UNICEF Foster Care Ad

(Courtesy: Malaika Fernando)

Media: Impartial Assessor?

Al Ries, the father of Positioning, wrote: “Marketing is not a battle of products; it’s a battle of perception.” Perceptions are built by communication – and communication is a lot more than what a company says about its products. It’s more about what consumers say.

In an exclusive conversation with The Sunday Times FT last week, Jayantha Sittampalam, Managing Director of Cameron Pale & Medina, elaborated on this theme. “The logic is simple”, he said. “Advertising works better if it is believed because then it would be acted upon.” This ‘believability factor’ can be increased by using third party endorsements.

YES
People do not believe advertising but look at the media as good intermediaries who will test products/ services. “If you have a product that is original or different, it should be in the news. This works best with PR”, says Sittampalam, “Advertising should serve as a reaffirmation of your value statement.”

Public relations is better than advertising at building a brand, argued Laura and Al Ries in their 2002 book, ‘The Fall of Advertising and the Rise of PR’. The media’s role, therefore, is to make fair assessments. Citing the ‘Top Gear’ programme on BBC, Sittampalam says, “That presenter, James May, can sell cars like this (snaps his fingers)!”

NO
Dr Dannielle Blumenthal has held positions at Young & Rubicam's futuristic trend consultancy and served as director of the Institute for Brand Leadership. Writing in brandchannel.com, she offers a counterpoint: “At that time, they were right; advertising had indeed lost credibility while the media still had it.

“But today, one can no longer be so sure,” Dr Blumenthal continues. “In an age when news releases regularly substitute for real news, people have learned to be skeptical about the media’s objectivity.”

Credibility: Who You Gonna Call?

Q: What do Microsoft, Google, Red Bull, Linux and Starbucks Coffee have in common?
A: All of these brands were built using public relations (PR).

This was pointed out by Jayantha Sittampalam, Managing Director of Cameron Pale & Medina, a public relations firm that pioneered the ‘inclusive communications approach’. Sittampalam was addressing a seminar on ‘Category-led Marketing’, sponsored by Cameron PR, at the Ceylon Continental Hotel this week. The audience comprised CEOs and senior marketing professionals of Superbrands.

In the pursuit of awards, advertising agencies have tended to sacrifice effectiveness at the altar of creativity. “Awards have become the Holy Grail of advertising”, said Sittampalam. Embellishing his presentation with commercials from Budweiser and Nike, he suggested that foreign agencies were also guilty of this.

Over the past few years, advertising volumes have been increasing. Therefore, to be seen amidst the clutter and heard above the din, clients have had to increase advertising frequency and expenditure. Sittampalam points out that this leads to a vicious cycle with volumes increasing even further. As an obvious corollary, effectiveness is adversely impacted; the only beneficiary seems to be the agency.

Drawing extensively from Al Ries’ book, ‘The Fall of Advertising and the Rise of PR’, Sittampalam built a case for PR. He observed, “Many things that lose their functional purpose turn into art forms: painting, calligraphy, swords, horse-back riding – and Advertising!”

“Advertisements are one-sided,” Sittampalam said. In the communication mix, direct communication (what you say about yourself) is the easiest to craft to your specifications. This is exactly why it lacks credibility. Establishing category leadership is difficult without credibility, which advertising cannot establish.

Touting PR as a credible alternative, Sittampalam attempted to shatter the ad-value equivalency myth: “The difference between being front page news and having a front page ad is the credibility of the third party voice.” PR can establish credibility, but only if one walks the talk. This requires a new approach to communication, in which establishing credibility is the key. “The idea is not just to get space, but to get credibility by being unbiased,” says Sittampalam.

Inclusive communication establishes both: credibility and category leadership. In practice, inclusive communication strategy encompasses direct communications (above the line, below the line and promotions), indirect communications (media relations/ PR) and even non-verbal communications.

So what exactly is Category-led Marketing? Sittampalam sums it up: “If you belong in a category where there is already a leader established in the prospect’s mind, dislodging him is almost impossible. Instead, refocus and rename your category... You can have a situation where you are in advertising but you’re insignificant. So, recategorise yourself as the leading agency in the below the line (BTL) category, so that you become big in BTL.”

