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Social thinking: transforming to meet the needs of consumers today

by Louise Marsland, Publishing Editor, TREND. (@trendlives) Exclusive extract from the TREND. Socialising Enterprise Report. There are many definitions of social media and as many misunderstandings about what social media can do for your brand.

Marketing 101 brand principles still apply. Social media just helps you do it better.

It is also about the mind set of an organisation: is it open and does it promote discourse and engagement both within the organisation and with customers, or is it closed and limited in its engagement, walling itself off from customers with a myriad of red tape and unfriendly call centres?

Socialising enterprise is about more than teaching staff about Twitter, it is about breaking down barriers to assist business in integrating social ways of doing business, says Kaitlyn Wilkins, EAME regional director of Social@Ogilvy who visited South Africa recently.

So what does it mean to a business to be social?

Wilkins describes it as really being about a 21st century brand, understanding the ways your consumers are changing and their behaviours are changing, and their experience, discovery, purchase and post-purchase experience with a brand and how they want to stay engaged with it.

“It is not about doing hot things on hot platforms, but transforming to meet the needs of consumers today.”

Wilkins believes that brands are afraid of social media.

“It is happening, customers are talking about your brand online and the question is: are you there to engage? Brands wait too long and end up being reactionary, engaging in a negative way.”

If brands are to understand customer behaviour, they need to understand first and foremost where their consumer is in social and what their consumer wants to do in your category on social media.

She points to the fact that in South Africa, for example, demographic behaviour can change every six months in an emergent economy such as this.

Brands need to do their homework on consumer behaviour and marketers need to understand where social interrupts the customer journey in experiencing a product.

Coca Cola decided to deliver more than product on student campuses with this campaign, making it about “delivering happiness” and presenting young artists in celebration of the London Olympics – creating content people want to see or experience and share on social networks.

Corporate South Africa is definitely aware of social media and has made some effort to incorporating it into consumer strategy, but only about half believe they are being effective, according to the South African Social Media Landscape 2012 study, released in September 2012 by technology market researchers World Wide Worx and information analysts Fuseware.

The study reveals that 95% of major brands surveyed have some form of social media strategy aimed at consumers, but only 51% rate their efforts on Facebook as effective and only 33% believe they are effective on Twitter.

“The survey shows that corporate South Africa has woken up to social media, but it hasn’t yet figured out how to dress for the role,” said World Wide Worx managing director Arthur Goldstuck. “Most large companies are still neutral on the impact of social media, and are still feeling their way.”

According to World Wide Worx, the report includes analysis of South African consumers’ use of Facebook, Twitter, Mxit, LinkedIn, Pinterest and Foursquare, as well as a survey conducted among corporate brand owners.

“We interviewed representatives of 61 major brands, and found that corporate use of social networks tended to be a case of responding to media hype,” said Fuseware managing director Mike Wronski. “The most popular social media platform in South Africa, Mxit, is used as a marketing tool by only one out of five large brands. This compares to Facebook, with nine out 10 using it, and YouTube, with two out of three.”

Other key findings by World Wide Worx and Fuseware included:

• 49% of South African corporations surveyed leave social media in the hands of a marketing team, while 18% allocate it to public relations and a further 18% outsource it.
• The most commonly cited reason for using social media is ‘as an effective PR channel’, with 70% of brands using it for this purpose, while 62% use it as a core part of their marketing campaigns.
• Sales represent a key element of social media for corporations, with 43% using it for customer lead generation.
• Only 13% of companies are using social media specifically because their competitors are using it.
• Most companies intend to make investments in training their current people in social media best practices. A full 36% intend to use specialist social media agencies to assist in their social media PR and marketing. Only 15% say their skills are optimal.

Latest research by Statcounter reveals that Pinterest has overtaken Twitter in terms of popularity and is now the world’s fourth largest social media site, behind Facebook, YouTube and Stumbleupon.

According to Simon Leps, CEO of Fontera Digital Works, the rapid growth of Pinterest in South Africa, combined with its ability to drive users to websites, makes the site an extremely powerful tool for local businesses.

It has been estimated that the rapidly growing social media site attracts close to 20 – 37 million unique users globally per month. “Pinterest also recently became the quickest website ever to reach 10 million unique visitors,” says Leps.

“Based on Alexa traffic data, Pinterest is the 19th most popular website in South Africa. South Africa has the 12thmost Pinterest users globally and is responsible for 1.6% of all Pinterest page views worldwide. In January alone, 328 000 South Africans visited the social media site.”

And according to a recent Ericsson report on TV and video, 62% of people use social media while watching TV – an 18% increase in one year. Consumers are now using social media to discuss what they are watching while they are watching it, amplifying the experience. Mobile devices are an important part of the TV experience – 67% of consumers use tablets, smartphones or laptops in their everyday TV viewing, both for video consumption and to enable a social media experience while watching TV.

The results of Ericsson’s ConsumerLab annual study reveal that social TV is becoming a mass-market phenomenon and, more than half of consumers surveyed want to be able to choose their own TV and video content. Ericsson reports that people are looking for aggregated services that can bring everything together to allow consumers to mix on-demand and linear TV, “including live content, facilitate content discovery, leverage the value of social TV and provide seamless access across devices”.

Ericsson conducted research in Brazil, Chile, China, Germany, Italy, Mexico, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, UK and the US.

