From the desk of Strategic Resources
For any query, discussion or feedback, please contact Pavan Chandra, Head of Strategic Resources at pchandra@zenithoptimediaindia.com, +91-124-4195100. Office Address: 10th Floor, Vatika Tower, Block-B, Sector 54 Gurgaon -122002, Haryana, India.

Volume: XVIII

December, 2008

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In these hyper charged times where news comes in as fast as it becomes outdated, we need a source that can keep track of what matters to us. At ZenithOptimedia we have created Wavelength to apprise all of us of the happenings in three areas i.e. 1. Trends in Digital, Retail, OOH, Consumers and the International Advertising 2. Media & Advertising Research 3. Environment

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Simply click on any of the sections on our snazzy control panel and you will have the latest updates at your fingertips. Wavelength will reach you in the first week of every month so that you have information that leads to insights.

Drop in a mail at pchandra@zenithoptimediaindia.com with your suggestions and comments.

Emerging Trends: Digital

1. High-end brands find online advertising a better way to connect to the masses December 24

Digital advertising, though still considered to be at a nascent stage in India, has been creating enough buzz to make media planners notice it – be it as a support medium in times of ad budget cuts fueled by the economic slowdown, or a strategic initiative with well-defined and well-measured target audience. Online advertising has mostly been treated as an add-on feature in a media plan, but gradually, quite a few advertisers are claiming to have made it a conscious and strategic choice. Consequently, the medium has increasingly been drawing the attention of high-end brands that are reaching out to their TG in segments such as, cars, jewellery, and watches. The type of Campaigns taken up by these brands vary from social networking to launching their own websites. One such new form of advertisement is gadget ad, which is increasingly being used by car majors, owing to its high scope for interactivity Luxury brands, such as Tanishq jewellery and TagHuer Ford are looking to tap the urban Internet savvy audience through digital campaigns.

Source: Exchange4Media

2. Beep a new advertising platform on mobile phones - December 18

Till now, the only way an advertiser could place an advertisement on a mobile phone was through a formal SMS. However, a new advertising platform has been formulated where the beep sound of an SMS would not disturb the user in fact the user will not be required to even key into the inbox to read it. Hyderabad-based technology company NowPos Online Services Private Limited, has developed a new process — Beep — where one can place brand logos or miniature advertisements on mobile screens. The idea is to create an image-based advertising platform where the advertisement can be seen by the viewer as long as he wants to. The software occupies 112 KB of memory in a mobile device. NowPos has tied-up with Airtel to run a pilot of its GSM-based Beep software in Andhra Pradesh. The firm is offering Rs 100 free talktime to the latter’s 25,000 subscribers for downloading the software on their mobile phones. The company is also in close talks with other mobile operators in India including BSNL, Vodafone and Idea, besides initiating talks with telecom companies in West Asia. The subscriber base is expected to touch 100,000 in a month’s time.

Source Buisness Standard

Emerging Trends: OOH

3. Better branding gives better visibility to ooh players - December 24

The game seems to changing in the OOH space, with an increase in competition where players are realizing the importance of self-branding.. It's not only about having an interesting and innovative message on the hoarding. OOH players are now game for rebranding and redesigning their logos as well. They are also ready to hire the services of specialized creative and design agencies. Moreover Industry observers believe that the insecurity in the market has also made OOH players pull up their socks. Also, as technology and investments become critical for survival, a distinct brand will drive organizational growth.

Source: Agencyfaqs

4. Airscreen, comes to India - December 4

Air screen. the German company, which manufactures inflatable hoardings, has made its way to India Brand advertisements are moving beyond conventional outdoor vehicles and trying innovative new formats to communicate their messages. With the outdoor industry growing sturdily in India, a number of new formats have been introduced by international media companies that see potential in this market Crossbow Innovative Advertising, a Delhi-based outdoor company, has bagged the exclusive distribution rights to Airscreen. The inflatable product comes in sizes with different prices with a display on both sides. It also comes in a larger format and has a projection screen attached to it, which allows the display of moving pictures and ad films. A special blower is used to inflate both Airframe and Airscreen; once deflated, they can be transported anywhere quite easily. The product can also be used on landscapes and in open areas where people gather. The company will see its first campaign launch in India this month. More than 40 countries, including the US, Germany, Mexico, Argentina, the UK and Australia, are already using Airscreen products

