The 10 companies shortlisted for Media Player of the Year in Marketing’s Nov. 14 issue were at the top of their game in 2011. We’ll be featuring each one online as a lead-up to our January 2012 issue, where you’ll find out which media company will reign supreme.
SHAW MEDIA
Hit shows—and hit advertising initiatives to go along with them—gave Shaw a boost in 2011
Some analysts had warned that Shaw Communications’ deal to buy the TV assets of Canwest was a risky content play in a digital age. But Shaw has defied the naysayers by growing Canwest’s conventional and specialty TV channels—rebranded as Shaw Media—both in terms of audience and revenues.
On the specialty side, Shaw Media outpaced industry growth by five to one, led by double-digital audience increases for channels like History Television, Food Network Canada and National Geographic. Global also gained, fuelled by tent-pole shows like House and Survivor, which still rank in the top 10 nationally, and newer programs like Hawaii Five-O, Glee and The Good Wife. Shaw Media’s revenues also climbed by 7% for the 12 months ending Aug. 31, 2011.
But what has most impressed media-buying executives is how the company has expertly matched advertisers with those hit shows, and then built highly relevant advertising programs.
“They stay true to the brands they have, while still meeting the needs of the advertiser,” says Lesley Tavel, VP, group account director at MediaCom. “They’re also very creative, and always ground their solutions in consumer insights.” Discount retail chain Winners, for instance, has a segment on ET Canada that shows people how to dress like a celebrity for less. Tavel says Shaw Media was instrumental in developing the program.
Those kinds of advertising solutions also extend to Shaw Media’s specialty side. For ConAgra Foods, it created a half-hour program on Food Network all about lunch, with product integration and placement for the company’s Healthy Choice Gourmet Steamers brand. The campaign is credited with helping Healthy Choice grow sales, and grow its Facebook likes to north of 89,000.
The above campaigns are the work of Shaw Media’s 35-person marketing ventures unit, which previously existed at Canwest and, before that, Alliance Atlantis. Marketing ventures is responsible for creating customized, integrated ad solutions, and is Shaw Media’s highest-growth sales area.
“We’ve tried to make [the department] as diverse as possible, so regardless of the client challenge, we can answer it,” says Ann-Marie Spurr, director of marketing ventures. “We also try to ensure we have experts in all different fields, which is why we have people with backgrounds from digital, marketing and even sales completely outside of advertising.”
There’s more! Check out the Nov. 14 issue of Marketing for the full profile, and subscribe to find out who will be named the Media Player of the Year for 2011.