Engagement overall in social media is rising in countries on all continents, according to worldwide magazine media association FIPP’s World Digital Media Factbook 2012 – 2013. Internet users are spending more time on social media today than in the past. In China, 80% of internet users are engaged in social media (Nov, 2011), with activities such as using social networking sites, blogging, uploading videos, sharing photos, micro-blogging and visiting forums, according to the GlobalWebIndex. This was up from 78% in 2009. Numbers in Russia and India are similar to those in China, but in Brazil, the change was more significant, from just over 70% in July 2009 to more than 80% in November 2011.

Microblogging site Twitter is seeing global ad revenues climb steadily, the FIPP report notes, as active user numbers reached more than 500 million in 2012. Ad revenue from paid advertising climbed 83% from 2011 to 2012 to $259.9 million, predicted to rise 55% to $399.5 million in 2013 and by 36% to $540 million in 2014, according to figures from eMarketer as quoted by FIPP.

FIPP also quotes Microsoft as reporting that top social media advertisers will increase social media ad spend in 2012/13:

Brazil 81%
US 65%
Singapore 47%
France 47%
UK 42%
Canada 38%

Social networking in South Africa has crossed the age barrier, the urban/rural divide and even the relationship gap, according to research findings by The South African Social Media Landscape 2012 study. It shows that the fastest growing age group among Facebook users in South Africa is the over-60s. From August 2011 to August 2012, the number of over-60s on Facebook grew by 44%, compared to less than 30% for those aged 30-60, less than 20% for those aged 19-30, and less than 10% for teenagers, the study reports.

At the end of August, 5.33 million South Africans were using Facebook on the web, 2.43 million were on Twitter and 9.35 million on Mxit. Because Facebook does not measure mobile-only usage among those who have registered via their cellphones, however, the full extent of its penetration is significantly understated: primary research by World Wide Worx shows that 6.8 million people access Facebook on their phones.

The report puts Twitter use measured in this primary research at 2.2 million by the end of June, or 100 000 new users a month since August last year. Fuseware data, collected directly from Twitter through an API (application programme interface), shows that the number reached 2.4 million at the end of August, exactly matching the growth rate measured by World Wide Worx, and validating the earlier data.

Other key findings announced in September include:

Both Facebook and Twitter have grown at a similar rate in South Africa, at around 100 000 new users a month, for the past year.

LinkedIn has grown substantially, but at a slightly lower rate, to reach 1.93 million South Africans.

Pinterest is the fledgling among the major social networks, with 150 000 users in South Africa.

*WhatsApp has become the leading instant messaging tool among South Africans aged 16 and over, living in cities and towns, with a user base of 4.6 million.

The youngest mobile instant messaging tool to emerge on the measurement radar in South Africa, 2Go, has close to a million adult users.

The most common ‘Check In’ sites for Facebook in South Africa are airports and shopping malls.

The biggest tweeting day of the week is a Monday, with an average of 9.6 million tweets sent by South Africans on the first working day of the week. Friday is next, with 9.6 million, while Saturday is the slowest Twitter day, with 8.4 million tweets.

Both Facebook and Twitter have crossed the urban/rural divide. The proportion of urban adults using Facebook is a little less than double rural users – but rural users are now at the level where urban users were 18 months ago. Twitter’s urban penetration is a little more than double its rural penetration, but the rural proportion has also caught up to where the urban proportion was 18 months ago.

Social media is really about understanding what needs to be done for your brand and your messaging, says Angus Robinson, director: mobile,

content and community divisions at Native SA. Robinson says it is not about having a Mxit, Facebook or Twitter presence; it is about what we need to do for our brand to do the best for our customers.

He says brands should become allergic to hype, fearing that if they don’t immediately jump on social media, they will go out of business. It is not about the platform, it is about how to apply social thinking around products, in the way brands interact with employees, in the way staff are rewarded and how they engage with customers.

Developing beautiful products that are easy to use, with shareable elements is what brands like Apple are so good at, Robinson asserts.

Apple is referenced often by interview subjects for this trends report, as are Nike and Coca Cola – all great brands with great social strategy that integrates seamlessly with their marketing strategies.

Starbucks is also a brand that understands customer engagement, drawing customers in by encouraging them to share their ideas for new Starbucks products and experiences. Starbucks was also one of the first brands to engage with Foursquare, providing vouchers to customers.

Social media is tightening the circle around customer care, CRM and communications. Wilkins urges brands to take a holistic view of the customer to avoid being forced in to the social domain before they are ready, through consumer behaviour.

The need for effective response in customer care in the social domain has also spawned new tools, such as Brand Embassy and Spredfast to monitor brands’ own eco-systems, particularly where customers interact with a brand across various touchpoints.

Brands that are built to be social will find it easier in this brave new world. Businesses need to move from being ‘closed’ to ‘open’, Robinson advises. An open business is one which wants to engage with clients and both employees and clients have a say in how the business is run. Robinson references First National Bank as a good example of a local South African business that is ‘open’.

A ‘closed’ organisation is one which remains rigid in policy and procedures, with a command and conquer model reminiscent of the top down management structure with centralised control, which is not open to engage on social networks.

‘Open’ organisations tend to be flatter in hierarchical structures, more flexible and open to change, allowing for internal discourse and emergent processes, encouraging of innovation. The Google way of doing business is a creative example of this.