Source: Agencyfaqs

5. New ad ambulances to hit Delhi Roads soon – December 2

Outdoor Advertisement can boast of being the only media that contributes directly to the building of infrastructure for public convenience. In recent times, snazzy bus shelters and hygienic public utilities have mushroomed, which are also used for advertising Now, Greenline, a Delhi based outdoor company, has entered into a three year agreement with the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) to provide 50 ambulances for the relief of victims of road accidents. The ambulances will carry advertising options for brands. The victims will be provided free first aid and other emergency medical services (EMS). The ambulances will be placed at 50 crossings in Delhi, including South Extension, Moolchand Crossing and NH 8 near Shiv Murti. These will transport accident victims to the nearest hospital. A helpline number will be put up on the ambulances, which will help people to get in touch with Greenline. This endeavour is about combining business with a noble cause to improve the city. However, only selected ads will be displayed on the ambulances mostly pharmaceutical companies. The company has executed similar projects in Bengaluru, Chennai and Ludhiana.

Source: Agencyfaqs

6. New innovative rate card used to woo audiences-December 11

OOH media has launched its scientific and research-based rate. The new rate card is an evolved form of a master planning tool (Flexi cast tool) which is based on a client’s media buying habits, erstwhile prevailing rates and insights derived from OOH Metrics. The tool is based on the ‘Inverse Media Pyramid’, which states that ‘the higher the TG on the income pyramid, the more difficult it is to reach him/her’. With the help of this new rate card the client can buy ‘markets’, wherein the entire gamut of locations where OOH Media has presence in (barring CSDs) can be bought for the Target Market City Tier II towns of Chandigarh, Amritsar, Ludhiana, Panjim, and Nashik in locations like malls, multiplexes, corporate parks, ITES, BPOs gyms, bookstores, lifestyle stores, and restaurants. The rate card also gives the client the choice to buy by ‘clusters’. For instance, a health drink brand can choose to pick up only gyms as a cluster, while a newly launched soap could be advertised only in malls across India. The rationale or the genesis to launch a new rate card for OOH Media was to use the learning’s of the on-ground research, convert them into applicable media tools and offer the client value for money media plans based on hardcore research and logic This rate card consists of all detailed information that will help make a consolidated media plan.

Source: Agencyfaqs

Emerging Trends: International

7. Consumers feel secure buying at a shop as opposed to online-December 9

Consumers research products online but prefer to make most of their purchases in-store, a survey has found. The Deloitte 2008 Consumer behaviour survey found that for expensive items such as furniture, white goods and appliances, consumers liked to compare prices online, and then go to a shop to see the product and complete the transaction. Katrina Doney, director of Deloitte Growth Solutions, said credit card security and wanting to see and experience purchases were some of the reasons why more people weren't making their purchases online. Women consumers like to touch and feel the product they are buying. Even for things that are less likely to be purchased online -- like sports equipment, white goods, apparel and furniture -- the internet can be a useful tool to research products and compare prices. However, consumers still go to retail stores to make purchases and receive ``good old-fashioned service''. This indicates that for the moment the internet will not replace retail stores as consumers look for flexibility in how they are served. The products most likely to buck that trend are entertainment items, such as books, DVDs, music and computer hardware and software, which consumers feel comfortable buying online. Also movie and concert tickets purchased online is easy to do and convenient.

Source: Factiva

8. Media retrenchment in the year 2009-December 30

According to a new report by Fitch Ratings, the company forecasts that the contraction in output among the major advanced economies will represent the steepest decline. Regarding the advertising environment, the Fitch media team is more cautious than most major advertising forecasts, none of which currently predict advertising to be nearly as weak as 2001. The conditions responsible for this are both local and national components. Media companies are likely to compete more heavily on price in this downturn to fill the vast supply of ad space available. Advertisers have many more options in the current environment to maintain a presence with consumers while trimming their budgets and scaling back high Cost Per Thousand (CPM) advertising campaigns, says the report. Even healthy advertisers are likely to use this increased bargaining power to command better price terms and concessions from media companies.

The study offers trends and outlooks for several advertising sub-sectors:

Newspapers: Newspaper industry revenue growth will be negative. Many newspaper groups will default, some will be shut down or liquidated in 2009 and several cities could go without a daily print newspaper by 2010.

Yellowpages: Few markets will be able to support more than two directories and most markets will eventually only be able to support one book.

