Integrated Marketing Communication

SPOTLIGHT on GENY 2013 Sites: Droga5, Horizon Media and KIND Snacks

Posted by Beatriz Pilar Lim on February 6, 2013 No Responses »

Feb 062013

Graduate Experience: New York (GENY) 2013 is in two days! IMC students are very excited to hit the streets of the Big Apple to visit several agencies. To highlight the different sites for IMC and GMCA students, we have decided to come up with short company write-ups for you to enjoy. For this edition, we will be looking at the last three sites that will be visited: Droga5, Horizon Media and KIND snacks.

Droga5

In 2012 alone, Droga5 was named AdWeek’s Agency of the Year, a member of both Advertising Age and Creativity’s Agency A-List. It has also bagged six lions at Cannes! Droga5 is an independent advertising network creating exciting, innovative and impactful works for clients like PUMA, Unicef, Prudential, American Express and Coca-Cola. The brands with which Droga5 works with speaks highly of how the agency adapts to each of their brands – looking into the best ways to connect with the consumer and maintaining this connection. Since 2006, this agency’s beautiful work in creative, digital and content generation has definitely made an impact in the hearts and minds of consumers all over the world. To learn more about this multi-awarded agency, visit:

http://www.droga5.com/

Horizon Media

Horizon Media is the world’s largest independent media services company. It has 800 team members across the globe – from its headquarters in New York to its offices in Los Angeles, San Diego and Amsterdam. Its mission is “ to make the most meaningful connections” with people everywhere. Horizon Media builds outstanding media plans that are grounded in brand research and effective strategy. AdWeek, Advertising Age, Mediaweek, Fast Company and Cannes have recognized this agency’s brilliant work. Its green initiative, Horizon Green, was also featured in AdAge’s green report, which looked into how agencies were working to reduce their carbon footprint. Visit Horizon Media to know more about culture and amazing work:

http://www.horizonmedia.com/

KIND Snacks
Go into your favorite Starbucks or the grocery and you will find this delicious and very healthy snack bar, KIND. These are whole nut and fruit bars which are tasty, wholesome and convenient. KIND snacks has an amazing story which centers on two philosophies: the power of AND, as well as holistic kindness. They create new paths and purpose to snacking and making sure that these initiatives achieve kindness to one’s body as well as to the world. KIND’s business model is “not-only-for-profit,” looking into ways to create social change using its core business – delicious snacks that are uncompromising. Learn more about KIND’s story by visiting:

http://www.kindsnacks.com/

SPOTLIGHT on GENY 2013 Sites: Big Spaceship, Grey Group and R/GA

Posted by Beatriz Pilar Lim on February 4, 2013 No Responses »

Feb 042013

Graduate Experience: New York (GENY) 2013 is around the corner (this Friday, in fact!). Everyone’s very excited to hit the streets of the Big Apple to visit several agencies. To highlight the different sites for IMC and GMCA students, we have decided to come up with short company write-ups for you to enjoy. For this edition, we will be looking at the second batch of agency’s for Friday’s event: Big Spaceship, Grey Group and R/GA.

Big Spaceship

BigSpace

Launched i n 2000, Big Spaceship is considered as one of the hottest digital creative agencies around. This agency believes that we live in age of connection, and it creates experiences that connect people, brands and devices using design, technology and communication equally. It has a very interesting work environment – instead of being grouped by departments, Big Spaceship’s team members sit together by teams. Each group is comprised of amazing talents from different disciplines: strategy, design, production and technology. Each team is assigned projects that it works on from beginning to end. Big Spaceship was awarded by Advertising Age as one of the Best Places to Work in 2010. Its clients include Shake Shack, Absolut Vodka, HP and Crayola. To find learn more about how this digital creative agency explores the age of connection, click on:

http://www.bigsp aceship.com/

Grey Group

grey_group

For 95 years, Grey Group has been creating brand experiences that are famously effective. It has penetrated the global market with award-winning campaigns that stick, that are relevant, that we like. Its clients include the NFL, DirecTV, Cover Girl, Pantene and Olive Garden. It is also the exclusive agency of TED Conference – our favorite idea tank. No wonder FAST Company named Grey Group as one of the 50 most innovative companies in the world. Grey with its signature line “famously effective” produces campaigns that are not only innovative and successful, but are also sustainable – allowing brands to connect with their customers more effectively. To know more about the Grey Group, visit:

