Saturday, May 20, 2017

Pakistan Consumer Boom Driving Media Advertising Revenue

Rising buying power of rapidly expanding middle class in Pakistan drove the nation's media advertising revenue up 14% to a record Rs. 76.2 billion ($727 million), making the country's media market among the world's fastest growing for FY 2015-16. Half of this ad spending (Rs. 38 billion or $362 million) went to television channels while the rest was divided among print, outdoor, radio and digital media.

Media Ad Revenue by platform. Source: Aurora











Digital media spending rose 27% in 2015-16 over prior year, the fastest of all the media platforms. It was followed by 20% increase in radio, 13% in television, 12% in print and 6% in outdoor advertising, according to data published by Aurora media market research

HUM TV channel had the highest revenue at Rs. 3.84 billion, followed by ARY Digital's Rs. 3.802 billion, PTV Sports Rs. 3 billion, Geo Entertainment Rs. 2.93 billion, Geo News Rs. 2.6 billion, Urdu1 2.5 billion, PTV Home Rs. 2.5 billion, Samaa Rs. 1.9 billion, and Dunya News, ARY News and Express News Rs. 1.8 billion each.

The television channels with the highest revenue increases in 2015-16 were: Samaa (88%), Geo News (82%), Geo Entertainment (81%) and ARY News (76%).

Global Advertising Growth 2016. Source: Magna



The current media boom in Pakistan started in early 2000s when Pakistan had just one television channel, according to the UK's Prospect Magazine. Today it has over 100. Together they have begun to open up a country long shrouded by political, moral and religious censorship—taking on the government, breaking social taboos and, most recently, pushing a new national consensus against the Taliban. The birth of privately owned commercial media has been enabled by the Musharraf-era deregulation, and funded by the tremendous growth in revenue from advertising targeted at the burgeoning urban middle class consumers.

Pakistan has managed to significantly reduce poverty and rapidly grow its middle class since 2001 in spite of major political, security and economic challenges. The foundation for the rise of the middle class and the electronic media boom was laid on President Musharraf's watch by his government's decisions to invest in education and infrastructure projects and deregulate the media that led to the expansion of both human and financial capital. My hope is that the continued improvement in security situation and implementation of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) related projects will bring in higher long-term investments and accelerate Pakistan's progress toward prosperity for all of its citizens.

Related Links:

Haq's Musings

Credit Suisse Wealth Report 2016

Pakistan: A Majority Middle Class Country

Pakistan Mass Media Boom

State Bank: Pakistan's Actual GDP Higher Than Officially Reported

College Enrollment in Pakistan

Musharraf Accelerated Development of Pakistan's Human and Financial Capital

China-Pakistan Economic Corridor

20 comments:

Riaz Haq said...

#WorldBank sees #Pakistan FY17 #GDP #Growth at 5.2%, best in 9 yrs. Forecasts 5.5% in FY18, 5.8% FY19 http://reut.rs/2pW7072 via @Reuters

May 20 The World Bank on Saturday forecast Pakistan's GDP growth in fiscal year 2017 to climb to 5.2 percent, the highest expansion rate in nine years, boosted by consumer confidence and fiscal reforms.

Growth is expected to accelerate to 5.5 percent in FY18 and 5.8 percent in FY19, according to a World Bank report released on Saturday.

But it warned that weakening trade and fiscal balances made it crucial to continue reform efforts and to develop skills to find jobs for the country's growing youth population.

"Pakistan's accelerating growth is good news and reflects the country's success in building confidence. But the pace of reforms has slowed and it is important for the structural reforms to accelerate," said Illango Patchamuthu, World Bank country director for Pakistan.

The World Bank forecast came the same day as Pakistan's central bank estimated slightly higher real GDP growth in FY17 of 5.3 percent, which would represent a 10-year high.

Private sector credit showed a net expansion of 503 billion rupees ($4.81 billion) during the nine months through April, well above the 334 billion-rupee expansion recorded in the corresponding period of last year, the central bank said in a statement.

The World Bank's twice-yearly report was released in Lahore on Saturday in collaboration with Lahore School of Economics.

It said a moderate increase in investment was expected to supplement growth, driven primarily by public and private consumption.

The report said there need to be more technical and vocational training programme to boost job prospects for the "youth bulge". Sixty percent of Pakistan's estimated population of 190 million is under the age of 30.

It emphasized that federal and provincial governments must work together on reforms, since many policies are handled at the province level.

"Effective collaboration between federal and provincial governments will be crucial if Pakistan has to deliver on its growth potential" said Muhammad Waheed, World Bank senior economist for Pakistan. (Editing by Andrew Roche)

Riaz Haq said...

Ad spending seen growing at 15.5% in 2016, driven by digital
GroupM estimates show digital advertising will account for 12.7% of all ad spending in 2016, up from 9.9% in 2015

http://www.livemint.com/Consumer/LjI3ZO4nYkN8DNdyMIlJlJ/Ad-spending-to-grow-at-155-in-2016-higher-than-2015s-14.html

Print advertising will expand 6%, compared to 5.2% last year. Photo: Priyanka Parashar/Mint

New Delhi: Ad spending in India will grow 15.5% in 2016 to Rs.57,486 crore ($7.5 billion) with digital advertising expanding at the fastest pace of 47.5%, media agency GroupM, part of global advertising group WPP Plc., said in its This Year Next Year report released on Tuesday.

Last year saw ad spending grow by 14.2%, higher than GroupM’s estimate of 12.4%, to Rs.49,758 crore.

