A time for personal branding and communication innovation - 12 Sep 2016[Leigh Andrews] We kick things off with a wake-up call from Jessica Edgson of Rogerwilco: It's time to recognise that marketing doesn't just apply to the company you work for - you're a brand, too. You're in luck if you're in the dark on this, as she shares some tips to enhance your personal brand online. Dora Jurd also explains how semiotics or analysing the personal meaning we ascribe to things can be used as a strategic tool for innovation, particularly in the realms of branding and consumer research. Broadening the marketing relevance of our 'innovation-centricity' content this week, I chatted to Davin Phillips, CSA director specialising in influencer marketing, to unveil the intrigue factor of this form of communication innovation, especially as media consumption patterns evolve based on the 'constantly switched on' nature of tech-savvy millennial consumers. read more Business inspiration this #InnovationMonth - 5 Sep 2016[Leigh Andrews] We're well into #InnovationMonth on Biz, with an overview of how businesses are getting ahead by thinking outside the box and innovating in the industry. One such agency is Flume, which is using print to push its digital offering. read more Fiery female inspiration this #WomensMonth - 29 Aug 2016[Leigh Andrews] As we enter the final week of #WomensMonth I looked into how Y&R's #BreaktheMould campaign is flipping the script on 'gender-specific' toys, with gender-neutral toys like Iron Chef, Ninja Fairy and Princessaurus delighting children while perplexing parents. I also found out what BBDO's two Loeries 2016 Grands Prix wins mean for African creativity from former Loeries chair and BBDO SA CEO Boniswa Pezisa; as well as the career highlights and industry inspirations of Vicki Hey, Ogilvy & Mather Cape Town's "fun to work with" brand custodian-turned-deputy MD. Pasqua Heard also shares insights into 'the ad industry from a female perspective' - that of Carmen Schaefer, a senior design and art lecturer at Red & Yellow School of Logic and Magic. That's just the tip of the iceberg! Get reading... read more #Loeries2016 celebrates inspirational females this #WomensMonth - 22 Aug 2016[Leigh Andrews] It's no coincidence that the annual local celebration of creativity, the Loeries, takes place during #WomensMonth. As a result there were a wealth of international female speakers at this year's annual Loeries highlight, the DStv Seminar of Creativity, with audience members hanging onto their pearls of wisdom. Terry Levin reports back on some of her favourite moments that stoked that female creative fire. A number of well-deserved women were also presented with special awards and accolades over the two Loeries award nights this past weekend. read more Mobile, Millennials and Loeries expectations - 15 Aug 2016[Leigh Andrews] Loeries® Creative Week™ Durban 2016 has officially begun, with judging underway and most attendees arriving over the next few days. I caught up with a few of the industry's top creative minds to find out what they're most excited about - the winning work, the weather, the DStv Seminar of Creativity, and the networking opportunities all featured strongly on their scorecards. I dug even further beneath the surface with several of this year's Digital & Interactive category judges, who spilled the beans on what they're actually looking for from the entries, as well as the biggest trends they predict from the digital/interactive work in 2016. read more Creativity and clever marketing this #WomensMonth - 8 Aug 2016[Leigh Andrews] Interbrand identified the global 'Breakthrough Brands' disrupting markets last week, and Louise Marsland explains key findings from the report in the 'Age of You' as well as the two African brands that feature in it. Well done to M-Pesa and Tuluntulu! Still on the topic of getting your brand out there in these ever-more-complex times, Johan Hanekom explains how to turn around any struggling business - "innovate or evaporate" and remember the customer is king... Maria Berrios-Carter offers further food for thought by explaining how certain stores have been doing just this - making the customer king - by cleverly marketing to parents through their kids. read more August is #WomensMonth and #LoeriesMonth on Biz! - 1 Aug 2016[Leigh Andrews] The week begins with a review of the May and June 2016 winners of the Creative Circle Awards. Well done to all, for continuously producing work that inspires and reinvents the industry's thinking! Speaking of creative inspiration, it's #LoeriesMonth at last! As a result, I went #BehindtheSelfie with Loeries committee member and ECD of Sw!tch, Gaby de Abreu, Brand Council South Africa (BCSA). read more Industry discrimination in the spotlight - 25 Jul 2016[Leigh Andrews] We lead with the IAB SA's exclusive new report on the digital salary survey, conducted in partnership with Millward Brown. It includes a downloadable PDF full of never-before-seen SA-specific digital specialist benchmarking detail to click through. When we talk salaries, the topic of discrimination isn't far behind. read more Tribute to a PR leader - 18 Jul 2016[Leigh Andrews] We start off by paying tribute to Ruth Golembo, who sadly passed away on 14 July. The PR expert and former business journalist owned Lange 360 Strategic Communications, which joined Meropa Communications last year. read more Creatively changing human behaviour, for good - 11 Jul 2016[Leigh Andrews] In this week's #TRENDING column, Louise Marsland looks at how creatives can lead us to a circular economy. As advertising agencies are "experts at changing human behaviour," she writes that we need them to sell the concept of reducing waste and creating economic sustainability for brands to marketers. Keeping the focus on creatives, we also go inside the New York Festivals' Midas Awards with Deb Ryan, executive director of the awards that celebrate the global best in financial advertising, now in their 15th year. Beverley Klein chats to Newsmaker Alexis Beckett, newly promoted ECD at 140 BBDO after eight years at the agency. read more Insights from those in the mobile content know - 4 Jul 2016[Leigh Andrews] We start off with a reminder to book your spot for the Bizcommunity Cannes Lions Case Studies 2016, to be presented by our reporter-on-the-ground Ann Nurock, in both Cape Town and Johannesburg this month. Click here for all the info you need on venues, dates, times and prices. Keeping the focus on all things new, Beverley Klein chats to this week's Newsmaker, Jacquie Myburgh Chemaly, about her core strategy for her new position as editor-in-chief of Business Day Wanted at Times Media. read more All the #CannesLions 2016 winners! - 27 Jun 2016[Leigh Andrews] The Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity may be over for 2016 (click here for SA's top performing agencies and to view all the winning work), but we still have a stack of exclusive content coming through, mainly based on innovation and inspiration drawn from the talks and award night themes. One of these is the importance of agency culture, which roving reporter Ann Nurock discussed with FCB Worldwide CEO Carter Murray. read more Get your Cannes Lions 2016 fix! - 20 Jun 2016[Leigh Andrews] #CannesLions2016 kicked off this weekend and we have lots of related news for you. Catch up with the nine South African jurors to find out what they're most looking forward to from this year's Festival of Creativity, follow mobile judge Emma Carpenter's digital diary of her Cannes experience and keep an eye out for lots of exclusive interviews and on-the-ground reportage from Ann Nurock. read more Ignore social media marketing at your brand’s peril… - 13 Jun 2016[Leigh Andrews] This week, Thabiso Moloi lets us in on the best kept marketing secret most brands and marketers aren't aware of. Hint: It's about looking beyond the obvious Twitter and Facebook profiles and replicating those marketing efforts across YouTube, Instagram and influencer marketing. Roane Swindon also offers four sales tips to help you land that important sale, with a reminder that sometimes it's best to go back to basics, such as tapping into your target market's emotions and selling them an experience. read more International business lessons with local impact - 6 Jun 2016[Leigh Andrews] We start with international coverage by Daniel Munslow on the recent 2016 World PR Forum Summit. He shares a lesson in cross-cultural communication, one of the most talked about subjects for global communication professionals as they continue to face the challenges associated with communicating with large, geographically spread audiences. I also go Behind the Loeries with Virginia Hollis. read more |
