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Issue 69, 18/09/07
In this Issue
In Other News
P3Digital to sponsor the upcoming Digital Marketing & Media Summit 2007. Stay tuned for details.
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Hello and welcome to the new look P3 newsletter providing you with industry updates on people, purpose and process. Along with the newsletter, we have also changed and updated the P3 website to make it easier and faster to find the the information you need, when you need it.
Now you can subscribe to the P3 e-news, order copies of our free Top 10s and brochures, review the P3 team and get details on all our services faster and easier than ever before. Take the time to explore the new P3 web site at www.p3.com.au
In the meantime, in this edition of the P3 e-news Stephen Wright of P3Media has been reviewing media agency credentials presentations during the many media pitches we have been managing in the past 6 months and has drawn together some interesting observations on how to interpret these during the review process.
Media Agency Credentials
What’s in a line!
The recent trend amongst global media agencies has been to come up with a snappy positioning encapsulating the agency offering designed to excite the marketer. Quite what they achieve and their relevance to the services on offer is often somewhat of a mystery. Buzz words predominate with “results based”, “ideas generation”, “strategic insights” and “audience engagement” all getting a good airing. They’re all used with meaningful intent but are often somewhat detached from what is on offer here in the Australian marketplace.
Delivering the positioning in credentials
P3Media has arrived at agencies for credentials presentations to be met with the positioning in huge letters dominating the reception area. In the presentation itself, the positioning is there in the corner of every slide, it’s on the notepad and even the complimentary pen YET not once is it referred to throughout the hour and a half discourse on what the agency is about. Opportunity lost and, for the client, questions raised.
If a positioning exists it should be wholly embraced not just in the visual but in the ‘modus operandi’ of the agency’s day to day offering. If the local agency doesn’t think it fits (and they sometimes don’t) then they should put their foot down, ditch the line and let the content of the credentials do the selling. Clarity of offering is critical to success at the credentials stage.
State by state differences
For some agencies the consistency of identity and offering is not just global. Even within Australia their offerings are not entirely consistent. Agencies spreading their national presence by local acquisition often retain the character and personality of the old agency in that state for many years following the name change.
Relevance of all this to the marketer
Assessing credentials in a media review is no easy task. What you see is not necessarily what you get. Many of the credentials lack clarity and focus and are framed around agency structure rather than offering. Sprinkled throughout are gushing case studies sometimes old, hard to assess and often reliant on good creative concepts that the Media Agency wasn’t necessarily involved in. It’s hard to work out who should progress to the next round.
If you are contemplating a Media Review in the near future P3Media has an excellent understanding of what’s out there and can assist to bring clarity and transparency at credentials and every stage of a Media Agency review. To discuss how best to proceed you should contact Stephen Wright in Melbourne 03 9682 6800 or Sydney 02 8933 0922 or at stephen@p3.com.au
P3Media Agency Selection service
P3Media helps advertisers make sense of the lofty claims and counter-claims that comprise a typical submission.
Stephen Wright leads the advertiser through the review process, providing analysis of all submissions in ‘plain English’ to demystify and clarify the relative strengths of each participant. To discuss how best to proceed, contact Stephen in Melbourne 03 9682 6800 or Sydney 02 8933 0922 or at stephen@p3.com.au
Next Top 10 out soon
The next P3 Top 10 focuses on the Top 10 things to ask a consultant before you engage them.
It will be in the mail shortly. You can currently download the Top 10 collection at our website downloads page, or order a set of the printed versions at our subscriber page. Or if you would like to ensure you receive our regular mail outs, please update your contact details with georgia@p3.com.au
Australia’s toughest brief
OpenAd is a creative solutions provider to the advertising industry offering clients an online ideas exchange resource.
OpenAd and The Australian newspaper have joined to challenge the advertising industry to determine our country’s ‘Toughest Brief’. The winning topic will be judged on its’ originality, scale and significance to Australia and relevance to all Australians. Entries close midnight Friday 21 September 2007. To enter go to www.openad.net and follow the “Australia’s Toughest Brief” link.
Part One judges include; Neil Ross-Director of Marketing, Qantas; Christine Blackburn-Managing Director, Red Spider; Lara Sinclair and Simon Canning from The Australian and Kathy King Strategic Planner at OpenAd.
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