Digital advertising will account for 12.7% of all ad spending in 2016, the agency estimated, up from 9.9% in 2015. Print media’s share will shrink from 32.4% to 29.7%. And TV will remain the dominant medium with a 47.1% share, up from 46.3%.

“India is the fastest growing ad market among all the major markets of the world. 2015 was the best year for ad spend growth we’ve had in the last five years,” said C.V.L. Srinivas, chief executive at GroupM South Asia. “While global headwinds are building up in the new year, there are a number of positive factors that will help the Indian ad sector grow at higher levels in 2016.”

Consumer product, automobile and e-commerce companies will continue to drive growth (as they did in 2015) and telecom, banking and finance, and the government sector will join the party, according to Srinivas. Growth is also expected to get a fillip from events such as the T20 World Cup cricket tournament, Indian Premier League (IPL) and state elections. “While digital media will remain the fastest growing platform, India is one of the few large markets where all traditional media platforms will show positive growth,” added Srinivas.

Srini said...

From your comments the ad revenue comparison between two countries is more than 10 fold in India's favor. $727 million and $7.5 billion - what do you attribute the difference to because population is approximately 6.5 fold.

Riaz Haq said...

Srini: "From your comments the ad revenue comparison between two countries is more than 10 fold in India's favor. $727 million and $7.5 billion - what do you attribute the difference to because population is approximately 6.5 fold."


To me it says that the Pakistani companies are spending their ad budgets more effectively to reach more people with fewer dollar per customer.

Riaz Haq said...

Ad spending in India to grow at 10% in 2017, says GroupM report
Digital media continues to be the fastest medium registering a 30% ad spending growth rate, while television remains the medium with a growth rate of 8%

http://www.livemint.com/Consumer/ZMMO64fyHGq0VT0Lbb8qJJ/Ad-spending-in-India-to-grow-at-10-in-2017-GroupM-report.html

Advertising expenditure in India is expected to grow at 10% to reach Rs61,204 crore in 2017 over 2016, according to a forecast by WPP-owned media agency GroupM in its report This Year Next Year (TYNY).

This is lower than the revised estimates of 12% that GroupM put out for 2016. The ad spending stood at Rs55,671 crore last year.

The report, released on Tuesday, stated that the ad spends in 2017 will pick up from March and April, fuelled by a stable recovery post demonetization. Sectors such as auto, media and e-wallets will contribute to this growth in conjunction with government and political parties increasing their ad spends in view of elections in several states.

In terms of media channel growth, digital continues to be the fastest medium registering a 30% growth rate to reach Rs9,490 crore, while television remains the largest advertising medium with a growth rate of 8%.

With internet speeds rising and over-the-top (OTT) video-streaming businesses gaining popularity, ad spends on these platforms will grow.

As more and more advertising money shift to digital, there will be a high emphasis on making the medium more accountable with viewability metrics and outcome-based optimization.

India is one of the few large markets where all traditional media platforms will grow, the report said. Television advertising is expected to grow 8% with Free to Air (FTA) channels adding more inventory and high definition (HD) content gaining ground. The market will also see a consolidation of niche channels.

Anonymous said...

This mean government is the biggest commodity in Pakistan as PMLN lead government is spending minimum of 60% of total money spent on advertisement in Pakistan.

Riaz Haq said...

Anon: "This mean government is the biggest commodity in Pakistan as PMLN lead government is spending minimum of 60% of total money spent on advertisement in Pakistan."

Given that in the FY 2015-16, the Government of Pakistan was the fourth largest advertiser in the print media in terms of product categories (source: Aurora Fact File November-December 2016), the importance of the Government as a client for newspapers cannot be overestimated.

Traditionally, governments have always advertised heavily in the print media, particularly during the 80s and 90s. A major reason is that tender advertising, as per the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) rules must be published in print, and tenders constitute a considerable chunk of the total government advertising. However, since the late 90s, the share of government advertising in print has reduced considerably. According to Umer Mujib Shami, Secretary General, APNS, “the television-print break-up at one point used to be about 50-50; however, in recent years it has changed, with print’s share going down to 25 to 30%.”

There have been ongoing negotiations between the APNS and the Government to rectify this situation. Dr Tanvir A. Tahir, Executive Director, APNS, believes that the importance of newspapers as a medium cannot be ignored. This is particularly true when it comes to information dissemination and influencing opinions of key decision-makers in diplomatic and bureaucratic circles. It is on this basis that the APNS has asked that the Government increase the share of the pie by fixing its advertising spend at two percent of the cumulative development budget. Furthermore, the APNS has asked that the budget allocation between media should follow a 50-40-10 proportion, for electronic, print and digital respectively, as is done in other countries such as India. The APNS stance is that this will ensure that these policy changes will continue to allow the print media to play its role in informing, educating and influencing public opinion.

http://aurora.dawn.com/news/1141941

Riaz Haq said...

Top ads in Pakistan

Basking in the spotlight
Updated Apr 24, 2017 09:43am
By Amber Arshad
The winners of the PAS Awards 2017.

http://aurora.dawn.com/news/1141985

The big winners were Adcom Leo Burnett who received six awards, Soho Square got five, while J. Walter Thompson, IAL Saatchi & Saatchi and MullenLowe Rauf bagged four awards each.


