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MYTH N o – 41NOPE.With Adobe Target—part of the Adobe® Marketing Cloud—you can trade one-size-fits-all content formessages that are personalised. Show customers a relevantexperience, and they’ll show you their loyalty.Metrics, not myths.ADOBEMARKETINGFollow us @AdobeMktgCloud©2012 Adobe Systems Incorporated. All rights reserved. Adobe and the Adobe logo are registered trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated in the United States and/or other countries.

THE DRUM 12.APR.13 www.thedrum.com INSIDE03®12 April 2013VOLUME #34 ISSUE #08Cover: courtesy of Laurence Winramwww.lwinram.comCover image by Edinburgh commercialphotographer Laurence Winram.Did MargaretThatcher shapemodern politicalcommunications?05 LeaderEditor Gordon Youngargues that Thatcherhelped create today’svibrant media andmarketing scene.06 AgendaThe latest insightsfrom the marketingand media industries.12 The reel ThatcherJason Stone ofDavid Reviews looksat the lasting legacyof Margaret Thatcher.15 Damn imposters!Silas Amos from jkrexplores the phenomenonof copycat packaging.18 Ajaz Ahmedon leadershipWhat makes a greatleader? We ask AKQAfounder Ajaz Ahmed.COVER STORY12Bunch’s brandidentity for globalinternet accesssolution Fogg21 Women inthe boardroomA look at the lack ofwomen in senior rolesin the creative industries.24 Desert Island ClipsStuart Douglas ofNice Shirt Films isthis issue’s castaway.29 The WorksA look at some ofthe best new creativework as voted for byour readers.38 Last WordHayden Sutherland,director of Ideal Interface,has the last word.29

THE DRUM 12.APR.13 www.thedrum.comLEADER05contributors this issuesilas amos,creative director, jkrtakes a look at thephenomenon of copycatpackagingUri Baruchin, strategicdirector, The Partnersexplains why microconsolesmight inspire a new style ofecosystem marketingjason stone, editor, davidreviewsspeaks to Stuart Douglas ofNice Shirt Films about his desertisland clipskaren canty, head of news,future foundationexplores the consumer trend of‘everyday exceptional’richard draycott,associate editorcatches up with AKQA founderAjaz Ahmed to talk leadershipstephen lepitak,news editorstephen.lepitak@thedrum.comcameron clarke,opinion editorcameron.clarke@thedrum.comjessica davies,senior reporterjessica.davies@thedrum.comgillian west, reportergillian.west@thedrum.comthe drum’s debtto thatcherIf it wasn’t for Margaret Thatcher the magazine you hold in yourhands would not exist. The 40 odd people I can see as I write thesewords would not be here. Initiatives such as the Chip Shop Awards,DADIs and The Drum Design Awards would never have happened.This business, which I helped found, first emerged in 1984 whenthe country was in the grip of the miners’ strike. But it was not onlyin coal where the unions’ influence was felt. They controlled myindustry in a way which is impossible to imagine now.In fact, we launched what was to become The Drum to replaceanother title which had effectively been closed down by union action. Ithad attempted to implement a redundancy to secure its future. Powerfulunions decreed the person be reinstated or the title would be blacklistedby those in its supply chain. It complied only to close a few months later.Thanks to Thatcher’s reforms, by the time we appeared on the scenesuch power was on the wane. But we still had to tread carefully. I wasadvised that I too should join a union, to ensure that compositors andprinters would agree to work on our title.But imagine my concern when at my first meeting I found thatwe were already on the union agenda. Some were unhappy that wehad run a piece in support of free newspapers, which many saw asa threat to paid-fors. Not long before, plans to set up a free titlein Clydebank were scuppered by union action.Not only were new concepts viewed with disdain. So was newtechnology. There were newspapers still using hot metal when wefirst appeared. Really, compositors sat with molten buckets of leadat their feet. Meanwhile, like a brooding giant, a printing works satsilent in a Glasgow industrial estate as a result of this Luddite tendency.It was the Scottish home of News International, which had laindormant for years because of union opposition. But in 1985, itburst into life as NI made the move to Wapping.Made possible by Thatcher’s new laws, the move was historic.It saw control of the company move from unions back to itsmanagement. But the ripples have continued to reverberate.It would not have been possible to start The Drum pre-Thatcher. Butso too would it have been impossible to create the vibrant, dynamic andsuccessful ecosystem which is today’s UK media and marketing scene.angela haggerty, reporterangela.haggerty@thedrum.comGordon Young, Editorgordon.young@thedrum.comPublisher/Editor: Gordon Young Associate Editor: Richard Draycott Assistant Editors: Thomas O’Neill, Katie McQuater News Editor: Stephen Lepitak Opinion Editor: Cameron Clarke Senior Reporter: Jessica DaviesReporters: Ishbel Macleod, Gillian West, Jen Faull, Angela Haggerty Business Development Director: Liz Hamilton Business Development Manager: James McGowan Directory Sales: Victoria Swan Recruitment Sales: Tehmeena LatifMarketing & Subscriptions: Ayush Kejriwal Design & Production Director: Nick Creed Design/Production: Amanda Dewar, Dane Brown Events Director: Lynn Lester Events Manager: Katy Thomson Managing Director: Diane YoungHead of London Operations: Andy Oakes Head Office: 4th Floor, Mercat Building, 26 Gallowgate, Glasgow G1 5AB Tel: 0141 552 5858 Fax: 0141 559 6050 Printed by: Stephens & George MagazinesTHE DRUM is published by Carnyx Group Limited. The publishers, authors and printers cannot accept liability for any errors or omissions. Any transparencies or artwork will be accepted at owner’s risk. All rights reserved. On no accountmay any part of this publication be reproduced in any form without the written permission of the copyright holder and publisher, application for which should be made to the publisher. © carnyx group limited 2013 ISSN 2046-0635

06AGENDAwww.thedrum.com 12.APR.13 THE DRUMmarketingFor inspiring ecosystemmarketing look to gamingThe ‘future’ of marketing is happening now. Or at leastfor the gaming industry, according to Uri Baruchin,strategic director at The Partners. Here he takes a lookat microconsoles and how they might provide a bridgebetween mobile gaming and our big screens.If you are a progressive marketingprofessional (maybe even one witha touch of idealism), some of yourdays are spent somewherebetween shame and horror.When I’m having one of thosedays, I often find there’s nothinglike a look at the gaming industryfor a jolt of optimism.Gaming is the largest entertainmentindustry on earth, and it has beenpulling away from Hollywood andthe music industry for a coupleof years now. But it’s still beingsnubbed by mainstream mediaand (despite BAFTA’s embrace)also by the cultural sphere.It’s maybe this ‘outsider mentality’that makes this industry reach outto its communities in increasinglyingenious ways.The example we have at hand isOUYA: a new gaming console that isthe first of a new generation of androidbasedmicroconsoles.OUYA launched on Kickstarter on7 July last year with the goal of raising$900,000. It sold 20,000 units in thefirst 24 hours. By 9 August, whenthe Kickstarter fundraising campaignclosed, it had raised nearly $9m. Thisfigure has likely seen significant growthsince then due to pre-orders madethrough its website.It’s an attractive product propositionto begin with. A relatively cheap $99pre-order price gets you a full HD unitwith a wireless controller. Games aredownloaded from the net and arelargely free to experience. It’s alsoa compact and slick looking productdesigned by international productdesign star Yves Béhar.As for the opportunity, microconsolesmay potentially be a bridge betweenthe mobile gaming category and ourliving room’s big screens.OUYA and its peers appeal to avariety of large, lucrative communities:• Casual and mobile gamers wishingto take a more visceral, shareableexperience to their living room couch.• Game developers seeking an open,uncomplicated platform to create for.• Console gamers seeking a low-costtop-up that brings their mobile gamingexperience in line with the couch andthe shared gaming experience theyknow and love.• PC gamers who want to go backto the living room, lean back incomfort and play games togetherwith friends, sample the designinnovation and quirkiness of theflourishing indie gaming industry,and let’s face it – being PC gamerswould never let something thisinteresting pass them by.Stroke of geniusSo here is OUYA’s latest strokeof genius. Recently, it announcedit will produce short documentary-stylevideos for the top three most playedgames on their platform (for the firstsix weeks of the console’s life onceit’s shipped).This idea is not just the most cleverbit of marketing I’ve come across ina while, it also brings together manyof the things that could be done betterin the marketing world nowadays:• It’s truly beneficial: it motivatesdevelopers to “get ready for primetime” and compete with each otherto make their games better (they’vebeen working in a closed Betamode since December), thus directlybenefiting both OUYA’s first wave ofgamers, developers and partners.• It’s good PR, without hype or spin:while benefiting the key stakeholders,it creates PR about the best first gamesfor the console. Thus, it makes OUYAlook good. However, it does not relyon hype or vaporware – it’s realcontent, about real games proven tobe good (as they are the most played).• It makes use of real data: it basesthe selection on real-time feedback,making use of the data provided bythe digital platform.• It’s attention-grabbing by takingpart in relevant market dialogues, notby shouting; it courts the attention ofgamers who have not bought into theconsole yet without wasting their time.It creates valuable content for them bygiving an engaging answer to the mostimportant question they have aboutany new console: are the games anygood? This will help with any scepticswho were reluctant to pre-order.• It positions OUYA as a positivesteward of its own ecosystem –making it look good to gamers,developers and the media – usingOUYA’s best early-stage content.Hyper PRIn summary, it’s a win-win-win-winwinsituation: gamers, developers,partners, brand, media... everybodywins. That’s Hyper-PR, rather thanHype-PR.The term ‘ecosystem’ is marchedabout a lot nowadays. Media productsmay be an extreme example ofecosystem-driven marketing models,but this is still a stunning exampleof how a simple marketing idea canorchestrate its ecosystem in nearperfectharmony.

