One of the rules of magazine and newspaper planning is never place the airline advertisement bang in the middle of that ground-breaking piece on Africa's unsafe skies, e-coli being found in airline food (in a couple of cases it may actually improve it), or a jolly little number on deep vein thrombosis. In similar vein, it's never a good idea to place competing advertisements too close; generally both advertisers will come back to you and demand a discount or free space in the next issue. The same rules apply to radio and TV. But there are times when I think planners need to think around corners a bit and look at the content of the advertisements to ensure that even though they may not be competing, they might not really fit well together - or am I wrong? A few weeks ago, I was listening to a Cape community radio when they placed a perfectly serious advertisement for a constipation remedy, and the next advertisement led off with a jaunty voice (the wife) telling the husband "Darling, our drain is blocked. Who shall we call?" It didn't seem quite right to me.


Rod Baker, Content Manager: Send your news to: retailnews@bizcommunity.com; or visit https://www.bizcommunity.com. Subscribe now!