The Media Online’s weekly round up of people, account and business moves in media.
This week’s BIG move: Are you the next Bonko Khoza or Bokang Phelane?
Showmax and Actor Spaces are partnering to open up the industry, with new masterclasses coming to YouTube every second Thursday from August to October 2022. Each masterclass will be followed within a week by an Instagram Live for aspiring actors to ask the featured speaker follow-up questions.
“Our Showmax Originals have shown that whenever you go looking for talent in South Africa, you find it,” says Nomsa Philiso, executive head: programming at MultiChoice. “But while acting is a talent, it’s also a skill that can be refined, and a business that must be learnt. So we’re excited to be partnering on these masterclasses with Actor Spaces and some of Mzansi’s favourite talents in front of the camera and behind it, to help develop the next Bonko Khozas and Bokang Phelanes.“
“The collaboration and support from Showmax on the masterclasses speaks to the pillars of Actor Spaces: showcasing talent, bridging the accessibility gap, and our core of development,” says Actor Spaces’ founder and CEO, Ayanda Sithebe.
The Wife’s Bonko Khoza on character development | Stream now on YouTube
Watch Khoza’s masterclass here: //youtu.be/yK0R6mInwK8
Once you’ve watched his masterclass, join Bonko for his Instagram Live Q&A at //instagram.com/actorspaces from 6-7pm on 18 August 2022.
Also look out for Khoza and co-star Mbalenhle Mavimbela talking through the ups and downs of Hlomu and Mqhele’s relationship in the first episode of The Wife: Behind The Veil, which launched on Showmax last week.
- The Wife’s casting director Ayanda Sithebe on the art of auditioning | 25 August 2022
- Mandla N (Meet Melusi, DiepCity) on authentic directing | 8 September
- Blood Psalms’ Thabo Rametsi on constructing the background to your roles | 22 September 2022
- Blood Psalms’ co-creator Layla Swart on shooting local stories on a competitive international level |6 October 2022
- Bokang Phelane on playing the lead in action-packed series Blood Psalms | 20 October 2022
People moves
GroupM celebrates 2022 Women’s Month with three female CEOs at helm of media agencies
GroupM media agencies in South Africa are now all led by brave, dynamic and experienced women: Merissa Himraj, CEO of Wavemaker since 1 February, Kate Kitz, Mindshare CEO since 1 April and Claudelle Naidoo, CEO Mediacom since 1 August.
GroupM wants to celebrate the achievements of these three leaders as an example for the hundreds of women who work hard in the Group’s agencies and the industry at large.
“Over the past three years, we have focused on developing and recruiting talented women leaders. We have ensured that these women leaders participate in the WPP leadership development programmes to fast-track their career growth,” said Seabelo Pilane, GroupM HR director.
“I consider it a privilege to lead my phenomenal team and inspire the next generation of women to strive for their own success, despite the hurdles society, cultural norms or even industries might create. I am also most inspired by my fellow CEOs at GroupM; amazing women whom I look forward to learning from and leading with,” said Himraj.
“I’m honoured to be part of a group that celebrates and embraces diversity and to work alongside these remarkable industry leaders; inspiring women who dare to dream big, who lead by example and are not afraid to speak up and be heard,” said Kitz, CEO at Mindshare South Africa.
“Ubuntu has never felt more real for me as it does today. I am proud to lead an organisation like MediaCom, where putting people first is about realising equality, humanity and the dreams of our people. I am humbled to be a female leader who has worked really hard to be where I am today with the support and recognition of incredible men and women in society. Our journey is far from over, but I can truly say that I am because we are. As a group, we will continue to drive step change for women to thrive in the workplace,” added Claudelle Naidoo, CEO at MediaCom South Africa.
Sewela Sebola joins 5FM and Good Hope FM as marketing manager
Sewela Sebola has joined the 5FM and Good Hope FM PCS Combo as marketing manager, bringing a strong passion for broadcasting, a decade of high-level industry experience and a wealth of expertise to these stations.
Sebola holds a Media Studies and Communications degree from the University of Witwatersrand, a Post Graduate Degree in Business Management from Regenesys Business School, a digital marketing qualification from University of Cape Town and she is currently pursuing her Master’s in Brand Leadership.
Her experience in broadcasting and advertising comes from serving in key roles within media strategy and insights, category management, commercial brand sales Management and trade marketing, as well as serving on the BRCSA TAMS Technical Committee.
JD Mostert, business manager of the PCS Combo, said, “We are delighted to have Sewela on board and excited to work with her in building on the successes and continued growth of both stations. She has extensive multiplatform experience, having worked with a wide array of radio and TV stations, contributing to peak performance of brands such as SABC 1, Metro FM, Thobela FM, Munghana Lonene FM, Phalaphala FM and Ligwalagwala FM under the SABC banner.”
Viasen Soobramoney appointed as Independent Media’s Internal Press Ombudsman
Independent Media has appointed award-winning journalist, Viasen Soobramoney, as its new internal press ombudsman. Soobramoney takes over from Yogas Nair, who has moved to take up the position of executive: new business development.
