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Cost-efficient ideas are the real deal for advertisers

Given the decline seen across the advertising media spectrum, as reported in its most recent report by Pan Arab Research Centre, advertisers now are being offered more cost-efficient means that follow consumers in their daily shopping activities in grocery stores and even laundries, among others.

Focusing on measurability, advertising experts say such new methods are also capable of targeting specific audiences based on demographic and geographic profiles. Most of those new businesses have been launched in the past two months and are waiting to receive a share of advertising budgets for 2010.

Hangertising, a concept-advertising agency, specialises in promoting brands to laundry customers, as the name suggests.

Why laundries Saad Al Hage, business development partner at Hangertising Media, said launderers had access to consumers at their homes. He suggested that instead of establishing a distant relationship through traditional media, an advertisement on a hanger has a chance to stand out, because it is non-traditional, unique and personalised.

He said: "We started two months ago. With advertising budgets tightened due to the crisis, we had to find a creative and cost-efficient way to help brands communicate with their target audiences. Do we have specific audience profiles? Clothes say it all. It depends on the type of the clothes, the gender, the quality, and the brand. The rates charged for a normal dryclean and the geographic location also provide us with an indication of our audiences' income level."

Al Hage said his agency signed contracts to distributed branded hangers in 75 A-class and B-class launderers in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah. "We visited their plants, monitored their operations - some of which are ISO certified - and interviewed their managers to understand the way their business is being done and the types of audience profiles within their customer base. Customers of a laundry that charges Dh4 are essentially of a different income category than those that charges Dh12 per shirt."

Hangertising distributes about one million branded hangers per month.

Al Hage said a campaign involving 100,000 to 300,000 hangers would cost 50 fils per hanger. For larger campaigns, a hanger would cost as low as 25 fils. "That is an average Dh50,000 for a week's campaign. Some of them might go on for two weeks of a month," he said.

The agency sees a lot of potential in its new concept with a multi-fold growth projection. "Hangertising has six to seven clients in the telecoms, retail and automotive sectors. We believe there is a potential for more advertisers, especially in the retail banking sector," he said.

Al Hage said his agency is planning a survey after it has completed a quarter, which will study the perception and the audience's response towards the concept versus regular marketing tools.

Measurability is more possible when an advertising concept is linked to a certain promotion. Monica Bradley, who runs Real Deal Middle East, devises offer-based advertising on the back of receipts in supermarkets.

Launched at the beginning of November, Bradley expects her concept to expand widely across the UAE.

"Of course, we have the shopping festivals and the holy month of Ramadan to capitalise on. We expect a 50 per cent growth in distribution capacity in the next year. I cannot provide a revenue projection, but as an indication, our website hits have increased 40 per cent during the past two weeks. We have a capacity to distribution to 1.7 million people at 22 grocery shopping outlets, including Carrefour, Geant and Al Maya outlets.

"This medium is quite measurable. We know how many slips are printed and how many are redeemed at the outlets running the promotions. Based on other markets such as Australia, the response rate ranges between 0.5 and five per cent."

Although this response rate is very small, Bradley stressed the method was extremely cost effective. "It is still a very cost-effective way, which will only cost Dh50 per 1,000 printed receipt backs," she added.

This concept is measured by Nielsen. The research firm said 86 per cent of consumers turn the receipt to read what is on its back.

"Even if those receipts are not redeemed for the offer on the back, the advertiser still benefits from awareness building," said Bradley.

Real Deal plans a quarterly survey with focus consumer groups to study the effectiveness of the method and receive consumer insight. The first one will be conducted at the beginning of 2010.

Offer-based advertising methods are being utilised by traditional media as well. The Abu Dhabi Cooperative Society has seen a surge in responses to its promotional advertising from an average of three to 28 per cent.

Other creative ideas include the 'citymyway' service that offers a free events calendar on mobile phones.

By Dima Hamadeh

© Emirates Business 24/7 2009