16 Jan 2012

Africa | Marketing & Media

 
www.continentaloutdoor.com

The hashtag generation

I recently got very annoyed reading my news feed on my Facebook page when I saw a number of people using hashtags in their status updates, it wasn't just one or two people but it was more than I expected to see. It may say something about the Facebook friends I have or the people I know, but let me tell you that is not the case. I choose to use Facebook as an all purpose tool, so Facebook doesn't represent who my real friends are. I went on to Wikipedia and searched 'hashtag'. It was defined as: Hashtags are words or phrases prefixed with the symbol #, a form of metadata tag..., it continued with the very important line, ... the hashtag does not work on Facebook.
So I decided to post it to Facebook just to make my point. In the space of less than an hour, I got 8 likes, 3 comments and 3 shares, with one person admitting they are guilty of using hashtags on Facebook, where it serves no purpose (as many people who use Twitter know). So why do people still do it? Having said that, I read a few interesting articles relating to the hashtag, they included 'The Do's and Don't of Twitter Hashtags'; '#Overused: The Most Popular Twitter Hashtags of 2011' and '8 Things I Hope Are On Twitter's 2012 To-Do List'.

Now that I have that off my chest, the ongoing battle of a free press continues. In Somalia, journalists were detained, barred from traveling and a Gambian journalist is charged with defamation.

In other news, through-the-line communications agency, Chillibush Africa, has launched,The Zimbabwean introduces a 'new look', Howzit MSN expands into Africa, Africa gets its own Spotify called TruSpot and Carole Kimutai interviews Bogonko Bosire, the man behind Jackal News.

PS: If you haven't seen our 2012 Biz Trends section, sponsored by Aegis Media, I suggest you go and read some interesting forecasts.

Evan-Lee Courie (@evan1985)

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Top stories


Editorial news

Marketing & Media


SOUTH AFRICA
Third Thought Leadership Digibate to focus on search
Search-based marketing will be the theme of the third Thought Leadership Digibate, hosted by Aegis Media in conjunction with Bizcommunity.com. To be held at 9am on Thursday, 19 January 2012, at Crystal Towers Hotel & Spa in Cape Town, the digital debate will be driven by Clickthinking and broadcast live via audio-streaming. Read more >>

Special focus on media freedom & right to know


SOMALIA
Journos detained, barred from traveling
The National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ) have expressed deep concern over perpetual attacks against journalists by Somaliland police, who continue to arrest and detain reporters. Some journalists have also been barred from traveling around Somaliland to cover stories. Read more >>

DEM. REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO
Press freedom under fire [Patou Nsimba]

Marketing


AFRICA
Chillibush Communications, Phoenix Group launch Chillibush Africa
Through-the-line communications agency Chillibush Communications has partnered with The Phoenix Group to create Chillibush Africa. The new company will build on the existing experience and expertise of the agencies to offer strategic, media and creative and PR services throughout Africa. Read more >>

Branding


AFRICA
Twitter launches brand pages, but is it too little too late?
[Vincent Hofmann] 25% of Twitter's current user base post their tweets using Twitter's web interface. 75% of Twitter's users make use of applications to interact with brands, friends and foe. So is Twitter's recent introduction of Twitter Brand Pages a waste of time? Not if Twitter has anything to do with it. Read more >>

CSI


AFRICA
NEPAD on the ground
Over the past ten years, the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) has launched a number of bold and innovative programmes. In some instances the plan is already scoring notable yet under-reported gains. Africa Renewal highlights NEPAD's impact in five key areas. Read more >>

Digital


EGYPT
Telecom Egypt announces new CEO
Egypt's state-run telecommunications operator Telecom Egypt, announced late on Sunday, 15 January 2012, that Tarek Abou Alam will take over as the company's new chief executive and managing director. Read more >>

Education & Training


AFRICA
Wunderman/Y&R launches young marketers school
The Dubai International Advertising Festival, the awards for creative excellence in advertising and communications in the Middle East and North Africa, has announced the launch of the Wunderman/Y&R Young Marketers School at Lynx, a learning programme targeted at marketers and brand managers working within a client organisation. Read more >>

