It was an eventful year for media in 2016, and 2017 looks set to continue the trend. Cindy Diamond, group sales director for Mediamark, looks back on what disrupted the industry, and forward to see what’s on the radar for 2017.
What were the issues in your industry during 2016?
We’ve seen continued disruption of the landscape on many fronts:
The SABC and its 90% local music quota
Digital & mobile – a continual rise as marketers seek to better understand the measure of their buck
Print continues to decline but the rate of decline in print ad spend is still slower
BRC RAM proves radio is relevant and vital to consumers seeking information, entertainment and compelling content
Programmatic and content marketing is highly topical and increasingly becoming an integral part of clients advertising solutions and budgets
TV inflation drops significantly making it a preferred buy in a declining economy
Activations and experiential marketing continues to grab attention for brands seeking engagement and trial
What were the successes in your industry during 2016?
BRC RAM places radio upfront and central in terms of a high value media platform. The new data underlines the committed relationship listeners have with the medium. Heavy listenership, strong listener loyalty and longer listening hours illustrate the ability of the medium to generate frequency of exposure for advertisers.
Digital proves successful in amplifying radio, TV and other media messaging. Convergence and 360 solutions have become standard sales solution tools.
We have managed to increase our sales representation sizably – Kaya FM, programmatic platform AdJoin, Sony Pictures Networks and StarSat to name a few.
Mediamark won multiple awards during 2016 – we took first place in the radio category at the MOST Awards and won two gold awards for best trade marketing campaign at the AMASA awards 2016.
What changes – good and bad did you have to deal with?
Media marketing budgets have been under pressure
Advertisers want more for less
Media agencies find programmatic trading a good business model with better margin than traditional
The change in radio audience currency has caused a new learning curve in the industry
The tragic death of a media mogul – Gordon Patterson
Increase in demands for bulk trading deals
Rate card integrity is under threat as price promotions become the norm
Unpredictable buying patterns make forecasting and ad spend trending difficult
And what is the elephant in the room that no one really wants to see (a big issue confronting your sector)?
Most media owners and brands agree that selling advertising is tougher than ever in an industry that has become cluttered and fragmented, but are we taking the need to reinvent ourselves seriously enough.
As an industry, we need to embrace truly integrated marketing strategies as well as the need for robust metrics to drive return on investment and accountability. We also need to look at how innovations such as advertiser funded programming, content marketing and mobile can amplify and support the disruption of traditional media marketing campaigns.
In a few sentences, tell us what’s on your radar for 2017…
Mediamark is launching a new skills development and sharing initiative called In the KNOW NOW, with the aim of keeping media professionals at the forefront of the latest industry trends and upskilling the market.
Our events and activations portfolio continues to be a very lucrative strategy for marketers to interact with the consumers on the ground.
We have also focused a great deal on strengthening our television portfolio in 2016, signing deals with StarTimes, Sony Pictures Networks, and others. The imminent arrival of DTT will allow us to be ready for commercialisation of alternative visual media sales.
Mediamark has an aggressive digital/mobile growth strategy including the representation of premium publishers as well as world-class programmatic advertising and data management platforms to help our brands, media owners and agencies to maximise return on investment.
Our expansion into the broader continent will continue, adding to our current radio and TV portfolio already established in Ghana.
In a nutshell, Mediamark continues to build on its vision to deliver solutions to marketers seeking access to audiences via broadcast and narrowcast channels. The richer the consumer data and insights of these audiences, the tighter the solution and greater the chance of enhancing advertiser confidence and satisfying their needs.
About Mediamark
Mediamark is a leading multimedia sales house that ensures brands derive maximum value from their advertising spend through tailored multichannel solutions.
For more information, visit www.mediamark.co.za
Follow us on Twitter: @mediaworldSA
This story was first published in The Media Yearbook 2017. Click on the cover to read the digizine.
