Luxury brands navigate the risks and rewards of banking on celebrity ambassadors, Alibaba gears up for Singles Day with the launch of China’s largest robotics warehouse, and JD.com apologises for a sexist marketing blunder. Read China Decoded to make sense of the market Original article was published by Business of Fashion. MGI Entertainment was interviewed by Casey Hall. The …
An Insight by Michael MacRitchie Yes, we know that China can be a very exciting market… China has a flourishing live music scene, with 57% of affluent music fans attending concerts. China’s influence on the global music business is growing, and labels and artist managers from around the world are recognising the potential to engage with a large group of …
If the advertising industry were a family, branded content would be the overbearing mother-in-law.
An insight by Michael MacRitchie Would you ask your accountant to perform legal work? Would you ask your lawyer to perform dental procedures? The answer is obviously “no”. You work with specialists to execute specialist tasks…. Every agency can do anything their client asks right? Most agencies will try and get as much work out of their client as …
An Insight from Michael MacRitchie From the first lullaby sung to us as babies, music provides the “soundtrack” of our lives. So much so that I think many of us take it for granted — just as we do the soundtrack of a film, which we often hear without listening to it. That is, we enjoy the film without realizing …
MGI Entertainment founder Michael MacRitchie is interviewed by Casey Hall from WWD (Womens Wear Daily) SHANGHAI – It’s difficult to avoid the ubiquitous smiling faces of China’s favorite celebrities.They appear on billboards, in magazines and in television commercials. In short, they are everywhere. And fashion show attendees in New York and Europe are almost certain to spot them as increasingly important front-row fixtures.As they put …
An insight by Michael MacRitchie Celebrities bring visibility, credibility and attract more media attention to public relations, advertising and marketing campaigns because of who they are. Contacting, negotiating and working with celebrities, however, can require critical research and an in-depth understanding of the consumer/brand/celebrity perspectives in order to maximise the potential celebrity partnership. Here are some tips to and also some guidelines that …
Insight by Michael MacRitchie Celebrity endorsements are not a new idea. Brands have been using this for years to set themselves apart from their competition. Big name celebrities have been able to demand crazy money to endorse products across the globe. Virgin Mobile, a challenger brand in the Australian market, stumbled across an interesting insight. The offspring of celebrities often live an innocuous …
An insight by Michael MacRitchie “Sex sells”. Or so they say. But maybe that’s not quite right. Maybe this is more accurate: The mystery of sex sells. The suggestion of it. What’s the difference? Mystery and suggestion do something that showing everything can’t – they engage the imagination. Sex experts the world over will tell you that the most sensitive …
Insight by Andrew Collins I found this article up from Mailman Group website where CEO Andrew Collins makes some interesting points about brands staying relevant the article can be found here; http://www.mailmangroup.com/2011/12/watch-for-consumer-cues-to-stay-relevent/ If you keep reading it is here as well… How many brands closely watch ‘consumer cues’ to drive brand decisions? After all it’s the consumers whom actually create …
An insight by Andrew Howie This hugely successful campaign was the brain child of Rawson Marshall Thurber, who also played a huge role in the writing and directing of ‘Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story’. The ‘Terry Tate – Office Line Backer’ series was first produced in 2002 and aired during half time of the 2003 NFL Super Bowl. The main …
An insight by Andrew Howie Since the birth of sport, players have been complaining about the referees. It seems there is rarely a match where teams are happy with the decisions. In some cases, both teams are fiercely unhappy. As technology has improved, most sports have adopted it in some form or other. Cricket first brought in a 3rd umpire …
An insight by Andrew Howie Seen by most as the premier film festival on the plant, Cannes is here again. The world’s greatest actors, most beautiful people and movie executives trot along to watch the latest movies. There is a mix of art-house films and big budget productions. The big one this year is with Russell Crowe and Cate Blanchett. …
An insight by Andrew Howie With seven world titles and 91 grand prix victories to his name, there is little that Michael Schumacher has not achieved. He has driven for several teams and conquered all who stood up to him. All except one person. Father Time. It seems that despite having more talent in his little finger than most Formula …
Insight by Andrew Howie There has been a huge growth in the number of ‘foodies’ in recent times. This secretive group of people enjoy going to good restaurants as entertainment and are hard to come by. They are not necessarily looking for expensive nor exclusive. They do however know of all the best places to eat. For them the thrill …
By Andrew Howie Turning our readers attention to Australia and a recent scandal with one of the major league clubs. When the police look to take down a drug ring, they don’t look to pin it on the mid-weight dealer. They look to go all the way to the top. Because, if you take down the top, then you ultimately …
An Insight by Andrew Howie For many years most pretended that global warming was a fad and would not last. But, without admitting that it is actually a problem, most industries have begun making efforts to reduce their foot print. Some have done so in response to increased government pressures. Others have done so due to increased social pressures. But …
An Insight by Lauren Jane Whether you like Ke$ha or think her song, Tik Tok, is commercialized garbage, there is no denying that she has now got herself a smash hit single. Tik Tok hooks in the listener from the very beginning. Her playful and bizarre rapping style is so uniquely different from other pop-artists, and through this, she’s found …
An Insight by Andrew Howie We are on the verge of a huge groundswell. We are under 100 days to the FIFA World Cup in South Africa. With that comes some amazing, and very expensive advertising. Every celebrity with an endorsement gets rolled out to be the backbone of brand campaigns. This leads to a huge amount of noise but …
A review by Michael MacRitchie This is not your typical war movie. Instead of dwelling on bloodshed on the battlefield, The Founding of a Republic focuses on the psychological war between China’s Nationalists and Communists, and the complex negotiations of their power struggle. The inclusion of archival black-and-white footage, from pivotal battles such as as those at Huaihai and Pingjin …