Nielsen’s 2011 report into social media demographics and habits, pegged active social media users as being very influential offline. We all know by now that consumers often trust the recommendations of their peers, making social media an ideal platform for influencers to spread their ideas and purchase power.

Nielsen quotes NM Incite research showing that 60% of social media users create reviews of products and services. Consumer reviews and ratings are the preferred source for information about products, service, value, price and product quality. Another interesting fact is that active adult social networkers are also more likely to be active in other spheres of their lives as well, attending political rallies, professional sporting events and working out at the gym.

Global brands like Redbox, ABC News, Sears, Kraft, Coca-cola, and P&G are leveraging the power of social influencers to develop engagement and trust with potential customers, according to a report by Blogfrog on ‘Why Influencer Marketing Matters to Brands’.

“Brands now have the ability to identify key social influencers, mobilise them to create trusted content that goes beyond banner advertising, distribute that content at scale across the web on all social platforms, and measure the entire process. The combination of these trends is driving the explosive growth of ‘influencer marketing’.

Longevity is no longer a precursor for brand success, as is apparent by the latest Interbrand global Best Brands index for 2012 which includes many ‘young’ companies such as Google and Facebook in the top 100, and more established brands like BP and Blackberry falling rapidly in the rankings after blotting their brand copybook in recent years.

It’s not just the emergence of social networks over the past few years that is enabling the ‘open’ organisation, but the proliferation of smart mobile devices to enable the flow of information and content.

Angus Robinson points to a trend of ‘BYOD’ (bring your own device): “People are saying, f**k that – I want to use a device of my choosing. Business has to make a plan. People are far more able to work on tablets and far more freely. And tablets have to have those apps which are socially focussed to allow employees to collaborate on projects and ideas in an organisation.”

This is an exctract from the TREND. Dissect Socialising Enterprise report by Louise Marsland. For the full report click here.

The TREND. Dissect Socialising Enterprise report is sponsored by Quirk Education

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#MagLoveTop10: International magazine covers we loved in 2012

MarkLives.com runs a regular slot featuring the best local and international magazine covers every week. We recognise well thought out, powerful and interesting (and hopefully all three in one) magazine covers and celebrate the mix of pragmatism, creativity and personal taste that created each of them. By media blogger MediaSlut.

After the great response on last week’s “TOP 10 South African covers of 2012” we are excited about showing you a selection of our favourite International magazine covers.

Remember that you can leave a comment to let us know if you agree, or think we totally missed the mark…

Coming up:
Dec 21: The 10 worst magazine covers of 2012! Tweet your nominations to @mediaslut!

10. Desktop, February 2012

Kicking off our Top 10 is this one from Desktop. Take one photostat of an ass. Add a clever coverline “PUBLISH YOURSELF” and make it pretty with some basic CMYK-colours. It’s taking everything back to the basics…

9. Esquire, March 2012

I’m an Esquire subscriber so when I received my March issue, I didn’t think too much about it when I saw Jon Hamm on the cover, with the coverline ANIMAL in big red letters. Only when I started reading the issue did I realise it was actually a fold-out cover. When you unfold the very smart (and intricate) cover, it shows a half naked Kate Upton, with the coverline “Annihilate the mammal…”. Great execution by the Art Department, and a worthy 9^th place.

8. OUT, February 2012

With gay marriage rights on the political radar all over the world this OUT cover of February 2012, with Neil Patrick Harris and husband David, celebrates both the marriage and the beauty of true love.

7. VPRO Gids, 9 June 2012,

According to CoverJunkie no one on the editorial team like this cover, so they shredded it. And then decide to go with THAT as a cover concept. Whether it was purely coincidental or actually planned, I’m not too sure, but it really works. And places them in 7^th position.

6. ELLE (Netherlands), Autumn 2012

See the face of a tiger? To view the issue digitally, you can click here.

5. New York, 12 November 2012

Some websites and magazine critics have gone as far as saying that this New York cover is their favourite cover from 2012. The cover almost feels ‘calming’ and shows another perspective on the damage wrought by hurricane Sandy without being too graphic and shocking readers. The small type used (“The City and the Storm”) is very subtle and placed perfectly. The story behind the images, and to see rival cover options, can be found here.

4. Newsweek, 26 March 2012

Newsweek fans immediately noticed something was wrong. On a closer inspection most probably realised this to be one of the best and smarted executions cover executions of 2012. Newsweek dedicated their whole special double-issue of 26 March 2012 to the Mad Men-era of 1960’s (to celebrate the launch of Mad Men’s 5^th season). They literally ‘recreated the sleek, iconic look of the magazine during the swinging ‘60s, but with all original content.’ Even the advertisers played along, and recreated their ads in the 1960s style! To view some of these ads visit this blog.

3. Wallpaper*, April 2012

Celebrating “Global Design 2012”, Wallpaper* pulled out all the stops when they created these rooms featured on their cover, painted in a studio and using products from the territories that form part of “Global Design 2012”. The end-result is 8 different covers (above are three of them) that plays with your mind just a little bit. At first glance it looks like just another image but on closer inspection you notice all the detail that went into these shoots… genius. They also sold them as posters, so for more information, click here.