Events & Conferencing


SOUTH AFRICA
[2012 trends] Been there, done that, now let's get really smart!
[Karen Ashwin] Thanks to our preference for face-to-face interpersonal communications, meetings, events and marketing activations enjoy pride of place as fabulous marketing tools. However, we also know that great events cost. The heat is on to ensure that events deliver serious marketing and financial results - and that clients are assured of their incomparable experiential value, especially when paired with the latest trends and technology! Read more >>

Media


AFRICA
Someone is watching Kenya's media
[Carole Kimutai] In the last four months, Jackal News has broken all barriers and become the source of news and gossip on the happenings in the Kenyan media space. Carole Kimutai caught up with Bogonko Bosire, who says he owns news and gossip, asked him about media in Kenya and China investing in media. Read more >>

KENYA
Mocality Kenya scandal: 'mortified' Google 'apologises unreservedly'
A "mortified" Google has issued an apology to Kenyan mobile listings site Mocality over customers and data that was allegedly pilfered from the startup's database. Read more >>

AFRICA
Turner Broadcasting appoints entertainment content chief: EMEA
Domingo Corral has been appointed by Turner Broadcasting System Europe Limited to head up general entertainment content for the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region. Read more >>

Mobile


AFRICA
How mobile marketing failed in 2011
[Vanessa Clark] Mobile marketing failures in 2011 were arguably less about campaigns going horribly wrong, and more about missed opportunity, too little integration of mobile into overall marketing tactics, and the need to be much more strategic about using mobile marketing. Read more >>

Newspapers


ZIMBABWE
New look for The Zimbabwean
The Zimbabwean will introduced a 'new look' on Thursday, 12 January 2012. The new look will round-up general news, with a focus on news analysis, feedback from readers, profiles and other features. Read more >>

Online Media


AFRICA
Howzit MSN expands into Africa
Howzit MSN, a web portal in South Africa has expanded its reach into the rest of the continent with the launch of a dedicated channel for Africa. This move is in response to the growing demand of internet users for locally relevant content and from advertisers for advertising inventory that reaches a pan-African market. Read more >>

NIGERIA
TruSpot: Africa gets its own Spotify
Ikenna "Ike" Ouizo is the founder and CEO of TruSpot, a service he describes as the "Spotify for Africa". Truspot, which offers Africa-specific content, is run out of Texas, but will move to its conceptual birthplace, Nigeria, later this month. Read more >>

Radio


ZIMBABWE
Zimpapers to launch radio station within five months
VUMBA: The Zimpapers board chairman has congratulated the company's management for successfully bidding for a radio licence as it moves to expand its national and regional market share both in the print and electronic media. Read more >>

Retail


SOUTH AFRICA
SABMiller makes changes in its African ops
SABMiller is to combine the operational management of the Castel and SABMiller businesses in Nigeria and Angola, with the Nigerian businesses being managed in future by SABMiller, and the Angolan businesses being managed by Castel. Read more >>

Sales


AFRICA
The art of motivating salespeople
[John Boe] When the tide comes in, all the boats in the harbor go up! The long-term benefit of an incentive program is to coax your sales force out of their production comfort zone. Once a salesperson stretches to a new level of personal production, their self-confidence and expectations skyrocket. Read more >>

Sponsorship


AFRICA
Wärtsilä confirms sponsorship at POWER-GEN Africa 2012
Wärtsilä, a supplier of power plants for the decentralised power generation market has secured its sponsorship deal for the POWER-GEN Africa 2012, the conference and exhibition which focuses on sub-Saharan Africa to provide global technology for local solutions. Read more >>

Trends


SOUTH AFRICA
[2012 trends] Anthropological trends in the digital space
[Marcela Ospina] When putting these trends together, I focused on socio-cultural changes that will transform our interaction with digital technologies, using the concepts of nature and culture to explain the role that we, and technology itself, play in closing the gap between these concepts. Here are 12 trends that describe how our relationship with the environment, politics and one another will shape the future use of digital devices and technologies. Read more >>

TV


MALAWI
Multichoice overwhelmed with Big Brother response
[Gregory Gondwe: @Kalipochi] Multichoice Malawi says it has been overwhelmed with interest that Malawians are showing soon after the announcement of the seventh season of Big Brother Africa. Read more >>


International
POLAND
Is this the future for newspapers?
WARSAW, POLAND: Poland is a rare country where online advertising is already twice as large as newspaper advertising. If that's the future for other advertising markets, then the experiences of the Agora group provide important lessons for newspaper advertising departments everywhere. Read more >>

