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Tag: Havas Media

  • Geo-targeting is biggest perceived benefit of mobile marketing: Mobext

    MUMBAI: The most important benefit of mobile marketing is geo-targeting or the ability to target on-the-go consumers. This aspect of it comes out in a recent study by Mobext which reveals that 84.3 per cent advertisers currently invest in mobile marketing.

    This, according to the study, is followed by 64.8 per cent respondents who say that mobile marketing gives ability to communicate one-to-one with consumers on a personalised or targeted basis while 63 per cent believe it helps in real-time messaging. Only a little over a third of respondents each believed mobile marketing to be cost-efficient (37 per cent) and easy to use/implement (36.1 per cent).

    According to the agency, even though advertisers appreciate the ability of mobile to do geo-targeted as well as one-to-one communications, a majority of marketers are still not convinced that mobile is a cost-efficient and easy-to-manage advertising channel.

    The APAC region is believed to be the largest and fastest-growing mobile market in the world with more than 2.5 billion mobile subscriptions and 70-90 per cent average mobile customer penetration in many countries. Although certain Asian markets already invest heavily in mobile (Japan, in particular), the rest of Asia still represents a small percentage of the total mobile advertising market globally.

    Mobext, Havas Media’s mobile marketing agency, conducted this research to delve deep into Asian advertisers’ attitudes towards mobile marketing, particularly the “non-Japan” APAC market which lags behind in mobile spending

    According to the research finding, marketers are clearly struggling with measuring return on their mobile investments. 57 per cent of respondents said that it is too early to tell and they are not sure if returns are commensurate with their mobile investments. Only 3.7 per cent of respondents said they are “extremely” satisfied with results of their mobile investments, while 23.1 per cent said they are“moderately” satisfied.

    The study also revealed that 47.6 per cent of respondents agreed that mobile would be equally important as TV in the next two years while 44 per cent said that mobile will be more important than radio in the next two years.

    Also, 60 per cent of surveyed respondents said they do not use a third-party organisation (such as a mobile agency) to manage their mobile marketing efforts.

    In general, the agency felt that the outlook for mobile marketing in the six surveyed Asian markets is very positive. Among those not currently investing in mobile marketing, 55 per cent said that they plan on investing in mobile in the next 12 months.

    The survey revealed that while marketers are attracted to smartphone and tablet-based marketing, a significant portion of marketers still “heavily” associate mobile with SMS or text-based marketing. They believe that SMS still represents the single biggest mass reach opportunity for marketers.

    When asked to choose a phrase that they associate the most to mobile marketing, 63.5 per cent respondents chose mobile or smartphone ads, 61.3 per cent chose SMS/text messaging and 59.4 per cent went for mobile apps as their top-of-mind options.

    The survey shows that advertisers in the covered Asian markets are increasingly embracing mobile,with 53.5 per cent per cent of respondents saying that they currently invest in mobile marketing.

    Among the markets covered in the survey, Hong Kong (63.8 per cent of respondents), Singapore (48.2 per cent) and Malaysia (38 per cent) report the highest rate of adoption for mobile marketing among advertisers

    More than half (56.5 per cent) of the current investors in mobile marketing feel that it’s too early for them to say if the returns are commensurate with their investments in mobile. Around 23.1 per cent are moderately satisfied with their returns (results have met expectations) while about 14.8 per cent are not satisfied (some campaigns have not met expectations).

    For those who currently invest in mobile marketing, the top three roles of mobile marketing are: raising brand awareness (61.1 per cent), increasing the customer purchase intent (50.9 per cent) and increasing customer-base by attracting new customers (48.1 per cent).

    Based on the data, most marketers are currently focused on utilising mobile as an awareness building channel as well as an activation channel to help drive both purchases and consumer spending, and at the same time, also increase customer base. A majority of marketers have still not fully taken advantage of the potential of mobile in increasing brand loyalty through targeted one-to-one communications, or by integrating mobile in existing loyalty programs, the report said.

    The study revealed that among those respondents who currently invest in mobile marketing, the three main mobile marketing methods that they have invested in are mobile apps (59.3 per cent), mobile websites (53.7 per cent), and SMS to an opt-in database (48.1 per cent).

