BtoB - January 16, 2012 - (Page 4)

NEWS Media M&A prospects looking strong for 2012 BY SEAN CALLAHAN CMO CLOSE-UP John McDonald VP-Marketing, British Airways To sign up for the CMO Close-Up biweekly e-newsletter, go to www.btobonline.com/cmo This year is looking like a positive one for media and marketing M&A activity, according to a number of reports released by investment banks in the first days of the new year. “It is very positive, with a couple of little caveats,” said Seth Alpert, managing director at AdMedia Partners, which released its “2012 Mergers and Acquisitions Prospects for Media, Marketing Services and Related Technology Firms” report earlier this month. Almost 60% of respondents to the survey, which was conducted in November, said they expect to seek an acquisition this year. That figure was up from 40% in the prior year’s survey. The 18th annual online survey was sent to 7,300 senior executives in the media and marketing industries, although AdMedia did not indicate how many responded. The survey found that 48% of respondents expect to contemplate a sale of their company or a subsidiary. That figure was up from 36% a year earlier. But not every sector is anticipating a boom year: One of the M&A plans for 2012 Senior executives in the media and marketing industries were asked what M&A-related activity they expected to be involved in this year. Seek an acquisition target Contemplate sale of the company and/or a subsidiary operation Seek investment funding (e.g., not sell control) or raise debt Make an initial public offering 1% 1% 59% 40% 48% 36% 38% 33% ■ 2012 ■ 2011 Source: AdMedia Partners, January 2012 British Airways’ biggest campaign in a decade aims to tell story of service BY KATE MADDOX caveats Alpert referred to is the b-to-b media sector. Almost 70% of respondents to AdMedia Partners’ survey said they expected EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) multiples for b-to-b media to be 6x or less. Meanwhile, 64% of respondents in social marketing expected a 7x EBITDA or greater this year. “I would read that as saying traditional business media companies are going to be very hard to sell,” Alpert said. Traditional b-to-b media, especially on the print side, experi- enced a sour year in 2011 when it came to M&A activity, according to data released by investment bank Jordan, Edmiston Group. The number of deals in the sector decreased 62%, to 14, and the aggregate deal value plummeted 91%, to $50 million. The exhibitions and conferences category showed some resiliency as the number of deals increased 39%, to 32, and aggregate deal value increased 249%, to $451 million, according to Jordan, Edmiston. The bellwether deal in this sector was Providence Equity M&A, page 16 >>QUICKHITS U.S. ad spending growth slowing Ad spending in the U.S. increased 1.5% in the first nine months of 2011 compared with the yearearlier period, according to data released by Kantar Media. Growth in spending is slowing, the company said. Internet media, which includes paid search and display advertising, was up 2.8% for the first nine months of 2011, but Internet media spending was down 2.9% in the period from July through September, according to Kantar. This decline was led by a drop in paid search spending, which fell 14.4%. Ad spending in b-to-b magazines has increased 1.1% for the first three quarters of the year. For the July through September period, ad spending in b-to-b magazines increased just 0.8%. Get the marketing news you need to know every day by signing up for our Daily News Alerts at BtoBonline.com ONLINE role of president-chief commercial officer, effective Feb. 4. Felice currently is president-global consumer and SMB at Dell. Under the current marketing structure, Dell’s public and enterprise business segments are led by Paul Bell, president-public and large enterprise, who announced his retirement effective March 30. ways to raise money and protect six-day mail delivery. Kodak reported to be near bankruptcy filing Eastman Kodak Co., which has struggled to shift from consumer photography to b-to-b digital printing and marketing, is preparing for a possible bankruptcy filing, according to reports. According to The Wall Street Journal and others, Kodak may file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection this month or in February if it fails to raise money by selling off portions of its patent portfolio. Kodak lost $222 million in its fiscal third quarter. USPS delays closings; reform bill introduced The U.S. Postal Service has announced that it will delay the closing of any mail processing centers and post offices until May 15, responding to requests by multiple U.S. legislators to allow time for proposed postal reform legislation to be enacted. Last month, USPS said it planned to close about 300 of its existing 500 service