THE DRUM 12.APR.13 www.thedrum.com AGENDA07advertisingWhat adformatsworkbest ontablets?Coca-Cola, General Motorsand Yahoo! among brandsjoining forces to define thebest ad formats for tablets.Global research project The Poolwas kick-started by VivaKi in 2010to identify the best ad format forthe online industry. After determiningpreferred standards for video adsit turned its focus to tablet formatsin 2011.A total of 26 US-based advertisersand publishers joined The Pool in 2011to help drive a three-phased approachof quantitative, qualitative and field trialresearch in which 37 ad formats weretested among 20 million US consumersover a 14-month period.The study is understood to be thefirst of its kind in the industry to bringtogether clients and media owners inan attempt to identify, test and createindustry standards for new ad models.Three ad formats were selected asfavourites by both The Pool Groupand consumers, beating other formatsincluding ad selector video format ASqand AdBank, a video format that letsusers choose to watch a programmein return for credits or the ability toskip the ad.Among the winning models was‘Banner to full page’, a format that issimilar to an online banner but canexpand to a full screen and catersfor engagement within the unit.‘Pre-roll with overlay’ was anotherselected format, letting users engagewith brands via additional videos, gamesand social media from within the ad unitwithout the consumer being directedoutside of the video player.The third favourite format was ‘richmedia interstitial’, defined as the “printad of the tablet age”.Tracey Scheppach, VivaKi EVP,innovations director and founder ofThe Pool said tablets were still intheir infancy when it first started theresearch project.“We knew we needed to workwith marketers and publishers tolearn about the advertising potentialof this game-changing device. Theamount of research we conductedis unprecedented; we reached onein three tablet users, so we feel quiteconfident that the learningswe uncovered are reflective ofconsumers’ wants and needs withregards to their tablet advertising.Above all, we learned Steve Jobs gavemarketers a gift and now is the time toignite it in the marketplace,” she said.Agency teams from within StarcomMediaVest Group and ZenithOptimediaworked alongside Vivaki on theresearch, while The Pool comprised13 blue-chip advertisers includingBank of America, Best Buy, Coca-Cola,Procter & Gamble and Walmart. The13 publishers involved included ABCTelevision Network, Bonnier, Crackle,Digital Broadcast Group, Mojiva, NBCNews Digital Group, and ScrippsNetworks Interactive.marketingA recent Internet AdvertisingBureau (IAB) event held in Londonsaw industry experts discuss thechallenges of real-time advertising(RTA). The complexity of the spacewas a key theme, viewed as one ofthe factors preventing the industryreaching its full potential.Robert Webster, data and technologydirector for MediaCom argued that thedigital advertising ecosystem was not ascomplicated as some diagrams depict:“It really shouldn’t be this complicatedanymore, in fact it should be simpleenough for a young child to draw,” hesaid, explaining that ultimately it boilsdown to five categories: technologyproviders, buyers, sellers, data providersand brokers. “That is how the marketmust approach it,” he claimed.This reduction in complexity is vital toensuring creatives and planners are onboard because the RTA space cannotreach its full potential without the skillsThe truth about real-time advertisingIndustry experts offered a few home truths about the real-time biddingmarket at the Internet Advertising Bureau’s Real Time Advertising event.of both the automated machines andtechnology and the specific human skillsof the planners and buyers. “We needthe Don Drapers of the world to work intandem with the automated machines,”he added.Jag Duggal, vice president forQuantcast railed against the industry’sover-dependence on last-click attribution.He called it a “tragedy” that this poormethod of attribution modelling was stillwidespread, and that it is underminingthe ability to effectively retarget,therefore jeopardising the real-timeadvertising market.The majority (95 per cent) of clicks neverconvert but despite that, most marketersoptimise to clicks and insist that clicks area core metric, according to Duggal. “Thedemographic profiles of people who clickand people who convert are completelydifferent – in fact they are opposites, sobasing attribution modelling around lastclick is causing campaigns to go whereconverters are not,” he said.Real-time advertising has traditionallybeen regarded as a useful tool for directresponse marketing but is becomingincreasingly relevant for brandingchannels including video, accordingto Andrew Moore, managing directorEurope of SpotXchange.In order for real-time advertising toreach its full potential “we must ensure weare as meaningful to brand advertisers aswe are to direct response ones as that iswhere the majority of spend lies. Brandadvertisers want brand results,” he said.Moore added the majority of ad spendcomes from brand advertisers, beforeclaiming that in order to ensure RTA doesnot become siloed, it should insteadbecome a larger piece of the overallmarketing mix and that the industrymust work to ensure it appeals and ismeaningful to brand advertisers, notdirect response ones alone.For more information on the realtime advertising space, look out forThe Drum’s forthcoming Digital Mediasupplement, published on 26 April.

08AGENDAwww.thedrum.com 12.APR.13 THE DRUMretailCold snaphas chillingeffect onthe UKhigh streetThe high street returned tocontraction last month. Asthe relentless cold weathercontinued, consumersresisted parting withtheir cash and austeritybegan to set in.A blast of unseasonal Arctic airhas hit Britain’s ailing high streetsaccording to new figures, which showthat like-for-like retail sales in Marchwere 0.9 per cent down on a year ago.According to accountancy firmBDO’s high street sales tracker the declinewas precipitated by a fall-offin clothing sales as shoppers shunnedspring and summer ranges in light ofthe low temperatures.Department stores were not immunefrom the chill either, with Debenhamsforced to issue a profits warning followingsnow in January and Marks & Spencerexpected to report a six per cent declinein like-for-like clothing sales over the lastthree months.Don Williams, head of retail andwholesale at BDO, said: “Retailersthat failed to adjust stock levels and thesupply chain accordingly were alreadyon the back foot when the mercurydropped and will now have to workextra hard to catch better prepared rivals.“People remain cash-strapped sotheir natural instinct is not to spendunless given a good reason. A productconsumers like, with a strong focuson value, price and service is no longerenough, they also need an occasionlike Mother’s Day, Easter or the schoolholidays to give them that final nudge.”marketing‘Everydayexceptional’trend givesbrandssomethingto celebrateConsumers are findingmore and more reasonsto celebrate, presentingincreased opportunities forbrands. Karen Canty, head ofnews at the Future Foundation,writes on the ‘everydayexceptional’ trend whichis beginning to characteriseconsumer habits duringthe economic downturn.Did you know that 20 March wasWorld Happiness Day? This mayhave passed you by in 2013, but by2014 you may well be donning yourglad rags and heading to the nearestinternational party hotspot.‘Everyday exceptional’ is an emergingtrend which speaks to the growingnumber of occasions consumers arechoosing to celebrate, and the brandopportunities springing up as a result.There are many, many societalreasons for this increase in legitimisedfun, such as:• We live longer – so there are morebirthdays, wedding anniversaries,retirement parties, re-marriages... InGermany, a fifth of the population hasalready reached retirement age. Femalelife expectancy in British Columbia is 84.A girl born today in the UK has a 30 percent chance of living to the age of 100.• In a number of countries, same-sexweddings and civil partnerships are nowavailable and ready to be celebrated.• So many more societies aredynamically multicultural. Nearly 40 percent of the population of California isHispanic in origin and a quarter is foreignborn. Over a quarter of Australia and over10 per cent in countries such as Franceand UK can say the same.• There are more students than everworldwide – and more graduationceremonies. There are, for example, 2.3million students in France, around 35per cent more than a generation ago. Inthe UK, the number of foreign studentsdoubled in the first decade of the centuryto reach 280,000.There are social elements at play too.Social media boosts the profile of globalcelebration beyond our front rooms,allowing party-goers in Australia to sharetheir fun with friends in Peru, while TVprovides opportunities to open up theconversation and celebrate the bestmoments with fans around the world.Sporting occasions create a myriad ofopportunity for shared experience, fromIrish racing fans awake at 3am for theSingapore Grand Prix to the ever-so-British Wimbledon fortnight. On a smaller,more local scale, is it forgivable to forgetyour sister’s birthday when it is listed onFacebook? Far better to offer a publicgreeting and be part of the celebration.Within this festive atmosphere isa wealth of opportunities for brands.As well as using existing celebrationsto create pretexts for engagement –invitations to celebrate Mardi Gras, visitDubai for Diwali, enjoy an Australia Dayhoe-down, buy a Pepsi Super Bowl Partypack – we’re also seeing new products,services and markets springing up, allintent on bringing the fun to our doors.For example, Asda used the plinth ofthe Chinese New Year to give customersa reason to cook something different athome while connecting with consumerprice sensitivity (a ‘feast – all for just £6’).And to celebrate its 100th anniversary,Oreo ran a viral Facebook campaignfor 100 days, each day unveiling a newdesign under the banner of a ‘daily twist’with the designs inspired by eventshappening on each of the days, includingGay Pride, Talk Like a Pirate Day, iPhone5 launch and the Emmy Awards.Celebrations can have the additionaleffect of weakening price-sensitivity andencouraging innovative consumption.Nobody goes to the Notting Hill Carnivalwearing a drab shirt; fewer are goingto throw Christmas parties offering onlymince pies when it will be so muchtrendier to offer farofa or mazurek.Yes, we can envision a slightly cynicalfuture of over-commercialised, overmerchandisedevents like British BrusselSprout Week vying with National BringYour Cat To Work Week for our smallchange. But there is also huge scopefor brand creativity too and new waysto engage consumers and share thefun. Why can’t brands throw partiesfor us when we reach milestones, orboost our social capital with opportunitiesto parade our skills as hosts?At the heart of the everydayexceptional trend throbs a fathomlessinvitation to the marketer keen, forcommercial reasons, to changebehaviour among customers.

