Regional creatives are spreading the rubbish virus

By Andrew Durkan, creative director, The Tribe

“You’ll remember this notion from a few years ago: If you sleep with someone, you’re sleeping with everyone they’ve ever slept with, and everyone that they’ve ever slept with, and so on. In the end you walk away with whatever germs may have been lurking about.

I feel like that every time I walk into a meeting with a client. It’s a contaminated environment. And for once, this is not a moan about clients. It’s about every other creative director who has shared space with this client. Because, with a few exceptions, they’ve spread the rubbish virus.

Let me start at roughly the beginning. About 20 years ago, in Soho, Sydney and Sandton, a group of talentless soaks had run out of chances and burned too many bridges. Their future careers looked bleak. But what if there was a place where mediocrity would go unrecognised, even be rewarded? And so they came. With accents talking the talk, a bit of rock and roll swagger, and stories of when they shot with Ridley.

And for close on two decades, they collectively produced a pile of unmitigated rubbish. Work that was bad for the consumer, bad for brands, bad for agencies, bad for the region and – the part that I’m particularly concerned about – bad for every single person who succeeded them.

Here’s what happens when an agency presents work to a client: they talk a big number two about ‘thinking outside the box’; they talk everything up as a ‘big idea’; and they do so with expertly honed confidence. They say everything a client wants to hear about their advertising and the clients lap it up. They’re the experts after all. And so the seeds of mediocrity are sown again and again.

Here’s a reality check. The ‘Best Job in the World’ campaign was a big idea. There were perhaps two others in the world last year. They’re very, very rare and they don’t come cheap. But the whole notion of a big idea has been cheapened by every single one that pretends to be, but is barely an ad.

In my darkest moments, I question myself as honestly as possible about whether, if I were the client, I’d buy the piece of work that I’m presenting. And I always get to thinking: ‘No.’ Not because of the work, but because I suddenly think that being constantly deceived by people in advertising must make it very difficult to recognise the moment when you’re actually exposed to even a reasonably good idea, never mind a great one.

As a postscript, the above rant only has relevance to the approximately five creative directors in the Middle East who actually know what they’re doing. Who are they, you ask? Consider this: if there are 1,000 agencies in the region, that would mean that there’s a half per cent chance that any given piece of business is being handled by someone who has the skill and talent to do it justice. I know who they are. So do they. The problem is that everyone else is pretending they’re one of them.

I’ll get my coat.”

Lebanon’s Murr TV re-launches hit talent show Studio El Fan

Lebanon’s Murr TV is re-launching popular talent show Studio El Fan on Sunday as part of a bid to reassert itself in the marketplace after an absence of seven years.

Murr TV, also known as MTV Lebanon, went live in April this year after years in the wilderness thanks to its closure by force in September 2002 for political reasons.

But now it is hoping to announce its return with a splash and chip away at LBC’s dominant position with the help of Studio El Fan, which was originally aired on Télé Liban during the 70s and 80s before moving to LBC in the 90s. The show is widely credited with launching the careers of stars such as Diana Haddad, Nawal Al Zoghbi, Wael Kfoury, Elissa (pictured), composer Jean-Marie Riachi and designer Zuhair Murad.

The show will consist of 32 episodes, with categories including song, poetry, dance and modeling.

Tesco gets Tony Blair on board to aid Middle East plans

British supermarket Tesco has held talks with former prime minister and current Middle East peace envoy Tony Blair to help smooth its expansion into the region, reported Brand Republic yesterday.

According to reports in a UK newspaper, Blair was offered a fee in the region of 6 million AED to act as a “figurehead” for the brand, which  is the world’s third largest retailer.

It is believed Tesco hoped Blair would be able to use his diplomatic clout to aid its plans in the region. However, the paper said talks broke down over an “unknown reason” unconnected with money.

Blair’s talks with Tesco has led to questions over whether it is appropriate for a peace envoy to represent a supermarket’s interest in the region. Blair gives economic and political advice through his company Tony Blair Associates.

Tesco is behind Wal-Mart and French supermarket Carrefour in the race for world supermarket share. Limited opportunities to expand in its saturated UK base and has seen it look overseas in recent years.