Here are the winners of the PAS Awards:

Category: Agriculture & Related Industries
Brand: Refree
Campaign: Lambay Aur Mottay Gannay!
Company: Evyol Group
Agency: Aray Wah

Category: Automotive & Transport
Brand: Shell Rimula
Campaign: Shell Rimula Real Destinations
Company: Shell Pakistan
Agencies: J. Walter Thompson, Azaad Films

Category: Banking & Financial Services
Brand: Bank Alfalah Islamic
Company: Bank Alfalah Limited
Agencies: MullenLowe Rauf, Azaad Films

Category: Beverages - Cold
Brand: Coca-Cola
Campaign: Zalima Coca-Cola Piladay
Company: The Coca-Cola Export Corporation
Agencies: Soho Square, Starcom, Digitz, Kinetic, The Vision Factory

Category: Confectionary & Snacks
Brand: Oye Hoye!
Campaign: Oye Hoye! launch campaign
Company: United Snacks
Agencies: Ogilvy & Mather, Hashtag tribe, Maxus Global, Addynamics, Stimulus Productions, Soho Square

Category: Construction, Real Estate & Allied Industries
Brand: Diamond Paints
Campaign: Dil Deewar Saaf
Company: Diamond Paints
Agencies: Adcom Leo Burnett, Adcom ZenithOptimedia, Echo Digital Marketing, ID Creations

Category: Cosmetics and Personal Care (Men, Women and Children)
Brand: Lux
Campaign: LUX White ReLaunch
Company: Unilever Pakistan
Agencies: J. Walter Thompson, TML Activations, Mindshare, Creative Chaos, Arrows

Category: Culinary
Brand: Mezan Cooking Oil
Campaign: Mezan Ramadan 2016
Company: Paracha Textile Mills
Agencies: Adcom Leo Burnett, Adcom ZenithOptimedia, ID Creations

Category: Office Furniture
Brand: Interwood – Office Furniture
Campaign: Space Workstation Launch
Company: Interwood Mobel
Agency: IAL Saatchi & Saatchi

Category: Events
Brand: FPCCI FocusPK 16
Campaign: Focus PK 16 Entertainment & Production Conference
Company: FPCCI Focus PK
Agencies: Bond Advertising, Aikman Studios, Talking Point, Mind Map Communications

Category: Fabric Care, Home Care and Furnishing
Brand: Surf Excel
Campaign: Madad Ek Ibadat
Company: Unilever Pakistan Limited
Agencies: Lowe Lintas, Mindshare Pakistan Limited, Mullen Lowe Rauf, Kinetic Pakistan

Category: Food and Dairy
Brand: Nurpur
Campaign: Nurpur Corporate Thematic
Company: Fauji Foods Limited
Agencies: Fishbowl, Stimulus Productions

Category: Hospitals, Healthcare and Hygiene
Brand: The Indus Hospital
Campaign: Rishta Nahi Ehsaas Zaroori Hai
Company: The Indus Hospital
Agency: Manhattan Communications

Category: Ice Creams and Desserts
Brand: Cornetto
Campaign: Cornetto 2016
Company: Unilever Pakistan Limited
Agencies: BBPR, Empact Activations, Mindshare

Category: Public Service & CSR
Brand: UN Women Pakistan
Campaign: #BeatMe
Company: UN Women Pakistan
Agencies: BBDO Pakistan, The Videographers, Azad Film Company


Category: Telecommunication Hardware & Consumer Electronics
Brand: Haier
Campaign: Sirf DC Nahi, Haier Ka Mukammal DC Inverter
Company: Haier Pakistan
Agencies: Synergy Dentsu, Marketing Works


Category: Telecommunication Service Providers
Brand: Telenor
Campaign: Sacha Saath
Company: Telenor Pakistan
Agencies: Adcom Leo Burnett, OMD Pakistan, Stimulus Productions

Category: Textile, Fashion & Accessories
Brand: Borjan
Campaign: Join the Fashion Walk
Company: Borjan
Agencies: Adcom Leo Burnett, Adcom ZenithOptimedia, 9.8 Films


Riaz Haq said...

Media Advertising Spend
An overview of Digital, OOH and Radio spend in Fiscal Year 2015-16.
AURORA UPDATED MAY 24, 2017 10:21AM


http://aurora.dawn.com/news/1142058


Digital spend (Rs. 4.5 billion or $43 million)

Google 44%

Facebook 33%

Rest 23%


Product/Service Categories:


FMCG 34%

Telecom 12%

Beverages 10%

Electronics 7%

Rest 37%



Riaz Haq said...

Big Brands Stage Raves in #Pakistan to Attract Young Money. #EDM #Art #Music #Coke #Telenor #Zong

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-07-12/big-brands-stage-raves-in-pakistan-to-attract-young-money

Electronic dance music pulsates as revelers wave their arms in unison and colored spotlights crisscross the ceiling of a lakeside wedding hall. It’s Saturday night in Islamabad.

