We'd like to start our December newsletter by wishing all our readers a very happy end to the year and a successful 2023.
2023 is set to be a fast-paced year for thenetworkone. We have lots of exciting things planned, including more amazing Wednesday Webinars every month, The 2023 Social Media Report with Kurio, The Indie Summit in Singapore, The Indie Forum and Cannes Beach Party.
We'd like to thank you all for your support in 2022 and we're very much looking forward to working with you next year!
The work was of an extremely high standard this year, and we'd like to wish congratulations to every agency who made it on the shortlist. We'd also like to thank our panel of esteemed judges who worked so hard to support The Indie Awards.
We'll be crowning the winners on Thursday 8th December in London and you're all invited to join us! Please see below for more info.
The Indie Awards Presentation & Festive Drinks
Next Thursday 8th December, we'll be revealing the much-anticipated winners of The Indie Awards, plus holding a drinks party to celebrate! Please join us to toast both the winners and the holiday season:
DATE: Thursday 8th December TIME: 18.00 – 21.00 LOCATION: The Hickman Building, 2 Whitechapel Road, London, E1. Map here REGISTER HERE
Our Awards ceremony and drinks party will take place at the beautiful Hickman Building with views overlooking the London cityscape - thanks to our friends at Four Communications. We'll be making the most of East London's renowned food scene by catering the event with delicious food from local vendors. In addition, the drinks will - of course - be flowing. It's almost the holidays, after all!
Whether or not you're nominated for an Indie Award, we hope you'll join us for a drink, some great food and networking with likeminded independent agencies.
The Indie Summit 2023: Earlybird discount announced!
The Indie Summit is coming back with a bang in 2023 and we're offering exclusive EARLY BIRD tickets!
The Indie Summit will be held on 17th & 18th April 2023 in the vibrant and futuristic city of Singapore. Indeed, our conference venue reflects Singapore's beauty, technology and eco-consciousness.
We'll be holding the Summit at the ParkRoyal Collection Pickering Hotel, designed by world-famous architects and known as the "Hotel in a Garden".
The venue is truly stunning, but you won't be gazing out the window with the conference program we're working on! You can expect inspirational, top-tier speakers, all bespoke to an independent audience, as well as plenty of interactivity with your fellow guests - think speed-dating, round-tables, audience Q&A’s and small scale dinner gatherings.
Not only do we have early bird tickets for sale, but we've managed to secure a heavily discounted room rate for our delegates. Members of thenetworkone can save around £200 GBP if you purchase Early Bird tickets, as well as 35% off the rack rate of a room at the hotel if you reserve a room now.
***Please note: early bird tickets AND discounted hotel rooms are on a first come, first served basis. Once they're gone, we won't be able to release any more. SO, DON'T DELAY. Book early to avoid disappointment.***
How are UK agencies REALLY doing?
"On the 30th November, our good friends at Moore Kingston Smith (MKS) published their financial performance of marketing services companies Annual Survey 2022. The survey, first conducted in 1992, is something of a barometer for the UK’s agency sector and draws upon publish reports and accounts information – in this case for the financial year 2021/22.
Perhaps not surprisingly, the report highlighted something of a post-pandemic bounce back for the industry. Most agencies reported a healthy increase in revenue growth on the previous year. PR 18.7%, media 14.2%, advertising 9.8%, design 6.6%, DM&SP 4.9% and digital 2.6% .
The overall profit margins story was similar – although the best performing sectors were different. Media 7%, DM&SP 4.6%, advertising 4.3%, design 3.6%, digital 3.5% and PR 0.5% on average.
Also, agencies did seem to manage staffing costs well over this period, with an average reported employment cost (including freelancers) of 65.46% - just a few percentage points above the recommended 60% for service industry businesses.
However, it is worth remembering that these figures (whilst good), are likely skewed by pent up market demand post-pandemic and, agencies significantly reducing costly overheads. For example, staffing costs (the Great Resignation), and property (costly leases) – a trick that they will not be able to repeat in future years.
When asked about the future, those surveyed reported mixed feelings about the economic environment ahead - ranging from blind optimism to deep pessimism.
As ever, the reality of the situation that awaits us all in the next 12 months likely lies somewhere between the two extremes.
For sure, strong economic headwinds, such as high inflation, will create unwelcome pressure on agency margins in the coming months. This will result in owners having to ‘take-a-hit’ and/or have some uncomfortable discussions with their agency’s clients, procurement teams and their staff.
But as history demonstrates, independents can adapt, change, and even thrive in adversity. Overall, they are smaller, more nimble, and able to be disruptive - bringing innovative change to legacy systems, outdated thinking, and new markets in times such as these.
So, to push the nautical analogy (perhaps too far)… batten down the hatches, full-steam ahead and, keep a look-out for those opportunities that’ll certainly be on the horizon!"