2. The New Yorker, 21 May 2012

This pro-gay rights cover of The New Yorker, with the pillars of The White House painted in the colours of the gay flag, really shouts a strong message to the rest of the world who is still opposed to gay marriage and rights. Not only is it a striking image – it tells a story on its own without any coverlines.

1. Zeit Magazin, 2 August 2012

The Batman-symbol, with a little tear, was on the cover of the 2 August 2012 issue of Zeit Magazin. No cover lines. When you opened the magazine, you found a 2^nd cover, with the names of the movie-goers who were killed on that horrible night when a gunman shot them down in a movie theatre in the US state of Colorado. It was the midnight premiere of “The Dark Knight Rises,” the latest Batman sequel. A tasteful tribute in memory of those who died and proof that magazines are still one of the most creative media.

– The (for now anonymous) 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 South African magazines might fail, but most importantly, succeed. If you’re looking for a library about South African magazines and news, your one-stop pitstop is MediaSlut. #MagazinesForTheWin

– Find a cover we should know about? Tweet us @marklives and @mediaslut
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South Africa’s top ten most popular YouTube video ads in 2012

YouTube has released a list of South Africa’s top ten most popular YouTube video ads of the year. These are the South African ads which achieved the largest number of views from people in South Africa. Ranked in order they are:

Other popular contenders in the running for the top ten list included:

YouTube displays global views for each video on its website. It used an internal tool to determine which were the most popular to a South African audience and ranked them accordingly. This tool is not publicly available.

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In Zimbabwe ad agencies first port of call as economy stabilises – Denford Magora

Denford Magora, CEO of The Jupiter Drawing Room (Zimbabwe) & Partners

by Kim Penstone In advertising circles, Zimbabwe is perhaps most famous for its now defunct currency, which was glued to billboards across the country in the award-winning “Trillion Dollar” campaign for The Zimbabwean. It’s been three years since the Zimbabwean dollar was abolished and the country adopted the US dollar as its official currency, but the perception of worthlessness remains.

But (to paraphrase Ford’s famous line): have you been to Zimbabwe lately?

“Zimbabwe is growing, even thriving. Commercially speaking, it’s probably more stable than South Africa!” says Denford Magora, CEO of The Jupiter Drawing Room (Zimbabwe) & Partners.

He speaks from direct experience, having grown TJDR (Zimbabwe) & Partners into the largest advertising agency group in the country in just one year, boasting annual revenue of over R30 million, and a blue chip client base that includes Old Mutual Zimbabwe, Zimplats, Toyota, Nando’s, Schweppes, CBZ bank, Delta Beverages (SABMiller Zimbabwe), Western Union and South African Airways.

Magora, who was born and bred in Zimbabwe and has work experience in both South Africa and the UK , already owned and operated a successful agency out of Harare. But recognising the potential for growth, especially post hyperinflation which saw the demise of many global groups in the country, he approached The Jupiter Drawing Room with a partnership proposal. Today, Magora is CEO of The Jupiter Drawing Room (Zimbabwe) & Partners, which incorporates existing agency Jericho and a new agency, The Jupiter Drawing Room (Harare).

Magora explains that the abolition of the Zimbabwean dollar in 2009 was like a call to arms for Zimbabweans scattered across the globe. Many of those who had left the country have returned, with international experience, determination to make the country work, and an unfaltering belief in the future of the country that was once famous for being the “breadbasket of Africa”.

Zimbabwe is currently experiencing GDP growth of 5%, but Magora points out that industrial and manufacturing capacity is operating below 60%, which means that there is plenty room for growth. He adds that many companies are waiting for so-called ‘political normalisation’ before they step into Zimbabwe – “but they forget that there is a population of around 14 million people living there now, who have needs and wants.” And for the first time in a long time, real currency to spend.

“Companies are making a killing right now,” he says. “One of our largest clients has a market capitalisation on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange of more than US$1 billion. Another one of our clients has, this year, their second year with us, experienced such growth in their brand that they are failing to meet demand on the market. This is after they had expanded capacity to produce by more than 100%. They still cannot meet demand.

“Opportunities abound in Zimbabwe and these continue to grow.”

Magora estimates that the advertising industry in Zimbabwe is worth about US$100 million. Since commercial stabilisation, brands are eager to let their audiences know that they’re still around. They’re also trying to catch up with over a decade of stagnation, even shrinkage – so it’s natural that advertising agencies would be one of their first ports of call.

“We actually believe that the US$100 million figure for Zimbabwe is an underestimation, especially when you consider that brands like Econet, Zimbabwe’s largest cellphone company has an annual advertising budget of US$12 million,” says Magora. “There are a couple of other cellphone companies, including one we handle, Netone, which is the second largest in Zimbabwe, and Telecel. Banks are also quite active, with CBZ, the largest bank in Zimbabwe, whose account is at Jupiter Harare, sitting on an annual advertising budget of around US$600 000.”

That said, not every agency in Zimbabwe is growing to the tune of 200% annually.

“There are no real secrets to our success,” says Magora, intimating that much of it is common sense, and holds true for advertising across the globe.

“We are speaking to Zimbabweans, so you need to speak in a language that they understand.”

Too many global agency groups think of ‘Africa’ as one country, and believe that a single approach will work across the entire continent. But the reality is that, even in Zimbabwe itself, the Northern and Southern regions have their own nuances that, unless understood properly, would impede the growth of a brand.