Terrestrial Radio: Listenership is likely to continue to fall.

Magazines: Fitch expects the larger players to rationalize available print advertising inventory through consolidation and closing down titles.

Outdoor: The potential negative effects of increased inventory from digital roll-outs should be tempered by increasing appeal to national advertisers, as well as decreases in price per unit.

Cable Networks: Cable continues to be a targeted medium, at a lower price relative to broadcast and with significant reach.

Online: Online could be negatively affected by advertisers scaling back experimental expenditures in favor of more proven, performance-based mediums.

Source: Center For Media

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This tracker has been compiled from external sources and does not necessarily reflect the views of the company.
Links provided will take you to the full articles appended at the end of the file.

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Full Articles

1.High-end brands go the digital way for better reach and connect

December 24

Exchange4Media

Digital advertising, largely confined to display ads, social networking and mobile ads in India, is getting extensively used by advertisers to reach their TG. So far, online advertising has been treated as an add-on feature in a media plan, but gradually, quite a few advertisers are claiming to have made it a conscious and strategic choice.

Consequently, the medium has drawn the attention of more and more high-end brands in the cars, jewellery, watches, sectors, that are reaching out to their TG through this medium. The types of campaigns taken up by these brands vary from social networking to display to launching their own websites. One such new form of advertisement is gadget ad, which is increasingly being used by car majors, mainly because of its high scope for interactivity.

Recently, Ford came up with a gadget ad conceptualized by Mindshare Chennai that aims to communicate not just the brand message, but also serve as a two-way communication between the TG and the brand via information dissemination and interactive elements.

Explaining the campaign mechanism, Sanjeev Shukla, GM – Marketing, Ford India, said, “We used an interactive ad unit by Google on their network for this. The metrics moved from cost per click to cost per interaction, which improved ten times over the vanilla banner ads.”

He further said, “If it pays per click, then advertising has to go beyond banners on the Net as users ignore them or don’t click, given the layered interaction (too many windows or links to reach the main message).The gadgets was a key Ford initiative to ensure that our users arrive at a singular hub for interacting with the brand without having to move away from the content they are consuming.”

Not restricting itself to gadgets, Ford claims to have tasted success with its social networking and mobile campaigns as well. Social networking sites, with a penetration of nearly 60 per cent in the country, are also being tapped by brands to build affinity and viral awareness around the brand positioning. One such recent campaign has been that of Tanishq jewellery’s latest collection. Tanishq is targeting the urban Indian Net savvy woman and is experimenting with the idea of selecting jewellery online and interacting on the site.

Luxury brands, too, are looking to tapping the urban Internet savvy audience through digital campaigns. According to a media planner for Ford, “With an Internet user base of 50 million, which largely comprises an affluent male base, there is no reason why the Indian passenger car market should not be chasing this medium, and more so in light of the time spent and usage by the core user group.”

He further explained, “The analog touchpoints are getting fragmented and blunt mass media does not help in connecting with the target audience. Putting a precise measurement on results from each of the touchpoints is much more critical, especially in light of the economic slowdown. Ford’s engagement with digital is strategic and is not just a support to mainstream options. It is not just as medium, but a long-term strategic initiative.”

Recently, TAG Heuer had launched their first display ad as an online initiative by handpicking a few Internet portals such a Business Standard, Google, Moneycontrol, MSN Lifestyle, and so on. TAG Heuer’s MD, Manmeet Vohra, admitted that the global meltdown had shifted the advertiser’s attention towards the considerably cheaper online medium. He added that being first timers in their online campaigns gave an edge to these high-end brands.

Ford India’s Shukla, while speaking on the overall usage of the digital medium, sums up well, “The onus is definitely on the media agencies to take up the initiative and educate the clients about its benefits. Digital needs to be treated not just as a cheaper medium, but the innovative possibilities that it offers.”

2.Now, ads directly on mobile screens

December 18

Buisness Standard

Till now, the only way an advertiser could place an advertisement on a mobile phone was through a formal SMS. When you opened an SMS, the advertiser’s message would be found at the bottom or the SMS itself would be an text ad. How about a new advertising platform where the beep sound of an SMS would not disturb the user and in fact the user will not even have to even key into the inbox to read it Hyderabad-based technology company, NowPos (short for NowPossible) Online Services Private Limited, has developed a new process — Beep — where one can place brand logos or miniature advertisements on mobile screens.

