Non-traditional media to bag more ad spend

Below-the-line spends will equal print & TV advertising, says a study by Lintas.

By 2008, what the advertisers will spend on below-the-line activities will equal their above-the-line (traditional print and TV advertising) spends.

This means that the ratio of traditional advertising versus non-traditional media such as activation, digital marketing, out-of-home advertising, events, et al, will be 50:50.

The finding is a part of an in-house study conducted by Lintas Integrated Marketing Action Group (IMAG) that has eight divisions under its umbrella constituting below-the-line media. IMAG is part of the Interpublic Group ad agency Lowe in India.

Speaking to Business Standard, Ashish Bhasin, director, IMAG, said that just four years ago, below-the-line versus traditional media spends ratio was 25:75.

"Even though the study does not have a huge sample size, it gives us a very clear idea of the trend as we have been conducting the research on the subject for the last four years," he added.

The study also reflects that though advertisers are keen to spend on activation (ground events, sampling) and digital marketing, they do not find enough help.

"They do not get assistance in terms of people who could deliver a reliable service. Advertisers are looking for accountability," Bhasin said.

It's not difficult to see why ad spends are moving into non-traditional media. Consumers are changing and traditional media such as print and television is highly fragmented. That's not all. Increasingly, consumers are found out of home.

"Therefore, the standard way of reaching the consumer is becoming more difficult and expensive," Bhasin observed.

Besides, advertisers don't want the brands to merely reach the consumer, they want consumers to "experience" the brand. "Hence, the growth in usage of non-traditional media," said Bhasin. Even for Lintas India (that operates Lowe, Lintas Media and IMAG), its non-traditional media division, IMAG, is the fastest growing unit.

Little surprise then that Bhasin, who set up IMAG four years ago, has just been appointed executive vice-president of Lowe Worldwide as well as the regional director (Asia) for Integrated Marketing to take care of non-traditional media initiatives in the Asia region.

In view of IMAG's success in India, his mandate is to set up divisions for non-traditional media solutions in markets like the Philippines, Singapore, Vietnam and China.

"The Lowe group is ready to make investments in these markets. We will either grow organically or through acquisitions. Also, we cannot foist all the divisions which we have under IMAG on other countries. Their requirements may be different," he said.

Bhasin said that growth in below-the-line would come from activation, out-of-home and digital media that includes web and mobile marketing.