The Media Online’s weekly round up of people, account and business moves in media.
This week’s BIG move: Primedia announces plans to enter the Africarare Metaverse
Media giant Primedia has made another forward-thinking leap. The powerhouse organisation that owns Primedia Outdoor, Primedia Broadcasting and award-winning news brand Eyewitness News, has now secured virtual real estate in Africarare, Africa’s first metaverse.
Officially announced at the inaugural PrimeX event in Johannesburg, Primedia will enter the metaverse, taking with it all of its assets, including the stable of popular regional stations 947, 702, Kfm 94.5 and CapeTalk. This move is in line with the group’s strategy of entering new spaces, diversifying its content offerings and presenting advertisers with new and innovative platforms for maximum reach of forward-thinking audiences.
By entering Ubuntuland, Primedia plans to create more meaningful engagements and connections with its audiences by adding another dimension to its already powerful presence. This will provide new possibilities for advertisers in addition to the myriad of opportunities that Primedia Broadcasting and Primedia Outdoor already provide.
Primedia will soon offer advertisers virtual billboards that will in effect, replicate the visual presence with the same sheer scale that these platforms have in the real world. Within the virtual media space, Primedia will effectively become the sales house for Africarare.
Africarare made headlines when it launched Ubuntuland earlier this year, with a steady stream of corporations meta-grating to the virtual reality environment, that provides a platform for the future of e-commerce. Primedia joins the likes of MTN, M&C Saatchi Abel, Nedbank and World Data Lab, in exploring the new possibilities afforded by the highly sought-after, blockchain enabled environment.
People moves
Expresso host Katlego Maboe to host second leg of Tropika Island of Treasure Season 10 All-Stars
The tenth season of Tropika Island of Treasure has been full of twists and turns for this coveted All-Star season and Tropika has just announced their smooothest twist yet. Television presenter and singer Katlego Maboe will be coming back for some more island fever as he is set to host the second leg of the competition at the Seychelles. This will be Maboe’s third run at hosting the show following his gig as the presenter of Tropika Island of Treasure season eight and nine.
The award-winning TV presenter made an emotional return as the host of Expresso in August of this year and viewers have been thrilled to have him back on their screens. Maboe’s reveal as the island host of Tropika Island of Treasure Season 10 All-Stars totally speaks to the theme of this season, which boasts a variety of exciting and unexpected twists and turns that are sure to keep the audience at the edge of their seats.
So keep your TV sets on S3 this Saturday the 15th of October at 18h30 for the big reveal because there’s nothing smooother!
Hot talents Fauzia Bull and Carl Lewis join Good Hope FM
Good Hope FM has announced two brand-new additions to the team – the talented and dynamic Carl Lewis and Fauzia Bull have joined the station’s line-up with Lewis’ debut slated for 8 October .
Bull, who grew up in Mitchell’s Plain and moved to the Southern Suburbs, completed her tertiary education in BA Drama and Theatre Studies at Stellenbosch University; she started her radio career at campus station, MFM, in 2018. She’s proven herself to be a hugely popular talent and now hosts The Sunday Fix – the best music to end your weekend off the right way and to dance your way into your new week – every Sunday from 10 p.m. and 1 a.m.
Lewis is a seasoned, award-winning sports reporter and podcast host with sporting knowledge that even Google struggles to top. He brings years of experience and a passion for all things sport and reality TV to the airwaves and will be joining Saturday Breakfast with Maka. Tune in every Saturday from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. as he brings listeners up to speed with all the hottest local and international news in the world of sport.
SPARK Schools appoints Abbey Muller as their very first COO
SPARK Schools – a network of private schools offering affordable, globally competitive education – has announced the appointment of Abbey Muller, the group’s first chief operating officer.
“SPARK Schools is committed to setting the benchmark for how South Africa competes internationally within the education sector. We strive to push the boundaries of education and deliver the greatest possible value and quality. We’re competitive, hungry and enjoy a progressive approach to our work. We want to be a leader in best practices, innovative education models, and systems, and Abbey will play a key strategic role in this approach,” said Stacey Brewer, co-founder and CEO of SPARK Schools.
