Pakistan: Perception and consequences

I. A. Sheikh reflects on what it will take to bring about change in Pakistan.

As I proceed to my next destination, St. Petersburg, after the conclusion of the 42nd IAA (International Advertising Association) World Congress in Moscow, I am delving deep into the subject of branding nations. The topic was addressed by Serge Dumont, Senior Vice President of the Omnicom Group, who underlined the fact that country branding is vital not only to tourism but to investment as well. The same point was emphasised by a report I coincidentally came across during a coffee break on day two of the Congress.

But I have to keep the subject of branding nations off my mind until I reach Leningradsky Station and board the St. Petersburg train. I rush out of my taxi and run hard to catch the train a full 30 seconds before it departs. As I seat myself, an American couple greets me and asks if I am with the IAA. I nod, upon which the lady introduces herself as Deborah Malone and her husband as Brandon. I immediately know we have something to talk about. She is the publisher and founder of The Internationalist, a magazine aimed at advertising, marketing and media professionals. She presents a copy of her magazine’s latest issue, which I recognise as the one that carried the report on nations as brands.

I tell Deb I already have a copy and that “I’ve had a look”. “You’ve been around,” she responds taking back her copy. We start talking about the Nation Brand Perception Report and the two sort of console me about the fact that the Report places Pakistan at the bottom of the Asia Index. “It’s ‘perceptions’ after all,” we agree.

The Nation Brand Perception Report that is featured in the magazine is an insight into how countries are perceived by the major media worldwide. It is published by East West Communications, a Washington DC based company that specialises in communication strategies and media plans for countries as brands.

The report identifies grammatically the most common positive and negative messages associated with a nation brand in the news, on television and online. The ranking of the countries is based on the tone and frequency of how it is mentioned in the media. It involves the use of Perception Metrics, a proprietary Natural Language Processing text analytics that provides detailed analysis on how any country is perceived in the world media. Singapore (95.465), South Korea (78.077) and Hong Kong (71.619) top Asia’s perception index, India is placed at eighth with a score of 56.947. Pakistan ranks abysmally low at 27th with a score of 4.783.

This is all I have to say about the Report.

Instead, I will deliberate on ‘Change: Consequences’ and its relevance to Pakistan, a nation that needs to reinvent and reposition itself as a brand.

At the IAA Congress, speakers from different parts of the world and with different sets of experiences and expertise kept on telling the over 1200 participants that the dynamics of communication were constantly and consistently changing. Digital media and social networking, they noted, are on the rampage and in a post-recessionary period, things had to be done in new ways, driven and dictated by the consumer behaviour. Today’s tech-savvy, connected and sensitised consumers will question why a certain brand exists (the soul); what it stands for (the heart); and how it is expressed (the body).

As Maurice Levy, Chairman and Chief Executive of the Publicis Group, said:

“Purpose-inspired brand building is the new rule of the game, which marks a shift from the conventional approach of adding value to a product to adding ‘meaningful’ value to the context of a product.”

In other words, the reason why a consumer chooses a brand lies in the greater good rather than in personal good. Tomorrow’s consumers are revolutionaries who have an agenda for change and these ‘radicals’ have the power to dictate their agenda to large brands and corporations.

The same ethical paradigm comes into play when we talk about national brand determinants. Social issues, the plight of women and children, human rights, rule of law, climate change and carbon emissions — everything impacts the perception of a nation as a brand. Furthermore, the perception of governments and country-of-origin issues can dramatically influence the future of local brands.

With such moral issues being at the heart of branding, the challenge for Pakistan’s perception managers is much more complex than one would surmise. We are plagued by grave social and moral challenges which continue to gnaw at the foundations of the country; issues such as extremism and intolerance, human rights, corruption, poverty, social injustice, which are then compounded by severe challenges such as energy, food and water shortages. Building Pakistan as a brand amid these circumstances is no small feat.

Where do we start from and who will spearhead the effort? Whose responsibility is it to do this? Should we begin with a logotype; a new colour scheme for Pakistan; should we start working on a brand book or identity guidelines for our generations to follow? What are the requisites to make this happen; money, resources, political will or ownership of certain values?

As for political ownership, I am reminded of an official effort made almost half a decade ago to build a soft image of the country. Ironically, this initiative was undertaken by a dictator-led democratic government. The outcome is self evident.

For Pakistan, the time to brand and position itself was yesterday. And while I write about this pressing issue, the country, rightly or wrongly, endures a ban on Facebook and hundreds of other websites. 

I. A. Sheikh is Executive Creative Director, Midas Communications. irfanafzal@midashome.com

Just digitalise

Salman Abedin on the importance of integrating digital into the brand strategy.

Everyone wants to do it, yet very few know how to. Or is it that they are just out of practise? Jokes aside, digital is the new buzz in the marketing and advertising scene in Pakistan.

Since last year, brand teams and agencies have been looking for ideas and solutions. People have tried various options, including banner ads, social media ‘campaigns’ – I am not even sure that the word campaign can be used in this context – branded games (silly attempts at giving existing games a brand makeover) and branded destination websites for various activations. Having watched most of the action and being involved with a few, here are my distilled thoughts.