    The company said that despite the potential of mobile in driving purchase (via mobile coupons and mobile commerce), majority of marketers still do not invest heavily in mobile commerce (only 9.3 per cent) and mobile coupons (only 17.5 per cent).

    By far, however, the biggest anticipated trend is the convergence of social and mobile, with advertisers planning to increase investment in this area significantly. With mobile increasingly becoming the main access point for social media, particularly in the APAC region, advertisers are interested in scaling their investments in campaigns that integrate social and mobile.

    Another point to note is that while investment in SMS/text to opt-in database is expected to decrease (from 48.1 per cent of current mobile advertisers investing in it, to 34.3 per cent planning to invest in it in the future), more firms are planning to invest in mobile CRM/one-to-one messaging (from only 7.8 per cent to 32.4 per cent of current investors planning to invest in it in the future). The implication is that marketers will increasingly shift from mass communication methods via SMS, to more targeted, one-to-one, personalised communications, the company said.

    While current adoption of QR codes/bar-codes is high (48.1 per cent), fewer advertisers (35.0 per cent) are planning to invest in them in the near future. Other areas of mobile marketing that are expected to undergo drastic changes in investment include:

     

    Methodology Current
    investment    		 Planned
    investment    		 Increase/
    Decrease
    Mobile CRM/one-to-one
    messaging    		 7.8% 34.0% 26.2%
    User-generated content 6.8% 23.3% 16.5%
    Mobile Couponing 17.5% 34.0% 16.5%
    Mobile Commerce 9.7% 25.2% 15.5%
    Location-based marketing 22.3% 36.9% 14.6%
    Social media mobile
    marketing    		 39.8% 54.6% 14.8%
    Text/SMS to opt-indatabase 47.6% 35.0% -12.6%
    QR codes/Barcodes 48.5% 35.0% -13.5%

    The research report shows that the two biggest barriers that are holding mobile marketing from assuming a greater role in the marketing mix are: lack of a reliable, uniform framework to measure or prove mobile marketing success (56.5 per cent) and lack of enough knowledge or case studies to provide effectiveness and RoI of mobile marketing (55.6 per cent).

    A few other issues highlighted by current advertisers are technology constraints, including poor 3G/4G connectivity (53.7 per cent), limited resources or expertise in this domain (50 per cent), and consumer privacy issues (44 per cent).

    Majority of respondents (55.1 per cent) not currently investing in mobile marketing say that mobile marketing would gain importance for their brand in the next twelve months.

    Mobext conducted this online survey from 9- 23 August 2012. It got responses of 271 respondents representing more than 230 companies across six markets in Asia-Pacific, specifically Indonesia, Philippines, India, Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia.

    The markets covered in the study were purposely selected in order to cover the non-Japan Asia-Pacific market, with a balance between advanced economies (Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia) and developing markets (Indonesia, Philippines and India).

    Approximately 85 per cent of the respondents are mid-to-senior level marketing functional leaders in their respective organisations, while the surveyed companies represent various industries, specifically retail, consumer goods, fashion and apparel, travel and hospitality, media and entertainment, telecom, tourism, and financial services.

  • No turnaround in ad spends despite bullish market sentiment

    MUMBAI: The business sentiment may have turned positive following a slew of FDI policies but advertisement spends are not going to change dramatically.

    The festival season has already begun but the advertisement spends are not as anticipated. The slowdown in ad spends since the beginning of this year will see no recovery yet, experts said.

    “This festive season is pretty in its run and the mood is not very great. The advertising spends are not up to the kind of
    expectations, there is still a slowdown,” said Allied Media COO P M Balakrishnan.

    He said as far as the reforms by the government are concerned, “it’s the steroid put in the economy to create the right sentiment.”

    Officials at other media agencies too said that though the business climate is better than earlier months of this year, it’s not better than the same period of last year.

    Echoes OMD India COO Harish Shriyan, “Festive season is always better. Most of the advertisers in any case are spending money and they will continue to do so but the level and kind of money they used to spend earlier is not the same this time. Though it is better than the previous few months I don’t think there is any kind of major reaction because of the policies and all. I doubt that advertising spend will increase in these (the remaining) months (of the year).”