Muller’s responsibilities as COO of SPARK Schools will be driving operational excellence and efficiency throughout the school’s extensive network to enable future growth and expansion.
Business moves
Wavemaker South Africa Wins BMW
Wavemaker has won the media contract for luxury car manufacturer BMW in South Africa. Well-equipped to serve one of the world’s most recognisable automotive brands, Wavemaker is an established supplier of innovative media solutions to facilitate client growth.
Merissa Himraj, CEO of Wavemaker South Africa, said: “We are extremely proud of our team, who worked tirelessly to win this new business. BMW is an illustrious brand with a long history, and we look forward to supporting its growth in Africa. We are committed to delivering best-in-class solutions that drive real business results for our clients.”
With this new win, Wavemaker continues its growth trajectory and expands its client base in South Africa. BMW’s position as a market leader in South Africa will be strengthened by Wavemaker’s unrivalled media expertise. The company will transition to begin operations in January 2023.
Hoorah, Distell partner to launch internal data intelligence agency, Ripple
Digital marketing consultancy Hoorah has joined forces with Distell to pilot Ripple, a data intelligence agency that will sit within the multi-beverage company.
Ripple aims to play a pivotal role in Distell’s efforts to get closer to consumers as it looks to give them the richest possible customer experience. It believes that the intelligent use of data is the best way of doing so, making Hoorah a natural choice of partner for the pilot.
Hoorah has extensive experience in both helping brands use data intelligence and in building internal agencies for the likes of Avon, Nestle and ABINBev. This data intelligence experience was an important factor in Distell’s decision to partner with Hoorah on this project.
“From its inception, Hoorah has used data to inform creativity,” said Hoorah CEO and founder Shaune Jordaan. “We’re incredibly excited to be able to bring that vision into the Distell ecosystem. The group holds some of South Africa’s most iconic beverage brands and, as this partnership shows, it’s not afraid to embrace innovation for those brands.”
“Ripple is being set up to be an integral part of Distell’s marketing ecosystem, providing its partner agencies with rich data insights for their creative briefs with the aim of delivering highly relevant experiences to their customers,” says Hoorah COO Clyde Mallon.
TikTok Introduces Solutions to Help South African Small Businesses Connect and Grow with the Community
TikTok For Business has launched new advertising solutions in South Africa to empower small and mid-size businesses to grow their brand on the platform. TikTok’s self-serve advertising solutions give marketers across the country the tools to tap into the creativity of the TikTok community, reach new audiences and optimise their marketing campaigns with an easy-to-use platform.
Scott Thwaites, head of Turkey, Africa & Gaming, Global Business Solutions, TikTok – METAP said: “Small businesses are an essential part of our community, which is why we’re continuously looking for new ways businesses can engage with audiences and grow. Through the new self-serve offering, small businesses can now experience the magic of TikTok in an easy and independent way.”
The TikTok For Business Ads Manager empowers businesses of all sizes to reach their ideal customers on TikTok through a simple interface. With new creative tools and performance features designed with small businesses in mind, it’s now easier than ever to start activating at scale on the platform.
Boomtown wins Ocean Basket business
Boomtown has been awarded the Ocean Basket account and tasked with assisting rebirth the brand locally and abroad. The decision to partner with the agency was made by Ocean Basket CEO Grace Harding and her team after a pitch requiring both strategic and creative presentations.
In addition to working with the Ocean Basket team on refining the brand’s persona and values, and providing the over-arching direction for any communication done by the agencies Ocean Basket works with across the globe, Boomtown will assume responsibility for the brand’s through-the-line presence in South Africa.
According to CEO, Glen Meier, the “fit felt right” from the start of the process when the agency delivered its credentials, through the chemistry session after which the eight invited to participate were whittled down by Ocean Basket to four, through the research and sessions the agency ran to guide its strategy and prepare for its presentations, and in the final pitch.