Armed guards stand at the entrance to the Elements Music Festival, an invitation-only affair sponsored by wireless carrier Zong. They frisk guests and sniff bottles for traces of alcohol, which is banned among the nation’s Muslim majority. Inside, local DJs Faisal Baig and Fuzzy Nocturnal play sets of bass-heavy, looping music that end Sunday morning to chants of “One more song!”
China Mobile Communications Corp., which owns Zong, is one of several foreign brands trying to grab Pakistan’s young consumers by their ears. Coca-Cola, Telenor, and PepsiCo have also sponsored raves. About two-thirds of the population is under 30, and the economy is projected by the International Monetary Fund to grow at more than 5 percent annually over the next five years. Household consumption’s contribution to gross domestic product hit 80 percent in 2015, higher than the global average of 58 percent, according to the World Bank. A July 11 report by Moody’s Investor Services said that while Pakistan’s medium-term growth outlook is strong, the economy is also showing signs of vulnerability, noting “the government’s debt burden is high, and fiscal deficits remain relatively wide.” Fallout from a probe into corruption allegations against Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif could also dampen growth. Sharif has denied any wrongdoing.
Although annual GDP per capita is just $1,561, according to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, the country of more than 200 million is home to a sufficiently large cohort of young, liberal, and affluent consumers willing to pay the 2,500-Pakistani-rupee admission (about $24) to the Elements festival. “There’s no nightlife here, there’s no clubs,” says Bilal Brohi, 30, a Karachi-based DJ and producer. Pakistanis “want to just have a crazy night out. They just want to disassociate.”
Many young Pakistanis developed a taste for house music, techno, and other Western genres while studying abroad. They’ve been able to support their habit after returning home thanks to the growing availability of cell phones, coupled with better internet service. Smartphone shipments increased 28 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier, says International Data Corp.
China Mobile’s Zong says it has a 20 percent share of the smartphone market. The company declined to comment on its involvement in the April 1 Elements festival. Djuice, the local mobile phone brand of Norway’s Telenor ASA, sponsored the Liberate Music & Arts Festival on May 6; more than 4,000 people were drawn to a Lahore water park by European DJs such as Nick Muir and Teenage Mutants. Coca-Cola Co. and Alphabet Inc.’s Google were co-­sponsors. Telenor’s goal was to reach 18- to 29-year-olds with limited entertainment choices, said Saad Warraich, an Islamabad-based spokesman, in an email.
----

And sometimes popularity gets in the way of the music. Police shut down the Liberate festival at midnight—before some of the acts could perform—because of concerns about the size of crowds gathering outside the venue. —

Riaz Haq said...

Hush Puppies hires Pakistan digital agency The Lahore-based digital agency will enhance consumer engagement experiences and digital marketing efforts through an innovative application of advanced engagement and marketing performance analytics.

Read more at: http://www.campaignasia.com/article/hush-puppies-hires-pakistan-digital-agency/439996

Hush Puppies has named Wakhra Studios as its digital agency in Pakistan. Firhaj Footwear has the manufacturing and marketing licence for Hush Puppies in Pakistan and hired Wakhra Studios to for its knowledge of digital platforms and marketing experience. "I strongly believe that in today's world, digital marketing is becoming more and more important and content is the backbone that drives your digital strategy," shared Meshaal Danish, senior brand manager for Hush Puppies at Firhaj Footwear. She cited the depth of Wakhra Studios in understanding the brand and helping to create the branding positioning and strategy as a key differentiator. "We are extremely excited to be partnering with them and can't wait to show the work we will do together," she added. Established in 2013 by Daniyal Noorani, Wakhra Studios has leapt into the spotlight for using emotional messaging in campaigns around products normally marketed for their technical benefits. "I think the reason why Wakhra won is that we work to ensure that each and every piece of content that we create for digital is well thought out and designed." shared Noorani, founder and CEO of Wakhra Studios. "In addition, we really work closely with clients to understand their needs and also work with them to improve their marketing strategy." Danish Hasan, creative director at Wakhra Studios, said the digital strategy outlined for Hush Puppies includes Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and digital videos. "We will be looking after Hush Puppies complete digital presence from social to media buying," he said. "Our goal is that with Hush Puppies we generate content that starts more conversations around the brand and that people want to engage more and more with Hush Puppies on digital platforms."

Riaz Haq said...

#US State Department buying #Facebook ads to influence opinion in #Indonesia, #Pakistan, #Iran and #Russia.

http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/military/sd-me-russia-facebook-20171013-story.html

Sure, America’s top spies are convinced the Kremlin unleashed legions of fake Facebook accounts and booked $100,000 in ads on the social media giant to tamper with the 2016 presidential election, but “likes” cut both ways.
American agencies have turned Facebook into a battleground for the hearts and minds of Russians, too.

In a pair of information campaigns that spanned 2010-2011 and 2015-2016, federal agencies that aim to spread America’s message abroad spent $59,541 in ads wooing Russian speakers, according for federal spending records.
That was part of a $1.6 million spending pool used by the State Department, the Voice of America and the U.S. Agency for International Development over the past eight years on overseas social media campaigns linked to Facebook. The Russian ad buys may have been a small portion, but that nation was one of the Washington’s top foreign policy targets, according to an analysis of government purchase orders by The San Diego Union-Tribune.
Moscow trailed only Indonesia ($136,217), Pakistan ($127,684), Iran ($87,381) and Afghanistan ($61,176) in Facebook-related spending by the agencies.
But there the similarities end. While American spy agencies insist that Russian attempts to alter the 2016 presidential elections involved hacking Democratic Party computers and mobilizing an army of bots to amplify often anti-immigrant and racist messages, U.S. agencies mostly use Facebook to promote diplomatic initiatives or drive readers to consume Voice of America and other media outlets sponsored by Washington.
Although State officials declined comment, the agency’s $3,166 worth of ad purchases in Russia appear to have been designed to raise awareness about the American consulate in Yekaterinburg, the nation’s fourth-largest city.
And Voice of America spent $56,375 promoting Russian-language television, radio and digital programming in Russia.
The agencies also used Facebook to reach audiences in the former Soviet republics of Armenia ($33,187), Uzbekistan ($19,275) and Georgia ($40,100).
Voice of America, run by the Broadcasting Board of Governors, is blocked on Russian news outlets so the overseas propaganda network employs what it calls a “digital-first strategy” to provide viewpoints rarely heard on Moscow-controlled media.
The agency and its consulting firm that appears to have purchased many of the ads — Washington, D.C.-based Chaise Management Group — did not return messages seeking comment, but experts in internet messaging say the investment is worthwhile.
“I think western governments should spend on advertising in ways like these — advertisements for news services, consular services, humanitarian assistance programs, etc.,” said Philip N. Howard, a professor of internet studies at the University of Oxford. “Election interference, and backing particular candidates, should be against the rules. The government is not allowed to advertise for political candidates in our elections; it shouldn’t advertise for its favorites overseas.”
In a written statement, USAID said that nearly $25,000 spent on Facebook and other social media-driven campaigns over the past six years in the Balkans, Afghanistan, Indonesia and Southeast Asia were successful because they matched the agency’s global mission, raising awareness of its public health initiatives, humanitarian assistance programs, scholarships and research opportunities.
For example, a three-month campaign this year targeting Cambodians created 25,000 new followers on USAID’s Facebook page. The featured ad was a Cambodian pop song that celebrated International Women’s Day.
A $30,000 Facebook ad blitz in 2015 that focused on war-torn Libya boosted social media posts for six civil society organizations there and helped the “broader effort to promote peaceful dialogue and reconciliation during the political transition in Libya,” according to the statement.

