Pepe, wow. The principles you highlight here are so true and refreshing. I have just answered some questions for a "Behind The Selfie" profile that Bizcomm are about to publish, which speak to the very essence of what you are saying. I talk about a fundamental shift that occurred in my life and the life of my business (a PR agency) two years ago, taking on clients that carried greater 'meaning', that actually make a positive, healthy, necessary difference in the lives of their markets. This was a natural outworking of what was happening in my own life when I finally gave up the fight, got honest and faced my fear (a death/ life scenario) tackling it with the help of others, and changing course, keeping an open mind and practicing willingness in the process. Resultantly a quiet, fundamental respect for, and connection between our clients and us has occurred, which just elevates how we think, consult and ultimately deliver. Our delivery has become more powerful and informed. Magic then happens, when we least expect it, and in hindsight when the moment is just right (when its actually needed). But the ‘connection’ has to happen. And that, in my mind, can only happen, when it comes from a place of very personal experience. Thank you for being brave and sharing this with an industry that carries so much influence and needs great navigators and mentors like yourself.
I like that you act as defense counsel for DFW. But you tackle none of the points I make in your counter argument. If you did, you would have cited designers that went on to be great after participating in DFW. In 2008 Sibu Msimang, Kwame Khuzwayo, Lynette Ganesan and Katherine Montague went to India to showcase their designs as part of a designer contingent that included Nkhensani Nkosi and Malcolm Kluk. The aforementioned designers were the "development talent" that were supposed to have been "springboarded" by that particular experience. Please do yourself a favour and check up on them today - almost 7 years later. I mention the above designers because an agency that I owned at the time - KOOLOOMA - was the only entity that got them ink in a print publication (Daily News) at the time. This was shortly after the DFW and not a finger was lifted by AFI or VSHE to get these designers some ink, even if it was with a hidden agenda to promote their own brands.
Wow. I wrote this piece 7 years ago. But I still firmly of the opinion that the DFW event had no development agenda. Everything they did was fuelled by the funds that MTN pumped into the project. Once the MTN money dried up that wa sthe end of the event. Even Precious Motsepe's AFI has not carried on hosting the show since they owned 50% of the show. There was no passion behind it. There was no vision behind it. It was just money that needed to be used and VSHE Productions used the money as best they could. If someone with a vision for the entire Durban fashion industry was behind the wheel of the event, it would not have died out in 2008..
You are right: the proposed changes, as well as the suspension of the implementation thereof, has created a lot of uncertainty. So much more could have been done in terms of communication around this point. We embarked on an education drive to inform our clients of these inevitable changes during the 3rd and 4th quarters of 2014. The response to the proposed changes was generally positive. I wish I could say the same thing when we communicated to our clients late last year to inform them that these changes would not be taking place after all! This was not received well, and I think our industry as a whole suffered reputational loss as a consequence of bad communication and ineffective leadership.
The participants of the pitch are as much at fault as the company procuring the service. As long as creative agencies continue to "feed the fire", the fire will continue to burn. The more we participate in pitches - the more we send out a message that there is no real value in what we offer.I will only pitch work on the following conditions: A first round of shortlisting based purely on credentials and portfolio submission. There-after for those who pitch a creative solution, there needs to be a guaranteed rejection fee if their concept is not selected.
Mobile brings a great deal of marketing and advertising opportunities - with the use of mobile consumption ever increasing its a lucrative and cost effient to have in any marketing plan.
Thank you for the heads up Andre01. Yes, it is interesting to note the posting on the Nutritech site of the bona fides of their submitted product analysis. I am happy they have made this available on their site and I for one will always applaud transparency. That is excellent news.However, what one has to bear in mind is that, no different than the mystery diner that the restaurateur knows about in advance, so goes the quality of the sample submitted for analysis by this or any other company. This applies to any product, foodstuffs included. Product contents can vary either by happenstance or by deliberate action. In many products you might well not know changes have been made. So, in short, the sample submitted may indeed closely match the label data, on the day it was submitted, so that the lab results are positive. But then, subsequent batches are back to normal (not so good). One thing I wanted to reiterate (again) is that ISO does not fix this – if whey protein concentrate is substituted with sweet whey, the International Organization for Standardization is not going to correct the matter in situ as they are not there. Regulation at any other level cannot fix this and neither should it be expected to. The ultimate method for quality maintenance is ‘integrity’ on the part of the manufacturer (he does this out of professional pride and the desire to stay in business through continued sales) and of course, the vigilance of the consumer.Expecting an army of product police to look out for something you should be looking out for is disingenuous. Who would they be? That’s right. Government employees. Shiftless bureaucrats who make a mess of everything and cost the taxpayer tons of cash. And that’s not just here – it’s everywhere. I am stupefied by the number of otherwise intelligent people out there asking in one way or another for the suffocating and costly instruments of a nanny state. If a consumer is unhappy, tell the manufacturer; tell the retailer; tell a friend. Tell twenty friends if you wish. But above all, vote with your money for a product you and others trust.
It sounds exciting and a challenging task for the search engine. But I believe this would cause some privacy issue as this gives Google a lot more information about the user. Also there is the possibility of getting irrelevant information at times when you need something specific.But great direction, & analysis. This is the next development step of Google Now so it seems, and not actually very far out. Virattripati,
People borrow excessive amounts of money, spend it on second homes, new vehicles and what not and then complain when the bills come due, believing they're entitled to bailouts. No more bailouts for companies or individuals. I am tired of paying my bills, living frugally and then having to pay bailouts for those who decide to live high. I refuse to apply for and pay for the overspenders and self-indulgent spongers.
Interesting to see that they have published independant laboratory test results and their ISO certification on their website, showing that these allegations are false
I am also wondering where they got these. I have 15 years experience and still get paid peanuts. I would not recommend graphic designing for anyone. Only 1% of companies give bonuses, increases and other benefits. Everytime I have applied to new companies they insist on knowing what you earned previously and then offer you R500 more. There are thousands of new young designers willing to work for less so my experience counts for nothing. I am very disillusioned about the industry. After 15 years I am earning less than what they are suggesting here for 2 years experience. I am a good designer and have won a couple of design awards in the past, but it seems to count for nothing.