What to look for

Tools – Define the brand personality: Of all the tools out there, the one that resonates the most in the digital world is brand personality. Define the personality properly and then use this as a filter to assess ideas and executions.
Consumers – Look for digital natives: One of the reasons digital campaigns fail to get off the ground is because many marketers have not read or understood what Malcolm Gladwell is trying to convey in his book, The Tipping Point. Rather than the traditional media shotgun approach, digital can identify and target specific demographics very clearly. If your product or service does not target digital natives, hold the digital campaign until you have the right message for them and then wait for the results.
Markets – Primarily urban: If your product or service is not targeted to urban areas, do not expect huge ROI for your brand buck (unless you are integrating this with BTL activities).
Media – Integrate BTL and ATL: This is not simply an integration issue. It is not about adding a digital leg to your ATL campaign; it is about adding ATL to the on-ground leg of your digital campaign. In any case, don’t underplay integration.


How to do it
Set objectives that are broad enough to fit different media and outcomes: Good ideas are those that are not pegged to other objectives, be they media channel related or outcome related. Digital works in a strange, often uncontrollable, way and those who do not believe in the theory of unintended consequences, need not apply.
Develop media agnostic ideas: In today’s fragmented market it is almost impossible to tie a campaign to one medium and this is even more applicable to digital media. Those who buy digital media in the same way they buy print or airtime are missing the point. Digital is a behavioural medium with target audiences constantly switching back and forth and moving in and out of range. It’s a bit like hitting a terrorist on a hill with a bunker buster. You might get him, but it’s a terrible waste of resources. Any good asymmetric warfare expert will tell you that the old tactics of infantry deployment and heavy bombardment do not work anymore. PyschOps is the new buzz in the military, and behavioural targeting is the new buzz in marketing.
Incorporate digital ideas across all brand strategies: Many of the companies dabbling in digital strategies are doing it for a few brands only. Top management must make digital mandatory across all brand plan templates, whether corporate, brand or tactical. I would go so far as to suggest that senior managers should refuse to sit in presentations where the brand plans do not have a digital component in them.
Put a budget behind the digital effort: You don’t need a lot of money, but budget it in. Walk the walk, and you will be surprised.


What not to do
Do not expect your agency to give you digital ideas: Your advertising agency is attuned to making TVCs. Your BTL agency is attuned to selling on-ground activations, so who do you go to for digital ideas? New breed agencies are cropping up and are able to provide integration ideas, but because of the tension between traditional agencies and these new breed agencies, brand managers need to take charge – and in some cases, kick butt, to ensure that the agency is cooperating.
Don’t expect to succeed at the first go: This is an evolving science and no one really knows how to do it, so be prepared to be surprised, be prepared to fail, and above all be prepared for an unintended viral success. Jump, and enjoy the drop! Don’t worry about spending; a decent experiment can be done on the fly.


Lastly, don’t panic! Don’t be afraid, it is not expensive and some great ideas can be tried out at very low cost.


Salman Abedin is Team Leader, Tuesday Digital. salman.abedin@tuesday.com.pk

"I think the voice business is over"

Naveed Saeed, SEVP Commercial, Pakistan Telecommunications (PTCL) talks to Marylou Andrew about how the organisation is transforming itself to keep pace with the changing telecommunications environment.

MARYLOU ANDREW: PTCL has launched many new services in the last two years. What is the core strength of your business?

NAVEED SAEED: PTCL is the largest telephone company in the country. When we say largest, we mean that it has the core infrastructure to be the backhaul operator for all the other telecoms carrying traffic from Pakistan to the world. PTCL is also a commercial organisation so we are running wire line products, wireless products, prepaid, post paid, data, voice, entertainment and media products.

MLA: Has PTCL changed as an organisation?

NS: There has been tremendous change compared to the way this organisation used to work. We have re-designated people; for example the lineman is now called the customer service representative (CSR). We used to be an implementation company only, whereby when someone needed a connection, we would install it. Today the CSR is knocking on doors and asking people if they want another connection or a broadband solution and offering them alternatives. This is a total change from a couple of years ago when consumers were knocking on PTCL’s doors. And it’s going to become better.

MLA: How has this translated into your marketing and advertising?

NS: PTCL was always perceived as a government type company and we wanted to change this image. We started treating PTCL as well as the individual products as brands, and chose the segments we wanted to target. We asked ourselves what associations we wanted to create in the advertising? How did we want to project our association with Qualcom? This work has really helped us and the feedback is that today PTCL is a much more open, approachable and friendlier company offering a variety of products for homes and businesses.

MLA: Is voice the largest part of your business?

NS: About 40% of the revenue still comes from the voice business, although in the past few years, because of the convenience factor there has been a strong migration towards mobile phones. For our voice business, we are focusing on small offices, SMEs, the corporate and business market. For individual home users there has been a migration from voice to data. Data is becoming a bigger product than voice not only for our business but also globally. In terms of broadband, we have grown by more than 100% every year. We already have a great brand called Evo and soon you will see something even better, which will give speeds of over 20 to 30 MB and the ability to download high definition movies and carry out video conferencing, among other things.