Ayyappa Nagubandi, chairman and CEO, NowPos, said: “The idea is to create an image-based advertising platform, where a mobile phone user can see the advertisement directly on his screen — as long as the advertiser wants him to — anywhere from one minute to 24 hours.”

Claiming the Beep software to be the world’s first, the company had recently filed a patent application under the Patent Cooperation Treaty, he added. The software occupies 112 KB of memory in a mobile device.

NowPos has tied-up with Airtel to run a pilot of its GSM-based Beep software in Andhra Pradesh. The firm is offering Rs 100 free talktime to the latter’s 25,000 subscribers for downloading the software on their mobile phones.

“The Indian mobile industry is possibly among the fastest growing sectors in the country. From 280 million mobile phones in May 2008, the industry is expected to grow up to 737 million mobile phones by 2012, making the mobile screen one of the most visible and sought after media in the world by every advertiser,” Nagubandi said.

The closely-held company is currently in talks with other mobile operators in India including BSNL, Vodafone and Idea, besides initiating talks with telecom companies in West Asia. “We expect these talks to reach fruition by the end of next quarter,” he said, adding the company expected its subscriber-base to touch 100,000 in a month.

3.OOH players get creative with self-branding

December 24

Agencyfaqs

A contact number with the name of the media owner on a white background. That’s what a vacant hoarding looked like until a few years ago. But no more. Bright Outdoor Media, for instance, now has this message: “Every day, we talk to 1,000 million people in every corner of India.”

The game seems to changing fast in the OOH space. Players in this segment, be it small or big, have realised the importance of self-branding. Another OOH player in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh, Origins, has put up a hoarding for self-branding, which shows the close-up of an eye that has a cracked lens. The one-liner on the hoarding says, “Hit for sure”. The company logo, along with the contact numbers, appear at the bottom of the hoarding. Interestingly, the creative was done in-house.

Many of us, who thought of OOH media owners as frumpy and old-fashioned, have now been left wide-eyed with wonder at the visible changes on existing site displays.

A senior industry observer corroborates, "Traditionally, OOH companies are considered to be conservative. They do not believe in self-promotion or self-branding activities. But the game seems to be changing now, especially after the entry of new players in this space. These players entered the market with a proper communication plan to promote themselves, like media owners in any other category, be it print or television."

"One obvious reason for this is that these new players have come with their experience from a cross-media presence," he adds.

For instance, ENIL's Times OOH came up with a very interesting message on its vacant hoardings. Times OOH has created and launched a campaign, Innovate, on its sites to inspire advertisers and agencies to use their properties differently and innovate on them. The campaign has been ideated by the Mumbai based advertising agency, Republic.

The latest creative in this campaign shows a cricketer doing a reverse sweep, signifying the innovative side of the sport. Since cricketers constantly innovate with playing tactics, the company has used this symbolically to show that innovations are possible with the use of its media, too.

What is interesting about the Innovate campaign is that the common creative has been splashed on five consecutive Times OOH hoardings on the DND Flyway, which connects Delhi and Noida.

Sunder Hemrajani, managing director, Times OOH, explains that the idea is to have recall value, because on an expressway, people will view any advertisement only for a split second. The campaign is targeted at creative agencies, brand managers and media planning agencies.

Jindal Steel's OOH division, Parivartan, too, has put up creatives on its shelters, which say, “Beyond Shelters...” Another creative shows pictures of eyeballs, with the message, “Be Noticed Here”. The company works with different creative agencies to get the brand image right. It also has a campaign in the offing to inform advertisers about Parivartan. This campaign will include events, corporate social responsibility activities and subtle messaging.

It's not only about having an interesting and innovative message on the hoarding. OOH players are now game for rebranding and redesigning their logos as well. They are also ready to hire the services of specialised creative and design agencies. For instance, Alakh Advertising has invited design agencies to pitch for ideas on its rebranding. Symbiosis Advertising, too, is ready to hire a design agency.

Roshan Publicity, for example, has replaced its earlier brand identity – a yellow star and contact number on a boring green background – with a stylish starburst logo, maintaining the company's brand colours, green and yellow. Below the logo, the line reads, “Media Assets and OOH Media Solutions since 1978”.

The new logo was splashed across their sites overnight. "Our rebranding was treated like a campaign in itself, in which our sites underwent a change overnight," Junaid Kader Shaikh, director, media solutions, Roshan Publicity, says proudly.