THE DRUM 12.APR.13 www.thedrum.com AGENDA09social media digitalUK paidsearchCPCsovertakethe USUK paid searchcost-per-clicks (CPCs)outstripped those in the USfor the first time in the finalquarter of 2012, accordingto research from Kenshooexclusive to The Drum.Can Facebook monetise mobile?Following the announcement of the launch of Facebook Home, The Drumtakes a look at potential implications and opportunities for mobile advertising.After some anticipation overFacebook’s collaboration with HTCfor what was first thought to be thelaunch of a Facebook phone, MarkZuckerberg last week announcedthe launch of Facebook Home –new software for Android users.Released on 12 April, FacebookHome, which is “more than just anapp” according to Zuckerberg, willput Facebook feeds onto the homescreen, prompting discussion aboutwhat opportunities this might bringfor mobile advertising.“Launching Facebook Home as amobile home screen is likely to makepeople look at, and engage with, theirsmartphones even more than they aredoing now,” commented James Connelly,co-founder and managing director, Fetch.“By increasing usage, this could be a winwinsituation for mobile marketing, as itincreases the amount of time consumersare able to see, and engage with, brandsand advertising via mobile.“By integrating itself more fully intoconsumers’ lives, Facebook is enablingmobile marketers and brands to getcloser to consumers, and – in light ofFacebook’s partnership with HTC – weshould see improved performance forconsumers and mobile marketers alike.”Carl Uminski, chief operating officerat Somo, described the real estate as“gold dust”, saying it “allows Facebook tocompletely own the mobile experience”.“Facebook Home has finally achievedwhat nobody else has managed sinceZi’s attempt with Qix on Symbian backin the mid 2000s, that is; take ownershipof the home screen. Many chatcompanies have tried for years to achievea people-centric view and with the new‘Chatheads’ messaging, Facebook hasbeautifully designed a mobile experiencethat puts your friends first and foremost.”Aside from the user-centric mobileexperience, the social giant has pledgedits commitment to frequent updates,but what can we expect fromFacebook Home in terms ofopportunities for advertisers?“I’m expecting integrated voicecalling (voice head?) and monetisationopportunities – the home screen is apremium,” said Uminski. “While Home isavailable on all Android handsets, AT&Tand HTC have partnered to market aFacebook-ready handset, great for thoseobsessed with Facebook and a reallygreat marketing partnership.”Robin Grant, global managingdirector of We Are Social, suggestedthe most interesting opportunity foradvertisers lies in audience data.“The obvious development is thecover feed, with a high level of filteringthat would allow Facebook to offerpremium advertising to brands. Whilethis wasn’t mentioned specifically at theannouncement, this is clearly the nextstep for Facebook display advertising.“However, the most excitingdevelopment for advertisers isFacebook’s potential to use Hometo keep track of a consumer’s location.Combine this with the Chatheadsand notifications features andthe social network could deliverconsumers location-relevant andtimely commercial messages.”George Bell, CEO of Jumptaphighlighted the trend towards audiencedata, suggesting the move could helpadvertisers leverage screens in a morepowerful way.“The launch of Facebook Homeunderscores a major mobile theme —the shift toward audience data – andaddresses both advertiser and consumerneed for more relevancy across theboard. The shift will allow Facebookto leverage location and screen in apowerful way; after all, we now interactwith multiple screens at all pointsthroughout the day. Advertisers shouldanticipate these variations and thinkabout how consumer habits will changein a cross-screen, location-aware world.”At the time of going to press,Facebook was playing down privacyconcerns raised by the Home application.Industry analysts suggested the softwarecould intrude on privacy due to its‘always-on’ nature.UK search spend jumped 21 percent from the third to fourth quarterof 2012, while the US saw spendclimb 30 per cent and Europe sawvolume spend drop by four per cent,according to a survey of over 100advertisers with over £1bn worth ofpaid search spend globally.CPCs in the UK rose by ten cents,taking the total CPC to $0.48, overtakingthe US CPC of $0.45 in the final quarterand dwarfing the rest of Europewhich saw CPCs drop to $0.35in the final quarter.UK CPCs remained highest ondesktop computers at an average £0.29,with smartphones seeing a £0.07 CPCrate and tablets a £0.23 CPC.Kenshoo attributed the rises toincreased competition in the marketleading to a rise in overall paid searchspend. However, it also cited a “lack ofmobile phone strategy” in the UK as acontributing factor, with only two per centof ad spend in the UK going to mobile,compared to over five per cent in the US.Kenshoo chief marketing officerAaron Goldman believes the lack ofestablished, standardised metrics formobile devices is holding back spendon mobile with marketers struggling todefine conversions.“We can’t expect a phone to deliverthe same web-based conversiontechniques therefore we must find otherways to define a conversion. Thingslike app downloads, time spent, pagesvisited, store locators, shareability – theseare ways we should be using to measurethe effectiveness of mobile.“Marketers don’t understand the valueof the metrics and therefore don’t spendas much,” he added.

THE DRUM 12.APR.13 www.thedrum.com AGENDA11FINANCEThe importance of sound financesin the agency-client relationshipSteve Antoniewicz,managing director ofthe RecommendedAgency Register,speaks to Bob Willott,editor of the MarketingServices FinancialIntelligence newsletter,about how agencyand client approachesto fi nance are key totheir mutual success.Should the financialperformance of an agencybe important to its clients?Financial performance is certainlyone aspect to be considered, but it isonly one among many. Clients shouldbe interested in continuity of servicewhich may be at risk if the fi nancialviability of their agency is in question.Clients will also want to feel that theagency staff are able to concentrateon servicing their account. When anagency’s fi nances come under pressure,internal distractions tend to arise.Do agencies place enoughimportance on sound financialmanagement?Thankfully, gone are the days whenfi nance was regarded as a back roomactivity to be ignored for as long aspossible. These days younger agenciesare generally well advised on how toestablish a sound fi nancial regime,but the very nature of many creativebusinesses means that often there’s littlecommon ground with bank managersor fi nancial advisors. Young, ambitiouscreative companies tend to place moreimportance on naming, branding orrecruiting the hottest creative directorthan sound fi nancial management.What should clients look forwhen choosing agencies?The two most important indicators arein the balance sheet. Firstly, does theagency have suffi cient readily realisable(current) assets to meet all its shorttermliabilities? If not, it may be underpressure from creditors and that couldaffect the buying in of goods andservices for use on the client’s business.Secondly, how reliant is the agencyon borrowed money? If it owes moreto the bank than the shareholders haveinvested in the business (includingprofi ts accumulated for thoseshareholders), then the bank islikely to get heavy.What should agencies look forwhen assessing new clients?Unsurprisingly, the measures are broadlythe same. Most important is the abilityof the client to pay its bills when due. Ifit relies on extended credit from its ownsuppliers it will not be overly eager topay the agency. Another warning signis any evidence that the client’s bankis taking a tough line, for example byseeking faster repayment terms onloans. Big clients sometimes demandextremely tough terms of business andit is important for the agency to standits ground as far as practicable – orin extreme cases even contemplatewhether it should accept the business.Make sure you assess every newclient opportunity carefully. A fantasticbrand to work for and a great creativeopportunity might not feel so great whenthey don’t pay their bills!And are there differences betweenworking with independent ornetworked agencies?A couple of factors might come into play.If the client has a genuinely global brandneeding a lot of service in local markets,it will often be harder for an independentagency to fi nance and manage thoselocal operations. There are examplesof independent agencies opening offi cesin the US and the Far East, only to fi ndthey cannot manage them froma distance operationally or fi nancially.Secondly, the global agency networkscan be very demanding on localmanagement to achieve profi t targets.That can have an unexpected impacton local client service levels. Sometimesit can also mean that successfulagencies within networks arerestricted in their development andgrowth. This often depends on theperformance of the rest of the network.EVENTSThe Drum Marketing Awardscelebrate and reward effectivemarketing. Join us on 9 May atthe Emirates Stadium, London,to find out the results of thisyear’s awards. For moreinformation and to book ticketsvisit thedrummarketingawards.com.Sponsored by Green Square,Manual Link Building, MillennialMedia and Go ON UK, the 2013Dadis are open for entry with adeadline of 31 May. These awardsrecognise agencies and clientsfor effective digital strategiesand campaigns. Entries shouldbe made at dadiawards.com.The Roses Creative Awardsshortlist has been announced andtickets for the ceremony are nowavailable to book online. Please visitrosescreativeawards.com today andmake sure you secure your place for2013. Contact Caity Ryan on 0141559 6063 for more information.Entries will open next month forthis year’s Social Buzz Awards,in association with iomart Hosting.These awards are open to anyindividual, company or businesswho are producing effectivesocial media strategies andcampaigns. Register yourinterest at socialbuzzawards.com.The Drum Directory is the place tobe seen… www.thedrum.com/directory/To fi nd out more call Victoria on 0141 559 6070

Multi-faceted. Measurable. Mighty.Be a part of it.Better connect with today’smobile-savvy consumers.Speakers include:Thursday, 16 May 20139 a.m. to 5:30 pmMermaid Centre, Puddle DockBlackfriars, London, EC4V 3DBFREE for AdvertisersIAB Members: £395 +VATIAB Non-members: £790 +VATDon’t be in the minority. Book your place today.www.iabuk/mobileengage · 020 7050 6969Premier sponsorMain sponsorSupporting sponsorsMedia Partner

THE DRUM 12.APR.13 www.thedrum.com COPYCAT PACKAGING15DAMN IMPOSTERS!Silas Amos, creative director at jkr, takes a look at the phenomenonof copycat packaging, asking whether brand mimics are outrageouslyexploiting other organisations’ intellectual property or whether it isvalid competition and all in the interest of the consumer.

