Some believe that could mean more short-term agency/client relationships and agency business coming under threat as so-called ZBB sparks more pitches by clients seeking to drive down costs. ZBB is a method of budgeting in which all expenses must be justified for each new period. Budgets are then built around what is needed for the upcoming period irrespective of whether the budget is higher or lower than the previous one. The objective is to lower costs by avoiding blanket increases or decreases to a prior period’s budget.
Morning Update: Weirdest finance ads; top 10 Wieden + Kennedy car ads; Sorrell on zero-based budgeting; Omnicon joins with Tencent
Ad Week: Ad of the Day: Are These the Strangest, Most Mesmerizing Financial Ads Ever?
Financial ads are normally so buttoned up. But Swedish e-commerce payment brand Klarna loosens things up in its new campaign from DDB Stockholm, with three weirdly entrancing ads that dramatize how “smoooth” it is to use Klarna’s services.
All three spots, directed by MJZ’s Perlorian Brothers—known for their idiosyncratic work—feel almost more like art pieces than ads. To communicate this idea of “smoooth,” the ads show, respectively, a fish taking a thrilling ride down a plastic slide and across a floor; a cheese slicer carving gorgeously through a long block of cheese; and a very hairy creature swimming carefree through a pool.
https://youtu.be/T3guZ7dMAkc
Ad Week: The 10 Best Ads Wieden + Kennedy Made for Chrysler and Dodge Over the Years
Today Fiat Chrysler Automobiles announced an end to its six-year partnership with Wieden + Kennedy. FCA, which owns brands including Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Maserati, said in a statement that now seemed like the right time for the two companies to split amicably.
Over the years, the duo teamed up to create a range of work that was not only powerful, but also humorous thanks to a partnership with Anchorman 2 and a handful of ads featuring the movie’s star, Will Ferrell. The two also reached some big milestones together including a few well-received Super Bowl ads and an Emmy Award for Outstanding Commercial for the Chrysler “Born of Fire” ad. Here are the 10 most memorable campaigns for Chrysler and Dodge:
Ad Age: Digital Publisher Uses Story Idea Generator To Make Leap To TV
Vocativ, formed in 2013, describes itself as a “a groundbreaking news organization for people in their 20s and 30s.” It relies on a proprietary technology called Verne to scour the “deep web” for story ideas. Vocativ’s technology was a key factor in its first TV deal, with MSNBC in 2014, which produced 150 TV segments.
A September 2014 segment on the since-shuttered “Ronan Farrow Daily” show, for example, focused on homophobia in Kyrgyzstan. Mikey Kay, a former Vocativ foreign correspondent, was the on-air talent. The technology is also at the center of “Dark Net,” an eight-episode series on Showtime that premiered in January. Each episode showcases three stories focused on a specific topic, such as bio-hacking, cyber-kidnapping and digital warfare.
Campaign Middle East: What impact will zero-based budgeting have on agencies?
Is ZBB, which is gaining traction among advertisers, another excuse to slash and burn? Zero-based budgeting. The very term has a ring of austerity about it redolent of belt-tightening, job losses and slashed marketing spends. Unilever, the world’s second-largest advertiser, spending $8.3 billion in 2014, is the latest big player to shake things up by announcing the implementation of a ZBB approach.
The Drum: Advertisers able to target people using beacon data following Opera and Unacast union
Advertisers are being promised the ability to bridge the gap between online an offline customer data based on where they are in the real world using beacon data following a tie-up with Opera Mediaworks and Unacast.
It’s being pitched in as more effective way to retargeted ads to people on the move, which until now has primarily be done using less accurate GPS data. Now, data sourced from beacons as someone moves down an aisle or looks at a product in storeis being used to retarget ads. For instance, a fashion brand could register a person’s interest in a particular size or style of shoe as they move through a store. With that insight, a relevant mobile ad for a new range of shoes could then be targeted to that same person.
Campaign: SMG launches sports marketing arm
Starcom Mediavest Group has rolled out its sports marketing practice Sports at SMG across the Middle East and North Africa.
The launch follows closely on the heels of similar roll outs in the United States, Russia and Africa, with the division to be headquartered in Dubai and offering fully integrated sports marketing capabilities.
“In an increasingly fragmented landscape sports is still the number one driver of audiences in big numbers across multiple platforms, devices and multiple markets,” said Robin Clarke, managing director for EMEA at Sports at SMG. “New technologies are enabling rights holders and sports media vendors alike to evolve their offering to brands significantly. Helping our clients understand and invest in optimal ways in those spaces can deliver far greater effectiveness in investment and ROI.”
When Alan Rusbridger left the Guardian in May of last year, everything appeared to be ticking over nicely. There was a plan in place to increase digital revenue based on growing its digital footprint and a belief that its investigative journalism would be the impetus behind that growth.
But, as the ex-editor told TheMediaBriefing, six months is a long time in media, and everything changed between then and now. With news of 20 percent cuts and a curbing of their Midlands Goods Shed plans having broken over the last few weeks, Rusbridger shares the extent to which even the Guardian’s business model is being forced to shift:
Mumbrella Asia: Omnicom Media strikes data deal with Tencent
Omnicom Media Group is the latest big media buyer to strike a strategic alliance with Chinese internet giant Tencent around the use of consumer data.
The deal is designed to give advertisers in China more and better insights into Chinese internet users, and improve the efficiency of media planning and buying.
Data deals between Tencent and OMG began late last year when client Porsche became the first car brand to launch video ads on WeChat, the messaging platform that Tencent owns.