MLA: Where will the growth in the broadband market come from?

NS: Pakistan is one of top 10 countries in the world when it comes to broadband growth. It also has the lowest penetration of broadband in the world, so this is a double opportunity. Countries like Bangladesh, Cambodia, Chile, India, Mexico and Vietnam are emerging in terms of broadband. Bangladesh is probably the only market which is behind us and India is progressing very rapidly. With the e-world coming into place, soon there will be e-commerce, e-banking, e-education, e-transactions, e-learning, e-imports and e-governance and all of this is going to be powered by DSL connectivity; the potential is huge.

MLA: But you have a lot of competition from private broadband businesses.

NS: Competition is always healthy, but if you look at it, many of these companies are running on a PTCL network. There are some operators who have put in their own fibre, etcetera, but they are doing it on a very limited scale, whereas PTCL is going to do this even in the smallest villages. So it’s not competition in the real sense when you have somebody as big as PTCL. On the wireless side, we have seen growth from companies such as Wi-tribe, Augere (Qubee) and Mobilink Infinity. They have made the investment but I am not sure about their capacity. They have limited opportunities, whereas PTCL has inherent advantages, like its network, core locations and infrastructure. We also launched the V-phone (or V-wireless) network; this is a CDMA network and is much stronger than the EDGE or GPRS capabilities in the market today.

MLA: Are there any hindrances in realising the potential of this market?

NS: The government has been very supportive and wants to take DSL and broadband services to every nook and corner of Pakistan. I think the voice business is over; we have reached saturation level. We have our market share and the mobile companies have theirs. Whoever wants to use wire lines for business and personal needs is going to do so. However, PTCL is going into bundling propositions, bringing in the unlimited usage culture where we give you added value with unlimited movies, IPTV, internet and voice.

MLA: PTCL calls itself a ‘converged services telecom operator’. What does this mean?

NS: One of our products is a unified communications platform. It offers a total converged solution to any business. For example, in the case of a bank, we would fulfil the IT requirements by hosting their servers, doing the back and front end work, as well as providing them with internal calling and exchange services. It’s an all-encompassing server under one roof. It might be a bit early for us to call ourselves converged but we are an integrated telecommunications company for sure. Now how do you become integrated? Once you have all the services like voice, data, DSL and international connectivity and you can bring them all together.

MLA: Where do you see PTCL in the next three to five years?

NS: In five years, most of our fixed line customer base will also be data users. Markets such as France and the UK have seen the same kind of development. With the advent of mobile, some of the fixed line voice businesses went down, but they rebounded in a big way with the integration and bundling of data. So if you apply for a fixed line in one of these countries, you don’t just get voice, you get the complete package of IPTV, data and voice in one bundle. I see the same thing happening here in five years.

First published in the July-August 2010 issue of Aurora.

If the shoe fits...

By Rabeea Salman

Bata and Servis have been household names for over five decades, dominating Pakistan’s shoe market until the 90s. The turning point came with the import of branded and unbranded footwear, as well as with the start-up manufacturing of shoes and sandals for women by small, local shoemakers.

For the first time, Bata and Servis had competition and along with that came the realisation that they needed to adapt to this changed environment. Bata (a foreign company) brought in brands from its own international markets (such as Marie Claire, Bubblegummers and Weinbrenner etc.) and adapted the designs for wear in Pakistan, whereas locally owned Servis signed agreements with big names such as ECCO, Hush Puppies and Nike.

According to the Pakistan Footwear Manufacturers Association, the local shoe market is worth 100 billion rupees, of which 80% is made up of unbranded manufacturers and international brands, while Bata and Servis account for 20%. About 225 million pairs of shoes are produced in Pakistan every year and unsurprisingly, 75% of the sales revenue is generated by women’s shoes.

These statistics should provide food for thought for Bata and Servis, both of which have positioned themselves as ‘family’ stores but have really focused on the male demographic because the margins on men’s shoes are higher. Of course the flip side of the coin is that women buy twice or thrice as many pairs of shoes per year as men do, and therefore the volumes (and the revenues) are much higher in this area.

Both Bata and Servis seem to be aware that their business models need to change in order to adapt to changed market dynamics. As a first step, they have repositioned themselves as companies that cater to every tier of the market, and not the middle and bottom segments only.

Although many of their outlets in the smaller towns remain unchanged, in the larger cities, Servis has introduced the concept of mega stores, and Bata has opened up city concept stores. Based on the neighbourhood in which a store is located, the type of shoes in demand, the brands and the general environment differ accordingly. In doing so, both companies are consciously striving to create an environment conducive to attracting women shoppers, who will constitute the cash cow of the future.

Imran Malik, MD, Bata, confirms that his company is targeting the female demographic and says that Pakistan is the only market in the Bata universe where men’s shoes dominate sales.

“In our sister organisations in Malaysia and Singapore, the sales contribution from the women’s category is over 55% and the rest of the markets follow a similar trend.”