Riaz Haq said...

#Pakistan Investigates #Corruption Through #Advertising Agencies Which Received Government Money From Sharjeel Memon

http://adage.com/article/agency-news/corruption-investigation-pakistan-agency/311018/

Pakistan's National Accountability Bureau in Karachi said in a statement to local media that the government officials favored themselves and certain ad agencies in awarding over-priced contracts. Corruption in government and business is a major problem in Pakistan.
Local media named Masood Hashmi, CEO of Orient Communications, which runs Orient McCann Pakistan, as one of the agency executives detained. Orient is McCann's local partner in Pakistan in an affiliate relationship that doesn't involve any equity. Global networks often have non-equity local partners, who pay a fee to use the network's name, in smaller markets where they do little business.
McCann's New York office says the company "is investigating the situation" and declined to comment.
Ad Age's phone and email messages to Orient Communications in Karachi weren't returned, and no one answered the phone at Pakistan's National Accountability Bureau.
Executives from other ad agencies, including Asim Amir Khan Sikander, senior executive director at Evernews Concepts; Gulzar Ali and Salman Mansoor, directors of Adarts Karachi; and Syed Naveed, owner of Media Power Link, were also named as being detained. The most senior government official accused is Sharjeel Inam Memon, the former Minister for Information and Archives Department, along with a former secretary, deputy director, information officer and section officer from the same government department.
The press reports said the agency executives and former government officials would appear before an "accountability court" this week.

Riaz Haq said...

Meet the Martha Stewart of #Pakistan: Domestic Diva Zubaida Apa knows how to run a family household http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/roads/2017/11/zubaida_tariq_is_the_martha_stewart_of_pakistan.html


Zubaida Tariq has been answering questions for over two decades. Watch her beloved cooking show and she’ll tell you how to cook everything from biryani to liver, or a summertime dessert of kulfi. Call in, and she’ll tell you how to strengthen your hair (vegetables in your diet), how to cure diaper rash (corn flour), how to spur a child’s growth (patience, though maybe he has worms), and how to fix Granddad’s broken leg (take him to a doctor).

Zubaida Aapa—the Urdu honorific for elder sister—is a homemaker, turned TV star, turned domestic goddess, and the closest thing Pakistan has to Martha Stewart, but with Stewart’s fame dialed up to 11. Since the ’90s, when she made her television debut on a cooking show called Dalda Ka Dastarkhwan, loosely translated as “Dalda’s spread,” named for its cooking oil company sponsor, Tariq has taught generations of homemakers how to raise their children, clean their homes, and make parathas. She has authored at least six cookbooks, doled out countless home remedies (totkas in Urdu) for kitchen, home, and child, and left satire in the wake of her outsize celebrity.

The first time I saw Tariq on TV was in the mid-’90s; the first time I saw her in person was in 2002, when she came to judge a cooking competition at my college; and the first time I met her was this summer, when she said I could come watch a taping of her show. So on a warm Monday evening in August, I came to the studios of Masala TV where Tariq was on set, preparing to film an episode of her current show, Handi, named after a cooking vessel common in northern South Asia.

Bowls of chopped coriander and turmeric powder were lined up on the counter. Tariq looked calm in a lilac sari and gold blouse and matching glass bangles, an encouraging contrast to the rush hour traffic choking the streets of Karachi outside. Her thin lips were painted in dark lipstick, her hair scraped back into a bun. She looked skinny, almost frail. At 72, Tariq could be a grandmother. She could be your grandmother.

Tariq never wears an apron over her impeccably ironed saris, and she doesn’t test her recipes anymore. When you’ve been cooking for the better part of your adult life, she says, “You have enough confidence that whatever you cook will turn out fine.”

It was almost 5 p.m.—prime time for the cooking channel, when home cooks start planning out their dinners—and Tariq was about to go live. She checked the burners. The studio went silent. Tariq’s co-host, Abeel Khan, greeted her and they started talking about the day’s recipes: badaami dahi baray—lentil fritters in yogurt, topped off with almonds—and Mangalorean chicken curry from India’s southwestern coast.

About 10 minutes into filming, she looked at the pan, where the fritters were separating and turning into behemoths. She realized that her cook at home—who preps her ingredients—had put baking soda in the batter. “This girl came to see me today and that’s the day I’ve had: a disaster,” she lamented genially to her audience and her co-host.

Later in the show, she answered a call about cleaning marble with good-natured exasperation. One viewer called to ask for tips on breast-feeding. Women in much of the world might save that particular topic for home, but Pakistani women can ask Zubaida Aapa anything. She knows things. She’s your 3 a.m. call.

