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Arthur Porter

The Weekly Wrap

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By The Drum Team, Editorial

July 14, 2008 | 3 min read

Arthur Porter, the publisher of Crain's Manchester Business, rounds up the week that was in media and marketing.

Having been away from the UK for 14 years my return has made me feel a little like Rip Van Winkle waking up and finding some things the same and others very different. Many of the personalities of the 80s and 90s are still with us - a little plumper, a little more grey and certainly with a few more wrinkles, but still with us. Some sadly are not. The final closing of Poulters was sad for me as they were a major player back then but it was good to see that they had saved some money for a final going away party.

I got a letter this week criticising the Government for discouraging people from travelling by air in order to protect the environment - that was never an issue 14 years ago. Mind you neither did it cost over £300 to travel first class on British Rail from Manchester to London, but then again the breakfast has definitely not changed. The good news is that now Virgin are actually giving you something extra for your first class fare - a complimentary copy of Crain’s Manchester Business. And I can vouch for that, having stood on platforms 7 and 8 personally hand delivering them to all first class passengers travelling to Euston. Now that is added value.

McCann Erickson in Manchester (I know it is really in Prestbury but until Prestbury F.C get into the Premier League I will say they are in Manchester) announced this week their new business to business division. Obviously as publisher of the only strictly weekly business newspaper in Western Europe I was thrilled to hear this news. McCanns have no doubt realised the potential that exists in getting your message over to the lucrative b to b market. They already handle big business advertisers in UPS, Brother and Business Link and are looking to significantly increase that portfolio by attracting more big advertisers who want to sell to small and middle sized companies.

At a time when paid for circulations are falling dramatically, the targeted business media is becoming more and more attractive. Advertisers want to make sure that every penny spent is reaching a potential prospect. I think McCanns have made a smart move, I just hope they don’t spoil it by treating b to b business like b to c. There is a lot more to it than cost per thousand.

A north west media website this month published its ‘Power 100’, highlighting the individuals' influence over the economical, political and cultural life in the region. How sad they only saw fit to include one woman and one ethic minority in the top 75.

This week has also seen the start of the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Authority’s efforts to convince us that paying an extra £1200 a year is going to help us grow our businesses through congestion charging. They are spending over £800,000 in marketing and advertising which in my calculations would pay for 666.6666 people to commute free in a year. That’s scary.

Arthur Porter

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