Of his appointment, Soobramoney said: “I am fully cognisant of the weight this role plays within our own organisation as well as that of the South Africa media industry. The responsibility is not to be taken lightly. I would like to thank Yogas for her contribution to the office of the ombudsman, our colleagues and Dr Iqbal Survé for the opportunity.”
Mike Wood appointed head of digital for Edelman Africa
As part of its commitment to diversify and enhance the range of digital services on the continent, global communications firm, Edelman has announced the appointment of Mike Wood as head of digital for Africa.
Wood is tasked with further developing Edelman’s digital capabilities in the areas of social, experiences and content, and integrating further with its EMEA network, to augment the firm’s multi-platform service offering and advance digital creative solutions for its clients.
Edelman Africa is a pan-African communications consultancy, offering clients the largest working network on the continent – with partners and affiliates in more than 50 African countries.
Following Wood’s appointment, Karena Crerar, CEO of Edelman Africa said: “I am elated to welcome Mike to our robust Edelman team. By leveraging his broad skillset, hinged on a unique combination of creative, digital, and client services, Mike is imperative to our goal of delivering immediate, meaningful impact for our clients in a digital-first world. Digital innovation in content and storytelling is imperative in connecting our clients with their audiences. We look forward to bringing our clients enhanced digital solutions across our growing African network.”
Wood joins Edelman from the brand team of global fast-food chain, KFC, where he immersed himself in all aspects of the marketing business, both in South Africa and across the continent.
TBWA\Hunt\Lascaris Johannesburg welcomes back creative powerhouse Steph van Niekerk
TBWA\Hunt\Lascaris has welcomed back Steph van Niekerk to the TBWA\SA collective as executive creative director. One of the industry’s top talents, Steph was ranked as number one creative director and copywriter in South Africa in 2019 and is a recipient of Campaign Magazine’s Female Frontier Award.
With traditional and digital skills honed over 20 years at some of SA’s best agencies, Van Niekerk is a courageous big-idea creative that believes in integrated platform-agnostic storytelling, and is known for her moving, entertaining and insightful work.
She worked with TBWA\Hunt\Lascaris JHB as creative director between 2018-2019 and returns to the agency from Grey South Africa – where she’s headed-up Savanna Cider for the past three years.
“Steph is a powerhouse, and true pirate. She leads by example and is a natural fit within our collective culture. We are excited to have Steph back to play her role in keeping us a globally competitive creative force,” said Peter Khoury, TBWA\Hunt\Lascaris CCO.
Print media legend joins the Vicinity Media team
Vicinity Media has announced that Olav ‘Ollie’ Westphal has joined South Africa’s the location data and technology company as head of retail. Westphal brings with him a 25-year track record of unrivalled success in the marketing and advertising field and is the industry authority on the printed catalogue and its role in retail advertising.
About his appointment, Westphal said, “The thought of joining Vicinity Media brings me great excitement. I’ve wanted the chance to build on my existing network of clients and agencies and to take on the challenges of learning and succeeding in the world of Digital.
“I’ve built my career on providing a solution I believe in, to my client partners. After getting to grips with the Vicinity Digital Catalogue solution and its data driven approach, I knew this was a move I had to make.”
The appointment of a print veteran, hot on the heels of the hiring of Bianca Pianese, a traditional out of home expert, is evidence that this vision is being fulfilled. Expect more traditional experts to join the Vicinity team of digital pioneers in the near future.
Business moves
M&C Saatchi Group South Africa bolsters data capabilities in partnership with Fluency Global
M&C Saatchi Group South Africa has partnered with Fluency Global in a move that sees them bring powerful data analytics and consulting capabilities to the South African market. Fluency, with offices in London and New York, has built proprietary models and tools to drive more data fluent growth strategies for clients with a track record of partnering with, among others, a Global sports franchise and the world’s largest online retailer to accelerate growth through data-driven solutions.
“With these powerful data capabilities, we want to precisely determine where growth is going to come from for our clients, and critically how they can best be positioned to capture that growth,” said Diana Springer, strategy partner who sits on the M&C Saatchi Global Data Council and is driving the data agenda in South Africa.
The partnership will bring together Fluency Global’s expertise and resources with a local team to establish a central data hub that will serve the various companies and clients of M&C Saatchi Group South Africa.
Key to understanding the complex and ever-changing South African audience is having access to locally relevant data sets. The agency group is doing so through investment in powerful local data that includes being the first agency to subscribe to YouGov, a global leader in research data and analytics.
YouGov brings powerful data-driven insights accessing a local panel of over 50 000 South Africans through on-going online surveys. This translates to insights on both attitudinal perspectives, category behaviour and brand associations across 200 brands.
Nielsen advances and brings scale for the digital measurement of the open web in South Africa
Following the successful launch in 12 markets since the beginning of 2022, Nielsen continues the rollout of its enhanced Nielsen Identity System for Digital Ad Ratings. South Africa, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Mexico, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Norway, Poland, Greece, Netherlands, Belgium, New Zealand, Malaysia, UAE, Czech Republic and Hungary are the next markets to launch with data from July 1st 2022.
