Letters 19 April 05

Definite echoes of the approving nods at IBM when it foresaw there would only be a need for five or six computers in the whole world just a few years ago.

While the industry welcomes Viacom's digital escalator panels in the London Underground, JCDecaux's screens in airports, Maiden's Transvision, and Clear Channel's US initiatives, each company's seeming lack of commitment to these new technologies in other areas seems very safe.

Even on the roadside, there is no conceptual reason why static images cannot be delivered digitally in the near future.

It's hard to believe that a cutting edge, innovative and sales-driven company like JCDecaux would ask "why make the capital investment when McDonald's might not want to?" at a time when McDonald's outof- home advertising buyers, Posterscope, are advocating this very approach.

There are a number of companies outside the "Big Four" who have put significant thought, and no small investment, into delivering screen-based out-of-home advertising media that offers the kind of consumer engagement and campaign flexibility that advertisers and their agencies have been crying out for.

It's now time for the planning and buying specialists to shake up the market by encouraging many more of their clients to become early adopters of screen-based digital media in environments which, on occasions, might be directly competitive to the Big Four's static stuff.

At the very least it will encourage a faster move towards a "live" future for the out-of-home industry (moving and static campaigns via remote delivery) that all of our client advertisers and agencies view as essential for the continued commitment to, and the growth of, the sector.

Enjoying high life during the dotcom heyday

Bob Morrell, director, Reality Media

I enjoyed Chris Alden's trip down memory lane (Fillyerboots.com, page 30, 12 April). I was at Ziff Davis when the magazines were sold to VNU. Many of us didn't really fancy going across, so we looked around for the next big thing.

The Industry Standard Europe was just about to launch and I was lucky enough to join the launch sales team, headed by Jeanette Dryer, now head of sales on Computer Weekly.

My salary and bonus package was extraordinary for someone of my age, and I found myself pitching to Goldman Sachs in a boardroom that overlooked the skyline of London in the morning, and then crawling into a Hoxton Square loft to pitch a dotcom start-up in the afternoon.

We launched the magazine at rate card. In the first quarter we made a fortune in commissions.

The team was fantastic, with Patrick Brownlow (now at Time)n and Julian Bidlake (now at Reed), and the lovely Jeanette keeping an eye on us.

To give you an idea of the excessive money being thrown around, Paddy and myself were sent on a three-day jaunt to the MILIA show at Cannes.

We schmoozed with teams of dotcom gals in the bar at the Carlton Hotel swigging cocktails, ate the most amazing food at Le Machou, and were interviewed by a French online TV station. That was the life!

It was the perfect mix between enjoying selling to different advertisers, from massive to tiny, taking advantage of the high life in restaurants and at trendy events, and bizarrely everyone we met, including agencies, wanted to buy into this incredible "new economy" story.

When the Yanks finally pulled the plug a few months later, we were gutted.

The potential of this magazine was so huge we couldn't believe they had buggered it up quite so badly. I also realised that day it was unlikely that I would ever find such a great job, ever again.

These days, I run Reality Media, a sales training and media consultancy, and I love running my own business. But I still look back on that period with great fondness – for obvious reasons – and wonder how things would be now, if the bubble hadn't burst!

Ski whizz! The Mail was just first class

Lucy Stafford, media director, Tri-Direct

As an experienced skier, I relished the chance of being invited on the Daily Mail ski trip recently, and it didn't disappoint.

(No expense spared, p32, 5 April)n It was an excellent chance to cement relationships with the hosts, but also with our major competitors as, at the end of the day, no one is bothered where you are from and barriers come down.

I never thought MediaCom's David Kyffin and I would be hurling ourselves down a mountain at top speed, seeing who could get down the fastest, or joking about my very close following of our very young and attractive ski guide. As Laura Hill, from Chrysalis, pointed out in your feature about media jollies, a day out in Birmingham doesn't have the same effect as the private jet and copious amounts of champagne laid on by the Daily Mail. The life of a buyer, eh...

Alastair Lewis, advertisement manager, F1 Racing

I was interested to read your feature on jollies in media land and felt compelled to put a case for what surely must be up there with the very best of them.

F1 Racing's annual trip to the Monaco Grand Prix is legendary.

As well as the best seats money can buy to watch the race on both Saturday and Sunday, the weekend includes hob-knobbing with the likes of Bono, Prince Albert of Monaco, Rio Ferdinand, Ronaldo, Michael Schumacher, Naomi Campbell, Carmen Electra and many more at the incredible "Amber Lounge" nightclub for two nights, where the champagne vodka Red Bull's flowed freely all night – not to mention an exclusive table at the Dolce Vita Grand Prix Ball featuring a Lionel Richie concert in the Grimaldi Forum.