“Local knowledge is key,” he says.

He cautions, however, that ‘localising’ advertising does not mean dumbing it down.

Zimbabwe has the highest literacy levels in Africa, resulting in one of the most sophisticated and highly-educated middle classes on the continent. It is an audience that does not take kindly to being under-estimated, and even less kindly to condescension.

According to Magora Zimbabwe’s advertising industry is seriously fragmented – a point he hopse to address with the formation of the new Jupiter agency. Econet, for instance, have spread their US$12 million amongst 14 agencies in Zimbabwe plus Young and Rubicam in Johannesburg. Africom, another ISP and cellphone company, uses a small SA agency plus three smaller agencies in Zimbabwe.

Magora, like his colleagues at TJDR South Africa, is a firm believer in the power of creativity when it comes to connecting with this audience. And he has proof at his fingertips: Toyota Zimbabwe, which is currently the most awarded Motoring company at Zimbabwe’s advertising awards, has seen its market share double in the time that TJDR (Zimbabwe) has been working on its brands.

“This work is truly world-class, there is nothing ‘third world’ about it,” adds Magora proudly, showing a campaign created for Toyota genuine parts that the Japanese recently voted as the best work across the African continent.

Magora also understands that time is of the essence in Zimbabwe – there is no operating on so-called ‘African time’ in this country!

“Because these brands are playing catch up, quick turnaround times are crucial,” he says.

Fortunately, he adds, the staff at TJDR (Zimbabwe) & Partners don’t mind working until 2am.

“Possibly the greatest reason for our success is that we hire people who genuinely love what they do. They are passionate about advertising and creative communication, from the top of the agency to the bottom. It’s not unusual to find the accountant and the debtors clerk sitting in on a brain storming session for a brand!”

It’s at this point that The Jupiter Drawing Room’s founder and group chairman Graham Warsop steps in to comment:

“Really, you’re looking at the reason TJDR (Zimbabwe) & Partners has been such a success,” he says, pointing to Magora. “The secret to a great agency is having a guy in charge who loves the business of communications. Denford is a human dynamo who eats, sleeps and breathes advertising.”

By all accounts, it appears to be a match made in heaven.

“Like us, Jupiter is focused on Africa, born here and determined to grow up here before tackling Europe, the Middle East and Mars. We both understand not only the potential of Africa, but also it cultures and mindsets. We could, together with such a partner, establish the most prominent, creative and successful African agency network,” Magora concludes.

The wheels are already in motion. TJDR has given Magora first rights to expand the group into other African territories, and although he isn’t letting on where the next agency will open its doors, he does confirm that it will happen early next year. Not least because he has already signed up three of the largest corporates in the territory!

It’s almost December, Warsop points out. Everyone else is packing up for the year, but Magora is just getting started.

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What South Africans searched for on Google – 2012 list

Most searched: Search queries with the largest volume of searches.

Most searched: Local Brands

Most searched: Images

Most searched: News Sites

Most searched: Local Brands [Minus Banks]

Trending: Search queries with the highest amount of traffic over a sustained period in 2012 as compared to 2011.

Trending: Searches

Trending: People

Trending: Events

Trending: Athletes

Trending: Sports Events

Trending: What is…

Trending: What is…? [Technology Focus]

Trending: What is…? [Health Focus]

Trending: How to…

Trending: TV Series

Trending: Vehicles

Trending: Gadgets & Phones

Trending: Local Brands

Source: Google Zeitgeist

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Worldwide search trends on Google – 2012 list

Trending: Search queries with the highest amount of traffic over a sustained period in 2012 as compared to 2011.

Trending: Searches

Trending: Images

Trending: Athletes

Trending: Events

Trending: People

Trending: Feature Films

Trending: TV Shows

Trending: Performing Artists

Trending: Consumer Electronics

Trending: Google+ Hashtags

Source: Google Zeitgeist

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Ad of the Week with Oresti Patricios – Share the gift

MarkLives Ad of the Week with Oresti Patricios – Share the gift

The festive season is when advertisers traditionally tug at the old heart strings, and the commercial for Ster-Kinekor’s charity initiative in conjunction with Specsavers, which implores viewers to ‘share the gift of sight’, is no different.

This commercial movie (and yes it is a little movie in that it tells a beautiful story and has impressive cinematic production values) opens on an RDP-styled house somewhere in South Africa. The house has been built on to, so it appears that this family is moving up in the world.

A little boy in school uniform runs into frame, opens the door and tries to sneak past his mum with his head down (as we’ve all done, some or other time in our childhood). This lad is almost home free when guilt gets the best of him. You see him wavering slightly as he’s almost out of eyeshot of his mother, who is cooking dinner because night has fallen and supper time is fast approaching.

The young son, who is wearing the most awesome black hipster glasses, turns and walks towards his mother and looks her straight in the eye. It is then that the viewer clearly sees that one of the lenses of the glasses he is wearing is missing.

The mother is furious of course, because the shiny new glasses must have cost a fortune. She scolds him as he remains silent, and then she demands to know what happens. As soon as he’s mustered the word about who has the other lens, mum leaves the cooking and drags her son off to get his missing lens back.

With the setting sun they travel – two silhouettes in a township backlit by a glorious orange. The mother furiously striding forth and holding the hand of her son who is resisting every step as they progress toward some shacks.