Riaz Haq said...

Evolution in Digitising OOH
Published in Nov-Dec 2017
Ayesha Shaikh
Uzma Khan, Head of Media, Unilever Pakistan, on why the industry needs to adopt and invest.

https://aurora.dawn.com/news/1142856

The most innovative change has been the incorporation of digital technologies in OOH, particularly in Lahore, where many digital screens, streamers and pole signs have been installed. Internationally, this is a common phenomenon, but in Pakistan, most billboards still use static images and skins and this is something Unilever would like to change.

AYESHA SHAIKH: What prompted Unilever to organise the vendor convention platform?
UZMA KHAN: There was a realisation across the industry that there is a lot of clutter in Out-of-Home (OOH); it was static, run-of-the-mill, boring and no campaign was really standing out. In fact, this was defeating the purpose of OOH. Unilever began speaking to their agencies to encourage them to start thinking digitally. The big idea in OOH is to develop synergies with digital because conventional OOH practices have become redundant. Digital OOH breaks the clutter by engaging customers with experiential marketing. Since the last two years, there have been ongoing conversations about revisiting OOH and this led to the first vendor convention platform in September.

AS: What purpose does this platform serve?
UK: This is an initiative Unilever Media have undertaken to educate OOH vendors, advertising agencies and technology providers about the international trends so that they start thinking and doing things differently. This is an ongoing process and we will be meeting with the stakeholders again to discuss new developments that have taken place and analyse what progress has been made.

AS: Who are the stakeholders and what was their response?
UK: Initially, there was a lot of reluctance and resistance. However, once we won a PAS Award for the LUX Style Awards (LSA) billboard with Mahira Khan inviting people to be a part of the event, the stakeholders realised that conventional OOH is no longer enough to generate talkability for brands. Digital OOH had become the new focus and it was then that we invited the stakeholders in OOH to come together on one platform. In addition to Unilever (representing the advertiser), there were technology providers, OOH vendors and advertising agencies, making it a four-party platform. The agenda was to listen to everyone’s side of the story, understand the issues and convey our vision that OOH has to go digital because soon, there will not be another choice. Expecting the entire OOH advertising industry to be structured and digitised overnight is unrealistic, but the planning process for this shift needs to start now.

Riaz Haq said...

Ogilvy India and Ogilvy Pakistan collaborate for this brand

http://www.afaqs.com/news/story/52408_Ogilvy-India-and-Ogilvy-Pakistan-collaborate-for-this-brand

The ad is centred on two characters - a working mom and her school-going son.
What is it with Indian creative agencies making ads for Pakistani brands? Lowe Lintas Mumbai has been making ads for Surf Excel Pakistan for quite a while now. In the past O&M India and O&M Pakistan have collaborated to make ads for Shan Foods (Ramzan Mubarak and Food opens the door to our hearts). This time around, the two agencies have collaborated to make an ad for EBM's (a Pakistan based company) cupcake brand, Peek Freans Cake Up. One would also notice that the actors in this ad are all Indians. The digital ad was released on YouTube on February 16. The same ad is also being run as a TVC in Pakistan.

The ad film has been produced by Curious and directed by Vivek Kakkad.

The ad is centred on two characters - a working mom and her school-going son. The mother teaches her son good values via small letters that she keeps in his tiffin box along with the cake. The son ends up leaving half the cake with a letter of his own to his mother indicating that he is following the values she has taught him. It ends with one value that stands out - 'when you share a dessert with someone, it becomes even sweeter'. This puts a smile on the mother's face as the ad ends with both the mother, at her clinic and son at his school, each eating a share of the cake.

Talking about the collaboration on this particular ad and how it came to be, Sukesh Nayak, chief creative officer, Ogilvy West (India), says, "Ayesha Janjua, the marketing head of EBM (promoter of Peek Freans Cake Up), was the marketing head of Shan Foods when we made two ads for them and when she moved here, she just wanted to continue the relationship."

Adding about how a good piece of content can become borderless and get shared, Nayak says, "Content has to be inspiring enough to reach out to the people. The context of the storyline is just like something that comes across the world to us and we see it and say "wow!" I presume a film like this will reach out to a whole lot of people because this story is true for anybody. The story is beautiful and inspiring. It is about humanity and about what we want to achieve in life as a parent and that's the cultural truth they have gone after. Over the weekend, the ad was circulated among mothers in Mumbai and it just shows that a good piece of content is borderless and it will go from one mother to the other and people will talk about it and share it."

Sharing a little about the client's brief to the agency, Nayak says, "They were launching something for the first time, a unique product and they wanted to be in the world of relationships because it is a product that is consumed. They wanted to find strategic insights and we came up with real goodness inside, which exactly describes the product and human emotions that we are trying to capture in the ad."

In the past, ads focusing on family sentiments have been overdone. So we asked our experts if it is a well-executed ad and could the branding have been done subtly?

Veneet Bagga, an ad film director, founder and creative head, Onions Creative Media, says, "Sure, it seems done to death, if you look at it as a formula, but I won't discredit the sentiment itself. One emotion that drives every human is that of belonging somewhere and a film on family tugs at that very emotion and puts a smile on your face. So, yes, overall it's a good film and well executed but predictable in bits and a tad overstretched. Having said that, credit must be given to the finer details that got through to me, like the casting, unobtrusive music and the lovable kids."


Riaz Haq said...

Pakistan Radio Pioneer FM100 Continues Growth
The country’s first commercial FM station now covers 80 million people in nine areas of the country
WILL JACKSON9 HOURS AGO

https://www.radioworld.com/news-and-business/pakistan-radio-pioneer-fm100-continues-growth

From its beginnings as one of Pakistan’s pioneers of FM radio, with broadcasts in three cities, FM100 has grown to now cover nine separate cities and continues to innovate across multiple platforms.