UNITED KINGDOM
Greenlight comment: 'Social Search' is finally here!
LONDON, UK: "...Google's integration of Google+ into its search results is a major change, one that brands and businesses must not ignore. And with Facebook having the potential to immediately capture a quarter of the search market globally were it to launch its own search engine, this move by Google has not come a minute too soon..." Read more >>

UNITED STATES
ADC 91st Annual Awards: Juries announced
NEW YORK, US: The Art Directors Club (www.adcglobal.org), one of the premier organisations for creatives in integrated media and the first global creative collective of its kind, has announced juries for Photography, Illustration and Motion categories for the ADC 91st Annual Awards, which is open for entries at www.adcawards.org. Read more >>

TURKEY
FIRECUP - The first Creative Leadership Award
ISTANBUL, TURKEY: Intercontinental Advertising CUP and Berlin School of Creative Leadership announce the first Creative Leadership Award. Steel Cup with the Fire Ring, the symbol of Berlin School of Creative Leadership, inside was designed to celebrate exceptional leaders who have set new standards in the communication and creative industries. Read more >>

FRANCE
Cannes Lions 2012 delegate registration open
CANNES, FRANCE: From today, the 59th Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity is open for delegate registration. Taking place from 17 - 23 June in Cannes, France, delegates wishing to attend can now register online at www.canneslions.com. Read more >>

UNITED STATES
NYF International Advertising Awards: 2012 Executive Jury appointments, next round
NEW YORK, US: New York Festivals International Advertising Awards has announced the next round of appointments to the 2012 Executive Jury. This is the second year that the Executive Jury, an elite "dream team" of prominent worldwide creative officers, will convene in New York 28April through 1 May, to select the World's Best Advertising. Read more >>

More International...


Government
SOUTH AFRICA
Economic Development deputy minister resigns
The Presidency has announced that the Deputy Minister of Economic Development, Enoch Godongwana, has resigned from his position to pursue personal interests. Godongwana informed President Jacob Zuma of his intention early in December and the President asked him to stay on until mid-January. Today is his last day. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA
Govt to intensify fight against rhino killing
Government continues to explore ways to curb the increasing killing of rhinos in South Africa, including the possibility of dehorning the animals, Environmental Affairs Minister Edna Molewa said on Sunday, 15 January 2012. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA
Gauteng e-tolling halted
The e-tolling system in Gauteng, which was due to commence next month, has been placed on hold. Many Gauteng motorists have been threatening to boycott the entire tolling system by refusing to pay the fees or register for their e-toll accounts to get their e-tags. Numerous petitions against the system were circulated. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA
Kotze case postponed
Johan Kotze, the man accused of killing his stepson and ordering workers to sexually assault and mutilate his estranged wife, made a brief appearance in the Modimolle Magistrate's Court today, Friday 13 January. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA
UNSC adopts resolution to enhance ties with AU
The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has unanimously adopted a resolution that will further enhance the ties between the UN and sub-regional organisations, particularly the African Union. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA
Nzimande sets on path to improve higher education
[Gabi Khumalo] The Department of Higher Education and Training has launched the Green Paper for Post-School Education and Training, which will see the country move towards producing more graduates with the in-demand skills necessary to grow the economy. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA
Police target bogus institutions
Police will arrest anyone found running bogus educational institutions, Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa has warned. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA
Gordhan meets Limpopo Premier
Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan has met with Limpopo Premier Cassel Mathale to discuss matters relating to the implementation of the section 100 intervention in the province. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA
Ndebele sets the record straight: It's not his car
The silver BMW 5-series reported by the City Press to have run up a heap of traffic fines does not belong to Transport Minister Sibusiso Ndebele, his office said in a statement yesterday, 10 January 2012. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA
Eskom warns of rolling power cuts
South Africans have been urged to use electricity sparingly and switch of all non-essential appliances as Eskom warns of possible electricity load-shedding that could last until March. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA
Zuma: Unemployment, poverty, inequality need attention
As the ANC celebrates its 100 years of existence, President Jacob Zuma says the triple challenge of unemployment, poverty and inequality has been identified as needing attention. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA
Gauteng pays R300m more to health suppliers
The Gauteng Department of Health and Social Development paid almost R300 million to health contractors and suppliers in December. This is in addition to the R600 million that had been paid to vendors earlier in that month, reports the Gauteng Provincial Government. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA
Bulk exports up but coal disappoints
South Africa's bulk exports rose by 6,6% in 2011 to a record 141,5-million tons according to the Transnet National Ports Authority. Business Live says the figures were still slightly lower than the 9,0% increase recorded in 2010. Read more >>

More Government news...