http://grey.com/newyork/index.html?section=HOME&sid=GREY

R/GA

R/GA has built a solid reputation as the Agency for the Digital Age. Its history began in 1977 with its roots in feature films and special effects, as well as production of commercials. When the age of the Internet boomed, R/GA decided to become an interactive agency – using innovation and technology to create integrated products and services for clients to be where their customers are. Its model incorporates three disciplines: planning, connections and analytics. The agency’s clients include HBO, NIKEiD, Verizon and Barnes & Noble (Nook). R/GA has also bagged several awards, including AdWeeks “Digital Agency of the Decade,” Omma’s “Ad Agency of the Year” in 2010, and, just recently, garnered the no. 4 spot in Ad Age’s “Agency A-List.” To learn more about R/GA and its work, visit:

http://www.rga.com/

SPOTLIGHT on GENY 2013 Sites: BBDO, Harrison & Shriftman, mcgarrybowen

Posted by Beatriz Pilar Lim on January 30, 2013 No Responses »

Jan 302013

Graduate Experience: New York (GENY) 2013 is coming very soon, and IMC students are very excited to hit the streets of the Big Apple to visit several agencies. To highlight the different sites for IMC and GMCA students, we have decided to come up with short company write-ups for you to enjoy. For this edition, we will be looking at the first three sites that will be visited: BBDO, Harrison & Shriftman and mcgarrybowen.

BBDO is second largest advertising network in the world with offices in 81 countries in the world. With its headquarters in New York, it employs more than 16,000 team members. Its main focus is on The Work, The Work, The Work – changing behavior through captivating everyday work. This agency’s mission is to create the most compelling and relevant commercial content via its wide-range of services, which incorporates advertising, branding, design, mobile and social media, interactive marketing and many more. BBDO’s impressive client roster includes Procter & Gamble, Starbucks, FedEx, Mercedes Benz, Bayer, Johnson & Johnson and Hyatt. To find out more about this multi-awarded agency, check out:

http://www.bbdo.com, http://www.bbdo.com/files/upload/bbdo_fact_sheet.pdf

Harrison & Shriftman

A strong reputation in building brand experiences for luxury brands, Harrison & Shriftman (H&S) is a full-service public relations, events and marketing agency. This agency delivers “fresh thinking and flawless execution” for different clients in several industries – entertainment, fashion, lifestyle, travel and publishing. It was established in 1995, H&S offices in Miami and Los Angeles and huge showroom in New York. It specializes in high-profile events like product and press launches, store openings and fashion shows. H&S’ client list includes hot brands like Jimmy Choo, Blackberry, Lacoste, Nine West and Grey Goose. To see this agency’s amazing showcase of successful brand-building projects, visit:

http://www.hs-pr.com/, http://hs-pr.com/pdfs/profile.pdf

mcgarrybowen

Driven by the belief “that the agency should exist to serve clients, build brands, and grow businesses,” mcgarrybowen was founded in 2002. This agency works on creating and delivering big ideas for clients, and making sure the message is placed at the right time and right place – where the customers are. This agency prides itself with going beyond “integration” and calling it “unification.” Its client list includes Chevron, The Wall Street Journal, Omega, United, Sharp and Disney. To learn more about Adweek and Advertising Age’s 2011 Agency of the Year, click on:

http://mcgarrybowen.com/en

Can I get a drink for the ladies? And make it Snapp-y!

Posted by elizabeth_peard on January 23, 2013 No Responses »

Jan 232013

Diageo, a liquor distributer out of London has the ladies in Kenya snapping their fingers for another round. Diageo is a premium drinks business best known for alcohol brands such as Johnnie Walker, Guinness, and Smirnoff, which are sold across the world. They’ve recently unveiled a cocktail drink called Snapp and it’s similar to one of their best sellers, Smirnoff Ice. The apple-flavored drink is being strongly marketed towards women in Kenya.