Boomtown launches new brand positioning for EASIGAS
EASIGAS has introduced its new brand positioning to its distributors, business-to-business clients and end-user customers, across southern Africa with a campaign devised and implemented by Boomtown.
Its new positioning – Life Made Easi – rests on three pillars – simplicity, optimism and reliability, and neatly encapsulates the EASIGAS brand DNA benefits.
According to EASIGAS’s marketing manager, Rethabile Hoeane, as EASIGAS marked 40 years in 2021, it was felt it was important juncture to revisit the brand’s core values and commitment to customer satisfaction.
This resulted in the development of a new brand identity, which features two new main components: a revised logo, and a new positioning statement reflecting the brand’s focus and brand promise. The logo maintained its main colour pantones, but the look and feel evolved to a new more modern brand image.
Global CX innovator Chattermill expands into Africa
Chattermill, a Unified Customer Intelligence platform revolutionising how consumer feedback, support, and conversation data is utilised, today announced a new partnership with technology specialists YOUKNOW Digital to expand operations into Africa. YOUKNOW Digital are experts in connecting the best global technology companies with African enterprise brands, supporting them with a locally specialised team.
Through this partnership, YOUKNOW Digital will work as the African reseller, distributor and support arm for Chattermill in the region. The focus will be on bringing superior CX technology used by blue chips such as Uber, Amazon and H&M to African companies, and ensuring that these organisations get the unfiltered truth about their customers so that they can transform their brands’ customer experience.
Making moves
The search for South Africa’s next generation of creative sensations is back!
Are you ready to take your creative pursuits to the next level? The Design Indaba Emerging Creatives programme, which aims to unearth fresh talent across a multitude of creative sectors, is once again issuing a Call for Entry for this prestigious annual talent search. A group of 20 young architects, fashion designers, illustrators, furniture designers, jewellers, graphic designers, filmmakers and multi-disciplinary mavericks from across South Africa will be selected for the 2023 intake.
The Class of 2023 will be featured on the powerful designindaba.com platform and receive a year of prolonged national and international media exposure including online video, web articles and social media posts. The career-accelerating support programme also provides the next generation of designers with educational opportunities and mentorship. Successful entrants gain access to an unparalleled wealth of information from mentors and industry exposure.
This longstanding and much-lauded programme was founded in 2005 and has helped launch celebrated and vibrant young designers such as LVMH prize-winning fashion designer Thebe Magugu, who has recently collaborated with Adidas; furniture designer and owner of TheUrbanative Mpho Vackier, who won the Stewardship award at 100% Design South Africa 2022; globally-known ceramicist Andile Dyalvane; maverick milliner Crystal Birch; and multidisciplinary artist Atang Tshikare, among many others.
The Design Indaba Emerging Creatives programme is made possible with funding support from the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture and Design Indaba. Says Design Indaba founder Ravi Naidoo: “Heading into the 18th year of this programme, we’ve had the privilege of seeing numerous stellar talents emerge and shine ever more brightly over the years as their careers develop. We’re extremely proud to have been part of this process to catalyse the advancement of creative individuals within the broader industry here in South Africa and we’re grateful to our partners for helping to make this possible.”
Are you – or someone you know – the country’s next design star? Apply to become part of Design Indaba’s Emerging Creative Class of 2023 now via designindaba.com – the entry link can be found on this page: https://www.designindaba.com/articles/creative-work/search-south-africa%E2%80%99s-next-generation-creative-sensations-back! For more information, email hello@designindaba.com.
Submissions close on 30 November 2022.
LIONS Unlocked
Lions Unlocked is the free companion to this year’s LIONS Creativity Report. Register now for instant access to three interviews to help you apply the report’s insights — and subscribe to The Work to unlock all 14 interviews in the series.
Access it here.
Safrea webinar – Diversifying Your Career
