1. As Annabel Kingstone, write a letter of complaint to ptc.

2. As ptc's customer liaison officer, write a reply to Annabel Kingstone's letter of complaint.

3. As one of the reporters on the ptc/Annabel Kingstone story, write the article for the Porchester Gazette. Unit 5

PAN - EUROPEAN ADVERTISING

LEAD-IN

Work with a partner to discuss the following questions:

1. What is meant by 'pan-European’ advertising?

2. What examples of pan-European advertisements can you give?

3. What are the advantages and disadvantages of pan-European advertising?

4. Is advertising really significant for developing of a brand image?

5. On what does the success of advertising depend?

6. What elements can be used for creation of a successful ad?

Useful language

commercial	телереклама
copy	текст рекламного объявления
logo	знак, заменяющий слово
to dream up	выдумывать
acquirer	заказчик, покупатель
advertisement page	страница объявлений
advertising track	рекламный ход
recession	спад в торговле
ticklish business	щекотливое дело
to fuse	объединять
fraternity	общность
to backfire	приводить к обратному результату
creativity	креативность
social ad	социальная реклама
shocking element	шокирующий элемент
solicitation	торговля с рук
defraudation	лишение
imposition	обман
consumer fraud	обман потребителя
deficiency statement	недостаточно обоснованное заявление
facilitation	фасилитация, организация групповой работы
objective-and-task approach	метод целей и задач

READING

1. Read the text and find the answers to the following questions:

   1. Why does the failure to observe some simple strategic guidelines in running advertising campaigns mean additional expenses for companies?

   2. What are the means due to which companies may reduce their loses?

   3. What is the key to success according to Mr. Offen?

Text I. Decisions That Can Cut Advertising Costs

Advertisers are missing a trick. They may have done bulk-buy deals to reduce the cost of advertising space but they could be ignoring even bigger savings, according to Media Audits, a company that monitors advertising costs.

In a report, Advertising as an Investment Not a Cost, it argues that the failure to observe some simple strategic guidelines means that many pan-European advertisers are paying more for their TV advertising campaigns than they need to.

The report claims that the wastage stems from the "startlingly inconsistent" use of media in different markets - and that too much of the decision-making on advertising is being left to individual markets, with little transfer of best practice.

By contrast, says Media Audits, shifting TV campaigns into cheaper months could save up to 10 per cent of campaign costs, while greater consistency of audience targeting could produce a 20 per cent gain in efficiency. Significant savings could also come from reducing unnecessary overspend in some countries.

"Cultural differences are about what advertising planners feel happy with, rather than any rational differences," says Michael Cluff, Media Audits director. "Take the average weight [the number of spots advertisers buy] in Italy. It's much higher than you would rationally expect."

And while 41 of the top 50 pan-European advertisers have consolidated their media buying into a single network in the quest for cheaper prices, the consultancy says they are failing to compare the value - in terms of the number of television impacts and their price - that they receive in each market.

Media Audits admits that some advertisers have taken these lessons on board. Kimberly-Clark, it says, has achieved 6.4 per cent of value above what its spend would normally buy by focusing its UK TV budgets in months such as January and December, rather than triggering campaigns in more expensive months such as October and November. By contrast, Kraft obtained 4.2 per cent less value by concentrating its campaigns in more expensive periods.

And while the consultancy acknowledges that some advertisers are limited in their ability to use cheaper months, it believes 60-70 per cent of them should not have any problems exploiting seasonal differences.

The study also compares car advertising among medium-sized vehicle brands in the UK and Germany and says that there are significant differences in the demographic groups being targeted, although the models are identical and are being promoted using the same creative vision.

However, the consultancy does praise some brands for applying consistent rules across Europe. Toyota and L'Oréal are singled out for adopting the same weekly weight in all markets, while Reckitt Benckiser wins plaudits for matching its advertising spend to that of its competitors.

Media agencies argue that such analysis is simplistic and is merely a starting-point for further research. Bob Offen, global chief strategy and marketing officer at Media Planning Group, says the problem with the study is that it does not know whether the differences it has highlighted are conscious or unconscious.

Simon Francis, OMD Europe's director of strategic planning, also argues that you cannot make all your decisions about when to advertise based purely on media cost. OMD's planning system, he says, takes into account 32 other factors when it comes to planning campaigns - and, he adds, OMD's clients signed off all its spending decisions.

Oliver Cleaver, European media director at Kimberly-Clark, admits that the arrival of the euro has allowed the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) group to compare costs more "dispassionately". But despite the fact that all European advertising is now centrally approved it is unlikely that media strategies among, for example, FMCG or car brands would be repeated from market to market.

But Mr Cluff believes that the failure to achieve strategic savings is ultimately a result of clients' tendency to look on advertising as a cost rather than an investment. Centralised teams can also face pockets of resistance to innovation in local markets. "If you want to tell your Italian operation that it is running advertising weights that are 2½ times higher than the ones you run in the rest of Europe, you've got to take on the Italian marketing team," he says.

Mr Offen agrees that getting pan-European clients and media networks to work in the same way can be difficult. The key to success, he says, is balancing the need for central control with the ability to exploit local opportunities: "The difficulty is balancing the local flexibility with the central strategy. If you want the benefit of local flexibility, it' s much harder to police."

Mr Cluff says only 15 per cent of advertisers have guidelines that they are enforcing on this issue, although another 15 per cent are beginning to think seriously about it. And he believes that the arrival of a pan-European marketing supremo with the power to put this process into action is not far away.

"I would say that five years ago there were barely any clients that had people who could influence that change. Now 35 per cent have someone who can influence that change and there's another 20-25 per cent who are clearly evolving towards that," he says.