    Balakrishnan feels the advertising spends on television will continue to be moderate this year. “Slowdown is going on. It’s not that people are withdrawing but also they aren’t going over-board and gung-ho this season.”

    According to GroupM’s revised forecast, the advertising expenditure on television is estimated to grow at 5.6 per cent to gross Rs 148.12 billion in calendar year 2012 against earlier estimate of a 12 per cent growth.

    Havas Media CEO India and South Asia Anita Nayyar agreed that the growth in spends this season will be in the same range of five
    to six per cent.

    She noted that the festival season has now started to look up and it’s high time as Diwali is just a little more than a month away. “Earlier the season preparation would start almost two to two-and-a-half months in advance. It’s always nice for the advertising industry to grow and I hope that advertisers will now start seeing advertising budgets as investments rather than expenditures now that the sentiment is improving.”

    SMG CEO Malli CR, however, feels that ad spends on television are ok. “It is not that the things are terribly down, there are quite few sectors where things are ok, and they may not be growing at an exponential rate. Sectors like telecom and consumer goods are advertising and FMCG is anyway continuing to advertise so it’s not that the economy has come to a standstill.”

    “Some sectors like BFSI, automobile are probably not spending as much as they would have. FMCGs put together account for about more than 55 per cent TV advertising. Everybody is hoping that Diwali should lead to something better. People are spending on digital and other mediums, so it’s not a bleak scenario,” Malli added.

  • Havas Media expands Mobext to Indonesia and Hong Kong

    MUMBAI: Havas Media Asia Pacific‘s mobile marketing brand Mobext has further expanded in the region with the launch of operations in Indonesia and Hong Kong. The move comes after the launch of its Singapore and Malaysia offices earlier this month. With this, Mobext is now present in six markets in Asia including the Philippines and India.

    The Indonesia office will be headed by Rahul Nambiar while Jason Kwong, the current head of Media Contacts Hong Kong, will be taking on the additional responsibilities as the head of Mobext in the region. Mobext Indonesia has already won mobile projects from brands like AXA Mandiri and Danone.

    The group also announced the promotion of Arthur Policarpio to Mobext Asia head from Mobext Philippines CEO. Policarpio will lead the agency‘s efforts to build on the expertise and best practices in the area, drive integration with network agencies and grow the business.

    Havas Media Asia Pacific CEO Vishnu Mohan said, “Mobile is one of the key disciplines that we have identified for growth and expansion. The growth in mobile and wireless devices has far outstripped the growth in personal computers. If you look at Asia Pacific, mobile has evolved beyond a touch point in consumer‘s life. In China and India, we are seeing exponential growth in mobile usage even in the tier 2 and tier 3 cities. Our ambition is to ride on this growth and deliver our world class mobile marketing offering to brands looking to expand in some of the biggest markets in the region.”

    Policarpio said, “There is a lot of positive momentum at Mobext in Asia. We are very excited about the launch of Mobext in Indonesia and Hong Kong. The teams are looking forward to working closely with our current network of local clients in order to bring cutting edge mobile marketing that truly delivers outstanding business results.”

    Currently present in 19 markets globally, Mobext offers a end-to-end, mobile marketing agency service to clients. The agency‘s offering includes messaging services like sms and download; mobile internet services like WAP consulting and development, mobile display, mobile search; proximity based services including LBS and mapping. The agency also offers integration through reporting and analytics by Havas Digital‘s campaign management platform.

  • Lori Hiltz to head MPG and Havas Media in North America

    MUMBAI: Havas‘ media marketing agency MPG has appointed Lori Hiltz as the chief executive officer of its North American operations. She will also lead Havas Media North America as CEO.

    Earlier Hiltz headed the MPG Chicago office as EVP, managing director.

    In her new role, she will oversee all the offices of MPG and Havas Media in North America. Hiltz will be based in New York and will report to the MPG global CEO Maria Luisa Francoli Plaza who has served as interim CEO of MPG and Havas Media in North America, in addition to her global role, since 2010.

