McCann London is only agency to pick up two awards at the Chartered Institute of Marketing

At the inaugural and prestigious Chartered Institute of Marketing’s Marketing Excellence Awards competition held last week in London, we walked away with two awards, more than any other agency.

We won in the ‘Not for Profit’ category for our celebrated Skcin ‘Computertan’ hoax campaign and in the Retail category for its ‘Good with Food’ campaign for The Co-operative Food.

Congratulations to everyone involved and thanks for all the work.

Winners came from a variety of backgrounds and were commended for their innovation and cost-effective marketing programs, proving the vital role marketing plays in the long-term sustainability of any business.

Gosper and Coe compete at MWG’s launch of partnership with London 2012

 

Guests of last night’s launch event were treated to a unique demonstration of British Olympic and Paralympic talent, though the best efforts of Brett Gosper and Seb Coe fell some way short of defeating Table Tennis hopefuls Darius Knight and Will Bayley in a high-octane doubles match.

The launch of MCann Worldgroup’s partnership as the Official Marketing Services Provider for London 2012, held at the new headquarters of the British Olympic Association and British Paralympic Association, was supported by London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games Chair, Lord Seb Coe. Liam Tancock, who won 50m backstroke gold at the World Championships in Rome this year and set a new world record, also participated in the launch.

Led by McCann London and working with LOCOG to craft the overall look and feel of London 2012, MWG is the first marketing services company in history to become a partner of an Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Speaking at the launch event, Brett Gosper, President of MWG EMEA, said: “In the same way that the Olympic and Paralympic Games provide the world’s greatest athletes with an unrivalled stage to exhibit their talents, it also provides McCann Worldgroup with the same spotlight to demonstrate the collective force of our integrated talents. McCann Worldgroup will be working to help make London 2012 the most successful and memorable Games ever.”

Seb Coe, Chairman of the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games said: “The London 2012 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games are the two largest sporting events on the planet and marketing them has to be one of the most complex tasks that any agency can face. McCann Worldgroup is one of the few companies in the UK which has the breadth and depth of capability to help us deliver the Games. What we are doing with London 2012 and its marketing programme has never been done before in the history of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. We know that McCann Worldgroup has the passion and drive to make this a truly memorable games marketing programme.”
 

Winning at Kinsale Sharks

We’re celebrating another award win for Computertan, our innovative digital campaign developed on behalf of skin cancer charity Skcin.  This time we won a Silver in the International Integrated Campaign category at last weekend's Kinsale Shark Awards.  In its 47th year, this prestigious advertising festival prides itself on putting creativity first, with the 6 member jury panel dedicated to rewarding the best creative ideas - so we're pretty pleased with ourselves!
To learn more about the campaign, view the video below:
  

Conversation, croissants and the imperative of margin growth

How many conversations about marketing take place in the UK every day? A lot!

But it’s quality that counts and we reckon some of the very best discussions happen at our regular Business Breakfasts here at Herbrand Street.

The Breakfasts see senior marketers from leading UK companies get together to talk shop over coffee and pastries. There’s usually an element of Marketing Directors Anonymous to the events as attendees share their experiences and challenges with the group, but the Breakfasts also serve as a rare opportunity for marketers to advance and shape their thinking on industry issues in collaboration with big hitters from other companies.

Last week, a new series of breakfasts began with an entertaining discussion led by provocateur/raconteur Tim Ambler, a senior fellow at London Business School. Using anecdotes from his consultancy work across the FTSE-100, Tim explained his view of the true goal of business marketing: to create margin. It sounds simple but too often, Tim said, marketers are focused on revenue growth and measuring themselves against the top line. This can lead to short-termism and puts marketing out of step with broader goals. By focusing on margin growth, marketing can get more aligned with the rest of the business and earn that sought-after place on the board.

As usual the ensuing discussion was lively and informative, with moderation from our Chief Strategy Officer Damian O’Malley and contributions from senior marketers at companies including Deloitte and Touche, JP Morgan Asset Management and CEMEX. McCann Erickson would like to thank all those who attended for making the event so much fun (and from a business point of view so useful). We look forward to seeing all of you again at a future Business Breakfast!

If you would like to attend a Business Breakfast or for further information, please email Kate Roche.

Pirates rebranded

When author and DJ Matt Mason talks about pirates he's not thinking about Blackbeard, Captain Pugwash or pieces of eight but those who are criticised for taking others ideas, copyright or intellectual property without permission, often trying to make money whilst doing so. If their actions were legal they would be called entrepreneurs and be hailed by society, but more often than not they are considered pariahs, sucking up all that other people and companies have created and giving nothing back.

Mason would like us to reconsider this position. In his book "The Priate's Dilemma: how hackers, punk capitalists and graffiti millionaires are remixing our culture and changing the world", Mason proposes that pirating has often been misunderstood, and that the very industries that fear and try to control piracy have often had piracy at their very birth and owe everything to them, citing in particular the phonographic industry and Hollywood. Mason believes that pirates can create solutions. He asks us to evaluate piracy in terms of whether it adds value to society.

An example of this theory is Radio London, the pirate radio station that eventually led to the launch of Radio 1 and the introduction of commercial radio to the UK - prior to 1964 pop music on the radio was unheard of and commercial radio was illegal.

Explaining this in person at the IPPR Mason described what pirates do best as:

• Looking for gaps outside the market
• The medium they use often has another message - such as in the case of Radio London: "Give us pop music".
• Harnessing the power of the audience

This approach can be seen as very threatening, as the music industry over the last decade has shown. But from a brand perspective Mason suggests that defence is not the best form of attack. Instead he suggests that brands should embrace the pirating philosophy and begin to compete with the pirates themselves. But how?

• Create products that can be hacked, re-mixed, or re-styled - thus extending the life cycle of the product and the number of interactions customers can have with the produce
• Sell something that can't be pirated - for instance an experience (eg. cinema going) or convenience (eg. iTunes)
• Copy and compete with the pirates - if they're doing something good with your product, copy it, legitimise it

Mason concluded at the IPPR that in today's hyper connected world the value of ideas (which value adding pirates live in) is going up but the value of capital is going down. To Mason, the case for embracing and not suing pirates is a clear business decision.

More links:

Reviews - Independent on Sunday, Guardian

Video - Matt's speech to the Medici Summit explaining the Pirate's Dilemma (40 mins)

Kathryn Corrick, digital strategist