Delegate registration open for Cannes Lions 2009
Delegates wishing to attend the 56th International Advertising Festival, to be held in Cannes 21 - 27 June 2009, may register online at www.canneslions.com. Special Young Lion registration packages are also available for young creatives and, new this year, young marketers.

2009 - focus on the ‘upside'
[Emmet O'Hanlon] After the extended honeymoon period from 1994 - 2005 or thereabouts, when the country was ‘alive with possibility', we have been eased back down to earth. It is difficult to say exactly what 2009 will bring to the advertising industry. Will the slowdown evaporate in the same way that high petrol prices and inflation are seeming to? Or is there still more pain and uncertainty to battle through before we can catch the wave of 2010? My feeling is that there will be a bit of both.


TBWA Joburg tops Bestadsontv.com's SA rankings
TBWA\Hunt\Lascaris Johannesburg has been rated the number one advertising agency in South Africa, and #9 in the world, in the sixth Annual Bestadsontv.com Rankings for 2008. The Best Ads Rankings rate the world's leading advertising agencies, clients and TVC production companies according to the quality of their creative work during the year.

Matthew Bull to head Radio Lions jury
Matthew Bull, chairman of Lowe Bull and worldwide creative director of Lowe Bull, will chair the Radio Lions Jury at the 56th Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival in 2009.

ADreach and SCARC bring festive season smiles to Soweto and Mamelodi - ADreach
Outdoor media company The ADreach Group and the Soweto Canoe & Recreation Club (SCARC) recently collaborated with Gauteng's paddling community to collect and distribute more than 2000 gifts in an outreach initiative that saw hundreds of Soweto and Mamelodi kids sampling a taste of the festive season spirit.

Nine mega branding opportunities of 2009
[Naseem Javed] Here is a look at the opportunities on offer in 2009... There will be prospects for new brands, for quality to shine, and a great deal more.


Interbrand launches premier leading luxury brands study - Interbrand Sampson
In its premier study of the world's leading luxury brands, Interbrand examines how brands in the complex luxury sector are building brand value.

Brand Leadership leads Ghana's National Democratic Congress' successful election campaign - Brand Leadership
South African-based Brand Leadership Group has been central to the election campaign that ensured that Professor Atta Mills, the presidential candidate for Ghana's leading opposition, the National Democratic Congress (NDC), was sworn in as the next president of the Republic of Ghana.

Cape Town's Trendiest Companies Competition - Springleap.com
Springleap.com, Gomoto and MobileAdStream have teamed up to bring you Cape Town's Trendiest Companies Competition, geared at giving credit to innovative, creative, forward-thinking companies who are producing exceptional work on international award-winning standards.

Online predictions for the New Year
[Matthew Buckland] We may be in the throes of a global financial crisis, but that doesn't mean we won't see innovation on the web. In fact, leading trend analysis blog Read Write Web reminds us of the old cliché that “tech innovation thrives in times of recession”. Tight economic conditions incubate intense creative and lateral thought, because a person's very survival is at stake. And the stakes are high.


Callit "Incredible India" - Callit-IT
Callit-It, the event logistics company, was kept busy the past month by client, Collyer Lessick. Called upon to assist with the delegate logistics for the Siemens annual year-end sales awards, Callit-It ensured that the attention to detail that goes into the logistics and planning of an event was key to ensuring its success.

SynthaSite reaches one million users and unveils first “Best of SynthaSite” award winners - SynthaSite
Do-it-yourself free Web site builder SynthaSite recently announced that it has reached the one million user mark in just a year. Additionally, the company unveiled the winners of its first “Best of SynthaSite” contest, which were chosen by its growing community.

KRAZYBOYZ chairman walks away with Grand ICT Award - KRAZYBOYZ
Zibusiso Mkhwanazi, the 25-year-old chairman of KRAZYBOYZ Digital walked away with the overall individual award by winning Top ICT Individual in Africa, as well as Top Young ICT Entrepreneur in Africa, at the 10th ICT Achievers Awards ceremony held at the Emperors Palace towards the end of last year.

Holton & Associates unveils Serif's new Digital Scrapbook Artist to South Africa - Holton & Associates
Scrapbook artists are increasingly turning to their digital images and computers to preserve memories such as a trip abroad or a child's first day at school. Recognising this trend, Serif, a developer of professional design and graphics software, has introduced Digital Scrapbook Artist.

Exciting new programme introduced for the fostering of entrepreneurship - USB-ED
School leavers and aspiring entrepreneurs, as well as professionals that want to sharpen and expand their business skills, will have the opportunity countrywide to follow a comprehensive programme in entrepreneurship and business management early this year.

SAACI conference to take meetings industry to task
The 2009 national conference of the Southern African Association for the Conference Industry (SAACI) will be held at the CSIR International Convention Centre in Pretoria, 26 - 28 July 2009.