    Hiltz holds expertise in media, creative and integrated marketing platforms.

    Francoli Plaza said, “Lori not only has a deep understanding of media and a proven track record for helping to grow clients‘ businesses, she also truly cares about her employees and inspires them with her enthusiasm, sense of humor and commitment to making MPG the best place it can be. I can‘t think of a better person to lead our agency.”

    Hiltz said, “I am excited about this opportunity to work with more of the MPG and Havas Media teams. And it is an exciting time to be here. We are growing and becoming recognized more and more for our innovation and creativity. We are a very smart, imaginative and dedicated group and I am continuously impressed by the work our people do. Client service is our top priority but I am equally committed to making Havas Media a place where people want to spend their time at work.”

    In Chicago MPG has been working closely with its sister company, Euro RSCG, in strengthening and growing its combined client roster. The combined talents of the creative agency with the thought process of the leading media agency will create the synergies required to win new businesses.

    Euro RSCG NA CEO Ron Bess, “Lori has been an amazing partner for our Chicago agency. She leads from the front with energy and passion for the business. And she shares her media insights to assist in the creative process from the first meeting to the last.”

    Hiltz joined MPG from Omnicom‘s PHD Detroit, where she managed all media duties and client service for the Chrysler Brands through one of the most turbulent chapters of that company‘s history.

  • Havas Media’s Mobext reaches Singapore and Malaysia

    MUMBAI: Havas Media has launched its mobile marketing agency Mobext in Singapore and Malaysia with Michael de Souza as general manager of the newly launched agency.

    Mobext Singapore and Malaysia will leverage the strengths of sister agency MPG and Havas Digital siblings Media Contacts and Ecselis and their portfolio of clients like Resorts World Sentosa, DBS Bank, NTUC Fairprice, Abbott, to expand their business in the market.

    Mobext is currently present in 19 markets globally and offers a truly end-to-end, mobile marketing agency service to clients. In Singapore the agency will offer messaging services like SMS and download; mobile internet services like WAP consulting and development, mobile display, mobile search. It will also provide proximity based services including LBS and mapping. Besides, it will offer integration through reporting and analytics by Havas Digital‘s campaign management platform.

    de Souza is a digital strategist with broad agency, ad network, media planning and content development experience. He joins the agency from global advertising network Buzzcity Pte Ltd, where he served as VP for Media. During his 12 year career, he has managed cross-channel campaigns and developed content for brands including Coca-Cola, Nestl?©, EAGames, Disney, Nike and MTN.

    Havas Media Asia Pacific CEO Vishnu Mohan said, “Singapore and Malaysia are strategically important markets for Havas Media and very advanced when it comes to mobile penetration and usage. We think that the time is just right for the launch of Mobext in the two markets. Our vision is to be the only pure-play mobile marketing agency network with truly regional scale across the entire Asia-Pacific, with strong mobile leaders in every major Asian market. This will allow us to work with the largest advertisers across the region for region-wide mobile marketing agency campaigns.”

    Mobext head of mobile APAC Arthur Policarpio said: “We invest in people, and with Michael, we have a leader with years of experience in mobile who can provide our clients with expert advice in this field. We are likewise the largest mobile agency network in the world, with offices in 19 markets, allowing us to leverage significant international experience in mobile best practice.”

    The launch of Mobext in Singapore follows the launch of the agency brand in Asia Pacific starting from India in the second quarter of 2011. Earlier in 2012 in February the media group acquired a majority stake in Snapworx Mobile Inc in the Philippines, following which the agency was rebranded as Mobext.

  • Havas Media APAC hires Naman Sharma as head- research & analytics

    MUMBAI: Havas Media Asia Pacific has appointed Naman Sharma as the head of research and analytics for Asia Pacific.

    Based out of Singapore, Sharma will lead research and analytics discipline at Havas Media and manage the deployment of the group‘s proprietary tools across APAC. He will also be responsible for the roll out of Econometric Modelling function.

    Sharma will report into Havas Media chief strategy officer SK Biswas.

    His last stint was with OMD West Africa where he was heading research and strategy.

