D&AD Awards: The nominations

LONDON, UK: Here are the nominations for the D&AD Awards. See this year's In Book winners and Nominations below. Yellow Pencil winners will be revealed on Wednesday 12 June at the Awards Ceremony. 22 Apr 2013 11:05

Get entries in now for Loeries

Loerie entries are now open, and those that get their work in by 15 April 2013; get 10% off their entry fee. The final deadline for entries is 31 May and agencies or marketers throughout Africa and the Middle East can enter their work. 4 Apr 2013 10:04

[SXSW 2013] How brands survive in China

[Keenan Harduth] After six years of research into why businesses succeed or fail in China, Emily Chong, the acting vice president of design and marketing for Frog innovation specialists, tackles the subject of survival strategies for brands in China. The parallels and differences in marketing to South Africans were startling. 13 Mar 2013 10:28

[2013 trends] Africa's dynamic markets

[Obaika Consulting Team] The year 2013 for most brands, especially the ones coping with saturated markets in developed countries, will be a decisive one. Incorporating Africa into their corporate brand strategy, if they haven't done so, will be the better part of valour, so to speak. 31 Jan 2013 13:20

[2013 trends] Out-of-the-box branding

[HKLM Exco Team] No, the concepts of "tribalism", "gamification" and "engagement" aren't a promo for the latest computer game, but are in fact the trends that will characterise the way companies and consumers interact in 2013. The branding industry is constantly developing and. while the following trends are evolutions rather than dynamic, short-term changes, we believe there are 10 areas that will define the brandscape over the next year. 31 Jan 2013 12:33

[2013 trends] Africa poised for a great future

[Nandkishor Buty] As 2013 commences, afro-pessimism seems to cede to afro-optimism. There is a global consensus: Africa is poised for a great future. What will be the impact of Africa's growth on our industry? What will be the major trends of the year? In the business world, predicting the future is a crucial exercise. 30 Jan 2013 12:39

Expanding your brand across Africa

[Nonye Mpho Omotola] Many companies talk about expanding into Africa. It's the next obvious frontier. However, it would be wrong to assume that a week's visit to Nigeria for example, with a population of over 160 million and 350 ethnic groups with twelve languages, will give you a true understanding of how to operate your brand in that market. 8 Nov 2012 09:53

How to stimulate brand recommendations

[Jason Stewart] Research organisations are constantly updating figures tallying how many branded messages are being pushed at consumers. In South Africa, we are currently being bombarded with around 900 branded messages per week. What is even more staggering is that only four of those messages break through the increasing advertising clutter to generate top-of-mind awareness. 28 Jun 2012 14:51

[Cannes Lions 2012] Promo & Activation, PR, Direct Lions winners

CANNES, FRANCE: The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity has held the first of four Awards Ceremonies to honour the winners of the Promo & Activation, PR and Direct Lions categories. Among the winners, South Africa was represented in the Direct category and also in the PR Lions category. 19 Jun 2012 11:16

[Cannes Lions 2012] Direct shortlists released

CANNES, FRANCE: The first batch of Direct shortlists have been released by the organisers of Cannes Lions. 18 Jun 2012 09:47

Continental Outdoor Media release consumer behaviour findings

As global businesses begin to turns towards African developing markets, outdoor advertising companies need to understand the different segments in the economies and how best to reach disparate groups of consumers. 14 Jun 2012 13:03

The challenge of negative word of mouth: Part 2

[Jason Stewart] I'm going to be sharing my agency's step-by-step process on how to effectively deal with negative word of mouth (WOM). In my previous article I looked at sustained negative WOM. This article focuses on situational WOM and outlines a five-point plan to counter negative perceptions that are being spread. 13 Jun 2012 10:05

[Cannes Lions 2012] Entries break record

CANNES, FRANCE: A record 34 301 entries from 87 countries have been submitted to the Cannes Lions 59th International Festival of Creativity, claimed to be one of the largest and most prestigious global international annual awards for creative advertising and communications. South Africa's contribution to the record currently stands at 820 entries. This is the summary of entries by country. 7 Jun 2012 10:31

AFCON 2012: Samsung launch interactive, online events

Samsung Electronics, the long-time supporter of African football, is rallying fans across the continent to show their passion for the game by launching a series of interactive live and online events for fans to gather and share the excitement of the Orange Africa Cup of Nations 2012, taking place in Gabon-Equatorial Guinea. 31 Jan 2012 14:25