Currently most women prefer to buy their shoes and sandals from shops such as EBH, Ehsan Chapal, Fitrite, Stylo, WalkEaze or the hundreds of others shoe stores that litter every bazaar. An obvious reason is because these stores offer a huge variety in terms of design. However, another factor could also be the salespeople there, who are better equipped to deal with the many queries and try-outs that women require before they settle on a pair.

Naim-ul-Abd, GM Marketing, Servis Sales Corporation believes that part of the issue is that companies such as Bata and Servis have focused on too many segments whereas the new brands are focusing specifically either on men, women or children and are therefore able to innovate in those areas.

Neither company however is planning to focus specifically on women in the near future, although an effort is certainly being made to expand the portion of revenues generated by women’s shoes. In addition to the Marie Claire brand which caters to SEC A+ and A women, Bata recently launched a local brand called Leena, which is targeting women in the middle income group with ‘affordable’ shoes. Servis’ strategy to capture the women’s market has been along the same lines. There is a brand called Liza for the middle and lower income tiers and the Soul Collection brand for SEC A.

In focusing on the women’s market, Bata and Servis have realised that the pace at which they release new designs and collections needs to change. Abd explains that Servis had traditionally followed the model of releasing a new collection every winter and summer but understands that the “lifecycle of innovation in women’s shoes needs to be much faster.” Malik agrees, adding that two product lines are not enough to satisfy the needs of women, who want to be kept engaged and involved.

However, these changes will only make a difference when consumers are made aware of them. Currently both Bata and Servis place greater emphasis on in-store advertising because they feel it is the most effective option in terms of cost and impact. However, consumers would first have to step into the store to see this advertising, and so the question is, how to get them there?

Abd agrees that this is a challenge, although he doesn’t believe that consumers plan a shoe purchase after seeing the advertising.

“People will just walk by a store and then walk in; it’s a closed purchase cycle.”

Whether or not this is true is open to debate, however it is clear that shoe purchases (and sales) for Bata and Servis are very closely linked to outlets.

According to Abd, “When it comes to shoes, the manufacturer’s ability to sell a brand is closely linked to their outlet development ability.”

Unlike FMCGs and other brands which sell through a distribution network, shoe companies generally sell their merchandise at their own stores, which can be a mixed blessing.

Selling through their own stores offers the advantages of good branding opportunities and the ability to keep track of the quality and quantity of the merchandise. However, because outlet development is a cost intensive activity, it limits a brand’s reach in the short term. Bata and Servis have at least 400 outlets throughout Pakistan (a huge advantage), although recently they have started selling merchandise (particularly women’s shoes) through third party smaller stores in order to increase penetration.

In spite of all these measures, Bata and Servis understand that there will be plenty of challenges in the future. A factor to be considered is the influx of more international brands, which will provide serious competition particularly in the top tiers (where Bata and Servis hope to draw their margins from). Secondly, as Abd points out, both Bata and Servis will have to manage a dual market.

“We will have to decide whether we want to be price centric or value centric.”

But most importantly (and both companies agree on this), the biggest challenge will be to remain relevant in a discerning market.

First published in the July-August 2010 issue of Aurora.

Is Pakistan ready for 3G?

Although the introduction of 3G technology may be inevitable, the timing of such a move depends on a number of variables, writes Saad K. Bashir.

Cellular technology has changed considerably in the last decade, transforming the cell phone from a rich man’s tool to a common man’s necessity. Now that mobile network operators are increasingly looking beyond plain vanilla ‘voice’ and moving towards providing faster data and information access via cell phones, the next stage in this evolution is 3G.

Simply put, 3G is the third generation of wireless technologies. Unlike previous technologies, 3G offers high speed data transmission and advanced multimedia access. By using 3G, mobile subscribers will be able to surf the internet at higher speeds and make video calls (among other things) while on the move; governments can use the same technology to provide wider access to healthcare and education; thus the possibilities are enormous.

The potential and promise of 3G has been recognised worldwide and several telecom regulators in different countries have been issuing licenses. The most recent example is India where the situation is reminiscent of what happened in the UK over a decade ago when five operators won the rights to set up 3G networks at a cumulative price of US$35.4 billion. 

In India the process closed after 34 days and 183 rounds, with the Indian Government netting over US$14.6 billion from the process. It is worth mentioning that since June 30, 2009, India has 427 million wireless subscribers with an overall tele-density of 36.64% (urban tele-density stands at 87.18% and rural tele-density at 15.35%). With urban tele-density reaching three figures, future growth in revenue terms will depend on consumer response to 3G functionalities such as data/internet and video calls. Perhaps the most interesting statistic in this regard is that whereas the total number of internet subscribers in India stands at 14.05 million, the number of subscribers who have activated data services through their telecom operators is 126.97 million. This means that in India there are nine times more subscribers who access the internet via their cell phone rather than through regular PC-based internet services. (Source: TRAI, June 2009)

With the auction of 3G licenses gaining momentum in India as well as in other countries, there is a desire to jump start the process in Pakistan. The roll out of 3G is important for Pakistan considering that there is ample evidence from other developing countries that many people get their first taste of the internet on their mobile phone. For this kind of revolution to take place in Pakistan, the data experience will need to be far more superior than it is now, and for that to happen we will have to go 3G or even beyond it.