Claiming brand building as the natural domain of PR, Sittampalam advised advertisers to “accept what you already own in the mind. Go deeper, not broader.” He concluded that the new role for Advertising would be brand maintenance.

PR Case Study: An Indian Media ‘Takeover’
(Source: Cameron PR)
Client: Export Development Board of Sri Lanka (EDB)
Campaign: Launch of Sri Lankan exports gateway in Chennai
Year: 2005

Background
Following the signing of the Free Trade Agreement with India, the EDB wanted a permanent gateway in India for Sri Lankan exports. They rented retail space at the Spencer Plaza in Chennai, creating an opportunity whereby Sri Lankan products could be displayed, attracting potential Indian trade partners. This gateway enabled trade and consumers to see and purchase Sri Lankan products, and identify business partners to engage in long term trade between the two countries.

The communication budget for this bilateral trade promotion event was only Rs 4 million, which was too limited for any impactful advertising in the Indian media. (A half-page advertisement in The Hindu, for example, cost Rs 2.9 million.)

The Campaign
A PR firm was appointed to launch and promote the gateway. For the launch event to be executed in the atrium of the Spencer Plaza, the PR firm adopted a communication strategy relying almost entirely on publicity. The pre-publicity was carried out through the PR firm, state agencies and Sri Lankan diplomats.

Although the event area was visible for all visitors to the building - even from the top-most floor, the event was restricted to invitees only. This strategy alone created much hype due to the restricted access – with the inquisitive Chennai public actively seeking out information.

The event generated a torrent of publicity in six television stations on prime time. The post-publicity for the event included 27 Indian newspapers featuring the event in their columns the following day! With an extremely small budget, a launch of this nature would not have been as successful had it not been for the PR-led communication strategy that was adopted.

Tourism on the Front Foot

Mahela’s scintillating stroke-play and Murali’s mesmeric bowling were the cynosure of all eyes during the World Cup semi-finals and finals. However, amidst the spectators, one could not help noticing an enthusiastic group of supporters. They were flaunting boards emblazoned with traditional Sri Lankan masks and were prominent enough for the cameras to focus on time and again.

Therein lies a tale of innovative Marketing and creativity. The attractive blue boards featuring cricketers and masks were developed in Colombo and dispatched to the West Indies. The package also contained Sri Lankan flags, Sri Lanka Tourism Board (SLTB) caps, T-shirts and banners. The messages on the boards were subtle and understated. Anything more overt would have been considered ‘commercial’ – which cameramen have been trained not to focus on.

The group of thirty Sri Lankans studying in the USA was upgraded so that they could be together in one enclosure, to enhance their collective visibility. This initiative was the brainchild of the SLTB, implemented in collaboration with our embassy in Washington.

To incur this expenditure – albeit small - soon after March 2007, in which month tourist arrivals declined by 36%, takes foresight and guts. A multiplicity of factors – from adverse travel advisories to the Cricket World Cup - had contributed to the decline.

In his wood-paneled office, Renton de Alwis, SLTB’s Chairman, exuded optimism while talking exclusively to the Financial Times on Thursday. “When you’re not doing well,” he proclaimed, “be seen in the best of places!” There is a palpable sense of excitement in his voice as he describes the board as ‘dream sellers’ whose “business is to be positive.”

Immediately after the famous victory over New Zealand, the SLTB released a message congratulating the Sri Lankan cricket team at 4 o’clock in the morning!

Advertising Must Boost Sales

“The codfish lays ten thousand eggs,
The homely hen lays one;
The codfish never cackles
To tell you what she's done.
And so we scorn the codfish
While the homely hen we prize,
Which only goes to show you that
It pays to advertise!”
-Anonymous

The objective of marketing communication (or advertising) is to make consumers walk into your store and experience your product or service. When several alternative products or services are competing for their share of the customer’s wallet, this is a challenge of fairly daunting proportions. It takes every resource in the marketing manager’s armoury to ensure that advertising works – creativity is certainly one of them.

In typical commercial organisations, the prime criterion for evaluating efficacy of marketing communication is advertising’s ability to drive incremental sales. The secondary motive is to build the brand image of the organization.

