All About = Outdoor Advertising

=20 =

Encyclomedia=20 Networks, India Inks Deal with Floor = Graphics=20 Inc, USA

Aug=20 05, 2008
allaboutoutdoor.com=20 bureau, New=20 = Delhi

EncycloMedia=20 Networks, which delivers solutions and=20 strategies for outdoor and retail = advertising in=20 more than 20 countries, has entered into = a joint=20 venture with Floorgraphics Inc., the = global=20 leader in floor advertising, which holds = more=20 than 80 per cent of the global = market.

As=20 part of the JV, EncycloMedia Networks = has=20 acquired the exclusive licence in India, = Sri=20 Lanka, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal to = use the=20 trademarks, trade names, and know-how of = Floorgraphics Inc. for the production = and sale=20 of FLOORads (floor mounted graphics) and = proprietary In-Storeplus products such = as=20 CARTplus (ads on shopping carts), = TAKEplus=20 (information dispensers that promote = indirect=20 sales), SHELFplus (shelf talkers), and=20 COUPONplus (coupon dispensers). = EncycloMedia=20 Networks will design, print and execute=20 campaigns for the retail media network = to its=20 clients. Floorgraphics Inc. is present = in more=20 than 20 countries with a retail store = media=20 network exceeding 20,000 stores. The = major=20 chains include Carrefour, Wal-mart, = Hippo and=20 AmPm.

Mukesh Manik, = Man-In-Charge=20 (M-I-C), EncycloMedia Networks, says, = =E2=80=9CWith our=20 expertise in creative and print and=20 Floorgraphics Inc.=E2=80=99s experience = in retail media=20 solutions, our JV will offer unique = in-store=20 media solutions to clients across = categories.=20 The essential task is to deliver the = advertising=20 to the target group in a way that is = visibility=20 effective and cost efficient.=E2=80=9D =

Till=20 before the JV, EncycloMedia Networks = offered=20 floor space in a chain of 500 stores of = Food=20 Bazaar and Spencer=E2=80=99s with their = brand of floor=20 graphics, iWalk. This brand is now being = scrapped to make way for FLOORads. They = will=20 also introduce the In-Storeplus products = within=20 the next few months and aim to increase = their=20 retail media network to 1,000 stores = within the=20 next three months.

Manik says = that if=20 creating ads is more of a qualitative = task in=20 advertising, then delivery of these ads = through=20 available media is a quantitative task.=20

Sharing how the development took = place,=20 he says, =E2=80=9CMedia planning in such = a JV is often a=20 number crunching game, right from = setting media=20 objectives to measuring the efficiency = and=20 effectiveness of a media plan and the = impact it=20 has had on the sales of a particular = product. We=20 recognised this opportunity as both our=20 companies share the same philosophy and = science=20 of retail advertising. Once this was = clear, the=20 focus then shifted to finalising the JV. = We will=20 provide clients with end to end = solutions, where=20 we only require the client to give us = the brief,=20 after which we take care of photography, = design,=20 artwork, printing, dispatch, = installation and=20 media space rental and = maintenance.=E2=80=9D

He=20 adds that today, the primary vehicle to = gain=20 attention in-store is price-off = promotions, but=20 price discounting does not build brand = value, it=20 depreciates it. =E2=80=9CBy elevating a = campaign to =E2=80=98top=20 of mind=E2=80=99 and linking a campaign = to the product=20 on the shelf, floor graphics close the = potential=20 sales set in motion by your ad campaign. = This=20 very thought became the bridge between = us.=E2=80=9D=20

When it comes to the costs = involved,=20 Manik says footfalls in stores may vary = due to=20 their different sizes =E2=80=93 for = example, a smaller=20 supermarket may have 200 footfalls a = day, but a=20 larger one may see about 5,000. The = average cost=20 per contact for floor graphics works out = to only=20 about 10 paise a day, and for the = In-Storeplus=20 products, it=E2=80=99s even cheaper. =

=E2=80=9COur=20 creativity on floor graphics is well = accepted=20 now and we will share this with the = entire=20 international partner network of = Floorgraphics=20 Inc., who can then offer it to their = clients,=E2=80=9D=20 says Manik.

It is estimated that = an=20 advertiser spends 8-10 per cent on = retail and=20 point of sale. However, there are brands = that=20 spend as much as 50 per cent of their = budget on=20 retail as they are urban skewed products = and it=20 becomes too expensive to advertise=20 above-the-line. Internationally, it is = now=20 common for advertisers to spend 50 per = cent of=20 their budget on retail advertising. With = the=20 entry of organised retail in India, the = platform=20 is set for this to grow rapidly. =

Manik=20 says that though clients are increasing = spends=20 in-store, floor graphics form a = negligible part=20 of the retail advertising mix in India. = Retail=20 advertising is still restricted to = posters,=20 danglers, standees and, in some cases, = digital=20 TV.

=E2=80=9CThe true value of = this medium is=20 not yet realised. One of the most = important=20 consumer habit changes in the past 25 = years is=20 that over 70 per cent of purchasing = decisions=20 are made at the point of sale. Over 80 = per cent=20 of new product introductions fail, most = of the=20 time because they go unnoticed on the = shelf.=20 FLOORads work! With an average sales = increase in=20 the double digits, it is very cost = effective,=20 delivering the lowest cost per thousand=20 impressions of any advertising media.=20 Internationally, the medium is an = accepted part=20 of a retail campaign and at times the = only media=20 used to launch the product at = retail,=E2=80=9D he=20 explains.

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