Mangesh Borse, director, Symbiosis Advertising, reasons, "Today, the outdoor business is no longer driven by media ownership alone. Media imagery is as critical as media properties."

He explains that branding is an important aspect of any organisation because it creates a personality out of an entity. Also, as technology and investments become critical for survival, a distinct brand will drive organisational growth. More importantly, it adds substantially to the company valuation.

Better branding gives better visibility and, more importantly, is a goo starting point for upsizing. Borse adds that the new logo for Symbiosis, which was created in 2007, has certainly helped the company with better awareness, better identity and better performance.

Shaikh of Roshan Publicity, who represents the younger generation in this business and exudes zeal and optimism for the industry, says that the reason behind these initiatives is the change in the perception of this industry. "Outdoor was earlier looked at as a commodity, but not any more. The way we look at it is: If we can't market ourselves well, what will we do for the client?" he says.

Another section of industry observers says that the insecurity in the market has also made OOH players pull up their socks. "Earlier, most entrepreneurs and businessmen would prefer to keep a low profile and they had strong reasons to do so. Fewer sites, fewer media kept them protected from any invasion in their businesses.”

However, the transformation of the outdoor business post-2000 was marked by a huge growth in formats and the number of outdoor media vehicles. “That's when they probably started feeling the need for better branding," explains Borse of Symbiosis.

Self-branding activities have increased in the last few months. As a senior media observer says, "The rising number of vacant hoardings has created a new opportunity for OOH media owners. They are using this as an opportunity to give a push to their self-branding initiatives."

Most observers of the OOH space feel that this is just the beginning. As Kader says, "The redesigned logo or revamped brand image of the OOH company is just one small step. This has to be taken forward with better services to clients, up-to-date reports of sites, and so on. The aim should be to partner with the client, and not just provide him a space to advertise on. Just like when you speak, the air is the medium that carries your voice, similarly, we are the medium that helps carry the voice of the advertiser to the end user."

Borse also believes that site branding and logo changes are necessary, but not sufficient. "Branding," he says, "needs patience. It is not a 10-day visibility campaign." The organisation needs to do a lot more than just create a better visual identity. For instance, it must ensure a professional team and demonstrate innovation initiatives and a proven networking ability.

Whether this wave of revamping OOH company identities makes the necessary impact is to be seen. For now, what one sees is the fight for survival and the need to stand out in the existing visual cacophony.

4.New outdoor format, Airscreen, comes to India

December 4

Agencyfaqs

Today, brands Advertisement are moving beyond conventional outdoor vehicles and trying innovative new formats to communicate their messages. With the outdoor industry growing sturdily in India, a number of new formats have been introduced by international media companies that see potential in this market.

Recently, German company Airscreen, which manufactures inflatable hoardings, made its way to India. Crossbow Innovative Advertising, a Delhi-based outdoor company, has bagged the exclusive distribution rights to Airscreen and Airframe, the two products of the company, Airscreen. Both products are made out of inflatable polyvinyl chloride (PVC), which can be moulded in the shape of a hoarding.

Airframe offers a static space onto which a megaprint carrying pictures and messages can be attached. The inflatable product comes in sizes ranging from 26ft x 13ft to 118ft x 49ft. Airframe offers display options on both sides. Airscreen, on the other hand, comes in a larger format and has a projection screen attached to it, which allows the display of moving pictures and ad films.

To start with, Crossbow Innovative Advertising has purchased 15 of Airscreen’s products and plans to add more as the company grows. A special blower is used to inflate both Airframe and Airscreen; once deflated, they can be transported anywhere quite easily.

Rajesh Suri, director, Crossbow Innovative Advertising, tells afaqs!, “We wanted to offer large format media, which was also aesthetically appealing, in the Indian market. There are times when companies do not have large projectors while conducting events. Airscreen is our answer to this problem. We will also rent out Airframes and Airscreens for sales driven campaigns. Both our products are high on mobility and this will work in favour of the brands that advertise on them.”

Suri says that his organisation will work closely with outdoor companies because these are usually hired by brands for advertising purposes. He adds, “We can give away Airscreen for as little as a day’s time for events, while brands using our products in malls can hire our products for at least a month’s time, which can be further extended. We plan to sell our media at the Delhi Metro, in malls and to event companies.”