Kenyan women have recently become more independent and have higher paying jobs than they used to. There are currently 100 million women above drinking age and there’s a higher sense of empowerment among women in the region. While Diageo already sells liquor and beers throughout Africa, there are currently no products on the market that focus on this demographic. This is also one of the few non-beer alcoholic drinks currently marketed in Africa.

Diageo hopes to make the most of this product launch with a large advertising push. In commercials that air across the country, the “Snapp Ladies,” a singing group in the vein of The Supremes takes the stage for a performance. Just before they walk in front of the microphones, a male waiter (pushing the Independent Woman theme) serves them Snapp in retro champagne glasses. Beyonce would be proud.ocus on this demographic. This is also one of the few non-beer alcoholic drinks currently marketed in Africa.

Snapp’s main competitor in Africa is Smirnoff Ice – another brand owned by Diageo. They are both similar tasting cocktail drinks that are focused on marketing to women. Their other competitor marketed to women is a beer, Preta by SABMiller, so Snapp is the only other cocktail drink.

This is an awesome, growing market to choose. When Diageo had to decide what segment to target for their new brand, there were many others they could select. That they decided to focus on women of drinking age with a disposable income was a great idea. Snapp is the only cocktail drink being targeted to women so it allows them to have no competition. Reduced competition is great not only in terms of targeting but also for market development. Having no competitors can be risky because there’s no guarantee that the segment they’ve chosen will actually like the product they’re presenting. But if they do, they will have 100% of the market share, which is a great way to start a brand.

The way Diageo is marketing this product is great too. Diageo already has drinks for niche women markets in Venezuela and Mexico so they definitely are aware of the messages women respond to. Making alcohol, and more specifically, Snapp into an empowerment drink instead of marketing it around being competitive, either towards men or

each other, is a fantastic way to go. So often brands try to persuade women into buying so that the women themselves will be more desirable (i.e. every cosmetics company touting “kissable lips”). Diageo is saying that this is drink is for women because they’re already awesome, not that if they drink it men will want them more. It’s a drink for women who are independent and feel powerful.

It’s risky to pin your new drink onto a market that has never ever been marketed to – women in Kenya with disposable incomes that drink alcohol. I could understand how there might be a fear that if they ever saturate the female market, they’ve made it too feminine for men to drink. There are enough men that drink Smirnoff Ice, which was tradit

ionally marketed to women, that this fear shouldn’t be a problem in the long run. Diageo has realized that concern and made sure to keep the advertising loose enough that men won’t be ashamed to drink it.

There’s also such potential for the Snapp brand to expand, like Smirnoff Ice and Mike’s Hard Lemonade have both done. There can be different flavors such as Snapp Raspberry, Snapp Plum – the options are endless. Diageo has already done a lot of R&D for developing different flavors since they own Smirnoff. These flavors can bring in additional women in their target market or it can allow them to change the brand enough to make it more masculine if need be.

Diageo has made an excellent decision in targeting for their latest brand. Their market is well defined and it is growing. The idea to target women as opposed to men for an alcohol brand as their first customer is innovative in Kenya. They know their market since they’ve targeted women in other countries before. They know their product and they know what works.

Diageo’s Snapp brand deserves Elle Woods style finger snaps from all of the ladies that appreciate a world-wide brand understanding the buying power and potential that they have!

Live For Fashion, Literally

Posted by danielle_murphy on November 29, 2012 Comments Off

Nov 292012

Hövding, a Swedish helmet maker, has introduced a new product to the bike market known as the “invisible” Bike Helmet. Targeted at those who love to ride but are also fashion advocates and hate the element of having to ruin your hair to be safe, this helmet is battery-operated and fits around your neck like a scarf or collar and inflates like an airbag when impact is detected. “Sensors in the collar detect unusual movements by the wearer. Upon impact, the sensors trigger a gas inflator that pumps air into an airbag that’s folded into the collar, which fully inflates around the head it in 0.1 seconds.” This product is currently available in Europe, but not approved in the U.S or other markets yet. Although this concept seems to be innovative and a long-awaited fix to the inconvenience of wearing a helmet, some argue that it may be hard to feel safe or trust that this device will indeed inflate if needed. Hövding’s helmet reliability has been questioned by skeptics but it has been CE Certified in Europe and has had a number of success stories. This brings up the question; did Hövding make all the right decisions when analyzing this helmet with the new product development process?