    Biswas said, “Research and analytics as a discipline is the cornerstone of an effective marketing strategy and we have been putting a lot of emphasis on the discipline to ensure the most efficient use of marketing dollars for our clients. We are fortunate to have found someone of Naman‘s calibre to join the team. He has extensive experience in primary market research with a specialisation in large syndicated media researches. I have no doubt that he will prove to be a major asset not only for us but for our existing and prospective clients as well.”

    Sharma added, “I am very excited by the opportunity to work with Havas Media. One of my key responsibilities is to lead seamless integration of group‘s proprietary tool DSS Suite across all markets in Asia. This is probably the most evolved, contemporary and comprehensive decision support system present in the world today and I am confident that they will help us deliver superior marketing RoI to our clients.”

    Sharma joins the agency with more than 12 years of experience in the communications industry, having worked in leadership roles with media agencies OMD and Carat. Prior to joining OMD, he had also worked with AC Nielsen and Media Research Users Council.

  • MPG Media Contacts wins Temasek’s global media biz

    MUMBAI: Investment company Temasek Holdings has consolidated its global media mandate with French communications network Havas Media‘s media agency, MPG Media Contacts.

    The agency currently handles the media duties for Temasek‘s portfolio company in Singapore – DBS Bank and will now handle media planning and buying duties for the company globally.

    The incumbent agency on the global account is OMD.

    The agency‘s experience on DBS business in particular and financial category in general turned the clients in MPG Media Contacts‘ favour.

    Havas Media Singapore CEO Melvin Lim said, “We are elated to be given the opportunity to manage the strategic media services of Temasek Holdings and, by extension, to propagate the success of one of our globally renowned national wealth management organisations. We found a common ground to synergistically contribute to Temasek‘s marketing outreach goals because of the deep-set experience we already have in the financial and business sectors.”

    Temasek was started in 1974 and is based in Singapore. The company is supported by 11 affiliates and offices in Asia and Latin America and owns S$ 198 billion portfolio as of 31 March 2012, concentrated principally in Singapore, Asia and growth markets.

  • Havas Media launches Havas Media Ortega in Phillipines

    MUMBAI: Global media network Havas Media has made further investments in its Philippines operations with the launch of Havas Media Ortega.

    The new company will be headed by Jos Ortega who will serve as chairman and CEO.

    Ortega who has also picked up stake in the venture, sources close to the development informed indiantelevision.com.

    Havas Media Ortega will be Philippines‘ first truly full-service media agency that is investing at scale across all of its component services. Ortega is the co-founder of advertising agency BBDO Guerrero Ortega who has served as CEO at JWT and is also the co-founder and current chairman of BrandLab.

    Havas Media Ortega has integrated Havas Media‘s existing gencies in the Philippines – MPG (global media communications network) and Media Contacts (part of Havas Digital‘s interactive arm), with Collab and Mobext.

    The post of chief collaborator will be handled by Tonypet Sarmiento who has worked with firms like Integration and Ace Saatchi and Saatchi in the past. Also on board is Hermie de Leon who was the CEO of Omnicom Media Group before joining Havas Media-MPG. Completing the team is Eduardo Mapa Jr. who, in addition to being a founding member of the Internet and Mobile Marketing Association of the Philippines, has led Media Contacts Philippines.

    Havas Media Ortega chairman and CEO Jos Ortega commented, “What attracted me to Havas Media is its growth record and entrepreneurial spirit. I felt it immediately when I first met the CEO Alfonso Rod?©s Vil?  and Vishnu Mohan. As a strategic planner, I am also impressed with the group‘s commitment to thought leadership. Artemis is a breakthrough tool and Havas Media‘s Meaningful Brands framework and analysis takes the lead in the next generation business model. These are revolutionary ideas and I am looking forward to being a part of these developments and new thinking.”

    Vishnu Mohan, CEO of Havas Media APAC said, “The creation of this heavyweight and inspirational team is a testimony to our commitment to the region and the strength of the existing teams who have done so well over the past two years. The digitalisation of media and convergence of technology has created a totally new and constantly changing media landscape that requires new solutions. While many other organisations are broken into silos that don‘t allow them to have a systemic view on communications activity, Havas Media Ortega‘s new integrated structure allows the teams to work across both disciplines and platforms to create deeper more meaningful campaigns for clients.”