The product can also be used on landscapes and in open areas where people gather. The company will see its first campaign launch in India this month.

More than 40 countries, including the US, Germany, Mexico, Argentina, the UK and Australia, are already using Airscreen products. But will this product get a favourable response in India?

Christian Kremer, chief executive officer, Airscreen, sounds hopeful when he says, “We think that India could be a key market for us. We are sure that our products will soon get a good response from the OOH business in India.”

Monthly rentals for Airscreen products will start from Rs 25000 and go upto Rs 400000. A day's rent of an Airscreen for exhibition and event display will range between Rs 20000 and Rs 50000 approximately. All rentals will vary according to the size of the formats, locations and duration for which the products are rented.

Airscreen started off as a company that played movies at open air venues and made money from the stalls set up in the vicinity. Over time, it graduated to using this innovative technology as an outdoor advertising medium.

5.Delhi roads to get new ad ambulances

December 2

Agencyfaqs

Now, Greenline, a Delhi based outdoor company, has entered into a three year agreement with the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) to provide 50 ambulances for the relief of victims of road accidents. The ambulances will carry advertising options for brands.

The victims will be provided free first aid and other emergency medical services (EMS). The ambulances will be placed at 50 crossings in Delhi, including South Extension, Moolchand Crossing and NH 8 near Shiv Murti. These will transport accident victims to the nearest hospital. A helpline number will be put up on the ambulances, which will help people to get in touch with Greenline.

The Greenline ambulances will provide advertising space on the driver's and cleaner's side. Greenline will pay the MCD monthly fees of Rs 10 lakh for the 50 ambulances.

The agreement, signed in September, will be renewed according to the performance of the company. Once Greenline gets the compulsory clearance from the traffic police, the ambulances will hit the roads of Delhi.

Raminder Singh, managing director, Greenline, tells afaqs!, “This endeavour is about combining business with a noble cause for the improvement of the city. We did not want to do out and out charity. This way, we will sustain the effort for a longer time.”

Singh also talks about the kind of brands that may be interested in advertising on an ambulance. “It will not be appropriate to market a soap using an ambulance. We will offer our media mainly to pharmaceutical companies. We will expect these companies to help us with EMS. It is an interesting social responsibility option for brands to explore.”

He adds, “Eight months ago, we made a presentation on these ambulances and showed it to the MCD, which liked our idea. Once an accident happens, the initial 60 minutes are crucial in saving a victim's life. This is where our ambulances will come to the victim's rescue.”Singh was tightlipped about the revenue Greenline expects to earn from the advertisements.

For the record, Greenline, established in 1994, is an OOH company specialising in environment friendly street furniture. It privatised horticulture in India by launching Project Green Delhi, under which it greened 300 km of roads in Delhi and landscaped and beautified 10 flyovers, 40 parks, 38 islands and 18 roundabouts.

Greenline has also made overhead signages, ornamental railings, bus stops, public conveniences, fountains and solar panels for the Government of Delhi. The company has executed similar projects in Bengaluru, Chennai and Ludhiana.

6.OOH Media launches scientific and research-based rate card

December 11

Agencyfaqs

OOH Media has launched its scientific and research-based rate card equipped with innovative packages to woo advertisers. The new rate card is an evolved form of a master planning tool, which is based on a client’s media buying habits, erstwhile prevailing rates and insights derived from OOH Metrics. The tool is based on the ‘Inverse Media Pyramid’, which states that ‘higher the TG on the income pyramid, the more difficult it is to reach him/her’.

The advertiser-oriented rate card enables clients to buy by audience/ TG, markets, cluster and locations. For example, if the advertiser wants to buy by TG, he can choose from the various ‘audience packages’ (AP) of influencers, women, youth, CWE (Chief Wage Earners), premium and super-premium. These profiles have been formed from derived insights using OOH Metrics, which helps the client plan for this medium in a sharp and focused manner. For instance, the rate card lends an impetus to high end brands to reach to SEC A, A+ audiences by offering advertisers the AP of the Premium and Super Premium.

The client can buy ‘markets’, wherein the entire gamut of locations where OOH Media has presence in (barring CSDs) can be bought for the Target Market City. OOH Media currently has over 5,000 screens across 22 cities, including all metros, mini-metros and Tier II towns of Chandigarh, Amritsar, Ludhiana, Panjim, Nashik, etc., in locations like malls, multiplexes, corporate parks, ITES, BPOs gyms, bookstores, lifestyle stores, restaurants, etc. The advertiser can pick up all these locations his target city wherever OOH Media has screens.