Although the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has been an effective regulator in terms of rolling out new initiatives, in this case it will have to consider whether or not Pakistan is ready for 3G. Although it is difficult to compare one country with another when it comes to issuing 3G licenses (there are several variables at play, including economic growth rate, telecom industry revenue, infrastructure deployment costs, industry competitive scenario), a look at the key decision making variables can help make the picture clearer.

A young country

Pakistan has a population of 97.2 million young people between the ages of 0 and 24; this figure alone should be enough to make investors stand up and take note of the opportunities that Pakistan presents across different horizons. Cellular technology has a major role to play in the years to come and based on the consumption habits of the young and their internet and media awareness, the potential for 3G growth is immense. From the telecom operators’ point of view, this young emerging population should be a key consideration when evaluating 3G prospects in Pakistan.

Internet/data users

An important consideration is the current internet/data user base. Estimates suggest that there are about 18 million internet users in Pakistan, of which 643,892 are broadband subscribers (Source: PTA, Dec 2009). In addition to internet subscribers, a useful indicator for 3G scoping are the existing data (GPRS/EDGE) users, as they are the first set of users most likely to embrace 3G. Unofficial statistics put their number at approximately 5.5 million, i.e. 5.2% of the total cellular base. Although this consumer base is not nearly enough to justify the costs involved in rolling out 3G, once telecom operators are able to open the data tab through 3G, the number of data users is likely to increase.

Cellular penetration

Based on PTA statistics, Pakistan’s cellular density as of February 2010 was 58.7%. The urban/rural split is not available but a province wise picture is available, which might help to determine whether it makes business sense for telecom operators to pursue 3G services in Pakistan.

Punjab and Sind account for about 75% of Pakistan’s population, so it is no surprise that cellular penetration is higher in those provinces, however, given that cellular penetration is calculated on the total number of connections and not on unique users, it is likely that the overall penetration figure will be lower.

Aware and tech savvy urban consumers will have to drive 3G growth; they will have to adopt 3G data services and utilise them optimally to create a win-win situation for themselves and the operators. Furthermore, within the urban landscape, telecom operators will need to take into account the stiff competition that will come from WiMax and broadband service providers; they will not stand silently by and let the telecom companies take over their market.

On the rural front, the telecom operators will first have to acquire telecom customers and then face the massive task of driving 3G data usage to a group of subscribers with low literacy rates; the absence of internet content in Urdu and in the regional languages will make this task even more difficult. There is also the fact that the average revenue per user (ARPU) in Pakistan is as low as US$2.3. Considering that the telecom operators want to drive this number upwards, bringing in new technology that requires serious work in terms of educating consumers backed by a great deal of marketing effort might prove to be difficult.

Licensing infrastructure

Historically, the PTA has always issued pan-Pakistan licenses for mobile telephony, but it may be time to adopt a different approach in the light of Pakistan’s urban/rural tele-density scenario. It may not make business sense for telecom operators to roll out their 3G networks on a national basis. Even if they do obtain a national license they might choose not to roll out nationally as the return on investment is likely to be spread over decades in certain areas. Operating licenses as well as the network upgrade are big ticket items and given the current economic and security situation, the number of licenses and when they are issued will be crucial in determining the fate of 3G in Pakistan.

Are we ready?

There are no benchmarks available to determine whether a country is ready for 3G or not. The technological evolution is inevitable but the degree of success depends on how the above variables pan out. In my opinion, Pakistan may be ready for 3G on some fronts but not on others, although it is only a matter of time before the technology is introduced. However, it is extremely important that the PTA does not see this opportunity as merely a money making proposition. It has to be a win-win situation for all three stakeholders (PTA, telecom operators and consumers). Like businesses, technologies have their lifecycles and the critical question for telecom operators is how much incremental revenue 3G will bring in relation to the amount of investment required to make it work. The PTA will have to take into account the opinion of all the stakeholders before determining the timeframe for issuing 3G licenses, and based on the current market and economic dynamics, this can wait for at least another two years.

Saad K. Bashir works for a telecom company in Pakistan. saadkbashir@gmail.com


First published in the July-August 2010 issue of Aurora.

Time - the new currency

Syed Amir Haleem on the implications of the New Consumer Attention Economy.
Consumer Attention Economy is the subject of an email I received courtesy of a colleague in KL.



Another media fad, I think to myself. I mentally toss the email aside and move on to read the Sunday edition of Calvin and Hobbes, allowing my spirits to lift slightly as I wait to board my flight home. After an hour’s wait the flight is delayed for the third time and by now I have gone through all the emails in my inbox.


I see a little girl in front of me trying to get her father’s attention as he works on a laptop. He brushes her off, “I don’t have the time for you right now. I’ll read you the story when we are home sweetheart.”


I know the guy. He is a former client. I feel genuinely sorry for the kid.


A mother next to me is having a highly animated, yet one-sided, conversation with her teenage daughter. The girl is too involved with her texting to bother. She doesn’t have time for her.