16COPYCAT PACKAGINGwww.thedrum.com 12.APR.13 THE DRUMCopycatting – it’s nothing new, and is typicallyaimed at the most distinctive and popular brands.There is a common belief that Hitler put hisantisemitism to one side to adopt Charlie Chaplin’smoustache, believing it would help make him aspopular as the globally adored comic. While thismight be a myth, it’s worth considering that Chaplinhimself once famously came third in a Chaplinlookalike contest. Even the most idiosyncraticof identities can be victim to imitation.When Apple was accused of copying its graphic userinterface from Xerox, Steve Jobs quoted Picasso, saying:“Good artists copy; great artists steal.” He continued“we have always been shameless about stealing greatideas”. I wonder if he would appreciate the irony of hisphilosophy being turned against him, as seen in Apple’scourt case with Samsung? Imitation might be sincerestform of fl attery, but that is cold comfort when it startseating into your profi ts and value.Business interests aside, all mum (please forgive mysexist assumption) wants to do is shop quickly happilyand confi dently around the supermarket aisle. Accordingto a 2009 report from the British Brands Group 38 percent of shoppers admit to having been confused ormisled by the packaging of grocery products that looksimilar. And 33 per cent admit to having accidentallybought the wrong product because of its similarpackaging. There is a strong correlation between similarpackaging and a belief that the product comes from thesame manufacturer as the original brand. Which is farfrom always the case.Do brand mimics (or to be more pointed, ‘creativeplagiarists’) represent outrageous exploitation of anotherorganisation’s IP or is it valid competition and in theinterest of the consumer? In my view, taking inspirationfrom others is legitimate competition, but blatant imitationcan kill a good brand. And it’s brands that do the realinnovation in life, not retailer brands. So if brands are notincentivised to innovate because they are just going toget copied, we all lose out in the long term. One couldgo further and say copycatting adds to a general (andwrongheaded) cultural perception that everything is forfree – your music, your fi lms, and your plagiarised collegeessay. In this context what’s the issue with a liberalapproach to intellectual property at a corporate level?The focus of this article is around packaging that getscopied, but of course the context and culture of copycatdesign goes far wider. In China it’s happeningat XXXL scale. The whole look and feel of Apple andIkea stores is being hijacked by imposters, from productsand signage to the staff uniforms. A new Zaha Hadiddesign for a Chinese shopping complex has been piratedby a Chongqing developers before it is even complete.The developer has been quoted as saying it ‘“nevermeant to copy, only want to surpass.” Adding insult toinjury, Hadid is having to race to fi nish her building fi rst.One can almost admire the cheek of it.In packaging design it’s a constant challenge tostay one jump ahead of the imitators. I have been toldof one retailer who has a ‘seven degrees of separation’methodology – so ensuring that the colour, typography,shape, etc. differs from the source material. The key isthat the end result still looks close enough to trigger thedesired associations in consumer’s minds. It’s all perfectlylegal, if a little underhand.So copycat branding is a fact of life. But whichdesign approach can help insulate your pack from it?In truth if someone wants to borrow your clothes theywill – even Coke and Procter & Gamble fi nd themselvessincerely fl attered on occasion. The more idiosyncraticand distinctive one makes a pack, the less logical andsensible it is; the better chance you have of putting spacebetween you and the imitation, sorry, competition.Simplicity in design is more protectable thancomplexity. Going back to our friend the retailer lookingfor ‘seven different but similar’ design codes, if your packactually has seven things to be copied, the chancesare you lack one crisp and protectable equity. You area bit fuzzy, whereas the Kellogg’s corn fl akes box or theGuinness can (one of jkr’s designs) are harder to imitatebecause they have boiled things down to their mostdistinctive elements.Non-literal ‘learned symbols’ are the most protectablebrand devices. The fancy name for them is autograms.The ‘no entry sign’, a white letterbox on a red circle isa good example. If it were a brand it would be highlyprotectable, unlike a more literal representation (say, a carwith a cross through it). Consider the Marlboro chevron,the Coke ribbon, the Bass triangle – all fi ne protectableautograms, and all imbued with meaning by the brandsover time.One understands the short-term benefi ts to retailersin copycat branding. But a slightly smarter approachmight be to use category language in a more originalway. Consider Boots No7. Yes, it uses colours, shapesfi nishes and typography that are all familiar language.But it serves them up in an elegant and attractive waythat gives the brand real appeal and charisma – whichis better than just pinching Rimmel’s look and feel. Andin building a brand rather than borrowing one, No7illustrates a more effective long-term investment ofdesign than having an eye on the main chance.Obvious copies might have all the lustre of a bad coverversion, but the fact that so many shoppers are happy toput them in the basket also tells us that people are not asnearly loyal to brands as marketers would like to imagine.Indeed one recent survey suggested that only 4 percent of shoppers would be willing to stick with a brandif competitors offered them ‘better value for money’. Wefl atter ourselves to believe design and marketing create a‘relationship’ with people. What we forget is that peopleare susceptible. They are always going to have their headturned by something that looks almost as good, butcarries a cheaper price tag. If nothing else, copycatsdo all those involved in branding the service of remindingus that we are never as special as we think we are.Beyond what design can do to protect brands fromimitation (which is a slightly King Canute role) what elsemight be done? How about new legislation to providebrand owners legal protection from direct plagiarismof their expensively built brand equity? The EU unfaircompetition law provides recourse but the UK doesnot implement it. The Intellectual Property Offi ce issupposed to be reporting on its investigation into thistopic, but the publication date has been delayed.Perhaps in time the playing fi eld might feel more level.As we began with a quote, let us end with a couplethat might show the way: “In order to be irreplaceable,one must always be different,” noted Coco Chanel.More pithily Oscar Wilde observed: “Be yourself.Everybody else is taken.”At the end of the day, building a brand is about beingtrue to who and what you are and expressing it throughdesign. It’s a priceless thing, but as a design principle itactually comes for free. And it’s the one thing a copycatcan’t buy into for any money.

THE DRUM 12.APR.13 www.thedrum.com COPYCAT PACKAGING17THE IMPACTOF SIMILARPACKAGINGof shoppers65% agree it canbe confusing or misleadingwhen the packaging of twogrocery shopping itemslooks similar.of shoppers64% agree itwould concern themif the packaging of agrocery item suggestedit was connected to along established makeor brand when actuallyit was not.of shoppers38% admit tohaving been confused ormisled by the packagingof two grocery shoppingitems which look similar,with this rising to 48%between 16-24 year oldgrocery shoppers.of shoppers33% admit to havingaccidentally bought thewrong grocery shoppingitem because the packagingdesign was similar to theitem they wanted, withover half of 16-24 year-oldssurveyed admittingto having made sucha mistake.50% potentialboost inproduct sales as a resultof similar packaging tradingon the reputation of abranded product.Research conducted bythe British Market ResearchBureau among a representativesample of 1,199 British shoppersover the age of 16.

18digital leaderswww.thedrum.com 12.APR.13 THE DRUMAjaz Ahmedon LeadershipAs The Drum launches its peer review to identify the cream of thedigital crop, associate editor Richard Draycott catches up with AjazAhmed, founder of AKQA, to find out what makes a great leader.