The most notable opening for Tesco has been its Fresh & Easy chain on the west coast of the US. However its international chain spreads over Thailand, the Czech Republic, South Korea and Poland.

In response to the Blair story Tesco said: “We wouldn’t comment on which advisers we may or may not talk to, or speculation about potential markets for Tesco.”

Tony Blair Associates denied Blair had any commercial relationship with Tesco.

Do lingerie, nudity and the burqa mix?

Lingerie, nudity and a burqa. Now there’s a combination you don’t hear of too often.

But that’s exactly what German online lingerie store Liaison Dangereuse has opted for in its latest TVC, which is the work of Berlin-based agency Glow.

The commercial shows a woman getting out of the shower, applying her make-up, walking to her dresser and putting on her underwear. So far so Western, but then the final scene shows her placing a burqa over her head and moving to the window, with the tagline reading: “Sexiness for everyone. Everywhere.”

Created for a European audience, the ad has triggered debate online, with Muslimah Media Watch stating that “it seems pretty hard to argue that this ad is something positive or empowering, if it would probably be rather offensive and disrespectful to most of those who would presumably be the ones it attempts to empower”.

Although opinion is split on Adsoftheworld, Muslimah Media Watch also states that the ad is simply playing on men’s “fascination about Muslim women’s bodies, and the curiosity about what’s ‘behind the veil’”.

Take a look for yourselves. Caution: contains nudity.

WPP Group suffers 8.7% organic revenue drop

WPP Group, which encompasses Ogilvy Advertising, Y&R, Mediaedge:cia, Wunderman, Grey and many more, has suffered an organic revenue fall of 8.7% but has declared that “less worse” economic conditions mean there has been “no Armageddon” for the industry.

Like-for-like gross margin, which WPP said was a better measure of competitive performance, fell by 8.3% — a smaller decline than in previous quarters.

Overall revenues, taking into account acquisitions and currency fluctuations, rose by 16.7% to around $3.3 billion.

In a trading statement, the company said: “There is little doubt that consumer and corporate confidence has recovered somewhat from the panic levels of the fourth quarter of 2008 and first quarter of 2009.

“Confidence, however, remains fragile amongst consumers, because of the shadow of high unemployment levels and amongst corporates, because Armageddon and Apocalypse were barely avoided in September 2008.”

WPP said that UK revenues for the third quarter had fallen again when compared to the second quarter, reflecting the fact that while France, Germany and the US are now officially out of recession, the UK  is not.

In the US, the fall in revenues stood at 6.1%, compared with 9.4% in the first quarter. Other areas to see improvement were Western Europe and Asia Pacific.

LBC Sat to rebrand in wake of ’sex braggart’ scandal

LBC Sat is to rebrand and launch a completely new programme grid in the wake of the ‘sex braggart’ case in Saudi Arabia.

The channel, which is part of Prince Alwaleed bin Talal’s Rotana Group, is due to rollout the new image before the end of the year, although it is not yet known whether the rebranding is for LBC Sat only, or will include the domestic LBC station in Lebanon.

The changed grid will include three new shows – Perfect Bride, an Arabic version of Gladiator, and Celebrity Duet.

Hassan Suleiman, vice president of Rotana Media Services (RMS), the Rotana Group’s sales and promotions arm, said: “The identity – the corporate image of the station – will be totally different and we will launch a completely new grid that will include Arabic series, Arabic movies, international movies and talk shows, so viewers will watch a completely new station.”

The rebrand follows a public outcry in Saudi Arabia caused by LBC Sat’s broadcasting of an interview with a Jeddah man Mazen Abdul-Jawad, who boasted of his sexual conquests on the programme Ahmar Bil Khat Al Arid.

The programme led to LBC Sat’s offices in Jeddah and Riyadh being closed by Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Culture and Information, and to Abdullah al-Jasser, undersecretary for media affairs at the ministry, warning Saudi investors in satellite TV stations not to cause offence to their country by allowing material which violates Islamic teachings to be aired.

Abdul-Jawad has since been sentenced to five years in jail and 1,000 lashes, while female journalist Rozanna al-Yami was sentenced to 60 lashes for her involvement in the organisation of the show. She was later pardoned.

LBC Sat has faced a significant advertising boycott as a result of the scandal, admitted Suleiman.