Attention economy indeed, I think to myself. As a society we don’t have enough attention to go around. I revert to the email sent by my colleague. What the heck, it has to be better than another lousy cup of tea at Benazir Bhutto International.


To my surprise, it starts off direct and crisp and in less than 30 seconds I am hooked. Economics by definition is how a society manages its scarce resources. The article goes on to explain how information is no longer scarce. The writer says the internet took care of that. In fact, there is so much information demanding our attention that we don’t know where to focus anymore. Be it the internet, TV or any other media, in this age of information bombardment, the scarcest resource today, and indeed the most powerful currency, is human attention.


In my opinion, those that are able to command consumer attention will automatically become acquainted with its cousin, the cold hard rupee. And it makes sense, because what is the one thing every advertiser is desperately fighting for? Why are they dishing out such absurd amounts of rupees to the media? Consumer attention, of course.


I sometimes fail to understand how media planners convince their clients to place five spots in the same mid-break; it is stupid on so many levels that it is actually sad. Then I recall some former clients asking for this too. Maybe planners are not always to blame.


The economies of attention is not an issue for media planners and clients alone. In the long run, the information overload from the media will come back to bite them. Most strategists, both on the agency and the client end have started to talk about utilising their money more effectively, rather than waste it on channels with ridiculous inventories. New findings demonstrate that the rating of a programme can drop by as much as 70% during long mid-breaks. People simply find something better to do. Advertisers who think they are dishing out silly amounts of rupees to go on a programme with a certain rating are actually paying for half the audience they think they are getting, and sometimes less.


Fleeting attention spans are crucial and are the reason why new disciplines such as experiential marketing and (its subset) brand activation are gaining popularity; they seem to offer results.


As for the media actually considering a capping policy, it seems unlikely in the immediate future. Why would they? We are indulging them by giving them our annual budgets on a silver platter, irrespective of whether anyone is actually watching our ads or not. If I were the media I would do the same thing.


My thoughts are interrupted by le garçon de l’aéroport tempting me with another cup of tea. I am irritated. I don’t have the time for him. It’s not his fault. Dieting does for me what PMS does to women. I refuse as politely as possible. Where was I?


Yes. I email Ravi, my regional point of contact in KL, for more insight and then look around to kill time.


There is a young, self-proclaimed marketing guru trying desperately to impress some VP from a bank. The banker is irritated. She doesn’t have the time for this.


Maybe she is also on a diet. I don’t want to consider the other alternative. The hot shot is oblivious to her lack of attention. You can always spot the wannabe marketing guru. He is the one who isn’t listening because he is too busy talking.


Fifteen minutes later Ravi sends me several white papers on the attention economy. He also has many things to say about the lineage of the gentleman who invented the BlackBerry. Apparently it’s an absurd hour there and he is, after all, the CEO of an international office. But let’s not be bothered, we don’t have time for that.


It is important to realise that the key ingredient in the attention game is relevance. The only way to get people’s attention is to engage them with content that is relevant. In fact, it is context more than content that is the solution to the attention deficit.


The data flowing in from all our offices is clear on another aspect. There is a direct relationship between the attention economy and age. The younger the consumer, the more difficult it is to get and hold his or her attention. Older audiences are more predictable in their media consumption patterns, but younger audiences are extremely demanding and move on to more engaging media like the internet and cell phones. Yet, even traditional media can be made relevant, if done smartly. Most people in Pakistan mistake experiential marketing for an activation that is taking place outside Imtiaz Store. Nothing is further from the truth. You can also engage a consumer through traditional advertising. As long as it is relevant, there is a high probability that he will engage, but it is beyond the scope of this article to discuss the many ways to accomplish this.


I close the white papers, and open Facebook. I see a status update from Marylou about baking a new batch of cookies. I tell her I might have an article for her.


“What is it about,” she asks. I tell her, I don’t have time for it… just read the words in italics.


I get up and walk over to the gentleman across me still hammering at his laptop’s keyboard. The problem is simple. Only a few formulas are bothering him on his spreadsheet. It will take me less than two minutes to solve the problem. I offer my services.


“It will take me less than 30 minutes to solve your problem,” I say. “So why don’t you read your little girl the story she wants.”


The kid jumps up and down, she finally has her father’s full attention.


In the end, that is what it’s all about – Attention: the new currency for the new economy.






Syed Amir Haleem is Media Director, Media Axis. syed@starcomworldwide.com.pk

It isn’t fun if you aren’t naked

By Ali Hayat Rizvi

Made you look, didn’t I? Now imagine doing that every working day, from nine to five (actually 10 to who knows when) and you’ll get a pretty accurate picture of what your average creative does when he’s not frolicking with models, going off to exotic locations to study the local fauna or updating his Facebook status.


Yes. A day in the life of a creative director is all that – and more. All you brand managers out there who think we are overpaid prima donnas – this time, you are absolutely correct. And no, your access to YouTube and your subscription to ‘Ads of the World’ do not give you the right to criticise my work.