Special discount on corporate events! - Cool Music
CMP is offering special discounts on all seminars, training sessions and corporate events for the months of January, February, March and April 2009.


Techrig dazzles "Incredible Siemens" - Techrig Lighting
Technical and lighting specialists Techrig were recently approached by its client Collyer Lessick to assist in creating the mood and feel for the annual Siemens Sales Awards, which was held at Vodaworld, Midrand.


CLA contribute to the Didata Starfish World Aids Day commemoration - Collyer Lessick & Associates
1 December is commemorated each year around the world as World Aids Day. In association with Dimension Data and the Starfish Greathearts Foundation, the World Aids Day Commemoration served as a way to improve the lives of AIDS affected children by holding a fun day filled with activities and entertainment at The Oval at the Dimension Data Campus on the 1st December 2008.

Magazine updates its look
House and Leisure is moving confidently into 2009 with an updated look, bigger format and the addition of a February issue. The new pay-off line, ‘Stylish SA at home and play', reflects the magazine's subtle makeover and aims to reinforce its claim to be the authority on South African décor, design and style.

Print media's 2009 jitters
[Issa Sikiti da Silva] Battered and squeezed by falling circulation, soaring input costs and dipping advertising revenues and the side-effects of the global financial meltdown, which will lead to mass retrenchments, the South African print media enters the year 2009 like a wounded lion, looking to revise its hunting strategy, nurse its wounds and recover from a miserable 2008.


SABC commits to extensive elections coverage
[Tshepiso Seopa] The SABC unveiled its election coverage plan to the media at its headquarters in Johannesburg towards the end of last week. In the plan, the public broadcaster has committed itself to reporting fair, balanced and accurate news, as well as ensuring that there is equitable coverage of all political parties during the 2009 elections.

Online consumer trends for 2009
[Tim Shier] Never before has the consumer had so much power to influence corporate change. While this trend in itself isn't new and was discussed in great detail in the Cluetrain Maninfesto in 1999, as well as in 2006's Wikinomics, there is a great deal of significant to this power shift - as I'll share with you as I predict some online consumer trends for 2009.


Appraising the holiday sales - bidorbuy
While on bidorbuy.co.za Christmas day itself was by far the quietest shopping day of the year, British online sellers managed to attract more consumers by starting the post-holiday discounts season on December 25th.

Exell Technologies together with Enfocus brings you "Automate to Profit - 2009" - Exell Technologies
Want to know what is available, what is possible but more importantly how to run or grow a profitable business? "Automate to Profit - 2009" offers both best practices and very practical information on why and how to build a more profitable business by automating the publishing workflow as well as running a business with MIS.

Sony Animax campaign - Grapevine Media
Towards the end of last year, Sony Entertainment strived to create hype around the recently launched Animax channel on DStv. By combining a postcard campaign with a promotion aimed at the youth market, it reports achieving this goal.

Radio veteran officially signs out
Radio veteran Anthony Duke has officially resigned as station manager of Good Hope FM. Bob Mabena, GM for SABC Radio's Public Commercial Services portfolio, is currently acting station manager.

Controversial Rian van Heerden returns to radio
Controversial television personality and presenter Rian van Heerden recently confirmed that he will be returning to radio when he joins central South African station OFM as an afternoon presenter from 2 Febrary 2009. According to Van Heerden he started his radio career in 1992 when he joined Tuks FM. He also worked at Punt Geselsradio, 702 and Jacaranda FM. “I'm looking forward to returning to radio after a long absence... returning to my true passion and my first love,” van Heerden said.

Salary Survey 2009 - Ad Talent
"Every day I get up and look through the Forbes list of the richest people in America. If I'm not there, I go to work." ~ Robert Orben. If you are reading this newsletter, it's likely you, too, like Robert Orben, have to go to work every day, so check out Ad Talent's 2009 salary survey.

CareerBuilder.com expands international reach with partnerships in South Africa - Jobs.co.za
CareerBuilder.com, one of the US's largest online job sites with more than 23 million unique visitors and over 1.6 million jobs, has announced that it is extending its international reach with the addition of its new international partner, Jobs.co.za.

80-20? Forget it
CMO Council research finds 80-20 rule obsolete: today's consumer product market is anything but mass.

Will the global economic crisis impact on the 2010 FIFA World Cup? - African Response
Sixty three percent of South Africans believe that the global economic crisis may lead to fewer visitors to South Africa than expected during the 2010 FIFA World Cup, according to market research company African Response.

Hygienic environments all year round through prevention - Rentokil
Not all of us are aware of the dangers and risks associated with pest-infested or unhygienic work and home environments. And often a blind eye is turned at the sight of unwanted crawling visitors in the hope that it will go away by itself.

How to build trust and rapport quickly
[John Boe] In these days when consumers are watching every cent, and every sale counts more than it might have only a few months ago, the difference between making a sale or not can hinge on something that may seem inconsequential, but isn't.