In order to entice a consumer to try your product or service offering, creativity in advertising is desirable. Ceteris paribus, a creative and aesthetic advertisement would be more impactful than a staid one. There is much to be said in favour of creativity: Creative advertising would break through the clutter and ensure greater visibility – and can consequently achieve more bang for your media buck. Creativity is the input or the treatment, while effectiveness is the output or the result.

In the business of cinema, a broad categorization exists… ‘Commercial movies’ draw in the masses while ‘Art movies’ attract a more discerning audience. A similar trend has been observed in marketing communication.

As Finance Head of a US$ 170 million retailing enterprise, I allocate my advertising money based on expected results. An advertisement that merely elicits gasps of admiration - or even wins awards without significantly enhancing current or future sales - represents wasted money. If I was compelled to choose, I would want advertising that effectively boosts my sales while simultaneously enhancing my brand’s image.

Advertising agencies have been known to give vent to their creative urges, while the onus is on the client to ensure brand salience and appeal. To ensure alignment of purpose, progressive clients have introduced performance based bonus (linked to sales) for their creative agencies.

Professor Noriyuki Shutto

Soon after we were informed last week that Prof. Noriyuki Shutto was in Colombo, the Sunday Times FT succeeded in catching up with him at the Cinnamon Grand. At an exclusive tête-à-tête, Prof. Shutto expounded on the Japanese way of communication and product branding.

For The Uninitiated…
Prof. Shutto is Director of the International Advertising Association (IAA) for the Asia-Pacific Area, and has wide international communications experience. The IAA is a partnership between the media, the agencies and clients.

Having joined Dentsu Inc., Japan - the world’s fifth largest communications orgnisation - in 1970, Prof. Shutto went on to become its CEO in 2001. He is now Executive Advisor of the organization. He also teaches at Kyushu University, but is quick to point out that he is "a practitioner, not an academic”.

As much as 85% of Dentsu’s revenues come from Japan. Cultural and language barriers have prevented Dentsu from establishing a more formidable presence in Europe and the US. This does not worry Prof. Shutto because many Japanese companies are globalised; Toyota, Sony, Honda and Panasonic being cases in point.

Prof. Shutto Freedom says that cultural taboo and political pressure sometimes curb freedom of commercial speech. He firmly believes all three parties – media, agencies and clients – should exhibit social responsibility rather than be ordered by the government. “Self-regulation and freedom of advertising are one composite package,” he says.

On Internet Advertising
In Japan, interactive/ internet advertising is bigger than radio or magazine advertising – and stands a creditable third after television and newspaper. “According to western theorists,” says Prof Shutto, “the communications market is a zero-sum market.” He debunks this theory by pointing out that internet marketing is ‘viral’ in nature. Viral marketing utilizes individuals to pass a marketing message to others, creating exponential growth in the message's impact.

“While internet advertising per se is not so costly, creating value on the internet could be very expensive”, says Prof. Shutto. He cites BMW’s commercial featuring Madonna as an example. Although over a US$ 1 million was spent on this campaign, it was aired only on the internet, not on television.

On Corporate Ownership
Another notion among the Japanese is that companies belong to the employees rather to the shareholders. This has resulted in greater corporate involvement with products than is the case in the US. “Hence”, says Prof. Shutto, “the Japanese are naturally inclined towards corporate advertising. Toyota gives you the Toyota Camry and the Toyota Corolla, bundled with the implicit assurance of the manufacturer.”

US manufacturers, on the other hand, pride themselves on the product itself. Hence, General Motors gives you the Cadillac, Buick and Chevrolet – each of which is an independent brand. Even in the FMCG space, Procter & Gamble comes to mind: Pantene and Head & Shoulders do not flaunt their parentage.

On Cultural Subtleties
Japanese tend to consider individuals in relation to their families, and Japanese communication is based on this culture. In Japan, therefore, says Prof. Shutto, “messages tend to be indirect or emotional, and are sometimes communicated to individuals through society.”
Anglo-Americans, on the other hand, are perceived as independent entities and messages tend to be more direct. Public awareness advertising like for gay and lesbian rights is visible in the US, but is unthinkable in Japan.