The station was founded in 1994, launching on-air in March 1995 as the country’s first commercial FM station, bringing a new, more youthful style of radio to listeners. Prior to this, only the national public broadcaster, Radio Pakistan, had begun FM transmissions.

NEW STYLE

FM100’s General Manager Operation Qazi Ahmed Mateen explains: “Initially we launched FM radio in three cities — Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad — on 100 MHz. The medium wave and shortwave radio industry was almost dead in our country. We were going to launch FM radio, which was very tough. At the time, there were no smartphones, and no in-car radio — only transistor sets at home. Our station grew more popular day-by-day, and gradually FM radios were installed in cars by auto makers, and also on public transport.”

With new licenses issued by the local regulator, the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA), FM100 now broadcasts in nine cities, adding Hyderabad and Rahim Yar Khan in 2012, followed by Gujrat, Abbottabad, Multan, and Jhelum. Around 80 million people can now receive the station, and in total, there are around 145 licensed commercial FM stations across Pakistan, and a further 45 noncommercial.

Mateen believes they brought a completely new style of broadcasting for Pakistan. “The entire package and style of the shows on FM100 was catered towards the new generation of listeners in the country,” he said.

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As well as traditional FM transmission, the station’s audio is available via phone lines. Mateen explains this service is popular in the areas where there are no radio signals and no internet. “Different mobile and landline operators provide these services through their IVR (Interactive Voice Response) services; the user has to dial the number provided by the operators and they can listen to the live radio. The station must have the contract with the operators and the service is not free — the user has to pay the charges at a set rate per minute. It also provides revenue to the radio station and the operator.”


Alongside this, the station has now expanded its reach through the internet. “FM100’s social media activities aim to engage the maximum audience. We update Facebook and our web pages to provide all the information to the audience and clients about the station — daily schedules, presenter profiles and archives. Live streaming is available to those who are not in the range of the airwaves making the radio station global, where it can bring the station and Pakistan to the world,” he concluded.

Riaz Haq said...

The dawn of advertising in Pakistan (1947-2017)
AURORA
THE 21ST CENTURY: THE AGE OF THE MILLENNIAL
HARMONISE OR GO BUST


https://www.dawn.com/news/1398497

A new dynamic
According to a study conducted by Standard Chartered Bank last year, between 2011 and 2015, the size of the retail pie in Pakistan jumped from $96 to $133 billion, a 38.5% increase.

The current value of Pakistan’s retail sector is estimated at $152 billion, as per Planet Retail (a global retail consultancy). It is the third largest contributor to the economy (after agriculture and industry), accounts for 18% of the total GDP and is the second largest employer (after agriculture) providing jobs to more than 16% of the total labour force. (NB: As most of retail in Pakistan is unorganised, therefore undocumented, industry analysts agree that the on-ground figures are much higher).

With an annual growth of eight percent, retail sales are expected to cross the $200 million mark by the end of 2018. The main factor fuelling this, apart from increasing urbanisation, is an improving employment-to-population ratio which has led to higher disposable incomes, thereby expanding the middle class and increasing consumer spending manifold (estimated at $293 million in 2017 and projected to cross $333 million by 2018).

The other trend disrupting traditional retail is e-commerce. Although still at a nascent stage, internet retail is expected to become a significant complement to brick-and-mortar grocery and non-grocery retailing in the coming years.

The morphing of ‘mall’ culture
Dolmen Centre in Tariq Road (established in the nineties), was the first vertical shopping complex in Pakistan built on a multiple floor layout. Before that the concept of indoor air-conditioned shopping areas was alien in Pakistan. If people wanted branded products, Zainab Market or Panorama and Rex Centres were the go-to places.

However, the mall did not turn out the way it had been envisioned. There were not enough local brands because many did not want to assume the high rents Dolmen Centre demanded. It was almost a decade later that Pakistan had its first shopping mall, when Park Towers opened in Karachi.

The mall morphed into a social venue, where people went to enjoy the amenities rather than to buy. The opening of Dolmen Mall Tariq Road in 2002 proved to be a game changer. Dolmen Group’s prior experience had taught them that the only way to convince the big names to come onboard as tenants was to ensure customer traffic.

The two strategic decisions that paid off were the establishment of Sindbad’s Wonderland and a food court. Positioned as a family recreational spot, the mall began to bustle with activity convincing retailers to invest in space. Over the next 15 years, a number of malls were established (mostly in Karachi), redefining the shopping experience. The entry of Hyperstar in 2012 (operated by the Carrefour retail chain) as an anchor tenant at Dolmen Mall Clifton was another game changer.

Hyperstar became a retail success, prompting other mall operators to adopt the idea of having anchor tenants. North Pakistan is now at the forefront of the retail race and several multipurpose malls are under construction in Bahawalpur, Faisalabad, Gujranwala, Islamabad, Lahore, Multan and Rawalpindi.

Riaz Haq said...

Pakistan: Newspapers fight for survival as sales plunge
Jamila Achakzai Islamabad
11/22/2022November 22, 2022
Print journalism subscriptions and readership have been plummeting as people increasingly get their information from digital sources.

https://www.dw.com/en/pakistans-newspapers-fight-for-survival-as-sales-plunge/a-63845118


Mujahid Hussain, a news hawker in Islamabad, says he is afraid of losing his job amid a downturn in newspaper sales in Pakistan, where people are increasingly getting their information from digital and social media platforms.

