Fox Kalomaski

Consumer price perception is real – in the eyes of the consumer – but is not necessarily borne out at the point of sale. In retail, the temptation today is for premium brands to compete with discount stores .Such an urge to descend into an unseemly gutter brawl is damaging to the premium brand value and based on the assumption that you have to pander to consumer perceptions. The need is to communicate a VFM/quality/service message revealing that discount stores do not actually give better value.  Consumers are misled (or mislead themselves) into getting what they pay for at discount stores.

And just because there’s a recession doesn’t mean that shopping has to be a bad experience – shoppers will always appreciate good service. So, savings are exaggerated and not worth the culture shock of poor surroundings and service. To abandon the principles that created a great brand is to abandon the future of the brand. But in the travel trade, by contrast, with a different sales structure, it’s the opposite story. Many want to fly on an economy airline but no-one wants to fly on cheap airline that can go bust and leave you stranded. Or use a bucket-shop holiday package firm with the same result. Travellers want the reassurance of strong travel brands or brands that have recognised protection from the likes of ATOL. Also, travel agents are the front-line retail protectors of consumers from such mishaps – these high street specialists are much more unlikely to go the discount route for fear of the immediate dangers to their customers.

The essential difference here is that in travel, consumers stick with brands they trust, while in retail, consumers are tempted to abandon brands they trust. At the same time, premium retailers themselves contemplate ditching the very characteristics that generate trust. And, of course, travel consumers have got much more to lose if they book a £1,000 holiday through a cheap operator as opposed to switching from a tin of Heinz beans to a discount store own brand. So, a new marketing strategy is required for premium retail brands to capitalise on what makes them respected: value + quality + service = trust.  The need is to change consumer perceptions of value, because it’s a long, slow climb back from the gutter.

The Bahamas is launching a campaign to encourage tourists to continue visiting the luxury destination despite the looming recession.

The ads, which break this weekend, aim to give the islands "a character and personality" to get the destination on people's agenda for their next holiday. The campaign is aimed at ABC1s and pre- and post-family consumers across the UK.

The campaign, which will run across press and outdoor, will show local people telling their stories about the islands. The campaign has the strapline "In the island of the Bahamas, every story starts with a smile".

A spokesman for the Bahamas Tourist Board says: "For the first time, the ads will break its conventional beach-and-sea images and feature real paople who can take holidaymakers diving, golfing and snorkeling."

The ads will break in the national press, including The Times, The Daily Telegraph and The Observer. An outdoor campaign will run on London Underground and network rail stations, and there will be ads in travel magazines, on travel websites and radio.

In 2007, the Bahamas received about 45,000 UK holidaymakers. This campaign aims to maintain this number as it fears that consumers will opt for cheaper holiday destinations in the economic downturn.

The campaign is developed by The Bahamas Tourist Board's creative agency Fox Kalomaski.

Excerpt taken from Marketing Week.

Fox Kalomaski, the destination marketing company for travel, retail and leisure has produced a campaign that has won a prestigious OZcar award for Austravel, Australia’s Travel Company of The Year 2008.

Austravel scooped 4 awards at Tourism Australia’s ‘OZcars’, including ‘Best Regional Campaign’ with Fox Kalomaski’s creative work in radio, press, metro and shop posters for Etihad Airways which flies from Manchester to down under.

Fox Kalomaski Director, Nicola White, comments, “For Austravel to be awarded these accolades as a result of our work, and to achieve the Ultimate OZcar of Australia Travel Company of The Year is a tremendous compliment to our team.”

Austravel’s Marketing Manager Laura Southwell adds, “I am delighted with the consistency of the delivery of strong creativity and understanding of our market demonstrated by Fox Kalomaski.”

Every year, Tourism Australia celebrates the excellence and achievements of the tourism industry in selling and marketing of Australia through its OZcars awards

FOX KALOMASKI LAUNCHES TV-LED CAMPAIGNS FOR 2 TOP REGIONAL CENTRES

£5 MILLION + NATIONAL ANNUAL EQUIVALENT SPEND

Fox Kalomaski, the destination marketing company for retail, travel and leisure, launches TV-led campaigns this week for two top regional shopping and leisure centres, reaching millions of affluent consumers.

The centres are Princesshay, which was launched last year and has transformed the city of

Exeter, and thecentre:mk, Milton Keynes, the leading attraction of its kind in the north Home Counties and south Midlands.

see the Princesshay TV commercial

see thecentre:mk TV commercial

The TV campaigns are supported by press advertising, direct marketing and online communications targeting ABC1 consumers within both of the two cities and throughout the wide hinterland of these prosperous regions.

Stephen Fox, Managing Director of Fox Kalomaski explains, “Both centres offer by far the best shopping and leisure experience in their regions. With a daily diet of negative economic news, the need is to persuade the target markets outside the core catchment areas that the journey to each centre is justified.”

TV advertising will appear on Anglia West for thecentre:mk, media buying is by AMS and above-the-line expenditure is the national annual equivalent of £2.5 million. Princesshay's annual national equivalent on West Country TV of £2.6M is through Mediaedge.

THE BAHAMAS MINISTRY OF TOURISM & AVIATION AWARDS ADVERTISING ACCOUNT TO FOX KALOMASKI

NASSAU, THE BAHAMAS: The Ministry of Tourism and Aviation, following competing presentations to a selection panel of both Ministry Officials and Industry Partners, has awarded the UK advertising and marketing account to Fox Kalomaski, the destination marketing company for travel, retail and leisure.

In recognition of the huge potential that the market currently offers for the delivery of business to The Islands Of The Bahamas, given the current strength of the British Pound against the Dollar, the Ministry has chosen an agency with extensive travel and tourism experience. Fox Kalomaski has provided agency services for hotel brands such as Accor, Intercontinental and Holiday Inn, airlines such as Air New Zealand, Thai Airways, SAS, Lufthansa, Star Alliance and retail tour operators including Thomson Worldwide, now TUI Travel and Austravel and destinations such as VisitBritain, EnjoyEngland, Tunisia and Tourism Australia.

“In the UK, with competition as fierce as it is with a myriad of travel destinations from both the east and the west vying to attract the British traveller, we need to differentiate ourselves from the clutter with an innovative and creative positioning for our country,” said the Hon. Neko Grant, Minister of Tourism. “We are looking forward to the fresh look and feel that Fox Kalomaski will deliver for us in the next few months,” he continued.

Fox Kalomaski will lead the strategic and creative development of advertising for The Bahamas while Total Media, its media arm, will be responsible for the media planning and buying portion of the account in the U.K.

“We are extremely proud that we have been selected as the agency of record for The Bahamas in the U.K., said Gary Jacobs, CEO of Fox Kalomaski. “It is a tremendous honour as well as a serious responsibility as we understand the importance of Tourism for The Bahamas and its people.”

Karen Seymour, Director UK, Europe & Asia for The Bahamas Tourist Office expressed, “We are very pleased with the results and believe that Fox Kalomaski will deliver a compelling and creative campaign not only in traditional media but also in the digital realm, where more and more of our potential customers go for information as well as to book their holidays.”

Fox Kalomaski was chosen from a list of some seven agencies who submitted proposals with a short-list of three making in-person presentations to the selection panel.