The session provided handy advice for entering awards programmes, which we've summarised for anyone who didn’t get the chance to attend.
The session was led by Elis Jansen, one of Dubai Lynx’s dedicated awards partners.
She discussed some of the benefits of winning an award, split into 3 categories: people, business and social. The ‘People’ benefits include career progression and recognition, the ‘business’ benefits include attracting new clients, regional and global exposure and increased profitability and the ‘social’ benefits include inspiring creativity and even an opportunity to bring societal change.
Elis then took us through the entry journey, providing advice for a smooth and successful entry. For example:
Designate an entry coordinator (and don’t leave it to an intern!) and consider appointing a creative council with jury experience
Make sure you carefully check the rules and requirements to make sure your work is eligible and that you’ve picked the correct category to enter
Tailor your entry so that the story fits the category you’re entering
Don’t underestimate the importance of a written submission – use it as an opportunity to tell the judges about your work
Make it as easy as possible for the judges by keeping things clear and succinct
Ask people to read over your case, especially those who don’t work in advertising
Provide strong and measurable results
Think about your jury – show PR results for a PR jury
Finally, here are some tips on creative a case film:
If you would like to watch the entire webinar, it’s currently available on the Dubai Lynx website.
ADFEST 2023 “Rise” Announces Calls For Entries
ADFEST is now accepting entries to the 2023 Lotus Awards, part of the ADFEST 2023 conference taking place in Thailand from Thursday 23rd - Saturday 25th March 2023.
Enter your work in one of 20 categories for your chance to win a coveted Lotus Award, celebrating the region's creativity and craftsmanship. But hurry, the Early Bird Deadline closes on Friday 16th December. Click here for the entry kit, with full information on the ADFEST 2023 Lotus Awards.
Additionally, thenetworkone's President, Julian Boulding, will be speaking at ADFEST on Saturday 25th March. We'd love to know if you're planning on attending! If so, would you be interested in a meet-up of independent agencies during the ADFEST conference? Please let us know.
News from our members & friends
Joe Public wins at the Loeries
South African independent agency Joe Public, together with their clients and growth partners, were awarded a whopping 33 Loerie Awards this year!
Their awards included: 15 awards for Chicken Licken - one of which was the coveted title of Brand of the Year, seven awards for Nedbank, five for SAB, two for SANBS, one for Engen and one for Amnesty International.
In addition, Pepe Marais, Co-Founder and Integrated Group Chief Creative Officer at Joe Public, was inducted into the prestigious Loeries Hall of Fame.
Congratulations on these impressive wins! Read more here.
IVALO Creative wins at the Effies
We'd like to wish congratulations to IVALO Creative, a Finnish member of thenetworkone, upon winning FMCG bronze at Effie Europe for their campaign, "Bed Peace".
The campaign for textile company, Finlayson, was the only Finnish campaign not just awarded but also shortlisted!
Sapio Research have released their 2nd report from Wave 6 of their International Business Barometer.
The B2B Barometer was started in 2020, as a way to gauge business sentiment and track impacts as the pandemic began to unfold. Polling 2,000 decision makers in the USA, UK, Germany and Japan, Sapio did 4 waves of research in 2020, and then did follow-ups in 2021 and 2022.
ICCO PR - The International Communications Consultancy Organisation - has released this year's World PR Report.
The annual report is the definitive study of the global PR industry, providing vital information on the industry today - and tomorrow.
This year, ICCO have found that PR leaders predict the next 12 months to bring more profitability, indicating a growing demand from clients for services beyond traditional PR.
However, it's not all blue skies ahead. ICCO has stated that talent retention is the no.1 challenge for the 2nd year running.
At Percepto, a Tel-Aviv based online reputation management and PR agency, they strategize PR campaigns and pool their efforts into transforming brand image for their clients. When creating the right communication and publicity strategy, tech companies are increasing their investment opportunities as well as brand awareness.
In CEO Ran Blayer's latest Forbes column, he shares his thoughts on why not all publicity is good publicity and how to create a positive brand image and build strong connections with the media through PR techniques.
TrendWatching, one of the world's leading consumer trends firms, has created a Trend Check for brands going into 2023.
Their simple Trend Check covers 15 major trends, from 'metaphysical' to 'aided by AI'. You can assess how on-trend you and your organisation are for each trend, then get inspired by innovations from around the world to future-proof your brand.
We're delighted to welcome the following new members to thenetworkone:
ZPB Associates, London, UK ZPB Associates is a UK healthcare sector specialist with forensic knowledge of the UK health landscape.
newskontor, Düsseldorf, Germany newskontor covers a wide range of communication activities - from traditional media work on corporate publishing, investor relations and social media strategies, to media training and PR training.
Zapwater Communications, Chicago, IL, USA Zapwater is an award-winning integrated communications agency specializing in lifestyle brands.
