The celeb PR way with CSA

Celebrity PR is an interesting industry, for a number of reasons.

Take CSA as an example. It's actually a group of companies originating from the original entity, Celebrity Services Africa, based much of its work on talent acquisition, working with both local and international talent in bringing A-Lister celebrities to South Africa.

The acronym CSA really fits, as it incorporates the company's Communication Division for both Africa and North America as Communication Services Africa and Communication Services America respectively, both of which focus on supporting brands through tailored communication strategies.

Davin Phillips

This African capacity and capability was put to great use in a cross-market strategy across Africa, one that Phillips goes so far as to single out as a stand-out. "We ran and continue to run successful campaigns across the continent - in Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Angola and the Indian Ocean Islands. In fact, South Africa now accounts for only 30% of our group turnover."

But how does a local PR company get so good at what it does that the bulk of its new work is based outside the country's borders? These include the Johnnie Walker Nigeria trademark, for which CSA has been the lead content agency - a multi-faceted campaign with extensive use of social media, complimented by traditional media; as well as key Diageo Reserve global brand ambassadors on an international campaign; and the launch of the new Hugo Boss collections for both the events and communications divisions in Johannesburg.

Intrigued, I found out more about a day in the life of this celebrity communications agency...

1. Let's go back to the beginning - tell us about the agency's origins.

Phillips: The agency was founded by Fran and Marc le Chat in the mid-90s in Johannesburg. Fran has over three decades of PR expertise and Marc over 25 years of journalism experience. The company then relocated to Cape Town in 2003.

2. The question on everyone's lips when you tell them what you do: What's the basic work flow or creative process in an agency like this?

Phillips: For our communication division, it all begins with strategising a brand's DNA, with brand journalism at is core. This is all aimed at populating content to position targeted stories in key media outlets, while also growing the audience for a brand's own media platforms. We like to say that we assist our clients in building their brand equity, which really boils down to building an emotional equity between the brand and its targeted audience. Content really is king considering the brand clutter today, which makes it even harder to stand out. It's a craft that we specialise in.