centers as it works to eliminate $20 billion in operational expenditures by 2015, a move that it projected would delay the delivery of the mail. Meanwhile, another bill has been introduced in the House of Representatives that would allow USPS to recover as much as $80 billion in overpayments to its retiree pension funds, find other Global TV ad forecast to reach $163 billion Global TV ad spending will reach $163 billion this year, up 5.4% over last year, according to a new forecast from MarketResearch.com. Quadrennial events, including the U.S. presidential election, the London Summer Olympics and the UEFA (Union of European Football Associations) Championship, will help boost TV ad spending this year, according to the report. Dell restructures sales/marketing Dell Inc. announced that it will consolidate all its customer business segments—consumer, large enterprise, public and SMB—under the direction of Steve Felice, who has been named to the new John McDonald is VP-marketing at British Airways, which launched a new ad campaign last fall called “To Fly. To Serve,” created by Bartle Bogle Hegarty, London. The campaign, which is BA largest branding effort in more ’s than a decade, comes at a time when the airline industry is struggling with challenges including cuts to travel budgets, aviation taxes and rising gas prices. In the following Q&A, McDonald discusses the new campaign and how BA will be investing to improve its operations. BtoB: You just introduced a new brand campaign, your largest in a decade. Why now? John McDonald: British Airways has always been a strong brand, but we wanted to tell our unique story a little louder and to a wider audience. We believe British Airways is special because of its people, expertise and heritage—and because we put the customer at the heart of everything we do. The ‘To fly. To serve’ motto states British Airways’ promise and encapsulates our aviation expertise and commitment to customer service, and we wanted to share that message with our customers around the world. It has been a difficult few years in the aviation industry; but British Airways has come out stronger, and this new campaign signifies a new chapter for the airline. Now is the moment we move on confidently and get on with what we do best—serving our customers. BtoB: What are the challenges facing airlines these days? McDonald: This is our first major brand campaign in more than 10 years, and it follows 10 years in which the industry has changed enormously; and we have restructured our business and transformed our operations accordingly. The airline industry continues to face a number of challenges. For instance, aviation tax is higher in the U.K. than anywhere else in the world. BtoB: What is the campaign objective? McDonald: This campaign allows us the opportunity to show our commitment to our customers. We’re bringing our motto ‘To fly. To serve’ to life in our new ads, showcasing our experience of flying and caring for customers in the air and on the ground, as well as the professionalism and skills of our pilots and dedicated cabin crews. To coincide with the brand campaign, we are investing in our product with a five-year program to benefit our customers. BtoB: Which media will you use in the campaign? McDonald: This is a major multimillion-pound advertising campaign, with print, broadcast and online advertising to support it. We have also invested in social media as part of the campaign and even premiered the (broadcast) ad on our Facebook page. The ad is now housed on our YouTube channel, along with several edited versions of ads that showcase decades of flying know-how and innovation, thoughtful service and coveted British style. We are continuing to cross-promote content related to the brand campaign on social media channels, including a profile on “It has been a difficult few years in the aviation industry, but British Airways has come out stronger.” McDonald, page 18 4 | BtoB | January 16, 2012 | btobonline.com  http://www.btobonline.com/cmo http://www.BtoBonline.com http://www.MarketResearch.com http://www.btobonline.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of BtoB - January 16, 2012

BtoB - January 16, 2012
B-to-b learns from b-to-c e-commerce experience
Large share of marketers boosting spending, especially online
Mobile apps, social integration, content are key trends
ANA ramps up I CANN domain name protest
B-to-b marketers still in Super Bowl lineup
'BtoB' to host Digital Edge Live conference
Social media matures with added players, new metrics
Quick Hits
Reader Comments/Polls
Opinion
Positive outlook for online ad spending
Advertising
Media companies flock to mobile Web
Business Media
Email remains a strong marketing tool
Direct & Database
Tools & Metrics

BtoB - January 16, 2012

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