Forthcoming cookie deprecation is fundamentally changing the advertising ecosystem. Combined with the deterioration of other digital identifiers, there is a greater emphasis on people-first measurement approaches to count and deduplicate audiences across platforms and report on people-based metrics.
Terry Murphy, managing director, Nielsen Africa said: “In a fragmenting media landscape comparability is key. Today’s announcement is critical to support the evolution of digital ad campaign measurement so that the industry can continue to measure their audiences and ultimately prove the efficacy of their campaigns. I’m thrilled to see the success of the new identity system launched in markets across the globe and specifically in South Africa. We are excited to have this innovative methodology now available across more markets in the region!”
Nielsen Identity System measures digital campaigns for the open web alongside the integrations already in place for the walled gardens.
Eclipse launches in-house media training offering
As an independent and agile, full-service communications agency, making the most of every engagement with the media is Eclipse Communication’s forte. Through its media training programme, clients can benefit from the agency’s learnings and insights, robust theory and best practices related to the media. These sessions will be facilitated by one of South Africa’s most prominent news anchors, Shahan Ramkissoon.
“Drawing on my almost two decades of experience as a journalist and news anchor and Eclipse Communications’ depth of public relations knowledge and experience, we have developed an in-depth media training programme that will ensure company spokespeople not only land their messages with finesse and flair but also have the understanding of how the media operates, breaking the divide of ‘news to us vs news to them’. This will equip our clients with the techniques necessary for delivering a memorable interview,” explained Ramkissoon.
With his experience of challenging people with hard-hitting questions for years, Ramkissoon is well positioned to help spokespeople navigate difficult conversations and confrontational interviews.
Hook, Line & Sinker shares the PR love with two new NGO clients
Integrated public relations agency, Hook, Line & Sinker (HLS), has secured not one, but two new NGO clients this month: South Africa’s favourite Christmas community initiative, Santa Shoebox Project, and international non-profit organisation, DKMS, which is dedicated to the fight against blood cancer and blood disorders.
Following competitive agency pitches for both DKMS and Santa Shoebox Project, HLS will strategically manage all communications activities for the next 12 months across paid, earned, shared and owned channels including creative content development and storytelling, social media management, influencer and celebrity management, events, and advertising.
HLS head honcho, Adam Hunter, said, “South Africa’s NGOs step in to help fill the gaps that government can’t. Now, faced with the fallout from the Covid-19 crisis, international conflicts and record inflation, NGOs are being forced to do more with less. Our mandate is to not only create awareness around how South Africans can help these organisations make the world a better place, but to get involved too. After all, as Madiba said, it is in our hands to make a difference.”
Joe Public Durban and Dunlop introduce Pothole FM
Creative agency, Joe Public Durban, and Dunlop Tyres recently launched a campaign that South Africans can truly resonate with, Pothole FM.
The campaign was inspired by a very real issue in our country regarding road safety and the fact that with Dunlop Sure, drivers can rest assured that despite dangerous road conditions and potholes everywhere, Dunlop has you covered.
“The execution was exciting, we hopped on to a bus for a two-hour ride to frosty Howick, to introduce South Africa to Pothole FM, the world’s first radio studio … in a pothole. Yeah, an actual pothole! We set out to find the perfect road hazard and with the help of a camera crew and famous comedian, Robby Collins, we recorded our radio ad from that pothole. Total production time? One day. We hit the road at 05:00, arriving in Howick at 07:00 to record the radio ad, as well as film our campaign videos. After another two hours on the road, we headed to studio to record the audio. And within four days, Pothole FM flighted,” commented Brandon Govender, integrated executive creative director, Joe Public Durban.
Making moves
World Out of Home Organization confirms new dates and venue for first in-person APAC Forum
The World Out of Home Organization’s first in-person APAC Forum is now scheduled for 11-13 October (Tuesday -Thursday) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The venue is the InterContinental hotel in the heart of the city.
This follows WOO’s first post-pandemic in-person Global Congress in Toronto and builds on the success of virtual Forums for Europe, Asia and Africa in 2021 and early 2022.
The Forum will be in English with translations for key local languages.
Spotify Women’s Day brunch
Spotify hosted a Women’s Day Brunch to highlight EQUAL as one of the Spotify programmes intended to eliminate barriers for women in the music industry and to further acknowledge the growth that Spotify EQUAL Africa artists like Nomfundo Moh have forged for themselves. Sio was also announced as Spotify’s EQUAL Africa ambassador for August 2022.
Influencers, members of the media, and music industry stakeholders attended the event held at The Venue Green Park in Sandton.
Spotify’s mission remains to unlock the potential of human creativity—by giving millions of artists the opportunity to live off their art.
“In short, we are here to partner with all of Africa’s music stakeholders to create value for the ecosystem. That includes all the much-needed work we do to bring female creators to the center of the conversation (via EQUAL Africa), our investment in the next generation of artists, educating and empowering artists with the tools and data to make the most of the opportunities to export their music and gain new audiences around the world,” said Phiona Okumu, Spotify’s head of music in Sub-Saharan Africa.
