If the ad agency Ogilvy is a leading proponent of the "360 degree" consumer approach, of getting the brand message across at every possible touchpoint, then Brian Fetherstonhaugh, CEO, OgilvyOne Worldwide, is the leading touch master.
In India for a summit on digital marketing, the chief of a one-to-one marketing network with 110 offices in 56 countries tells Sonali Krishna about one-to-one's future and the agency's new search marketing initiative, Neo.
What part of OgilvyOne's operations have really gained momentum worldwide?
The fastest growing part of our business is digital marketing. By this I mean the Internet, advertising, website development, search marketing, Internet marketing and strategic consulting in one-to-one marketing.
In 2005, we had the second consecutive year of record growth for OgilvyOne worldwide. Last year also witnessed all five regions of the world showing positive growth, which is relatively unusual.
What is the agenda for India from your global perspective?
For India, we are aiming for sustained growth. The Ogilvy advertising business is right at the top, and we're expecting that our one-to-one marketing business will reach that kind of presence on a global basis.
We need to build a healthy combination of global and local brands in the ratio of 50:50. We have some strong global business like IBM and Cisco, and on the local front we are expecting Hutch, Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group and others to balance that portfolio.
We are eyeing IT, financial services and the telco sectors. Also, one of the next areas of growth is going to come from FMCG clients, who have been late adopters.
But they're seeing results. Our best global example is Dove. A global campaign was launched using digital media and public relations to help create a debate that challenged the traditional view of what beauty is. Dove invited consumers to help shape the debate. It increased volume and market share.
Any new initiatives in the near future?
This week we're announcing a new capability called Neo. This will be our digital and search marketing media company under OgilvyOne.
It will advise clients on search marketing and media buying, planning and metric services in the area of digital media. We will now be able to offer a complete end-to-end 360 degree digital solution.
Search marketing... could you elaborate?
Search marketing has been around for a while, but it's the fastest growing part of the whole digital space. We're seeing growth rates of 50-60 per cent even in mature markets like the US.
We're seeing billions of searches in the US, and this is becoming a pervasive way of shopping. My 15-year-old daughter makes virtually no purchases over $5 without consulting the Internet.
Marketers have always been on the lookout for people who have the intent to purchase, and with traditional means, often one has to assume that you might be interested. Search marketing enables marketers to know that you are.
It is also highly measurable, and one could analyse the impact within 90-180 days. It's a good first step for marketers new to digital media.
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