an acapella group. This is actually a good thing, as the focus was more on the brand, and what it’s trying to achieve, than on LBM. Those that did recognise them also thought that it was a great idea to have the collaboration as it gives more credibility to the brand.
The biggest misfire in the TVC is that it fails to convey the link with the brand. The panellists didn’t know what the purpose of the ad was: Was the brand trying to sell something? Was the brand asking consumers to shop there? Or was it just a message for the holidays? And, because of the humour, they weren’t sure what that message for the holidays would be. The scenarios are also very South African and many of our panellists didn’t feel that they could relate, eg sunburn is a foreign concept.
This TVC has the potential to be a real hit in Ghana while our professionals in Nigeria and Kenya feel that, in its current state, it would not land well. Throughout the region, the highest measure was “realistic” and the lowest “authenticity”. This is low because our panel felt that showcasing the happy holidays in this way is inauthentic, although very realistic; Nigerians, in particular, see the holidays as “happy, energetic and full of good tidings”. There is something about not always wanting to be confronted with reality, especially during holiday times. People want to forget their sorrows, and this is the one time you can be assured of happiness — this is the Christmas spirit, after all!
The “pa-rum-pum-pum-pum”, although very catchy, feels forced and also contributes to the lack of authenticity.
Brand recall should be high in Ghana, with our professionals being confident that it would cut through the clutter. There are not a lot of ads with this type of “classy simplicity”, which would assist with this. The target market for this TVC is middle-upper income bracket consumers, who are well educated. They are adults between the ages of 26–60, who are early adopters, aspirational, most likely online shoppers and tech-savvy. More importantly, they are merrymakers and holiday-goers. This TVC, however, is not very persuasive, as the call-to-action is missing.
Next steps
There are moderate modifications needed for Kenya and Nigeria, and slight changes for Ghana. The two main things that would need to done are to make the brand play a more-integral role in the TVC and make the ad end more positively. One of the panellists suggested to include a twist between the middle and the end of the story (the twist could show how much hidden fun and amusement the holidays have in store for you, your family and friends when you buy something at Pick n Pay to spice up the season). Lastly, scenes that are more relatable to said countries should be included.
We are once again reminded that South African humour will not necessarily work across. When launching campaigns in other countries, we need to ensure that the story has local relevance and that consumers are able to relate to what we are communicating. Christmas messaging may work well but we need to be cognisant of the tone that we set and that it needs to live up to the Christmas spirit — warm, fuzzy, light-hearted and positive.
Remon Geyser (@remongeyser) is a burger fanatic, wine connoisseur and eSports enthusiast (yes, a fancy term for playing computer games). He is also co-founder of delvv.io, heading up research, operations, product and culture. delvv.io provides creative expert feedback anywhere in Africa, in order to rock marketing ROI. Remon contributes the new monthly “Taking Flight” column, which provides Pan-African feedback on South African ads for other markets, to MarkLives.com.
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Charles Lee Mathews (@CharlesLeeZA) is a writer who likes to draw, such as this regular editorial cartoon — exclusive to MarkLives — in which The Marketing Mice offer their take on the world of marketing, media and advertising.