The mother whips open the door of the shack and there by lamplight there’s another young boy whose face is beaming. He’s holding the lens of his pal’s glasses and reading with absolute delight.

The mother’s heart melts, and so does the viewer’s. What’s so different about this advert is that while it is asking us to part with our hard-earned money – as many of these adverts do, it does so in a way that is irresistible. The music is astutely chosen, and the short has all the hallmarks of a film. It is a complete story that is finely crafted, and because of that wins you over every step of the way.

What makes this advert even more special is that it is part of a remarkable project that benefits not just the sponsors of this initiative, but is an industry building initiative. Each year Ster-Kinekor and Specsavers, who run the ‘Vision Mission’ project launch a brief for creative schools with AFDA and look for young creative to work on the project. A major coup for any young creative is that they work with the same film company that’s home to the legendary Keith Rose. Velocity Films are responsible for the Allan Grey ‘Legend’ ad, as well as VW’s ‘Marvellous Machines’ and other superbly crafted commercials.

And Ster-Kinekor’s ‘Vision Mission’ project with Specsavers is such a worthwhile endeavour. The initiative is aimed at eliminating easily treatable eye problems in underprivileged communities, as well as raising awareness of poor vision as a major public health challenge. Thanks to the project thousands of children have been provided with spectacles, vastly improving their educational prospects and quality of life.

Vision Mission (which has been endorsed by the National Department of Health and the Department of Education) identifies primary schools in underprivileged areas, and learners at these schools are pre-screened by the Department of Health nurses or by optometrists in the area. Optometrists then conduct visual examinations in a controlled environment like the schools or a Ster-Kinekor cinema foyer, a local clinic or an optometrist’s practices. Once prescriptions have been documented and frames selected, everything is sent to the lab for completion. The children who need spectacles return to receive their new spectacles, and can now read or watch movies with clear vision.

Well done to Ster-Kinekor, Specsavers and Velocity Films for a truly remarkable campaign.

Ad of the Week is published on MarkLives every Wednesday. See past selections here.
Oresti Patricios is the CEO of brand and reputation analysis company Ornico.

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The Gate Keeper Chapter 28 (In which all is right with the world)

by Andrew Miller TBW Smith Jones Wallace Broadbent and Ndimande is an agency in crisis. Their ‘basket of boutique services’ strategy has bombed. Only a massive new project can keep the doors open – all eyes are now on the corporate tent at Mangaung. Far in the background, an emergency replacement executive PA with decades of experience makes important decisions. Interns rise, board members take unexpected steps and things begin to change…

Blackmail is casually executed, SMS notifications are received and long term worries are set to rest…

Chapter 28

In which all is right with the world

Simon Shone wanted to be in Mangaung. He did not want to be at the office writing integrated chewing gum campaigns. He looked over the desk at Phil the graphic designer and wondered – not for the first time – how he seemed to be so calm about it all. Simon Shone kicked his desk forcibly and decided he needed to start smoking weed. Instead, he started composing a love poem – a strange act, considering he had no lover, nor even an object of affection, save for Vati, who was more of an obsession than an endearment. And where Vati was concerned, Simon Shone wasn’t at all sure whether he was smitten or aggrieved. He was even less sure where he stood with Phil – the object of Vati’s desires. Could he call this guy a friend? Did the fact that he spent more than ten hours a day in his company not automatically make them mates? And what was the rule with friends and girls anyway?

I hate love

and that’s the trouble…

Simon Shone deleted his first two lines. They were rubbish. And he felt guilty as hell. Trying to nick your mate’s chick was one thing, but ripping off his creative genre of choice in the process… well, even the sour hearted have limits.

Phil the graphic designer leapt a full five feet out of his chair as Simon Shone kicked the desk. No one would ever have noticed (no one, save for Vati and Simon, and more recently Tim Broadbent, seemed to have noticed Phil’s existence at all, ever) but he was out of his mind with tension. This was the grand escape. He and Vati were quitting advertising for a while and going to India, together. And now was the time. It was happening – or not – right this very second. This was all well beyond his normal bounds. Phil was used to taking orders, not mounting blackmail revolutions. Now, with her in Mangaung, he felt naked and exposed. He wished she would return. Then he wished he had never met her. Then he wished he had the balls to ask her to marry him. Then he wished he worked with someone who didn’t violently kick the desk on a recurring basis.

In Mangaung, Isaac Ndimande was shocked. Not lightly shocked, mind, but actually the most shocked he had ever been in his entire life. He read the blackmail note again, shaking his head, while Nonhlanhla Mofokeng and Arthur Harris watched him intently

“Well I always knew Tim had balls,” he eventually said. “I just had no idea they were this big.” He shook his head again. “They’ve put their bank account details right here, on this note.”

“I called around,” Arthur Harris said. “It’s for real. The conference is set. I know of at least ten journos who are going.”

“What do you think, Isaac?” Nonhlanhla appeared to have lost all cognitive ability. She was waiting to be led.

“We have no choice.” Isaac Ndimande dropped the note onto the table. “Someone needs to get into that Escrow account and pay these f*#!ers now. The way Tim has been the last few months we can be sure he’s not joking. Either that or we call the cops, the public protector and all that.”

