While ICANN creates a garage, creative agencies should create showrooms

[Naseem Javed] ICANN, rightfully from its inception, is a very superior technical organisation, surrounded by teams of highly intelligent people working on the long-term integrity of the Internet. Like a real high-tech garage full of engineers and mechanics designing high speed luxury cars, they are rolling out the great new gTLD programmes, but what the image brokers and ad agencies now need are not garages but rather showrooms.

Safety tips for holiday trips

[Henrie Geyser] The festive season is around the corner when thousands of motorists across South Africa set off on long road trips to their holiday destinations - so now is the right time to make sure that you and your vehicle are adequately prepared to keep your family safe.

Nando's CEO ad: Great fun, but is it effective?

[Walter Pike] I love the Nando's CEO campaign, but it's still an old school advertising campaign in the 'interrupting the viewer' model. There is no doubt that it's witty and clever and it uses multiple channels effectively, but I'm not convinced that it will retain appeal after the initial reaction from viewers.

The Cape's graceful Cape Grace

[Brian Berkman] When the Brand family built The Cape Grace Hotel at the V&A Waterfront, 12 years ago, they demonstrated what home-from-home hospitality meant. Aside from the comfort they offered here and at sister properties, The Mount Grace in the Magaliesberg and The Grace in Rosebank, Johannesburg, their differentiating factor was their people. To borrow from another hotel group's axiom - ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen.

How BlackBerry shed its corporate suit

[Candice Jones] The BlackBerry. Traditionally used by men in grey suits - bankers, accountants and lawyers. If you used a BlackBerry, you were a corporate nerd, tied to your company's email system. Not anymore.

Six things 2010 may have taught you about writing

[Tiffany Markman] I learned a couple of things this year that I didn't know that I knew. For starters, there were things I thought to be true about writing and my readers that aren't any more. It's possible that the recession changed things - or that we're evolving as consumers of content thanks to social media and other good stuff. So it's also possible that, as a marketer or communicator, you've picked up a couple of the same things in your business writing environment...

Building business: contribution or contamination?

[Linda Hamman] It's reassuring to think that leaders are born. Frankly, I don't buy that. Oh, there may be some exceptions, mostly in history, but good business leaders do not feature among them.

SA economy: adspend up, TV leads market share

[Issa Sikiti da Silva] The gross advertising expenditure for the month of September 2010 amounted to R2.3 billion, a month-on-month increase of 9% and year-to-date increase of 17%, figures from the Nielsen Company show - an indication that the conditions of market economy continue to improve significantly as advertisers keep their spending will to a steadfast rhythm.

Let your fingers do the walking...

[Douglas Kruger] Does your sales team need more training? Or does your thought leadership need work? Sometimes, when sales are down, it's not about the sales.

SADC spurns Brazil, adopts DVB-T2

[Candice Jones] It's official. Southern Africa will adopt the European standard for digital terrestrial broadcasting. In addition, the region has adopted the latest version of the standard, known as digital video broadcasting terrestrial version 2, or DVB-T2.

'Smartest Event of the Year' showcases media deficiencies

[Issa Sikiti da Silva] The standards of South African media and investigative journalism are far below international standards and most of the newsrooms are juniorised, and that constitutes a big concern for the South African National Editors' Forum (SANEF), Primedia Broadcasting head of news and current affairs Yusuf Ambramjee told delegates attending the Annual Media and Marketing conference currently unfolding at the Wanderers Club in Illovo, Johannesburg.

Reinforcing social marketing's role in age of austerity

[Issa Sikiti da Silva] In a world dictated by the profit-obsessed corporate and manipulated by commercial marketing, which sometimes resort to unethical practices to achieve its goals, social marketing has a critical role to play in steering behavioural change in society.

We'll be ready when new editor gives go-ahead - New Age's Naidoo

[Gill Moodie] The New Age, the ANC-friendly paper, has been in the news for all the wrong reasons, from musings on its owners' links to President Jacob Zuma to the staff exodus on the eve of its aborted launch in October 2010. But now it has a new editor and new CEO starting soon. Bizcommunity spoke to managing editor Gary Naidoo, who joined The New Age from Sahara, about the business side of the ambitious new venture.

MultiChoice starts broadcasting DStv on cellphones, PCs, tablets

[Issa Sikiti da Silva] After successfully launching broadcast mobile TV services in Namibia, Ghana, Kenya and Nigeria in 2008, MultiChoice, through its mobile division DStv Mobile, has now launched the service in South Africa.

Newspaper, mag circulation still on back foot despite economic recovery

[Issa Sikiti da Silva] South African newspaper and magazine circulation remains on the back foot almost a year since the end of the global economic crisis and an ensuing local economic recovery, figures recently released by the Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC) show. Although Afrikaans title Sondag grew massively year-on-year by 114%, Isolezwe Ngesonto by 37%, and usual suspects Bona and Drum by 12% and 13.3% respectively, overall the situation remains tense.

Will sanity prevail for ad agencies in 2011?

[Chris Moerdyk] One of the most common causes of a breakdown between advertising agencies and their clients is people simply not getting on with each other. Yet, this is the one element that very rarely gets any sort of consideration during the pitch process.

Reflective mood as TBWA\South Africa celebrates 25th anniversary

[Issa Sikiti da Silva] The mood is at a reflective zenith at the headquarters of TBWA\South Africa in Sandton, Johannesburg, as the pan-African advertising agency this week celebrates its 25th anniversary. Senior management and staff at all 13 independent offices nationwide have been rallying around new CEO Derek Bouwer to reflect on the road travelled and the objectives met - and not met - in the last quarter of a century, and finally meditate on the future.