International Marketer’s Blog

Last Autumn Mars announced that it had embarked upon a strategic plan to designed to align its core global brands in major markets under a single creative agency. The moves form part of an overall drive to increase the efficiency of its international marketing campaigns.

As part of these plans, Twix has handed its global brand duties to TBWA\London. Previously the business was split between SapientNitro, which handled Asia, Eastern Europe, Latin America and the US, and TBWA, which covered Western and Central Europe.

Bruce McColl, global chief marketing officer of Mars, explained that the latest move towards a more consolidated marketing approach would help with the multinational’s international brand implementation. “We feel that aligning each core brand under a dedicated global agency will more effectively build global communication platforms,� he said.

Mars and its myriad brands once had different agencies representing it in different parts of the world. According to a report in Advertising Age this week, Marlene Machut, a Mars spokesperson, has said that the company is still examining its agency roster in order to determine its next moves. It hopes to complete the efficiency drive by the end of next year.

Global soft-drinks giant Coca-Cola is overhauling its European marketing operation as part of a review of the wider business. It has said that it has informed employees of “plans to simplify the structure of the business to improve efficiency and effectiveness.�

Up to 150 staff could be affected in the consultation, which covers the 38 countries in which Coca-Cola Europe operates. Dominique Reiniche, president of Coca-Cola Europe, said that the changes were designed to simplify operations and to make the multinational more efficient. He said that the restructure would allow the international brand to become faster to market, and allow it to increase the scale of its activities across Europe.

One expected outcome – according to Brand Republic – is that Coca-Cola will make London the hub of its European marketing operations, with some Great Britain and European roles, which are currently carried out separately, becoming the responsibility of one person. The efficiency drive could also lead the company to seek full service marketing agencies, thereby helping it to streamline the marketing process. The brand currently works with several advertising and marketing agencies – such as Carlson Marketing, Mother and VCCP – but increased centralisation could help it to drive the efficiency of international brand management and campaigns.

International energy giant BP has outlined plans to boost efficiency and reduce costs with the aim of improving its annual underlying pre-tax profitability by more than $3bn over the next two to three years. The majority of savings will come from refining and marketing – the most troubled of BP’s divisions in the past five years.

Group chief executive, Tony Hayward, who cut layers of management after taking over the helm in 2007, said the company had made great progress in reducing costs but that there were more opportunities to improve operating and cost-efficiency right across the company, from marketing efficiency savings to project management and procurement.

The oil and gas group has committed to significant organisational restructuring in order to centralise project management, improve cost efficiency and inject greater consistency into operations. In particular, a ‘Centralised Developments Organisation’ is being established. Based in Houston, this new unit is (more…)

The centralising of marketing operations for international brands continues apace, Unilever, P&G, Reckit Benckiser have been moving this way for some time and advertising agencies have been reshaping their international structures to fit their client’s new requirements for high quality, centralised creative and more efficient implementation across country markets.

Whereas in the past, major brands have run virtually autonomous marketing offices in many different countries that run their own version of a centrally planned campaign, in 2010 the decision making power is steadily sliding back up the reporting chain to head office. Here they are using marketing technology to satisfy country market demand for bespoke creative, with head office’s desire to reduce costs whilst maintaining quality, consistency and detailed reporting.

In between head office and country office, many brands are now more actively using regional hubs which act as a staging post for creative campaigns coming down the line to be adapted for use across a number of geographically and culturally related countries.

Our own hub offices, thanks to good technology and experience of the regional markets, offer brands an efficient solution to the issues facing them internationally. (more…)

According to a new survey by the ANA (Association of National Advertisers), marketers are still being pressured to reduce their costs and spending in light of the economy, though reductions are less severe than were reported in previous surveys from the last 18 months.

Eighty three percent of the survey respondents report that they continue to identify cost savings and reductions in their current marketing and advertising efforts.  While that represents a high percentage of respondents, this is improved from six months ago (87 percent), one year ago (93 percent), and eighteen months ago (87 percent).

“Though a vast majority of marketers continue to identify cost savings and reductions, the industry is finally beginning to show more optimism,” said Bob Liodice, President and CEO of the ANA. “While it appears as though cutting costs may be the new reality, even when times are good, our series of surveys suggest that the deepest cuts may have already been made.”

While the top four ways marketers are reducing costs and spending have remained constant over the past eighteen months, results show (more…)

Miles Nadal of MDC Partners, speaking at the UBS Media Global Media and Communications Conference has called on marketers to increase marketing spend in 2010, but to be more efficient with it.

Nadal, CEO of the 4th largest US ad agency holding company (behind Optimedia, Omnicom and InVentiv) added his support to other agency CEOs in urging clients not to cut costs if they are serious about growing brands long term.

Clients are “going to have to spend more money going forward,” Nadal said. “They’re just going to do it in a more efficient way, even as the economy shows signs of improvement.”

Three media agencies at the conference predicted an increase in global ad spending for 2010, Group M +0.8%, ZenithOptimedia +0.9%, Magna +6% though Martin Sorrell was reluctant to show much optimism saying “basically things are less worse than they were” (more…)

Outgoing Chairman of Proctor and Gamble, AG Lafley has stated that the company’s commitment to cost control and innovation is helping it reach its strategic goals.

Speaking about his successor, current Chief Executive Bob MacDonald, who will combine both roles, Lafley said:

“I am retiring with confidence in Bob McDonald and his team. Our strategies and plans are working. P&G is innovating across the business, investing in near-and longer-term growth, and maintaining rigorous cash and cost discipline. This is the right time to complete our management transition.�

In a statement, the FMCG giant praised Lafley for helping to “refocus P&G on consumer-driven innovation and consistent, reliable sustainable growthâ€� since he was appointed as president and chief executive in June 2000. (more…)