THE DRUM 12.APR.13 www.thedrum.com digital leaders19What does it take to be a great leader? Asthe head of one of the world’s largest digitalagencies, which he started at the tender ageof 21, Ajaz Ahmed is very well placed to answerthat question. The Drum’s associate editorRichard Draycott catches up with the CEOand founder of AKQA to talk leadership.What is your earliest memory of takinga leadership role?Since the day I started at school, I was nearlyalways asked to go first. (Being called Ajaz Ahmed,it never mattered whether it was alphabetical orderby first name or surname).What was your first leadership role inbusiness and how did you approach it?I started working when I was about 15 and in thejobs I had I usually worked for the person in charge.So it meant I had a fair amount of responsibility evenas a kid. In terms of setting the direction and visionfor an organisation, then it would have been startingAKQA when I was 21 years old.What made you want to become abusiness leader and a leader of people?It was never a conscious decision to be a ‘leader’.I just wanted us to help society embrace the digitalrevolution by contributing work that’s of benefit.How would you describe your leadership style?Part Dalai Lama, part Sir Alex Ferguson.Would you say you have worked hard toimprove yourself as a leader, have you studiedleadership or does it come naturally to you?It’s my job to hire and coach the leaders withinAKQA and look out for the next generation. Thataspect of my role has not changed since we started.AKQA’s a very collaborative culture and even thoughwe’re now 1,300 people across 11 different offices, weare still organised like a start-up. There is tremendousteamwork with the top people at AKQA and that tendsto filter through to the rest of the company whichstrengthens the collaboration between everyone.How far ahead do you planfor your business as its leader?The AKQA journey is a marathon, not a sprint.It’s important to be constantly looking ahead.We reach a goal, take a moment for a sip of waterto get our breath back, then we’re back on the roadto hopefully achieve the next defining moment. Wework on some assignments that span a couple ofyears or more.For example Nike+ Kinect Training was two yearsin development. There are also projects or serviceswe are launching at AKQA right now that we alwayswanted to do but the timing was not right becausemaybe the technology or infrastructure was not wherewe needed it to be when we had the idea, but it is now.decision making is as autonomous as it can be.Hire good people who share your values, trustthem and give them the freedom to do their jobs.What has been the toughestleadership decision you have made?Did you make the right decision?A tough decision was in the early days of AKQAand the dot.com hype was going crazy. There wasone venture-backed start-up after another that hadjust received massive investment and neededorganisations to build their services.Despite huge pressure from our team, I madethe decision not to be tempted by all the businesson offer, because my instincts told me it was shorttermand was not sustainable. The start-ups wereburning through their new found cash at an alarming,unprecedented and irresponsible rate. So we focusedon our existing clients and the business models webelieved in. After the dot.com crash the money ranout and we were one of the only survivors in theindustry because we focused on sustainablebusinesses. Most of the other companies in ourspace hit the wall because they worked with theseshort-term companies that ran out of money.What key interpersonal skills or attributesdo you feel every effective leader needs?You have to let the idea win, not the hierarchy.That’s the key.What is the key to being an effectiveagency leader?Let the work do the talking, don’t believe thehype (especially your own), and remember thatno player is bigger than the club.If you weren’t leading your agency, whatrole would you like to have within it?I love what we’ve built at AKQA so there would beplenty to keep me busy. I think every role is a canvaswhere you can paint your career the way you wantto create the right opportunities.How honest does an effective leader have to be?You have to tell the truth, even if it’s not what peoplewant to hear.As a leader, how do you react when someonein your organisation makes a big mistake?If you can’t accept failing, then you can’t win either.The issue isn’t making a mistake – only when themistake is repeated.How do you react when someone you view asintegral to the success of your business leaves?We’re fortunate that the culture and DNA atAKQA is pretty strong and sustains beyondany individual. You just have to make surethat when someone good leaves you’ve foundsomeone even better. Ultimately, part of yourlegacy is the people you hire so we are very proudof our alumni and what they go on to achieve.How do you react when you losean important client?If you have given your all to a client and somethinghappens that’s out of your or their control, then there’sno point getting all emotional and navel-gazing. It’sbetter to take the long-term view; look ahead.Who else do you admire as a leader of people?My parents, because my dad is like the Dalai Lama,providing wisdom and my mum is like a soccer coach,providing encouragement.What do you do to relax? Can you ever switchoff as a leader in today’s connected world?Yep, I’m obsessed with music and films so caneasily get swept up by a great tune or epic story.You have recently written your own book,did you enjoy the discipline of writing andwill you do it again?Yes, it’s a good way to get your thoughtsorganised. Maybe there’s another book ortwo in me. I have a few ideas, so we will see.If you lost it all tomorrow, what would youdo with the rest of your life? Would you becomea leader in another area of life and, if so, what?It depends what you mean by ‘lost it all’. My dad taughtme: ‘When wealth is lost, nothing is lost; when health islost, something is lost; when character is lost, all is lost.’Who would you nominate as theyour mostinfluential individuals in digital?My three nominees are Sir Martin Sorrell, founderof WPP; Tom Bedecarre, chairman of AKQA andMark Read, CEO of WPP Digital.I serendipitously met Tom when I was 25. Wediscovered a shared sense of values and have beenworking together ever since. Tom is a saint in my life.He has given me extraordinary encouragement andsupport over the years. (At a board meeting, it wasTom who suggested I write a book). We thenlaunched the no.1 bestseller Velocity (and alsoraised tens of thousands for charity).AKQA joined the WPP family last June. With SirMartin’s leadership, drive and team, we are inspiredeveryday with WPP’s belief and investments for thefuture – whether that’s the organisations inventing itor the people shaping it.”The Drum has launched the peer review forits annual Digital 100 publication, inviting thedigital industry to nominate its most respectedand influential agencies and individuals.To nominate the digital practitioners youfind most inspiring, complete the peer reviewsurvey online: thedrum.com/chfAs an effective agency leader, how doyou approach making important decisions?Is it down to you or by committee?If you hire good people you have to let them makethe decisions. We have zero committees at AKQA.We have an entrepreneurial environment that means“Let the work do the talking, don’t believethe hype (especially your own), and rememberthat no player is bigger than the club.”

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THE DRUM 12.APR.13 www.thedrum.com gender politics21do womendiscriminateagainst women?We’ve had a female PM, yet UK boardrooms still lack women. Followingthe launch of Sheryl Sandberg’s book on the issue, Angela Haggertyinvestigates whether women are discriminating against themselves.

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THE DRUM 12.APR.13 www.thedrum.com GENDER POLITICS23Since the sex discrimination act was passedin 1975, women have asserted their position inthe workplace and moved substantially away fromthe stereotypes of ‘the old days’. However, therehas been little movement at the top, and whilethere is agreement that there is a problem, nobodyseems quite sure what it is, far less how to fix it.Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg’s new book ‘LeanIn: Women, Work and the Will to Lead’, has been billedby some as a corporate feminist manifesto, encouragingwomen to lean in to the boardroom. Millionaire Sandberghas held senior positions at Google, the US Treasuryand the World Bank and became the fi rst – and only –woman to grace the board of Facebook. While therelease of the book – which sold 140,000 copies inits fi rst week – ignited debate in the US on the lackof women at boardroom level, the outlook in the UKmay be even bleaker.Douglas Kinnaird, managing director of UK recruitmentconsultancy MacDonald Kinnaird, argues statisticssuggest women are discriminating against themselves.“Fifty-three per cent of lawyers graduating are femaleand 52 per cent of chartered accountants graduatingare female,” says Kinnaird. “The response we’ve seento advertised jobs on average from women over 25years is 3.7 per cent, so for every 100 applications,only three are female. That tells me that it’s womenwho discriminate against themselves.”A Grant Thornton International Business Report onwomen in senior management showed women hold onein fi ve senior management roles globally, with less thanone in 10 businesses having a female chief executive.The UK lagged behind countries such as Brazil, thePhilippines, Russia and Japan in the rankings at 20per cent of women in the country holding senior roles.While the report put the US slightly behind the UK,CEO of Convertr Media, Mary Keane-Dawson, perceivesit differently: “I think the situation in Britain is far worse.The under-representation of women in the boardroomof UK PLC is absolutely appalling and a travesty ofwasted talent and insight missing from our businesses.”If the situation in the UK is broadly not much better,if at all, than the US, the news is even worse for thecreative industries. A Creative Skillset report revealedrepresentation of women in general was lower inthe creative industries than across the economy asa whole and that they were underpaid, despite beingmore highly qualifi ed than their male counterparts.Melina Jacovou, co-founder of Propel London,said: “I can only name a handful of senior women inboard-level roles in the digital industry in the UK. I attenda lot of events and it’s really rare to see senior womenon the podium and very unusual to hear or see womenCEOs or founders, particularly in the ad tech arena.“There has been a huge reaction to Sheryl Sandberg’sbook and her comments that has clearly highlighted theneed for discussion around the issues of power positionsfor women. The majority of senior industry jobs are heldby men. It’s a major issue. I hope the next generationof women coming up through the workforce will be theones to change the imbalance. Research has shownthat boards with a mix of women and men producemore effective and creative solutions for businesses.”The lack of women at a senior level prompted Kinnairdto set up one of the fi rst ever glass ceiling conferencesin the country in the 80s and he has been monitoring theoutlook ever since. Kinnaird says companies are broadlyin agreement that there is a problem even if they can’tpinpoint what it is, but pointed towards the resultsof an attempt by a British utility company in the 90sto increase the number of senior women.“A major British utility company put in a positivediscrimination policy for a number of years becauseit felt it was far too much a male orientated organisation,”he says. “After three years it found there was no changewhatsoever, so called on a consultancy to fi nd out why,which found three reasons.“The fi rst was chauvinism; males didn’t want to recruitfemales but, fascinatingly, females did not want to workfor females in some cases. The second was that whena job came up internally, women just didn’t apply. Thethird reason was that most people who progress in alarge company are mentored – senior men simply werenot prepared to do that with young women because ofpotential for gossip, and so women can’t get a mentor.”A study by the University of Leeds showed thathaving at least one female board member reduceda business’s chances of folding by 20 per cent.A report from Credit Suisse in July 2012 showedthat companies with a market capitalisation of morethan $10bn (£6.3bn) and women on their boardsdid 23 per cent better than those with only men.“I think there are plenty of extremely talentedfemales in the industry but they are not seen in thesame way as their male counterparts,” Keane-Dawsoncontinues. “I also think that some women fi nd thetoughness of business very hard to work with in thelong term. Business is not about being horrible butyou do have to be able to make decisions thatsometimes won’t make you popular.“I fi nd the bitchiness of the language used to describefemale leaders pretty disgusting. I believe women insuch positions are often seen as a conduit for envy andsuspicion, rather than recognised as being where theyare because they are right for the role. Many throughoutmy career have made assumptions that, as a woman,I’m going to be a soft touch. I have always managed toturn their underestimations to my advantage.”Jacovou agrees there is an issue with women failingto put themselves forward for more senior roles.“I think it’s fair to say that women aren’t usually thefi rst to put themselves forward for opportunities. But Ithink that’s because men and women have fundamentallydifferent styles. Women are and can be confi dent, justin a different way, and they need to develop an assertivemanner without it being seen negatively.”Both women agreed with the need for mentors to helpwomen move further up the ladder, and with Sandberg’sview on the importance of support networks to branchout from. “Talk to other women, men, fi nd mentors inyour industry, outside your industry,” says Jacovou.“Network at events on your terms, get a support systemtogether with people you trust. It will build confi dence,experience and the network will be supportive as yourcareer develops; and you can look forward to mentoringyoung people coming through the ranks yourself.”“Find a great coach, and a male one is a goodidea if you can’t fi nd a female one you admire andrespect,” adds Keane-Dawson, who coaches up andcoming senior talent. “Understand how others perceiveyou and work on ensuring that you are always true toyourself. Keep making decisions that are about movingforward and learn from your mistakes.“Do not feel guilty for being a success or a failure,just make sure you work with people who believein making it happen as much as you do.”Melina Jacovou,co-founder, PropelLondonSheryl Sandberg,COO, FacebookMary Keane-Dawson, CEO,ConvertrMedia“WOMEN ARE OFTENSEEN AS A CONDUITFOR ENVY ANDSUSPICION, RATHERTHAN RECOGNISEDAS BEING WHERETHEY ARE BECAUSETHEY ARE RIGHTFOR THE ROLE.”

