Government rescues ailing advertising industry

vivatifosi

By becoming the country's biggest advertiser:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/7536018/Government-becomes-Britains-biggest-advertiser.html

The Central Office of Information spent £207.9 million on advertising last year, more than any other organisation, according to Marketing magazine.

The next biggest spender was Procter and Gamble, the consumer products group, which spent £155 million in 2009.
Government spending on advertising and marketing rose while commercial companies were reducing their expenditure. Companies including Marks & Spencer and Renault cut their spending by half.


I do get that some public information films need to be made, but seriously, do we need to spend this much?

kabayiri

vivatifosi wrote: »

I do get that some public information films need to be made, but seriously, do we need to spend this much?

It's a simple answer.

No we don't.

Let them use the beeb for free advertising for a year or two. I don't care. I just want to see the state spend come down.

JasonLVC

vivatifosi wrote: »

I do get that some public information films need to be made, but seriously, do we need to spend this much?

Yes we do, when it is an election year and so the government can bombard the electorate with various propaganda .....and it doesn't break any election guidelines as they are just 'adverts' not party political broadcasts.

I posted earlier in the week how the ASA have had "The Policing Pledge" withdrawn as the promises it makes cannot be proven and that the use of "numbers of police on the beat" suggested coppers on the street but actually just meant police working in an office somewhere.

I also posted last week that HMRC are "sponsoring" CSI:Las Vegas on Five, yet more subtle ways of telling the viewer about the government.

Darling could save a fortune simply by not spending so much on pointless adverts.

vivatifosi

JasonLVC wrote: »

I also posted last week that HMRC are "sponsoring" CSI:Las Vegas on Five, yet more subtle ways of telling the viewer about the government.

I missed your post Jason, but I'm absolutely amazed. What is the benefit of sponsoring CSI LV? All you can hope for in a short slot like that is to gain brand awareness, who needs brand awareness of HMRC? If people aren't aware of them and who they are and what they do, they just need to wait until they get fined for not paying their taxes, then the initials will be permanently etched in their memory.

JasonLVC

http://www.five.tv/programmes/documentaries/the-business-inspector

It looks like HMRC are sponsoring "The Business Inspector" on Five.

I'm still convinced I saw the same sponsorship on CS LV (I'll check that out tonight - but maybe I was wrong on that one, you know what it is like with Sky+, you lose all concept of time), but still, HMRC sponsoring a commercial TV programme (even though the link between the show/HMRC is a bit more obvious) is still a waste of taxpayers money.

kabayiri

Look how WPP have benefited by increasing their share of the government advertising spend last year.

This wouldn't stick in the throat so much, were it not for the fact that the same WPP shifted their base to Dublin in 2008 ! So much for their commitment to the UK economy then.

ninky_2

it's not just ads. sometimes it's entire programmes of dubious editorial neutrality.

http://www.theinsider.org/news/article.asp?id=2720

i remember a show about immigration officers (think it was called 'border police') in which immigrants are unrelentingly shown as dubious and dodgy being held back by the valiant efforts of our 'border police'. there was no attempt to balance it out by discussing the backgrounds of the individuals or the situations they were coming from. made me really angry.

vivatifosi

Thanks ninky. I knew that there were programmes about PCSOs, the work of the Border Force, etc, but never knew that the government funded them. Presumably this is a separate budget again to advertising...

I'm scratching my head to work out why they would pay. You know about this better than me, but wouldn't TV production companies be willing to work alongside the government to make such documentaries? There's plenty of interest in blogs of people in public facing roles (police, ambulance people, junior doctors etc), surely its just an extension and doesn't need public funding. Maybe, the crux of the matter, as you indicated above is that they would need to be impartial.

CCTV watching our every move, state sponsored documentaries. Crikey whatever next?

nearlynew

I don't watch a lot of TV but I have noticed an increase in the number of government ads recently.

Off the top of my head I can think of ......pay your TV licence online, pay your tax on time, buy your car tax online, become a teacher, that learn new skills one, the switch of your lights one, grass on benefit cheats, plus dozens more health and safety and crime prevention ones.

Whenever I see one or hear one on the radio, I feel like screaming.......

LEAVE ME ALONE YOU LYING THIEVING SNOOPING B4STARDS

ninky_2

vivatifosi wrote: »

Thanks ninky. I knew that there were programmes about PCSOs, the work of the Border Force, etc, but never knew that the government funded them. Presumably this is a separate budget again to advertising...

I'm scratching my head to work out why they would pay. You know about this better than me, but wouldn't TV production companies be willing to work alongside the government to make such documentaries? There's plenty of interest in blogs of people in public facing roles (police, ambulance people, junior doctors etc), surely its just an extension and doesn't need public funding. Maybe, the crux of the matter, as you indicated above is that they would need to be impartial.

CCTV watching our every move, state sponsored documentaries. Crikey whatever next?

broadcasters are increasingly after 'advertiser funded content' - i.e. not only do they want to sell ad space around shows they also want someone else to pay for them. clearly there are ofcom issues but if you look at most programme content (other than bbc) it is not really neutral as it avoids offending the message of advertisers. in recent times i've been in meetings with a large food company and a government funded agency discussing programme content. quite depressing really and not what i went into the industry for. neither project came off though which i'm secretly quite pleased about - in both cases it was because we couldn't come up with an editorial show they would be happy with.

princeofpounds

What pains me are the buses here in London. Get on board the top deck and look at the posters on any route, especially those that go into councils like Lambeth and Tower Hamlets.

Almost all without exception will be telling people to eat their greens, how to access their benefits, how to avoid being a bad teenager who carries knives etc. Real nanny state stuff.

Tower Hamlets even spent a ridiculous sum of money on plastering 'local heroes' on the outside of buses. See the link below for the details and google it for the pictures. (Sorry to use a libdem link, I'm not a supporter but it was actually the most complete account of the cost of the campaign I could find quickly).

http://tower-hamlets-libdems.org.uk/news/000201/labour_extravagance_extends_to_spending_taxpayers_money_on_fashion_photographer.html

A less cynical view for balance with accompanying photos of those heroes:

http://robdyson.posterous.com/who-is-frank-whipple