Eurosport Arabia to launch online in partnership with du

Pan-European sports and entertainment group Eurosport is to launch Eurosport Arabia in a tie-up with UAE telecommunications provider du.

The partnership with du’s Media Lab will develop Eurosport’s digital information services for the Middle East and North Africa, giving the region’s sports fans access to its sports news and data in Arabic for the first time.

Laurent-Eric Le Lay , chairman & CEO, Eurosport Group, said: “We are delighted to have signed this agreement with du. This partnership enables us to extend our Eurosport brand and bring our unique sports offer to this dynamic region where sports are key to development. We already have a significant online audience in the region and we believe it’s time to leverage this momentum.”

This year sees Eurosport celebrate 20 years as an international sports data provider, with its exisiting network of websites already produced in nine languages across Europe and China.

Osman Sultan, CEO of du, said: ” It is only natural for du to partner with a leading sports entertainment and information group to develop the next generation of information and sports entertainment for the Arab world.”

Coke to appoint ‘happiness ambassadors’ for social media mash-up

Coca-Cola has launched a new ’social media mash-up’ campaign, that will see the brand appoint three ‘happiness ambassadors’ to travel the world and spread their happiness and enthusiasm wherever they go.

According to Coke, the chosen group will meet ‘everyday people’ on their 150,000 mile journey and will share their experiences on Flickr, Twitter, Facebook and YouTube as they go. Their mission is to ’share their happiness and enthusiasm with the rest of the world’.

Nine people have been shortlisted to fill the positions and Coke is asking the public to vote on who they think is most suited to the job. The project, dubbed Expedition206, is part of the wider Open Happiness campaign.

During the year-long initiative, the chosen group will visit 206 countries, representing Coke’s various markets. According to the current proposed route, they’ll hit the region around July/August 2010, at the height of summer temperatures.

Coke hopes that people across the world will act as local travel guides, suggesting places for the group to go and helping them find the secret of happiness.

The group leaves Madrid on 1 January 2010 and culminates in the US on 31 December 2010 after visiting all corners of the globe.

Omnicom’s global profits slide in Q3

Omnicom, the global advertising group that runs agency networks including BBDO and DDB, has seen its profits fall by 22.5 per cent during the three months ending 30 September.

In its third quarter results, released today, the group, run by John Wren, reported that year-on-year profits had decreased from $213.6 million to $165.6 million, with worldwide revenue falling 14.4 per cent to $2.83 billion.

In the US alone, revenue for the period dropped by 13.2 per cent to $1.5 billion, while international revenue decreased 15.8 per cent to $1.35 billion.

The figures meant Omnicom’s operating profit for the three-month period fell from $373.4 million in 2008 to $294.8 million in 2009.

Middle East and Africa to buck adspend freefall in 2010

Advertising expenditure in the Middle East and Africa is expected to grow by 14.6 per cent in 2010, according to the latest global adspend report from ZenithOptimedia.

However, the increase will follow what is expected to be an overall drop of 11.4 per cent in adspend for 2009 – a figure that has contributed to ZenithOptimedia revising its global advertising expenditure forecasts downwards to -9.9 nine per cent for 2009. Figures for the Middle East and Africa also include the rest of the world not covered by North America, Western Europe, Asia Pacific, Central & Eastern Europe and Latin America.

This time last year, ZenithOptimedia expected global adspend to increase 4 per cent in 2009, despite the anticipated economic downturn. Today’s revision follows worst than expected performances in all parts of the world: spend in North America, the world’s largest advertising region, is expected to fall 12.6 per cent; Central and Eastern Europe, 20.9 per cent; and Western Europe; as well as the 11.4 per cent drop in the Middle East and Africa.

But the predicted rise in adspend for 2010 means that the Middle East and Africa will be the only region with significant growth, with North American and Western Europe expected to report 4 per cent and 1 per cent drops in adspend respectively for 2010.

“We now forecast a meagre 0.5 per cent recovery in 2010, down from 1.6 per cent in July,” said the report. “This figure marks a sharp disparity between developed markets, which we expect to shrink another 2.9 per cent, and developing markets, which we expect to grow by a very healthy 7.8 per cent.”