24DESERT ISLAND CLIPSwww.thedrum.com 12.APR.13 THE DRUMdesertislandclipsStuart Douglas of NiceShirt Films imagines himselfcastaway on a desert island,relaying to Jason Stone ofDavid Reviews the film clipshe’d want to take with him.Each interviewee in this serieshas faced the difficulty of decidinghow much of their own work toinclude in their selection, but noone seems to have agonised overthis as much as Stuart Douglas ofNice Shirt Films. It was clear thathe’d much rather champion filmsmade by other directors than bigup his own work.This is one of the reasons whyhe’s as far from the stereotypicalrepresentation of a film director asit’s possible to be. Quietly spoken andfaultlessly polite, Douglas is thoughtfulin both senses. It wasn’t a surprisewhen he revealed that the thought ofincluding any of his own commercialshad made him “uncomfortable” and itwas only because of arm twisting bycolleagues that he’d included anythingfrom his own canon.His life behind the camera beganas half of the stills photographyduo The Douglas Brothers. He andhis brother Andrew established aformidable reputation in the late1980s and were celebrated for adistinctive look that was much copied.Like some of their contemporaries,they graduated from photographingalbum covers to directing pop promos.Then, as now, pop promos did notpay very well, so the brothers jumpedat an opportunity provided by TimDelaney. Having just won the Adidasaccount, Delaney wanted to surprisethe sportswear giant with an “entirelynew approach” and believed he coulddo this by giving the Douglases carteblanche – “he gave us a bunch ofmoney, the likes of which we’d neverseen before, and said ‘Go away. Bringme back films. Bring me back stills. Bringme back anything,’ and so we went toAmerica, toured around, and came backwith around 17 different commercials.”Was it terrifying to be given suchan open brief? “No, we thought itwas normal. We thought this washow it worked – they just give you aload of money and you make whatyou want.” To his regret, Douglas hasspent the rest of his career discoveringhow atypical this experience was.He and Andrew stayed togetherfor as long as they could, trying tomake the dual director approachwork: “It’s not easy. On set, there’sa machine and the instructions needto be clear. And quite often wewould give conflicting directions.”As the younger of the two, herecognises now that he was tryingto grab his “own bit of authority”.“It became quite fiery. We’d have fistfights on the set, much to the crew’samusement. And we held it togetheras long as we could but actually it wasreally miserable. Miserable for us andmiserable for the people around us.“We called it a day – quite“it became quite fiery. we’d havefist fights on the set, much tothe crew’s amusement.”acrimoniously actually – and he wentto the States which was good as it gaveme some space here and, of course, itgave him space over there. We didn’t talkfor about five years but we’re fine now.”Although it was “daunting” to stepinto the directing arena by himself,he had all the experience requiredto quickly established a solo careerand he’s been successfully makingcommercials ever since.01 Mercedes ‘Time’“It’s just so stylish and edgy at thesame time,” explains Douglas whenasked why he selected Johnny Green’s2008 Mercedes commercial featuringJosh Brolin. “It gets its tone from themusic track (by Nick Cave andWarren Ellis) which is really dark. It’sreally well cut and it’s really well shot.And it’s just full of atmosphere. Andbecause it’s a car that can sometimeshave connotations of being driven bygentle old men, it provided a reallyfresh look at [the brand].”After delivering such a positiveappraisal, Douglas laughingly ownsup to professional envy: “I was guttedwhen I first saw it... because I loved it.”This leads to a discussion about theway directors can be typecast whichis clearly a source of frustration: “I findthat I’m pigeon-holed in a number ofpigeon holes. There are some peoplethat only know me for car photography.

THE DRUM 12.APR.13 www.thedrum.comDESERT ISLAND CLIPS2501 Mercedes ‘Time’ 02 Volvo ‘Twister’03 Levi’s ‘Drugstore’04 TAC ‘Swap’The majority of the UK industry knowme as ‘Waitrose boy’ – you know,pretty landscapes, slightly romanticisedversions of the UK. Then there wasa spate of work that put me in thesport pigeon hole. I’m quite luckyin that I’ve managed to jump pigeonholes but it can still be frustrating.“I think – at the moment – peopleknow me for quiet, pretty visuals...for a romanticised version of reality.Whereas actually – inside – I aminside much closer to JohnnyGreen’s Mercedes than I am to‘children in sunshiny fields’ so whenI see something like the Mercedes filmI just think, ‘Damn, that’s really good.I wish I’d done that.’”02 Volvo ‘Twister’“The work that Tom (Carty) and Walt(Campbell) did on Volvo absolutelychanged my viewpoint of commercialsand how I wanted to work. When I saw‘Twister’ it was a revelation. Just theway it opens with that little montage...there’s so much emotion was in there.So many great images were in there.And it tells a story in a very, very leftfieldway about this car. And I thoughtit was fantastic that Tom, Walt, directorTony Kaye and the whole account teamat Abbott Mead got this on air.”Douglas doubts that it would bepossible to get approval for a pieceof work like this anymore: “The journeyto get a really nice piece of work on air

26DESERT ISLAND CLIPSwww.thedrum.com 12.APR.13 THE DRUMis long and difficult and there’s a lotof opinions that you have to hurdleand quite often – increasingly often –those hurdles can trip you up andwhat you can end up with isconservative and mediocre.“It’s especially frustrating whenthe treatment that’s been approvedis scythed down... especially whenit’s done using research figures which,on the whole, are manipulated andmean nothing anyway.”03 Levi’s ‘Drugstore’“I am a big fan of the guy whowrote it – Nick Worthington – and Ireally wish he and his ilk were still inthe industry because he was alwayspushing and pushing to see what wecould do to bring some originality...something surprising.“With Levi’s ‘Drug Store’ youhad (Michel) Gondry directing andhe brought all his tricks to the table –it’s genius the way he creates thingsin his head. And in the end it’sjust a wonderful piece of storytelling.Lovely ending – the first time you seeit, you don’t know where it’s going.”04 TAC ‘Swap’Douglas’s next selection is anAustralian road safety film directed bySean Meehan – another director on theNice Shirt roster: “I put this in becauseI think it’s a really accomplished pieceof communication. It was importantthat not everything on my list waschosen because of visual reasonsand, although this is very nicelyshot, it’s not stylised in any way.“What’s great about it is that theperformances are fantastic; they’reso naturally observed. There’s such alight touch from Sean at the helm andI think it’s a quite brilliant bit of directing– and then, like all good Australian roadsafety commercials, when the twistcomes... fucking hell – the first timeI saw it, I almost fell off the chair.I didn’t see it coming at all.”Part of the film’s success lies in theaudience’s immediate engagementwith the two protagonists andDouglas acknowledges that thisis “a very particular skill and a lotmore difficult than people sometimesrecognise. Ultimately that’s our job...to communicate a story.”Because of his route into thebusiness, this was a skill that Douglashad to develop over time and hedescribes it as “a very gradualprocess which involved listening toa lot of knowledgeable people – whenan experienced creative contributes toan edit, you might be thinking: ‘you’remessing with my pictures – what areyou doing?’ but actually if you’re openenough to give them a chance, youcan see what they’re trying to do – theymight not want your favourite images– but if the film then communicates itspoint better then that doesn’t matter.”The third person in the room inthis scenario is the editor and StuartDouglas has nothing but praise for thework they do: “I love editing. I love theskill of editing. I love what editors do.And I think a great editor can makeor break the material that we bring.”05 Castrol ‘Jagged’Douglas chose Peter Thwaite’sCastrol commercial because “it’sa fantastic visual analogy using aphotographic technique. I don’t knowif it was the creative’s idea or whetherit was Peter’s idea. I suspect it wasPeter’s idea and I want to think itwas Peter’s idea... using a time-lapseapproach to photograph traffic at nightwith long exposures and – to give theconnection with what Castrol does –he’s moving the camera. So the trafficis jagged and sharp... and it gratesand you can feel it and then graduallyit starts to smooth out and it becomesliquid movement. It’s just a great visualtechnique and it perfectly describes theproduct without spelling anything out.”06 Canal+ ‘Wardrobe’“I’m not known for my comedy work,”Douglas in a perfect deadpan voiceas he introduces a hilarious commercialfor Canal+ as his next selection, “butI can appreciate good comedy. It’s wellshot, well told and just really funny.”Does he think ads like this thathave very funny punchlines stand upto repeated viewings? “Great writingnever gets tired,” he says beforeexplaining how it’s possible tointroduce elements specificallydesigned to reward subsequentviewings – he and the creative teamwill sometimes devise “little surprisesthat you might not get first, second,third viewing but will reveal themselvesafter repeated viewings and can addto the strength [of the commercial].”07 Stella Artois‘Returning Hero’Douglas’s next selection also has astrong punchline – Frank Budgen’scommercial for Stella Artois featuring asoldier returning to his home village withthe man who heroically saved his life.“Look at the craft skills – the visuals, thescenic direction and the performancesare all fantastic. It’s just a great littlestory, well-told and it incorporatesthe product into it’s reasoning. It’s aperfectly executed TV commercial.”05 Castrol ‘Jagged’08 Sony Ericsson‘Jonnie X Trailer’The only selection directed by Douglashimself was a trailer for a series ofnine two-minute films “released over anumber of days to tell a complete story.It came out of Dare when it was stillpretty much a digital agency. It wantedsomething a bit different for SonyEricsson. They had a basic notion ofwhat they wanted – a guy who’s losthis memory who somehow uses thephone to figure out who he is. Not aterribly original premise but we werethen given total freedom to write thescript. It gave me a little taste of whatit would be like to make a feature.”Is this an ambition for him? “I wouldbe lying if I said ‘no’ but I think you needa certain kind of personality to have thedetermination and the tenacity to breakinto it and even though I think I could doa good job, I’m just not sure.I remember Jonathan Glazer tellingme that [making a feature] is like beingbeaten around the head with a baseballbat every single day and I’m not sureI’ve got a strong enough personalityfor that. Having said that, I’d love to.”If ruthlessness and ego-drivenself-certainty are required to directa feature film then Douglas may becorrect to think that it’s beyond him.It probably wouldn’t have occurredto someone with the ‘determinationand tenacity’ he describes to usean interview to heap praise ondirectors they admire rather thanupon themselves. Indeed, he wantedto include a ninth commercial so hecould express his admiration for themost recent John Lewis Christmasad – he thinks it’s astonishing thatDougal Wilson manages to makeus care so much about a lovestory between two charactersmade of snow.But with a bit of luck he’ll beproven wrong about features, theright project backed by the rightpeople will come his way and we’llall get the opportunity to see whathe can do on a larger canvas. He’ssucceeded at everything else he’stried so there’s no reason to supposehe wouldn’t triumph again. After all,he may be a very modest man buthis talents are anything but.

