Briefly…New look classifieds sections for Naspers’ newspaper titles; PR Agency GO4Word sees social media revenue growth; JWT Johannesburg paints the airwaves red for KITKAT; AAA open calls school leavers to a career in advertising, communications; and Online shopping a winner for fashionistas
New look classifieds sections for Naspers’ newspaper titles
Readers of some of the Naspers-owned Media24 Newspapers, which publishes almost 60 titles and about 341,8 million newspapers annually in South Africa, will see an interesting change to the classifieds advertising section. This is part of a phased drive to align the organisation’s print and digital classifieds services via Kalahari Ads, the widest classified advertising network in South Africa.
Owned by MIH Internet Holdings, another Naspers-owned company that specialises in pay-television and Internet subscriber platforms, the marketing team is implementing an aggressive brand building programme that aims to catapult Kalahari Ads to the number one classifieds service in the country. As a free classifieds service, it combines the group’s extensive print and online classifieds offerings into a free, user-friendly, feature-rich portal so that buyers and sellers need not visit multiple sites to trade.
Says Bronwyn Johnson, head of marketing for Kalahari Ads, “Classifieds advertising is being revolutionised. Kalahari Ads raises the benchmark via a new approach that makes ads accessible to all South Africans. Our print, mobile and web combination is about offering as many channels to the market for the benefit of our customers.”
Alan Cronje, the digital creative director at Saatchi & Saatchi AtPlay, the company’s internal digital division responsible for the creative says, “We have positioned the brand as quirky, simple and accessible to all South Africans, evidenced in the large number of unique interactions with the brand daily. Located on the web at www.kalahariads.com, it is clearly South Africa’s favourite classifieds.”
PR Agency GO4Word sees social media revenue growth
PR and Communications Agency go4word takes on More To Life Health (Pty) Ltd as a client from May 2011 and sees two existing clients, the Pick n Pay Knysna Oyster Festival and Mobilitrix, both extend the agency’s mandate to include social media. More to Life Health (Pty) Ltd., a pharmaceutical manufacturer based in Ballito, Kwa-Zulu Natal, manufactures and markets an established portfolio of brands including Patrick Holford Health Supplements, G.I. Lean, Hot Toddy, Erex and Pro Collagen. go4word has been commissioned to implement a social media campaign to leverage brand awareness and product sales for the Patrick Holford Health Supplement range in South Africa.
“Rather than seeing social media as a threat to traditional PR, we view social media as a natural and critical extension to our clients’ PR and communication strategy” says Karen Lowe joint MD of go4word. “By helping brands engage in honest and meaningful conversations in social media, we help clients’ earn the credibility to participate within social media communities, gain advocates and increase sales through word of mouth.”
JWT Johannesburg paints the airwaves red for KITKAT
Perennial chocolate favourite KitKat is 75 years young and still going strong, and celebrating its anniversary by painting the airwaves red courtesy of JWT Johannesburg. “To mark the 75 year milestone of this iconic brand KITKAT wanted to dominate media presence on television. To achieve this, we created a series of short and catchy advertisements celebrating the brand’s anniversary; and a second set of TV ads introducing the new variants and promoting a competition where 150 ‘out of this world’ prizes could be won, “ said JWT’s Davina Wertheimer.
“Through typical South African characters viewers can associate and identify with, we created a series of 49 five second fun ads appealing to the overall target market as KitKat appeals to both the young and old.”
The TVCs are all linked to the central theme of celebrating KitKat’s 75th birthday. There are also three 15 second TVCs promoting the new products as well as a further three 15 second ads promoting the competition. Radio ads on Metro FM and 5FM drive the competition element in parallel to the TV schedules. In addition, the campaign in being maximised in-store, and outdoor using billboards and bus branding to reinforce the milestone this iconic brand has achieved. Launched at the end of March the campaign has been so successful for Nestle that within the first few weeks of it being aired KITKAT has been flying off retail shelves.
AAA open calls school leavers to a career in advertising, communications
Today the world offers a myriad of exciting and evolving careers that can truly satisfy a talent. The world of advertising is one that offers a host of opportunities. While creative expression is a vital part of the mix, if a student is interested in marketing, research, statistics or copywriting, the ad industry also offers a good home. To find out more about a career in graphic design, art direction, copywriting, account management, strategic planning and media planning, students and parents are invited to visit the AAA School of Advertising’s Open Day on Saturday June 4.
The AAA is the only school owned by SA’s official advertising body – the ACA (Association of Communication and Advertising) – and as such is seen as a pool of valuable resources for agencies when selecting future employees. Many of the greats in our local industry are themselves graduates of the prestigious institution.
A restricted number of students are accepted in the various fields of study making the AAA Open Day a great opportunity to interact with the school and to secure a place. In addition to the interactive programme on the day, potential AAA students and parents will be given a glimpse into the possibilities that lay ahead as the 2010 Loerie Award winners will be showcased on the day. What: AAA Open Day
When: Saturday 04 June 2011, Time: 09h30
Where: Bond Street Centre, c/o Bond and Bram Fischer, Kensington B Randburg
For more info contact: Pascalle on 011 781 2771 or pascalleg@aaaschooljhb.co.za
Online shopping a winner for fashionistas
There has been a strong upsurge in internet shopping in the fashion sector recently, with people increasingly shopping online to find good deals. South Africa’s largest online marketplace, bidorbuy.co.za, reported a growth in its clothing, shoes and accessories section of 73% from early 2010 to the same period in 2011.
On one hand, the fashion-conscious are increasingly turning to the world of online shopping to find trendy accessories, classic garments or vintage pieces. On the other, more and more young fashion designers are using bidorbuy as a platform to market themselves. The two trends indicate that the growth of online fashion shopping is set to continue, which is a distinctly positive trend for the South African fashion industry.
“Clothing is one of the large growth areas that we have seen on our site and we expect this growth to continue”, explains Jaco Jonker, CEO of bidorbuy.
Men’s clothing, shoes and accessories had a bumper year, with sales figures exceeding 130% year on year, indicating that men are increasingly preferring the convenience of online shopping when purchasing fashion accessories, outfits and shoes. Growth has also been reported in women’s clothing, but the most notable trend in women’s fashion habits online is a shift towards purchasing more shoes and accessories than in previous years.
Natalie Reffo, Fashion Category Manager at bidorbuy, says the fashion trends online mimic the seasonal trends of real-world retailers, with soaring sales of summer dresses, sunglasses, swimming costumes and sandals over the warmer months and increasing sales of boots and coats as we head toward the cooler months in South Africa.
www.bidorbuy.co.za