Motoring
SOUTH AFRICA
Coupé turns Mini into Mighty Mouse
[Henrie Geyser: motoring editor] The new Mini Coupé is an absolute neck-twisting, jaw-dropping little beaut - and it not only looks like a chop-top hot rod but it goes like the clappers and sticks to the tar like a hot hatch. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA
December new vehicle sales up
[Henrie Geyser: motoring editor] New vehicle sales in South Africa improved by about 15.9% to an estimated 571 425 units in 2011 - an improvement of about 78 518 over the previous year. Read more >>

More Motoring news...


Travel
SOUTH AFRICA
Exploring the Bo Kaap
[Brian Berkman: contributing editor, travel] With its steep cobbled-stone streets and Technicolor houses, the Bo Kaap, once known as the Malay Quarter, has a lot of stories to tell. There are the frescoes by Italian artist Chiappini, after whom one of the streets is named, that tells a story of an industrious, multicultural community busy with praying, learning, tailoring and keeping home. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA
W Cape tourism shows growth
[Francis Hweshe] Despite the ongoing worldwide economic dip resulting in shrinking tourism figures, South Africa's Western Cape tourism industry showed significant growth in 2011. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA
Etihad airways named world's leading airline at World Travel Awards
Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, has enjoyed stunning success at the World Travel Awards, taking the top honour for the third year in a row. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA
Le Touessrok wins major awards
Le Touessrok, the flagship of Sun Resorts, recently won two accolades celebrating its quality and its golf course, respectively delivered by The Leading Hotels of The World and Diners Club Magazine. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA
Victoria Falls bungee incident - follow up
Go to Victoria Falls has received the following update from Victoria Falls Bungee, in response to the bridge incident on 31 December 2011. This follows the official statement released on 2 January 2012. Read more >>

More Travel news...


BizLounge
SOUTH AFRICA
Top tattooists at Southern Ink Xposure
Three art exhibitions will mark the start of Southern Ink Xposure 2012 and organisers are promising a world-class event celebrating global tattoo culture. The fourth Southern Ink Xposure tattoo convention will open its doors on 24 January at the CTICC. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA
Not much to write Holmes about
[Eugene Yiga: @eugeneyiga] When I started my quest to read the 100 greatest books of all time, I never knew it would make me a more discerning movie-goer. Well, it has. Reading the book before I see the film is the reason why I was so impressed by what I felt was a faithful adaptation of The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde. It's also why I was quite disappointed by The Count of Monte Cristo, a movie I once loved to death until I read the masterpiece by Alexandre Dumas and realised how much Hollywood hacked it up. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA
A mixed bag at Rock The River
[Kershin Padayachee] "It's the final countdown ... " Europe's archaic lyrics drone monotonously over the airwaves as your aunt busts a move from the 80s. Then, at the stroke of midnight, you quaff champagne like a sommelier and bop around to Prince's 1999. If this sounds all too familiar, then perhaps you should have attended the Rock The River Festival, which took place over the New Year's weekend at the Cape Town Ostrich Ranch. The venue being a mere stone's throw from home, I decided to do exactly that. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA
Imminent Up the Creek
The 2012 Up the Creek festival will be held in conjunction with Bacardi and will feature three stages, with lots of music and comedy. It will be held from 2 to 5 February on the campsite close to Swellendam on the Breede River. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA
RAMfest line-up announced
The line-up for RAMfest, which will be held between 2 and 11 March, 2012, in PE, Bloemfontein, Durban, Joburg and Cape Town, has been announced. Artists will vary from city to city. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA
Jack Parow 's "Eksie Ou", track by track
[Ruth Cooper] Packed with colabs from the likes of David Kramer, Pierre Greeff, Francois van Coke and PH Fat, one wouldn't be wrong in expecting Jack Parow's second album to have a fairly diverse sound. However, as diverse as the 12 tracks on this album are, each one is still unquestionably and uber recognisably Jack moeder fokken Parow. Read more >>

More BizLounge news...


People on the move
    AFRICA
  • Total Supply & Marketing appoints new senior vice president - more info


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Quotes
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