Issued by: Lowe Bull


Launched in March this year, longtail is the brainchild of Ingrid Rubin and Japie Swanepoel who together saw the opportunities inherent in helping South African companies make the internet work for them.

“The advent of the internet has forever changed the way that people do business, search for information, interact with companies, clients and others. Despite this, the vast majority of companies underestimate the power of the internet. They don't understand it, nor understand how it can enhance their business,” says Swanepoel, who quite literally wrote the book on e-marketing (The e of Marketing, published by Juta).

longtail aims to redress this lack of understanding by providing companies with top-level insight and strategies that will not only work for them in the online environment, but also neatly dovetail with their offline thinking.

The tools used in the solutions include: search engine optimisation, linking strategy, pay-per-click advertising, online advertising, email marketing and ongoing communication, viral marketing, Web PR, online reputation management, affiliate marketing, blogs, podcasts, social media networking, e-recruitment and Internet privacy, security and terms and conditions. Their focus on research for latest industry trends; the rigorous analysis, interpretation and reporting of results, assists them in delivering on total business objectives.

The longtail partnership is in line with Lowe Bull's growth strategy dubbed ‘The Principle of One'.

In theory, this principle provides a goal – to be regarded as the number one company and advertising agency in South Africa by its employees, peers and clients.

In practice, it means working as one, as a team. And it means providing clients with one service to meet all their branding and marketing needs, ranging from top-of-the-line creative advertising to in-store promotional activity and everything in between.

As such, the company has recently embarked on an acquisition and partnership drive, bringing a range of companies under the Lowe Bull umbrella:

- OIL, strategic planning and research specialists
- Initiative Media, media specialists
- Rex, design specialists
- Mick and Nick, direct marketing and promotional specialists
- Animal Farm, creative thinking specialists

longtail fills the missing gap, joining the Lowe Bull team as its online/digital specialists.

“The digital environment is changing the world,” says Lowe Bull chairman Matthew Bull. “As soon as we have real access to broadband – and we will – the Internet will fly in South Africa, much as it has in China and India. We want to provide our clients with the knowledge and the ability to take advantage of this medium.

“In my opinion, longtail is by far the most strategic company in the online environment that we've yet encountered in South Africa. They have an understanding of this environment, what it is currently and what it can become in the lives of consumers. And they know how to translate that knowledge to the advantage of brands,” says Bull.

Visit our PRESS OFFICE: Lowe Bull Group is an advertising agency, specialising in the creation of through-the-line strategic and creative advertising campaigns. They search for the big idea, which is translatable into sustainable, relevant and effective communication. The Lowe Bull Group also incorporates Initiative Media, O.I.L (Original Insight Learning), longtail (e marketing) and Mick&Nick (below the line specialists).- more....

[10 Aug 2007 12:52]

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