THE DRUM 12.APR.13 www.thedrum.comDESERT ISLAND CLIPS2706 Canal+ ‘Wardrobe’ 08 Sony Ericsson ‘Jonnie X Trailer’07 Stella Artois ‘Returning Hero’

THE DRUM 12.APR.13 www.thedrum.com THE WORKS29WorksTHEA round-up of the bestcreative work from thepast fortnight as votedby readers of thedrum.com. Send submissionsfor next issue to gillian.west@thedrum.comAdjust Your Set hascreated an inspirationalcontent campaign forCarphone Warehouse.Entitled ‘Smarter World’,the creative is aimed atencouraging people touse the wide and variedpossibilities smartphonesoffer. The first releaseof the series is an onlinedocumentary followingamateur photographerDilshad Corleone’s riseto fame throughsmartphone photography.

30THE WORKSwww.thedrum.com 12.APR.13 THE DRUMREADERS’FAVOURITEAs voted forby readers ofthedrum.comBunch developed the brand identity for globalinternet access solution Fogg based on the branddirections conceived by Kurppa Hosk. Also in chargeof print production, Bunch was able to producematerials where the ‘borderless’ theme is exploredthrough not only typography and visuals but alsomaterials, print processes and finishes.

THE DRUM 12.APR.13 www.thedrum.com THE WORKS31krow Communications hasbalanced the scales forFiat following on from lastyear’s viral success ‘TheMotherhood’ with ‘TheFatherhood’ dedicatedto the dads out there.The online film shows thetrials and tribulations of anew dad who now spendshis evenings driving hischildren to sleep whilstreminiscing about how “lifewas so much simpler whenI was a New Romantic”.Yui Hamagashira of Film Club (part of Th1ng) completed an online film for ChildLine from a storyboard submitted by a 13 year-old Owain from Burton on Trent as part of Film Club’s nationalfilm storyboard competition in partnership with BAFTA Kids’ Vote. The three minute long animation tells the simple story of the importance of friendship.

32THE WORKSwww.thedrum.com 12.APR.13 THE DRUMMother London has carried out the new provocative andhumorous print and outdoor campaign for Green & Black’sorganic chocolate range which sees every bar given itsown alluring persona. The work is Mother’s first for thebrand since winning the account last year.

THE DRUM 12.APR.13 www.thedrum.com THE WORKS33Multidisciplinary design agency Savvy completed the identity and collateral for San Pedro-based bar Gomez.The bar’s visual identity aims to deliver a youthful, friendly and expressive brand personality through quirkyillustrations and a bold electric blue colour scheme.Landor Communications hasreimagined the logo for UKTVin order to celebrate thenetworks 21st anniversary.The new logo featuresacross identity elements andprogramming, as well as crosspromotion menus, programmeopening and closing credits, cobrandedconsumer advertisingand all B2B communications.

JASON LANKOW JOSH RITCHIE ROSS CROOKSFounders of Column Fivefig. 011263A T T R A C TI N F O R MI N S P I R EA U D I E N C Exy34SPONSORED CONTENTwww.thedrum.com 12.APR.13 THE DRUMFig. 8.1WHAT MAKES AGOOD INFOGRAPHIC?INFOGRAPHICS$¥£€An excerpt from Infographics: The Power ofVisual Storytelling by Jason Lankow, Josh Ritchieand Ross Crooks reveals the key componentsof a good infographic, highlighting the importanceof communication, meaning, integrity and beauty.

THE DRUM 12.APR.13 www.thedrum.com BOOK EXCERPT35UtilityBeautySoundnessIn order to answer this question, we mustapply a critical framework through which wecan understand and measure quality. When youlook at a good infographic, everything aboutit makes sense. A good infographic, to borrowagain from Horace’s thoughts on the role of apoet, leaves you feeling informed or delighted.In Chapter 1 (Importance and Efficacy),we discussed the value of infographics asvisual solutions to communication problems.Vitruvius’ principles of good design serve asthree components by which we attempt tomeasure quality of these solutions (Figure 8.1).A good infographic has all three:• Utility• Soundness• BeautyUTILITYWith respect to utility, infographics must employan objectives based approach. Essentially, theutility of an infographic is measured by howit enables a brand to reach its objectives. Weestablished in Chapter 1 (Importance and Efficacy)that all infographics communicate information.And, there are two approaches to communicating:explorative and narrative. Therefore, to measure thequality you must consider the approach. To recap,explorative infographics provide information in anunbiased fashion, enabling viewers to analyze itand arrive at their own conclusions. This approachis best used for scientific and academicapplications, in which comprehension of collectedresearch or insights is a priority. Narrativeinfographics guide the viewers through a specificset of information that tells a predetermined story.This approach is best used when there is a needto leave readers with a specific message to takeaway, and should focus on audience appeal andinformation retention. It is important to think aboutthese two approaches in a non-hierarchical way.Each is unique, and their effectiveness is ultimatelyjudged by how well they enable a brand to reachits communication objectives, regardless ofhow readers interact with the information.SOUNDNESSGood infographics also communicate somethingmeaningful. Communicating a message worthtelling provides readers with something of value.While infographics can be a powerful vehicle ofcommunication, they are sometimes producedarbitrarily or when a cohesive and interesting storyisn’t present. If the information itself is incomplete,untrustworthy, or uninteresting, attempting tocreate a good infographic with it is more than afool’s errand; it’s impossible. We discussed thecommon mistakes found in infographics with CliffKuang. He receives hundreds of pitches each dayfrom people wanting their infographics featured inhis “Infographic of the Day” column, often frombrands, agencies, and designers that are tryingto generate press for themselves. Kuang said themost frequent mistake these individuals make isthat their subject matter is not interesting.According to Kuang, “Infographic producers(from brands to designers) tend to confusethe amount of time they put into researching,copywriting, and designing an infographic with thelevel of willingness that an audience has to readthe content.” In short, if no one cares what theinfographic is communicating, then how can it begood? In Chapter 4 (Editorial Infographics), webriefly discussed some of the questions we askourselves during our ideation process, specificallyrelating to editorial content. While not everyinfographic is or should be editorial in nature, thesequestions are helpful in determining the types ofinfographic ideas that lead to good infographics.Infographic content should relate to its intendedaudience, whether it is a broad or targeted one.Therefore an infographic that is sound is one thathas meaning and integrity.BEAUTYWhile the information is of the utmost importancewhen it comes to soundness, what is done with theinformation—essentially, how it is designed—is alsoimportant. With this in mind, there are two things toconsider: format and design quality. If an inappropriateformat is used, the outcome will be inferior. Similarly, if thedesign misrepresents or skews the information deliberatelyor due to user error, or if the design is inappropriate giventhe subject matter, it cannot be considered high quality,no matter how aesthetically appealing it appears at firstglance. An infographic’s design should be prescribed,with regards to appropriateness and effectiveness, bythe objectives and the information being displayed, notindividual preferences. The design is the application of avisual solution to the problem; it is representative of theapproach as a whole, rather than individual elements(e.g., an illustration or icon). According to Moritz Stefaner,“information visualization and information graphics workbest when they take the recipient and the data seriously.”This advice reflects the old adage that form shouldfollow function. This is why we must contextualize ourperception of beauty. Some people like illustrations ofmonkeys or pirates alongside their charts and graphs;others consider anything other than black, left-alignedHelvetica Medium on white to be “noisy.” Both of thesesolutions can be effective and be considered good giventhe proper context. Picking the right visual solution mayrequire you to use intense illustration or data visualization,or both. It’s all about finding the right visual representationsof the information, based on the story. Because aninfographic’s design also takes your specific objectives,the information, and the audience into account, there areendless possibilities for how beauty can be manifested.In the following chapter, we will discuss two main visualelements used in infographic design—illustration and datavisualization—and explain our approach to each.Infographics: The Power of Visual Story Tellingby Jason Lankow, Josh Ritchi, and Ross Crooks(Wiley, £19.99). Out now in print and ebook format,from all good bookshops.