The rate card also gives the client the choice to buy by ‘clusters’. For instance, a health drink brand can choose to pick up only gyms as a cluster, while a newly launched soap could be advertised across only all malls across India. With Bollywood getting into aggressive marketing campaigns, they can choose to be in the clusters of only multiplexes and restaurants and so on.

Advertisers who want to go local can choose to advertise only in specific locations in the target city. For example, an apparel brand outlet located in the Andheri area in Mumbai can choose to advertise in the vicinity residential buildings or multiplexes of that area to drive audiences and create awareness.

Niloufer Dundh, CSO, OOH Media, said, “With OOH Metrics now in play, the rate card is more scientific and is a consolidated tool offering OOH Media in a packaged and logical way. The client can even buy using cross-packages, that is, buy only the Corporate Cluster in the Delhi market. The caveat here is economies of scale, that is, more the volume, cheaper the media.”

Raghu Venkatraman, VP-Media Strategy, OOH Media, added here, “OOH Metrics has played a pivotal role in developing this rate card. With Nielsen in the foreground of the research, the results are well-aligned to the current industry findings.”

He further said, “The rationale or the genesis to launch a new rate card for OOH Media was that the idea was to use the learnings of the on-ground research, convert them into applicable media tools and offer the client value for money media plans based on hardcore research and logic. Given that OOH Media has over 5,000 screens across over 1,000 locations in India, it becomes tedious for clients to select each location individually without prior knowledge of audience profile and suitability of that location. This rate card consists of all detailed information that will help them make a consolidated media plan. Also, clients are buying the medium in various ways. The idea was to offer them multiple ways to buy OOH Media, whichever is most convenient for them. Flexicast is not just about broadcasting, but also a way of buying the medium, that is, Flexibuying.”

“The purpose, given that you are not increasing your ad rates is that in this case, we are not looking at an increase or decrease in ad rates, but a ‘standardisation’ of the rates based on weighted value of the locations and audience profile where our screens are present,” explained Venkatraman.

He concluded by saying, “Yes, the rate card is an evolution of the Flexicast tool, with an added dimension of OOH Metrics’ research. These insights have designated an audience demographic profile, media consumption habits, footfall count, etc., which has helped construct this entire rate card.”

7. Consumers research online but prefer to buy in the shop

December 9

Factiva

CONSUMERS research products online but prefer to make most of their purchases in-store, a survey has found.

The Deloitte 2008 Consumer behaviour survey found that for expensive items such as furniture, white goods and appliances, consumers liked to compare prices online, and then go to a shop to see the product and complete the transaction.

Katrina Doney, director of Deloitte Growth Solutions, said credit card security and wanting to see and experience purchases were some of the reasons why more people weren't making their purchases online.

``Women in particular are very tactile; they like to touch products,'' she said, adding that women also treated shopping as a social outting.

Ms Doney said retailers needed to have a good online presence, as an increasing numbers of consumers were using the internet to research their products.

``All retailers need to have a website because we know that over 90 per cent of our respondents in the survey were researching across all categories online,'' she said.

``Even for things that are less likely to be purchased online -- like sports equipment, white goods, apparel and furniture -- the internet can be a useful tool to research products and compare prices.''

She said consumers were still going to retail stores to make purchases and receive ``good old-fashioned service''.

``This indicates that for the moment the internet will not replace retail stores as consumers look for flexibility in how they are served,'' she said.

``People are now more educated before purchasing big-ticket items, but they also like to go to stores and perhaps even treat shopping as a social experience''.

The products most likely to buck that trend are entertainment items, such as books, DVDs, music and computer hardware and software, which consumers feel comfortable buying online.

``Unlike clothes, you don't need to try on a book,' Ms Doney said.

``Also movie and concert tickets purchased online is easy to do and convenient.''

Those aged 18 to 26 bought health, beauty, clothing and accessories on the internet more than any other age group.

The 35 to 43-year-olds were more likely than anyone else to buy toys and gifts online.

The Deloitte 2008 Consumer behaviour survey was conducted in early October.

