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Sunday, April 1, 2007
The Phenomenon
OMD IS IN THE MIDST of change. Right now, the print investment group’s role on most accounts is that of a negotiator. But, says Barbara Borg, "On some accounts, we get to plan and select titles. That’s the way it will be in the near future on all business."
Borg, who is director of eastern print investment at OMD, says the print group is indeed seeing a shift in ad-spend focus, and the mixes are changing all over the map, with some migrating online, some buying TV and online, and some taking the leap into emerging media. She also says OMD and its clients are "using magazines differently, and on some businesses are only doing major partnerships, not just run-of-book business any more. On others, we are still very much in a run-of-book mode, and it works well for them, which is wonderful news. I wish we had more of those, believe me."
Her career for a long time was, in one form or another, at Saatchi in planning. She headed to OMD’s eastern print investment group three years ago. "In the beginning it was an adjustment, but I truly enjoy working with our magazine partners." Her client list includes GE, Absolut, Visa, Pepsi, FedEx, Lowe’s Home Improvement, Armstrong Flooring and Bank of America, to name a few.
James T. Carr, publisher of Family Circle, has known Borg for many years and believes in her passion for accomplishing her clients’ goals and objectives through the print medium. " The thing about Barbara that resonates most with me is how, today, she is still as passionate about print and doing what’s right for her clients as she was when I first met her," Carr says. "She is always challenging us on the publishing side to think bigger and better. You truly want to work hard for Barbara. She is strategic; she is fair and always trying new approaches to better the results for her clients."
Borg says there is a need for "more innovative ways to use magazines. Clients expect help in understanding what the return on investment is. With TV, they put a spot on the air and see a spike in business; with the Internet they can count click-throughs. You don’t have that in magazines." Developing ways to demonstrate that ROI would help keep money in print, she says.
In the partnership between agency and publisher, both sides must see a return. When that happens, Borg says, " at gets me excited about a program. I want ways to grow clients’ business, to prove the magazine industry is far from dead." Borg doesn’t want publishers to come to her with proposals that will merely increase their pages. "We need to think of our clients’ business. It has to be a win for both parties, a program that encourages growth or visibility or goes beyond an exposure."
In addition, her wishlist includes: "I would like to see clean circulation," she says. Down the road, she believes the survivors will be those that offer fully integrated packages. And that means integrated operations at ad agencies, too. "Right now, when we get integrated packages as part of the proposal process, we pull in experts in digital or out-of-home... it would be ideal if that lived under one group," Borg says.
Tough But Fair
BARBARA BORG HAS A REPUTATION. And that’s a good thing for magazine brands.
Jack Hanrahan, U.S. director of strategic print communications for OMD, says, "Barbara Borg was one of the best hires I ever made. As a human being she’s a phenomenon, a hard-working person – she’s just the best. And such a good manager, it’s amazing. She’s tough. She knows what she wants and is good at getting it, but she also has great style. She’s very classy, not a prima dona; she’s very down-to-earth.
While Borg doesn’t pull any punches, she is known far and wide for her fairness, honesty and hard work. Vicki Wellington, associate publisher of Domino, notes: "Barbara works around the clock searching for smart and unique ideas for her clients. She is always available for a good (or bad) idea, is fair, honorable, smart and strategic in her efforts. Barbara is a wonderful champion of print for a great variety of accounts and an amazing manager."
Borg says fairness and honesty have been the secrets of her success, along with doing whatever it takes to get the job done. "Whatever it takes, we will service our clients in an honest, fair way, whether it’s my clients or the people who work with me. I have a complete open-door policy with clients and my group. That’s the way I enjoy working."
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- Top Integrated Marketer: Yung Moon, Executive Director of Creative Services at SELF Magazine — October 1, 2007
- Total Integrated Program: ESPN, ESPN The Magazine's Next 2007 — October 1, 2007
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