Media outlook for 2002

Although there have been improvements in planned media spend levels for the second six months of 2002, the media outlook in terms of growth will reflect no real growth during the 12 month period. So says Paul Wilkins, MD of MediaCompete, one of the top independent media agencies in South Africa.

He comments "The first six months of the year indicated a media inflation figure of 5% which is effectively a decline in real media spend year on year.

"Certain of the media reacted positively to this, particularly television who have changed their pricing structure in order to encourage new advertisers to come on board. In fact we notice a number of clients who were reluctant to spend on TV due to the high costs, now returning to the medium," he continues.

Reflecting on other media types, Wilkins expresses the following views, "New magazines are still being launched into the market as a result of publishers believing that they have spotted some gaps in the market. However the age-old question is: is there a market in the gap?"

"While the outdoor media are looking strong and feeling upbeat about the remainder of 2002, the radio stations are struggling to attract advertisers and in particular the African language stations where production costs incurred for the various advertisements make such campaigns expensive to the advertiser."

While it is too soon to say how this will project forward into 2003 the future looks reasonable according to Wilkins. "MediaCompete has seen good growth this year among its clients and new clients that have appointed us since the beginning of the year. However our task is, as always, to make the advertising rand go further. This means that we are focused on obtaining the best rates and best buys for our clients who are then able to re-invest those savings back into the media schedule and protect their share of voice and market share in a flat economic situation," he concludes.