I could go on, but I don't want to ruin the surprise for any of this year's lucky invitees.However, it may whet the appetite of anyone looking to book into F1 Racing with a view to 2006.

PS: We also run a weekend trip to another Grand Prix every year – this year to the inaugural Turkish GP in Istanbul.

Advert costs are real issue

DylanMoss, media manager, All Response Media

I love the way our industry likes to over-complicate issues, dressing them up in wondrous, long-winded media-speak, while often skipping over the blatantly obvious and measurable.

Our decisions can so often be boiled down to some very simple metrics and intelligent thinking that can sensibly inform our decisions.

So I read with amusement parts of the article (Do ABCs matter for customer magazines?

page 34, 5 April), which perhaps could have been more eloquently entitled "Does the media world think customer magazines are a load of old ****?"

We had the usual barrage of for and against views, all interesting stuff, but both contributors avoided a key and obvious area of debate – just how much does it cost to advertise in customer magazines? While acknowledging possible issues concerning the types of publication that are dumped in the corner of stores to fester, those that are mailed to the homes of subscribers or owners (e.g. Sky) can provide a valuable addition to any press schedule.

How? Well, perhaps it's just some of us direct-response media types who are in the know, but it makes you wonder whether the tangible, measurable area of relative cost is being addressed at times.

Both contributors to the article discussed audiences, research, average reading times, quality of the publications, distribution measurement and a plethora of other assorted titbits, but neither mentioned the cold, hard, meaningful costs of advertising.

While I'll avoid spelling out the obvious, if you have doubts about the potential value of customer magazines, take a copy of BRAD and compare the relative cost of actively-purchased paid-for titles to those of the customer magazines.

Yes, of course, the latter will be prone to a significant element of wastage – those who use Sky and other such magazines as nothing more than a lining to their bins.

However, even including a calculated estimate for unread or unopened copies, the numbers could make for a pleasant surprise, with relative cost for certain customer magazines comparing favourably, or at worst, similarly to actively purchased titles.

So if it's a pure question of reach and numbers, or cost efficient volume response for our clients, then outright dismissal of customer magazines may mean you're missing a trick.

"Guerrillas" are taking Liberties

Niall Jordan, managing director, QJ Media (UK) Ltd

So Diabolical Liberties no longer wish to be known as a guerrilla marketing agency. The likes of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (F.A.R.C) and ETA must be dancing in the streets, now that they are no longer associated with such an organisation. But wait, Diabolical Liberties want to be known as an Ambient Media Company!

On behalf of all those companies who have worked long and hard to create a respectable, professional industry, now almost universally referred to as "out-of-home" media, can I request that Diabolical Liberties FARC off!

Cinema shows healthy image

Chris Hall, research manager, Carlton Screen Advertising

With respect to your article (Silver Screen presents a golden opportunity for advertisers, page 18, 5 April), we would like to highlight an inaccuracy in your reported figures and a graph misrepresentation.

Between 1995 and 2003, the cinema advertising revenue figures quoted are sourced from the Advertising Association (AA).

However, the 2004 figure comes from Nielsen Media Research, which does not reflect the correct revenue figure and industry trend. According to AA, £192m of advertising revenue was reached in 2004, more accurately following the 7.3% increase you wrote of for that year. This figure is recognised by the AA and should clear up any contrasting information.

Taking these correct figures into consideration, a more positive picture of cinema is outlined and shows the medium's continued improvement and growth potential – a trend we're confident to see maintained.

Right balance is key to success

Robert Kemp, publisher, International Association Executive Magazine.

Our publication has been part of what you referred to as the "B2B dotcom revival", as we seem to have found the proper balance between website and magazine, (Getting down to business, page 30, 22 March).

The key to our success is the very extensive database containing the details of potential advertisers in clearly defined product/service categories.

So much of our advertising is feature-led that we needed to classify advertisers, so that specifically-targeted campaigns would hit the main players.

Having built the database of suppliers to our sector, it became a very useful product-finding resource for our readers and we have now incorporated it into the searchable "Source Book" section of our website, which has details of about 19,000 suppliers.

With their agreement we have given most suppliers a free name plus telephone number classified entry, but an increasing number are now opting for the enhanced listing with company profile, hyperlinks, etc, at an annual rental.

Our readers are happy with the facility (35,000 hits so far this year) and our advertisers, actual and potential, appreciate the exposure – all of which is strengthening our magazine and our market-leading position.