"My employer often talks about a slump in newspaper sales and a possible business shutdown. So even if he doesn't close shop, my job is definitely on the line," the 42-year-old father of three told DW.

Hussain pointed out he has already experienced massive pay cuts over the past three years and that his family is struggling to make ends meet.

Many other news vendors in the South Asian country share similar woes.

It was not always like this, however.

Even until a decade ago, the newspaper industry thrived in the country. Daily newspapers, weeklies and magazines used to be a must in offices, living rooms and cafes.

But print publications were first eclipsed by the dozens of private TV news channels that were launched during the presidency of General Pervez Musharraf between 2001 and 2008.

Then came affordable smartphones, social media networks and widespread internet connectivity, which further dented newspaper sales as more and more people began to consume news on online platforms.


Hawkers' lives hit hard
Since the downturn in the newspaper industry has particularly affected hawkers, who mostly work part-time for meager wages, these low-paid workers are taking on other informal jobs to make ends meet.

"Successive governments haven't taken interest in the welfare of newspaper hawkers, so they are generally disheartened, insecure and always on the lookout for better options to make money," said Aqeel Abbasi, the general-secretary of the Newspaper Hawkers Union.

He explained that before Musharraf's government liberalized the broadcast media and telecom sector, Rawalpindi had around 1,600 newspaper vendors and Islamabad 700.

But with the plunge in sales, the number of vendors has dropped to 900 and 480 respectively, he said, stressing that the COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing economic crisis had accelerated the trend.

Another problem compounding the woes of newspapers is their reliance on government advertizing for economic survival.Outlets that are critical of government and military policies have had a tough time generating enough advertizing revenue in recent years.

Will they survive?
News hawker Hussain warned that if the fall in sales did not stop, the print media would have no other option but to get rid of most of its workforce.

Some senior journalists share a similar view.

Salim Bokhari, who once edited the leading English-language newspapers The News and The Nation and currently heads the digital media team at the City News broadcast network, said that "no one wanted to spend time reading through newspaper columns" given "the ocean of information available on mobile phones."

He said newspapers might disappear if the trend continued, although he did not believe that this would happen that soon.

"The electronic media era will ultimately make newspapers' doom. The advertizers have diverted their money to TV channels and even the government prefers electronic media for advertisements," he pointed out.

Hassan Gillani, a media development professional, was more optimistic.

"Newspaper readership might have declined after the emergence and development of electronic media but it's unfair to suggest that print media could soon become a thing of the past," he said.


Riaz Haq said...

Ad revenue in Pakistan


https://aurora.dawn.com/news/1144596#:~:text=OOH%20ad%20revenue%20increased%20by,Rs%200.07%20billion%20(5%25).


Total Ad Revenue Rs. 88.73 billion in 2021-22

Total ad spend (revenue) has increased by Rs 13.09 (17%); in FY 2020-21, it increased by 17.04 (29%).


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In FY 2020-21, the combined revenues of Facebook, Google and YouTube accounted for 85% of the total ad spend on digital; this year, they account for 87%.

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TV ad revenue increased by Rs 4.64 billion (14%).
Digital ad revenue increased by Rs 3.15 billion (19%).
Print ad revenue increased by Rs 0.21 billion (2%).
OOH ad revenue increased by Rs 3.7 billion (44%).
Brand Activation/POP ad revenue increased by Rs 1.26 billion (50%).
Radio ad revenue increased by Rs 0.07 billion (5%).
Cinema ad revenue increased by Rs 0.06 billion (60%).

TV percentage share decreased by 1.4.
Digital percentage share increased by 0.27.
Print percentage share decreased by 2.19.
OOH percentage share increased by 2.51.
Brand Activation/POP percentage share increased by 0.93.
Radio percentage share decreased by 0.17.
Cinema percentage share increased by 0.05.

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TV percentage share decreased by 1.4.
Digital percentage share increased by 0.27.
Print percentage share decreased by 2.19.
OOH percentage share increased by 2.51.
Brand Activation/POP percentage share increased by 0.93.
Radio percentage share decreased by 0.17.
Cinema percentage share increased by 0.05.

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Compared to FY 2020-21, the rankings of the Top Three newspapers remain the same.
Most newspapers have registered slight increases in their revenues.

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Compared to FY 2020-21, the Top Five channels have retained their positions.
In FY 2020-21, Radio Awaz Network was #7; this year it is #9.
In FY 2020-21, FM 105 was #9; this year it is #7.

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Compared to FY 2020-21, the rankings of the Top Seven channels remain unchanged.
In FY 2020-21, PTV Home was #8 and Samaa was #9. This year, their positions are inverted.
In FY 2020-21, PTV Sports was #14. This year, it is #10.


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In FY 2020-21, the combined revenues of Facebook, Google and YouTube accounted for 85% of the total ad spend on digital; this year, they account for 87%.

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Compared to FY 2020-21, the rankings of Lahore (#1), Karachi (#2) and Hyderabad (#8) remain the same.
In FY 2020-21, Rawalpindi, Faisalabad, Gujranwala, Islamabad and Multan were #3, #4, #5, #6 and #7, respectively. This year, they are #4, #5, #7, #3 and #6.

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Product categories that were introduced this year are Real Estate (#1) and Retail/Online (#5).
In FY 2020-21, Beverages, FMCGs and Telecoms were #1, #2 and #3, respectively. This year they are #2, #3 and #4.
In FY 2020-21, Fashion and Electronic Appliances were #4 and #5 respectively. This year, they are #6 and #7.

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Compared to FY 2020-21, the rankings of all the elements remain the same.