A day in my life begins with me walking in at 9:30 a.m. to a sea of smiling faces. There is a twinkle in every eye and a spring in every step. At my desk is a steaming cup of chai. I check my email and apart from the usual accolades, there are a couple of challenging, well-written briefs, and a dozen invitations to different red carpet events. At that moment, the resident Swedish masseuse walks in. And her twin sister is with her.


An hour later, the stresses of the drive to work washed away by a combination of aromatic oils and incense, I walk out to survey my domain. I catch my reflection in a glass and chrome cubicle. The hairline has stopped receding, the gut is gone and I feel and look taller every day. I wish I could linger and truly take in this magnificent sight before me, but I despise vanity. And besides, the world is waiting.


A client meeting is scheduled. One of those random MNCs that look to my agency to pull them out of the morass of mediocrity that ‘the region’ has thrust upon them. I truly feel a warm glow when I see them fawn over me, hang on to my every word, look to me to take them and their brand (in that order) to Cannes.


My art director and copywriter (bless them) have had the rare opportunity to work together uninterrupted for more than three years. None of that high turnover in advertising crap for this team! They have therefore developed a creative rapport that is worth its weight in gold – and is paid in peanuts. As expected, the work is ready, pasted, mounted and polished to perfection. I remember how things used to be when I first cut my teeth in advertising. Not a day goes by when I don’t marvel at how much the agency process has evolved. And if there is one innovation that I would credit for this efficiency, it would beyond the shadow of a doubt be the timesheets. The self discipline that goes into the excitingly repetitive task of filling in a timesheet makes you a better person, a better husband and most importantly, a better creative. And if you don’t believe me, ask anyone in finance.


Suddenly, all hell breaks loose. Apparently the big idea that’s been cracked for a certain brand is EXACTLY the same as the big idea for every other brand in every other category. This is unheard of in the advertising fraternity! While some may see this as a gigantic disaster, I see this as an opportunity to exercise our creative muscle. There is no crisis that doesn’t bring out the best in all of us. That is the triumph of the human spirit.


Just like the Corleones went to their mattresses in times of strife, we go to the slides. Over several cigarette breaks, tea orders and state of the nation discussions, we need only 13 minutes worth of brainstorming to uncover the problem. The key visual is wrong! Where we could have shown a mischievously feuding couple (romantic), a young executive making a presentation to his bosses (aspirational), or a child doing any damn thing he or she wants to (cute), we chose the image of a rock star. Now everyone knows that using a celebrity to promote your product to someone who does not, will not, or cannot use your product in real life, is a terrible idea. Which is exactly why no one ever does this anymore. A quick search of Corbis, a trip to Getty and a crawl through Flickr and we are done. The big idea may not be completely different from the competition, but it’s not the same either. While a good insight is rare, an insight that is tried and tested saves time, effort and money. In the end it all boils down to efficiencies. We walk out of the huddle room, smiling. The pall that had descended upon the junior creatives and planners has lifted. All is well in the world once more. Our exorbitant bonuses have been well and truly earned.


Then, as if on cue, the client team walks in. Pleasantries are exchanged, jokes are shared and biscuits are brought in. Before we know it, it’s time to get down to business. The planning presentation (all 173 slides) is shared. The 360-degree campaign is rolled out. Not only do we have the TV ideas, we have the print insertion, the buntings and the posters. For this presentation we have gone all out. We even have the break bumpers and the appropriately named L-shaped scrolls. Studies by our media partners have shown that these innovations have made the TV viewing experience more interactive and have increased brand recall significantly.


Ladies and gentlemen, that’s a wrap. The client is happy, the agency is happy, the TV channel is happy. And if we have managed to create so much happiness even before the campaign is launched, I can only imagine how happy the consumer is going to be when we go on air. It is days like this that make being in advertising worthwhi…


My phone is ringing. It’s 10:30 a.m. and I’m late for work again.


Damn these early morning dreams. They are so difficult to wake up from.


Ali Hayat Rizvi is Group Creative Director, JWT. ali.hayat@jwt.com

Phajje de paaye and another Mont Blanc

Muzaffar Manghi on the not-so-great differences between Lahore and Karachi clients.

Geez. This could be tricky. Not sure how I keep getting myself into these things. All I wanted to do was write an article about Jeremy Brett being the one and only Sherlock Holmes and why South Park is possibly the most rocking, culturally up-to-date show on the planet.

Instead, I’m going to talk about my clients. And the difference between Lahore and Karachi clients. Which blows, because I have very dear and loved clients in both cities. And I belong to both cities.

To start with, I will do you all a favour and skip the clichéd part about Lahoris thinking Karachiwaalas are all bhais and very chalaak as well as the part about Karachiwaalas thinking Lahoris are all paindus and love hydrogen peroxide.

The fact is that Karachi and Lahore are pretty much the same. They really are, in the grand scheme of things. Both are more Pakistani than anything else. Common traits flow through and through, civic sense is low, passion is high, feet are on the ground and lust for money is in the air. The differences that manifest themselves as far as clients are concerned have cultural and geographic roots and are influenced by the events of the past 10 years.

