What clients want

Do clients and agencies play safe by relying heavily on traditional media like TV & print? Yes? Are you sick of buzzwords like social networking & integratgion? Join the gang. A bunch of influential CEOs of US corporations and agencies were interviewd by Businessweek and they too agreed. These were the judges of the Effie Awards and not really a huge sample, but hey they are the ones who decide on pathbreaking stuff for clients & agencies.It provides an interesting perspective of what clients think of current issues. Here are a few:

When asked: “What emerging area of marketing does your brand need to address most immediately?” 44% answered that the digital cutting edge, social networks, and in-game advertising were the issues foremost in their minds.

Despite the increased shift to digital marketing, do you think marketers/ clients continue to play it safe by relying too heavily on tried and true mediums like TV and print?

Agency: 76% Yes; 24% No.

Client: 50% Yes; 50% No.

Interesting to see a divided house between clients and agencies. Agency guys feel that they are doing  a lot of innovative stuff. The client does not think so. Hey, what’s new?

Which brand has come the farthest since last year, in terms of both awareness and building a positive image in the eyes of consumers?

Apple led the votes. This seems true for the US. Be it the iPhone or the increased market share of Macbook or a growth rate (32%) outpacing the industry, Apple has come a long way.

Name one buzzword you are absolutely sick of hearing?

No prizes for guessing here.

Integration: 12 votes; Social Networking – 12 votes.

I would imagine that the CEO’s, agency heads would provide similar feedback in India (except for the Apple one of course). My hunch is that they would also talk about the talent crunch and understanding of mobile as medium as burning issues. What say?