8. Most Media To Suffer Retrenchment in 2009

December 30

Center for Media

According to a new report by FitchRatings, the company forecasts that the contraction in output among the major advanced economies will represent the steepest decline since the Second World War, with GDP in the U.S. to decline approximately 1.2%, while inflation is forecast to be 2.7%.

Regarding the advertising environment, the Fitch media team is more cautious than most major advertising forecasts, none of which currently predict advertising to be nearly as weak as 2001.

Fitch's cautious view about advertising is, in part, supported by these underlying conditions:

The 2001 ad downturn was concentrated in national advertising, while the 2008-2010 downturn will include both local and national components. Political and Olympic spending masked the local market weakness in 2008, but the report says the absence of these revenue sources in 2009 will expose the depth of this weakness.

This weakness in local markets will be compounded by national advertising pressures due to the impact of the credit market events that hit while many large national advertisers were planning their 2009 ad spending budgets, forcing many companies to emphasize capital preservation and liquidity, not just earnings growth.

With advertising being one of the most easily scalable fixed costs, some major advertisers could plan to pull back on national campaigns considerably until there is more visibility in the market.

Five of the top 10 advertising categories, or over 40% of the ad mix (according to Advertising Age), will be under meaningful pressure next year, says the report:

No.1 Retail (12% of total)

No.2 Automotive (12%)

No.5 Financial Services (6%)

No.6 General Services (6%)

No.9 Airlines, Hotels and Car Rentals (4%)

And, notes the report, advertising inventory has proliferated (from online and emerging mediums as well as traditional ones) since previous downturns. Media companies are likely to compete more heavily on price in this downturn to fill the vast supply of ad space available.

Advertisers have many more options in the current environment than at any other time for maintaining a presence with consumers while trimming their budgets and scaling back high Cost Per Thousand (CPM) advertising campaigns, says the report. Even healthy advertisers are likely to use this increased bargaining power to command better price terms and concessions from media companies.

The study offers trends and outlooks for several advertising subsectors in the report, as estimated by Fitch:

Newspapers

Newspaper industry revenue growth will be negative for the foreseeable future as both ad pricing and linage will be under pressure within each of the four main components of newspaper companies' revenue streams. Fitch believes more newspapers and newspaper groups will default, be shut down and be liquidated in 2009 and several cities could go without a daily print newspaper by 2010.

Yellowpages

Few markets will be able to support more than two directories and most markets will eventually only be able to support one book. Another year of accelerated declines in yellowpages advertising could significantly pressure the intermediate-term solvency of the two pure-play incumbent directories companies.

Terrestrial Radio

Radio has no unionized workforces, and convert a higher percentage of EBITDA to free cash flow giving them more cushion to endure the secular challenges. Listenership is likely to continue to fall, though available inventory should remain relatively stable, and pricing could be up on some advertisers. Internet streaming provides additional day parts to sell. The continued roll-out of factory-installed high definition (HD) radio into automobiles could provide upside to listenership.

Magazines

Fitch expects the larger players to rationalize available print advertising inventory through consolidation and closing down titles. Several categories that used to have multiple titles will likely have advertising bases that can support only one major title. With limited catalysts for growth in the core print product, magazine publishers have become more proactive online.

Outdoor

Fitch believes the potential negative effects of increased inventory from digital roll-outs should be tempered by increasing appeal to national advertisers, as well as decreases in price per unit. Cost structures should benefit from digital billboards, as displays can be centrally managed without physical deployment of work crews. Low CPMs and better networked national sales pitches, position outdoor advertising companies to endure the downturn and rebound with the economy.

Cable Networks

Cable industry ad inventory has grown significantly over the past several years, causing a deceleration of the decades-long increase in ad dollars, but cable continues to be a targeted medium, at a lower price relative to broadcast and with significant reach. Fitch expects it to continue to gain share from broadcast. Fitch expects the cable networks to continue to embrace VOD and digital strategies, which could provide some modest upside to revenue growth.

Online

Online could be negatively affected by advertisers scaling back experimental expenditures in favor of more proven, performance-based mediums. Search is likely to be more healthy than display. Remnant advertising is likely to be hit by a shakeout in the ad network space. While CPM growth is likely to moderate and could be under pressure, online video and social networking are likely to support growth. Regulatory issues associated with privacy could be a factor as firms attempt to implement more behavioral targeting. Over the longer term, online advertising is expected to rebound from economic weakness and continue to capture share from traditional outlets.

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