Karachi is a port city. And a very large one. When someone in the old days moved to Karachi, it was with the intent of finding a job as a skilled worker or as a professional of some kind or of becoming an entrepreneur. In fact, post-partition it was Karachi primarily that inherited the educated middle classes. Lahore on the other hand, was always agricultural, and apart from agriculture, people had little reason to move to Lahore. In fact, more people migrated from Punjab to other countries than from anywhere else. Then about 10 years ago, a bunch of guys got really upset about a couple of things and flew a plane into a building. Pretty much. And then the world changed. Direly.

Suddenly, Pakistanis were not welcome in the rest of the world. A deeply embedded sense of alienation led to uncontrollable feelings of isolation and victimisation. And so Mr Rahim Yaar Khan and his family decided to pack up and move back to Pakistan with whatever humble savings they had. In euros. And when they converted their euros to rupees, they realised how much money they had. And lo and behold, the boom came. Consumerism became the new religion. Banks started handing out cars and credit cards and pointlessly large TVs like candy. Business grew rapidly and Lahore became much more than good soil to grow stuff in.

Naturally, the advertising business grew in Lahore as well, and because Karachi was struggling with security and infrastructure issues, many MNC businesses, especially the telcos, settled in Punjab.

However, the gap in the number of ‘mature’ years in each city’s ad scene could not simply be bridged by a bunch of Karachi people and gora companies moving to Lahore and variations in exposure still exist. For instance, a typical client in Lahore may not see any great value in investing in a superb production, or if they do, they want to get maximum value out of it, and fill it with supers and endless product windows and dialogue. And a jingle.

Karachi clients are more exposed. Even if a Karachi client has not personally been involved in making a film with kick ass production values, he or she will at least know or have rubbed shoulders with someone who has, and hence the desire will potentially be there.

As peachy as that may sound, there is a flip side. The fact is that when clients do not know about something (and cannot admit it in front of you), rather than dealing with them as jaahil clients who are being obstinate, the agency has the opportunity to enlighten them and illustrate the difference between good and bad productions and help them see the value in the investment. It allows the agency to take an initiative that not only wins the client’s respect, but helps forge a relationship where the client sees the agency as a partner and not just as another vendor, which is what sometimes happens with clients in Karachi.

Clients, who have a template, chart and diagram and obvious research to back what they say. (None of my clients are like that, point to be noted, you’re all rock stars yeah). Over informed clients, who have engineered things beyond being useful will never feel they need an agency as a partner, but only as an executor of their initiatives.

Another peculiar difference, albeit a shallow one, is the difference in the magnitude and quality of appreciation. Some clients in Lahore are very appreciative of the agency’s work.

However, constant appreciation may not always be a good thing; it can potentially lull good talent into believing they are great, a commonly practiced form of suicide in our business. No one is great. Ever. That’s how you will be great. Karachi clients, because they have been around for longer, have realised this and have struck the right balance between badmashi and tameez. Karachi is more familiar with, and better able to foster talent.

Talent on the client’s side is another area worth comparing. Because Karachi is very cosmopolitan compared to Lahore, we find all sorts of people there, interacting with all kinds of other people, and this results in more diversity in the talent. In Lahore, cultural diversity is somewhat limited. Lahore is predominantly Punjabi. But where Lahore catches up is the way it safeguards its culture and the expression of that culture. On any given night of the week, there are so many gatherings of writers, artists, lawyers and sociologists, so many plays and art openings, concerts and book readings, that a willing individual can keep his or her grey cells in a state of constant activity. Sure, these activities may be happening in much smaller circles, the result of Lahore still not having made the psychological transition to being a big city. Yet, they are happening.

To me, these differences are arbitrary. I believe that there are very few differences between a Lahore and a Karachi client. Here’s why.

On one hand, you have, hypothetically, a guy in Lahore who is not very exposed or well versed, has a childhood fascination with phajje de paaye, but owns and successfully runs an air-conditioner manufacturing plant the size of Slovakia. On the other hand, also quite hypothetically, you have another guy in Karachi who speaks well, has travelled widely, moans with delight at the thought of another expensive Mont Blanc and successfully runs a foreign bank at a very high salary. Both are the same. The difference is in the packaging, the language and the interface. Because anyone from anywhere who handles that many zeroes and does a good job doing it has beyond doubt tasted blood and likes it.

Both are men or women with business acumen. Both are instinctive, trust their gut and are driven by a desire to succeed. And that’s what makes a good client. Agar toffee ander se ek hai, farq to mere bhai sirf wrapper ka hua.

So let me conclude by talking about the similarities between the two. I could talk about the sense of urgency both have, or the value of the cousin’s, neighbour’s, aunt’s opinion on the agency’s work. And perhaps comment about the amount of second thoughts clients sometimes have about a brief once the work is delivered after great effort. Or even the confusion that sometimes occurs when an agency accidentally presents more than one good option, and the ensuing debate about merging both options to create a super robo-option.

But you know what? I am not going to. It’s not about the differences or lack of them. It’s about a client’s vision, courage and ability to believe. 

Muzaffar Manghi is Creative Director, Red Communication Arts. screw79@yahoo.com