How eBay Snuck Into China

Posted by aiwen_yang on November 27, 2012 Comments Off

Nov 272012

EBay is one of the biggest leading e-commerce companies. In 2002, eBay paid $150 million to acquire EachNet, which was a leading auction site in China. However, eBay made a lot of mistakes in their management and did not have enough understanding of the local market. In 2003, eBay lost most of the market share in China. In late 2006 ,eBay established a joint venture with TOM Online. However, after the joint venture, eBay still faced tough competition from local rival Taobao, who is one of the biggest online retailers in China, and provides services without any charges. So how should eBay approach China’s market again?

7-Eleven: Is the New Mix of Convenience and Trend Here to Stay in Jakarta?

Posted by xiaoxiao_ma on November 25, 2012 Comments Off

Nov 252012

As mentioned in a recent New York Times article, in 2009, 7-Eleven finally made the decision after 16 years to expand to another new country, Indonesia, and it is making great progress. In 2011, they are on the move of penetrating this market more. The article points out that Indonesia’s economic situation is developing rapidly, and therefore people have more disposable income for recreational causes. But the more important reason why 7-Eleven has achieved such growing sales revenue is because of the Indonesian franchisee, Modern Putra’s effort in revamping its sales strategies to adapt to this new environment. Their knowledge of the market led them to see that other than having an air-conditioned environment, inexpensive ready-made food, open 24/7 and parking spaces, 7-Eleven has the potential to become a more attractive recreational place in Jakarta. The store has made changes for example, playing host to musical performances, adding food choices that are appealing to the locals and becoming a Wi-Fi hotspot to attract consumers. Upon this success, 7-Eleven attracted not only consumers, but competitors. Overall, even though 7-Eleven seems to be lagging behind existing competitors like McDonalds, and chased after by new competitors like FamilyMart, it has a good chance of standing out and becoming positioned as more of a hangout and less as a convenience store.

How Hot Could Hot Be? Abercrombie & Fitch Models Strip in Singapore

Posted by pinghsien_lee on November 23, 2012 Comments Off

Nov 232012

Abercrombie & Fitch (A&F), the brand that is well loved for its American-style, cool, casual and trendy, is now aggressively expanding into Asia. Before its grand opening in Singapore, 40 muscular half-naked men stood outside the still unopened store. The alluring smiles and eyes, free hugs, and photo shoot caused a stirring riot. In addition, A&F launched a giant four-floor advertisement at a traffic-heavy shopping area. A muscular topless man wearing extremely low-slung jeans in the giant billboard caught everyone’s attention in Singapore.

Fiat – Fashion Accessory or Unnecessary?

Posted by amanda_cheung on November 21, 2012 Comments Off

Nov 212012

During a thirty-year hiatus, the Italian car company Fiat decided now would be a good time to break into the U.S. car industry. By using a market development strategy with Fiat’s current “infamous” car model 500, success was highly anticipated. Sergio Marchionne, the companies Chief Executive Officer, assumed the car would be a big hit. The CEO’s initial thought; “We were going to show up and just because of the fact people like gelato and pasta, people will buy it.” The assumption that the United States admiration for the Italian culture would lead to high sales of Fiats backfired.

Japanese Furniture Company Aims for Europe

Posted by mayuka_hattori on November 19, 2012 Comments Off

Nov 192012

According to the Japanese economic newspaper, Nikkei Newspaper, Seki Furniture, a famous Japanese furniture company, is looking into the European market, especially high-end consumers for their luxury wooden furniture. The article states several reasons why Seki Furniture made this decision to pursue the European market, most notably the recent popularity of wooden furniture fits their product and their manufacturing techniques. Also, they are facing a challenge in their own country against national and international chain furniture stores. While other Japanese wooden furniture companies expand to India and other Asian countries, the company has made a momentous decision by using the method of market development into Europe.

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