Right now, traditional media is being hit hard and all media owners are affected. As just two examples, print is feeling it hard and ADEX shows that TV is taking a knock. However, it shouldn't just be about price for the advertiser, it's about being in the right space and getting the most impact for your brand.
I predict that besides the motor vehicle, banking and property sectors, we can see the same adspend in the first few months of 2009, with marketers not cutting back.
Having said that, I do believe that mobile will become far more sophisticated and more developed in the years ahead, especially as people are trading up their phones for more advanced versions. Internet access is coming off a small base but this medium is becoming more and more popular and, within time, I see huge possibilities online, especially combined with mobile as the Internet becomes cheaper and cheaper. There are massive opportunities, down the line, for both these media among all markets, especially the youth.
I also think that we need to spend more time educating our sales people:
We need clearer deliverables to assist the sales people to stay on course.
This year, I think that outdoor is going to be more in the spotlight as we thrash these issues around. Our government needs to be more realistic; what is next on the 'things to be banned' list? Will toy advertising be banned because small pieces might be swallowed and therefore harmful to children or will it be fast food because junk food makes people fat?