IN an attempt to combat competition and make advertising more directed, BSB Hongkong has joined the growing number of advertising agencies investing in a strategic planning department.
The agency appointed a strategic planning head, Mr Charles Wigley from Bartle Bogle Hegarty in London, at the end of last year. He joined planning heads Mr Dharen Chadha at J Walter Thompson (JWT), Mr Howard Wang at Bozell and Ms Catherine Ling at DDB Needham.
Strategic planning was pioneered by London agency Boase Massimi Pollitt over 20 years ago.
It was adapted by JWT, which was, along with Bozell, one of the first agencies to bring the concept to Hongkong.
Strategic planning's function is to initiate an advertising strategy by taking the advertising's problems and looking at them from a consumer perspective. This is done via research and other information which is collected, analysed and interpreted in order to set the advertising strategy, its targets, role and what response it should initiate from consumers.
''Planners are the bridge between what account managers think and what creative directors think,'' said Mr Chadha.