Sizwe cleared his throat and spoke. “You can’t choose when to play the game. We started it. We designed it. We knew the risks. Just because someone has played better than us we can’t walk off the field. If we do we’re in Jabu Pule country.” Isaac winced at the clumsy metaphor as much as at Sizwe’s sudden sage wisdom, but conceded the point. Nonhlanhla nodded angrily and left room.

Nonhlanhla nodded angrily and called the accountant. “Horace,” she barked into her Blackberry. “We need to make an emergency payment. From that Escrow.” She held the phone high in the air for three seconds, and then yelled out loud, without bringing it back down. “I know it’s not legal, but listen to me honey, this is all our salaries for the next three years!” Flecks of dry, angry spittle gathered in the corners of her mouth. “It’s a lot of money, and it needs to go through now. Like this very second.”

Three hours later Tim Broadbent and Vatiswa Magubane turned right onto the M1 highway and headed for Joburg. Vatiswa was shaking so much she couldn’t handle the buttons on her mobile. She was trying to tell Phil that he could leave whenever he wanted, but the words wouldn’t take shape on the screen. Eventually she threw the phone down at her feet and squealed like a wild pig. Next to her, Tim Broadbent beamed a smile to crack the sky. He had made many, many millions in his life, but none nearly as satisfying this. This little campaign would be the crowning achievement of his time on planet earth.

Tim dropped a still squealing Vatiswa at the front door of TBW Smith Jones Wallace Broadbent and Ndimande, parked his luxury vehicle and headed inside to chat to Mama E

Dear Diary

Well, this is it. A few more days and then this job is over. I can’t say I’ll miss the whole thing. I think I am too old for this business.

I can’t imagine what we are going to do now, however, money wise. The simple fact is that we have nothing. Gerald is, as I speak, teaching himself how to build web sites – he says maybe there’s something in that for an old guy who no one wants any more. Me, I just don’t know. To be honest I’m scared out of my mind. Retirement used to be my fear. Now I don’t know we will make it through January.

Melinda Ensworthy felt a light tap on her shoulder. She broke off her writing and tried to cover her screen as she looked up to find Tim Broadbent beaming creepily down on her. “Melinda,” he said. “Check your bank account when you have a moment.”

Tim Broadbent went to his office for one last look, and then walked out of TBW Smith Jones Wallace Broadbent and Ndimande via the front door, got into his car, and drove home to his family. For the first time in a very long time, the sky was blue.

He could hear the birds singing over the hum of the traffic.

All was right with the world.

Part 1 -28. THE END
Author: Andrew Miller Illustrator: Lebohang Goge

The Dissident Spin Doctor: The PR agency of the future sits with creative

by Emma King (@EmmainSA) Much has been said about what the ad agency of the future will look like. We all know that the old ways of creating adverts for each separate media channel, and pontificating for ages about this radio execution or that print layout is outdated. We know that integration of all disciplines – in whatever form – needs to be the primary aim; and we know that digital understanding and execution needs to run through everything.

But what about the PR agency of the future? Communications and engagement has to be more than simply farming out a press release to a bank of media names. PR practitioners need to embrace social media and work with online influencers – however we interpret that meaning. That much is a given.

Today PR agencies must make fundamental changes to the old way of working in order to be relevant. These changes need to happen within the agency structure as well as in the expertise and services that they offer. PR agencies need to move away from the constraints that have been set on them, often driven by client perceptions, that their role is simply about media relations, whether that be traditional or social.

When I started at my latest venture as part of a larger agency group, we had a lot of discussion about how the PR function would work – whether we would have a standalone and separately branded business unit or whether it should fall as a truly integrated part of the agency. We decided on the latter – much like the agency did with the digital function – because we felt that in the future we really needed to work in a way in which everything flowed together, and which was not constrained by the division of business units and billing structures.

In an ideal world I believe this is how PR agencies should work – if not within an actual integrated agency then as closely as possible with clients and their other agencies in what essentially becomes an integrated team.

PR experts really need to part of the creative team, not necessarily to lead them, but certainly to give input to the creative process. It’s no use having an ‘advertising’ campaign which sticks digital or PR on as an afterthought. This inclusive approach means that there is the potential for a PR idea or digital execution to be the starting point, with ‘traditional’ ATL supporting this – an exciting thought.

The structure of the future, I believe, needs to be built around three core areas or competencies, all of which are interwoven and complement each other – you can’t, I believe, have one without the other. These are:

Reputation management: This has to be about much more than pure media relations. For me, this is working with a client and looking at all the drivers of reputation – whether that be driving innovation, employee communications, CSI programmes or a consistent corporate identity – and then working up a plan which starts to build up the weak areas. I strongly feel that a brand or corporate needs to build its reputation through demonstrable action – they cannot go around saying they are amazing, if they way that they act and behave is not. And likewise, exciting and innovative thinkers create their own news and reputation. Crisis and issue management is falls in here as well.
Community management: This replaces the traditional media relations component of PR. I feel we need to be community managers – whether that be a Facebook community, ‘real life’ community (e.g. shoppers around a certain outlet); a community of journalists and so on. Hand picking and building relationships with the influencers in those communities is key, managed by teams made up of ‘traditional’ PR talent, as well as social media community planners and managers.
Branded content creation: This replaces the traditional press release – and may be anything from creating ‘viral videos’, or funny memes, to managing blogs and portal content, which is then seeded within the identified communities. The watch-out is ensuring that the content is remarkable – not PR fluff or ad speak.