    Alfonso Rod?©s Vil? , CEO of Havas Media concluded, “The move comes as part of a wider vision to build a strong and powerful Havas Media operation in the markets of the future – and as one of the top ten social media markets in the world and with a predicted double digit growth rate, the Philippines is certainly one of these markets. We are proud of our teams and their achievements and delighted that some of the country‘s leading gurus have chosen to join us.”

  • Havas Media acquires US-based experiential marketing firm

    Havas Media acquires US-based experiential marketing firm

    MUMBAI: In a bid to boost expansion of Havas Sports & Entertainment operations, Havas Media has acquired US-based experiential marketing company Ignition.

    Ignition operates in the USA, London and Moscow and has strongholds in Atlanta and New York.

    The acquisition aims to give form to Havas Sports & Entertainment‘s strategy to up-weight its global brand engagement offer, particularly in the run up to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games and the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil.

    The move will significantly increase Havas Sports & Entertainment‘s capabilities in the US, the company said. Ignition along with Havas Sports & Entertainment and Cake Group agencies (part of Havas Media) will help in delivering experiential campaigns in markets complementary to the network‘s existing local footprint, which now spans 34 offices in 20 markets.

    The acquisition will also complement Havas Sports & Entertainment‘s current branded content, social media, sponsorship consulting, PR, brand experience and research offers.

    Along with synergies in location and expertise, Ignition also adds long-retained client base with brands such as American Express, BP, Delta Air Lines, ESPN, Kia, United Nations Foundation, Victoria‘s Secret and The Coca-Cola Company (with whom it holds a prestigious ‘global partner‘ status).

    Ignition will continue to be managed by Mike Hersom, current ignition president, alongside Cindy-Ann “CA” Hersom, CMO, and Dill and Susan Driscoll, the original founders. Hersom will report into Havas Sports & Entertainment‘s global president and CEO Lucien Boyer.

    “We are proud to welcome Ignition to the Havas Sports & Entertainment network. Together we will achieve great things thanks to Ignition‘s expertise and outstanding reputation for delivering sustainable consumer experiential events around the world,” said Boyer. “Ignition will add tangible value to the Havas Sports & Entertainment and Cake Group agencies in our network, helping to reinforce our strong global offering at a very interesting time for brands in Sports & Entertainment”.

    Hersom added, “Today the ignition brand goes truly global. With Havas Sports & Entertainment‘s infrastructure, insight and reach, coupled with our 15 year track record of leading complex international consumer campaigns, we are now poised to take our magic to scale for sustainable growth.”

    This move is part of Havas‘ acquisition strategy to both develop and expand core areas of expertise and to target entrepreneurial, innovative forward-looking agencies that use creativity and technology to develop better relationships between consumers, brands and their wider communities.

  • Anita Nayyar quits Havas Media to join BCCL

    Anita Nayyar quits Havas Media to join BCCL

    MUMBAI: Havas Media CEO Anita Nayyar has put in her papers after a stint of five years with the company.

    She will be serving her notice period till the end of the month.

    Nayyar is expected to join Bennett, Coleman and Company (BCCL) as director customer strategy.

    Havas Media Asia Pacific CEO Vishnu Mohan said, “Yes, Anita has quit. The agency is in process of identifying the right person for the role.”

    “After five years, Anita leaves behind an organization seven times stronger with several specialist brands that today are over 40 per cent of group‘s portfolio and a strong talent force that are leaders in their own right. We thank her for her stewardship and wish her every success in this new stint on the other side after 28 years in the agency business. We are at present in the process of identifying a suitable leader for this role and should make an announcement to that effect shortly,” Mohan added.

    Meanwhile, MPG India has promoted managing partner Mohit Joshi to the post of managing director.

    Based in Mumbai, he will be reporting to Mohan.

    Nayyar had joined Havas Media in 2007 as the CEO of MPG India. Later on, she was promoted to CEO of Havas Media-South Asia. Prior to joining Havas Media, she had also worked with Starcom and Mudra Communications.