Comments Yvonne Johnston, the CEO of the International Marketing Council (IMC), "We're very excited by these findings. Clearly the International Marketing Council's strategy to inform thought leaders is generating interest. Our creative and original adverts mean we're able to cut through the advertising clutter and grab the reader's attention with the message that South Africa is Alive with Possibility."
The adverts were specifically developed by TBWA\Hunt\Lascaris on behalf of the IMC for foreign publications, such as The Economist, to attract investment and tourism to South Africa. Once readers are attracted to the page with a witty heading reading, "If this page was developing as fast as our economy, it would be a billboard", information is given on the benefits of investing in South Africa's dynamic economy before being alerted to the "South Africa: Alive with Possibility" portal - www.southafrica.info.
The survey, which was independently conducted by Objective Research to assess the reading habits of The Economist subscribers, randomly asked readers to score adverts according to whether they remember seeing them.
Twenty three percent of European readers who completed the questionnaire recalled seeing the International Marketing Council's adverts, thus putting them in tenth place on the 'notable' scale. Other adverts making the top 10 promoted consumer brands such as Renault, Rolex, Cartier and Lexus and financial management service companies and banks, such as HSBC, UBS Wealth Management and West LB.
But, it's on the 'reading' scale - which indicates how effective an advert is in standing out so that someone glancing at it is motivated to read it - that the International Marketing Council's adverts shine. On this scale the IMC adverts moved up to fifth position.
This makes the likelihood of the International Marketing Council's ads being read almost 25% higher than that of any other country - with adverts for Bulgaria and Wallonia (Belgium) coming in at ninth and tenth respectively.