Agencies, of all disciplines, are moving in this direction and all bring their expertise to the party. Digital agencies have great technical expertise, and often create great content, but not all have the PR background of managing conversations and working with influencers. PR agencies know how to create messaging that is engaging, and manage reputation, but often have to outsource to create beautiful and designed content. Ad agencies know how to create beautiful content, but often not how to engage a communities in two-way conversations or manage relationships in times of issues.

I think all agencies will become a crazy mash up of PR people, ad creatives, strategists, social media community managers, digital content creators and developers, designers and writers. And about time.

Emma King is Head of PR at The Jupiter Drawing Room (Cape Town). You can find her on Twitter at @EmmainSA

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Jerm: neither left-wing nor right-wing but the middle-finger

by Herman Manson (@marklives) When the cup is half full, its hard being a satirist, as Jeremy Nell, who works under the name Jerm, found out.

Nell, until recently the cartoonist for The New Age, had his contract terminated by editor Moegsien Williams because, says Nell, his political cartoons were, according to Williams at least, not “aligned with the paper’s vision and mission.”

The New Age, funded by the politically connected Gupta family, launched “to focus on the positive side of news,” according to its own website, and this has been construed by critics as being pro-government. Williams is the paper’s fourth editor in two years.

Nell says initially news of his effective firing from The New Age didn’t generate much attention from mainstream media (there was quite a bit of outrage in social media circles) until Zapiro took up his cause in a cartoon that takes the mickey out of the New Age editors.

Jerm - South African presidents Mandela Mbeki Zuma — South African Presidents via jerm.co.za

Nell posted news of his dismissal on his website shortly after it happened. He says he was initially concerned that his own credibility was at stake – getting fired in a trade as niche as his could mean the end of his career.

“What was I supposed to draw?’” asks Nell. “Rainbows, Unicorns and Rabbits? I’m a satirist!”

His unwillingness to bend to the positive spin insisted upon by the editors* of the New Age only grew his stature and reputation.

Wrote Nell on his website: “… as time (and editors) passed by, The New Age‘s editorial stance became increasingly out of sync with mine. This was particularly apparent when the current editor recently told me that he doesn’t “like cartoons [that make] political judgements or statements”. My satire can’t really function under such constraints.”

Nell had resisted instructions from the New Age to tone down cartoons critical of government. Nell says criticism of Zuma in his cartoons became a noticeable issue. This was happening, as Nell puts it, as the paper was becoming less impartial, and more overtly pro-Zuma (as opposed to merely pro-government or ruling party).

jerm-mac-maharaj-nkandla-zuma-home — Jerm, Mac & media freedom viajerm.co.za

Nell doesn’t consider himself as aligned to the political left or the right. Being a cartoonist, he explains it best in this cartoon featuring two characters from The Biggish Five. “Are you left-wing or right wing?” asks the one. “I’m neither left-wing nor right-wing,” says the other before he quips “I’m the middle-finger.” The cartoon was published on Nell’s site under the heading ‘A strip that I wrote for myself.’

Nell says he got numerous offers once he left but he decided to focus on digital media to further his career. Primedia owned Eye Witness News (EWN) has signed him on to produce two cartoons a week (on Wednesdays and Fridays) for its website. EWN will use radio properties in the Primedia stable to drive traffic to the site and cartoons which will serve as points of discussion on-air.

Jerm fans also bombarded The Daily Maverick with requests to hire him as a cartoonist. Nell says they did make contact thinking he was orchestrating the campaign, but Nell denies playing any part in it. It says quite a lot that fans of his work would want to see him associated with the maverick cool of DM.

Jerm-Zuma-Africa-Asia-trade-rhino-poaching — Jerm on tade with Asia via jerm.co.za

Nell published his first newspaper cartoon in The Witness newspaper five years ago. Urban Trash was a funny and not terribly PC strip that got canned for not being mainstream enough. It was followed by the more newspaper-friendly The Biggish Five. “Doing what I like (to maintain my integrity) and doing what others like (to avoid living in a basement) is about finding the balance,” wrote Nell at the time he decided to stop drawing Urban Trash.

Before joining The New Age in 2010 Nell had worked as a cartoonist at The Times for three years. It’s here that then editor Ray Hartley (who now edits the Sunday Times) encouraged him to make the leap into political satire and cartooning.

Nell has been drawing 12-15 cartoons a week but has now slowed down to focus more on quality. He got into cartooning after he got retrenched in 2005. Not willing to face another corporate job and the hours in traffic it entails he used his savings to buy the equipment he would need. Even here he skimped – going digital because art supplies are expensive. A computer programme is a once-off investment, he explains.

It’s been quite a ride since then. Nell won Cartoonist of the Year at the 2011 Vodacom Journalism Awards on the back of his work for The New Age, and now this digital savvy cartoonist is taking his career online, which if you look at the latest ABC figures for the newspaper industry, is just as well. The New Age still doesn’t have a circulation certificate and has yet to reveal how many (or few) copies it sells.

The satirist may well have had the last laugh.

* Moegsien Williams, editor of The New Age, was invited to comment for this story. We received no response at the time of publication.

jerm-biggish-five-left-wing-right-wing — Biggish five via jerm.co.za

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