36KNOWLEDGE BANKwww.thedrum.com 12.APR.13 THE DRUMFinding great ideas using crowdsIf you are asked to innovate in any form, have ideasand implement them then gathering feedback onyour ideas is critical. And, yes, doing it all efficientlyis essential.Undoubtedly you use brainstorming to get new ideasor evaluate current strategies. But, how often have youcome away thinking that you nailed it? More likely, youhave nagging doubts. Are these the best ideas? Did I getenough feedback? This is normal. After all brainstormingis over 60 years old.Instead of 10 people in a room, why not use a crowd of1,000 online? We call this crowdstorming, the intersectionof crowdsourcing and brainstorming. The benefits: moreideas and more feedback, more quickly. Ultimately you canmore efficiently gather and test ideas. Countless people inbusiness are building crowdstorming into their strategy foreverything from product designs to picking the bestpricing strategies.Over the last few years, we have studied hundreds ofcrowdstorm projects. Here are a couple of takeaways thatwe think lead to success.More than online contestsCrowdstorming is evolving quickly from simple contestsearches for ideas to more complex interactions wherecrowds take on multiple specialized tasks.We think contests fall into crowdstorming patterns.The search pattern focuses a challenge on finding thebest ideas (or candidates, partners, etc.). Often the searchprocess is desirable because it yields results that can betested: think of the Netflix challenge to find a prototypefor better search algorithms.Other crowdstorms are more collaborative. This is mostuseful when we want help to decide which conceptsare worthy of additional time and investment. When wecrowdstorm using this pattern we are not only sourcingideas, we are evaluating and building on ideas. Think ofthe LifeEdited architectural challenge that delivered 300ideas for low-footprint housing, but 7,300 comments toevolve those ideas.Ask the right questionsFinding new ideas only or looking for feedback on ideaswill help shape what you ask crowds to solve and howyou want them to participate.In the search pattern, you are asking for a fully bakedresponse; a prototype that you can test. In the collaborativepattern, a napkin sketch may be fine; after all, you may beasking for feedback on an existing product or design oradvertising idea. In the first case you are looking for ideacontributors; in the second, you are looking for a communityto engage with you as evaluators and potential advocates.In either case, providing the right level of detail isimportant: providing too much detail may prescribe theoutcome; too little and solutions and feedback may missthe mark or be squishy.It is useful to think in terms of “what ifs”. What if wecould have our customers to dictate pricing terms asgiffgaff did? And, all calls to action should be woven intoa story – your story and start-up vision – in order to inspireexternal talent to participate and deliver great responses.Efficient motivationInspiration is also about incenting articipation. Financialincentives are important but this may not be feasible formany startups. There are alternatives.Triple8 used a revenue-share model for the design of askateboard helmet creating a win/win for both themselvesand the participants. LifeEdited worked with mediapartners that used the participant’s entries as contentfor press coverage. Celebrating winning participants byputting their name on the product (as Gap does) providesthem with exposure.The point here is that startups can take advantage ofnon-financial incentives to motivate participants:• Doing good: Participants are motivated by theopportunity to work on something that contributes tosocial good.• Getting attention: The ability to get exposure andrecognition beyond the participant’s current network.• Experience: Working on a challenging problem for anin order to build out a portfolio provides incentive. Thechance to learn and hone skills is an important intrinsicmotivator.(Wiley, £18.99). Out nowin print and ebook format,from all good bookshops.Selecting the best ideaMany more participants, means many, many moreideas. This is a good problem.In the search pattern, we can use testing to help uswith our evaluation. We can also use experts, but with100x participants come 100x ideas. A small team ofdeciders may be quickly overwhelmed.Asking the crowd to help with the evaluation (usingvoting or ratings) provides an alternative. For startups,there is another reason to use the collaborative patternto help select ideas. It provides a way to build acommunity. Giving people an important role to help anorganization make decisions can build a communityof advocates.There are implications to asking feedback to selectideas. Think about it this way, if you have 100 peoplesubmitting ideas, you can expect 10x that number totake on smaller roles like voting or offering feedback.Working with a partner who offers an online space anda Community Manager can help you crowdstorm ata low cost.Is it worth it?The bottom line is that crowdstorming offers lotsof ideas and feedback efficiently. It is more complexthan brainstorming with 10 people in a room. But thepayoff is there. It not only helps with getting andselecting ideas but provides an efficient way to builda community of advocates who can help you promoteyour business, too.WileyShaun Abrahamson, Peter Ryder andBastian Unterberg are co-authors ofCrowdstorm: The Future of Innovation,Ideas, and Problem Solving

THE DRUM 12.APR.13 www.thedrum.com RECRUITMENT37NEW JOBS UPLOADED DAILY AT WWW.THEDRUM.COM/JOBSBUSINESS DIRECTOREast of England | £46,000 to £53,000DIGITAL ACCOUNT MANAGERCentral Scotland | £25,000 DOENorwich University of the Arts is looking to recruit a talented andambitious individual with recent and relevant commercial successgained in business or the university sector. http://bit.ly/Yehv0EFantastic opportunity to join an small but innovative full servicedigital agency based in Glasgow city centre. A digital accountmanager is required with minimum 2-3 years’ experience workingin a similar environment. http://bit.ly/YzKbALACCOUNT DIRECTORLondon | £45,000 - £55,000CREATIVE TECHNOLOGISTNorth West | £DOECandidates should be strategic, experienced in teammanagement, have the ability to build and grow clientrelationships as well as have a track record of deliveringabove expectation. http://bit.ly/11NqLJkYou will help broaden the digital offering of the agency, sharingyour knowledge across departments and helping to positionTBWA\Manchester as an agency leader for the digital age.http://bit.ly/ZjSv3eSALES EXECUTIVE - ONLINE SOFTWARENorth East | £23,000 - £28,000ONLINE CAMPAIGN MANAGERYorkshire & The Humber | £22,000 - £27,000An award winning Newcastle based digital agency is lookingto expand its existing team by recruiting an experienced salesexecutive - online software. http://bit.ly/10JaEtyA leading fashion retailer based in West Yorkshire is currentlylooking for an online campaign manager to cover a period ofmaternity leave. You will manage the predict categories andshops on the website. http://bit.ly/YIbw3MSENIOR ACCOUNT MANAGERLondon | £30,000 -35,000 plus benefi tsASSOCIATE DIRECTOR - B2B AGENCYSouth East | £60,000 – £75,000 + bonusGreat role within a leading DM and digital environment for asenior account manager to join the team on this fl agship client.Ideal if you are looking to move from AM to SAM role.http://bit.ly/WTfQMkB2B agency south of Oxford is looking for an associatedirector to join their growing team. You should have experienceof leading successful marketing projects and programmes.http://bit.ly/Z5naoQSENIOR DESIGNER / CREATIVE MANAGERSouth West | £35,000 - £40,000GLOBAL DIGITAL DIRECTORLondon | £95,000In your creative hat you will be a conceptual thinker able to getunder the skin of a client brand. Someone who can consistentlydeliver innovative creative ideas and execute these acrossmultiple touch points. http://bit.ly/Z5neoqAn international eCommerce organisation, leaders in their market,are looking for a highly entrepreneurial digital professional to takeownership of their global digital strategy. http://bit.ly/16LPgG0Over 650 live jobs on The Drum, visit:www.thedrum.com/jobsTo fi nd out more call Tehmeena on 0141 559 6064

38last wordwww.thedrum.com 12.APR.13 THE DRUMLAST WorDThe Drum’s opinion editor Cameron Clarke takes a look at some of thedrum.com’sbest read blogs from the last fortnight, including Hayden Sutherland of Ideal Interface’stirade against the word ‘omnichannel’. To see your views in print or on our website,email your opinion pieces to cameron.clarke@thedrum.com.more fromthe blogs...Omnichannel - what an OmnishamblesThe political satire TV programme‘The Thick Of It’ coined the wordOmnishambles back in 2009.We then saw it used by reallife politicians in the House ofCommons, it trended on Twitterfor a while (#omnishambles) andit was subsequently nominatedas “Word of The Year” in 2012.Created by the merger of two words:the Latin prefix ‘omni’, meaning ‘all’,and ‘shambles’, the word for a totalf**king disorder… it has already creptinto usage by opposition MPs and BBCNewsnight presenters.But now we are in danger of a verysimilar word becoming popular in theonline and e-commerce industries. Onethat sends a shiver down my spinewhen I hear it uttered… omnichannel.Once again forged by combining‘omni’ with an obvious word, it createsa term that for retailing means (viaWikipedia): “a seamless approach tothe consumer experience through allavailable shopping channels, ie mobileinternet devices, computers, bricksand-mortar,television, catalogue, andso on”. So why does it get my goat somuch?• The inference from those that use itis that somehow omnichannel is betterthan multichannel (I’ve even seen a jobtitle for “head of omnichannel” beingadvertised recently).• The customer experience shouldbe seamless regardless of how manyretail channels a company offers.• We are using yet another wordfor the same thing; different ways ofbuying stuff, such as store, website,mobile app, etc. However theomnichannel consultants are alreadyout in force, ready to tell you thatmultichannel is last year’s news and theKing is dead.• In this modern, digitally connectedworld, does a retailer need to sellthrough EVERY channel all the time?Really? What happened to the use ofthe most cost effective and relevantchannels for retailing? That’s whywe scaled down the use of thetelephone and why a postal catalogueis a novelty (almost nobody I knowis prepared to pay for a new copyof the Next Directory).It’s my opinion that the word‘omnichannel’ has been throwninto various online conversationsand white papers by consultantsjust looking to distinguish themselvesfrom others in the market merelyoffering ‘multichannel’.Still, it could be worse… I recentlyheard someone say in an e-commercepresentation “there is now nochannel”, which is either a furtherway to differentiate themselvesfrom the growing omnichannelmob or a Buddist/Matrix reference.Hayden Sutherland,director, Ideal InterfaceFor more blogs go to thedrum.com/opinionBRAND OVERBOARDViking River Cruises pulledits sponsorship of ITV dramaBroadchurch after a burningboat was shown in one episode.Sam Fowler suggests thecompany has gone overboardwith its reaction.“Pulling the sponsorship hascaused more of a wave aroundwhat was a non-starter of an issue.A smarter move would have beento accept that, as part of fictionaldrama concerning murder, a smallboat is seen burning at sea – andprepare a PR campaign shouldanyone feel particularly aggrievedabout this.”MOBILE AT 40The mobile phone is 40years old and as it growsas a marketing tool, brandsmust realise that theirold-school sales methodswon’t translate to the smallscreen, warns Paul Doran.“The aggressive, often spammy,advertising push, targeting andretargeting world of the internetdoes not translate well in themobile world. With devices beingheld so personal to their owners,this means the balance of powerhas shifted and resulted in areduced tolerance for ill-conceived,poorly targeted communications.”

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