E-mail marketing grows up
It's time we ensure that we give our customers a relevant and appealing experience that rewards them for engaging with us in the first place. Through behavioral targeting, we provide our customers with the means to steer their relationships with us. By focusing and enriching the information we provide them, we can ensure that the conversation we foster will prove to establish a mutually beneficial relationship.

ZIMBABWE

Zimbabwe braces for battle of the political brands
[Dumisani Ndlela] Radical change is needed in Zimbabwe if the economy is to recover, retail and manufacturing get back on track, and hyperinflation be eliminated.

Bank home-owner scheme approved in Malawi
[Gregory Gondwe] The Standard Bank of Malawi has introduced a Home Loan Scheme that the Malawi government has applauded as a facility that will ease housing accommodation demand in Malawi.

Time factor inhibits innovation
New US research reveals that 'lack of time' is a key inhibitor to branding and packaging innovation for consumer goods companies.

AFRICA

Malawian business journalists visit South Africa
[Gregory Gondwe] National Bank of Malawi took 12 business journalists on a two-day tour to South Africa between February 19 and February 20 this year.

Varsities, colleges turn to CRM
CRM solutions are on brink of widespread adoption across the higher education market.

UGANDA

UB40 to rock Kampala; UB there
[Walter Wafula] Celebrated British-based band UB40 will set Kampala on fire this Saturday. Preparations for one of the ‘80s most popular bands are in high gear in the capital where the reggae idols are due to perform for Ugandan fans.

Spotlight on SADC's emerging artists
[Michael Appel] The Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) on Thursday evening launched the Soul of Africa Art Exhibition, thus creating a platform for artists to exhibit their works.

Ridwaan Bawa takes on Men's Health
Ridwaan Bawa is the new editor of Men's Health magazine, Touchline Media announced yesterday afternoon, Wednesday, 20 February 2008. Bawa replaces Andy Ellis, who recently resigned from his post to form independent creative agency TypeFace Media together with Piers Buckle, who also quit as editor of Men's Health Living.

SOUTH AFRICA

Sign up for global newsroom survey
The World Editors Forum, Reuters and Zogby International began collecting data for the second annual Newsroom Barometer, a global survey of chief editors about their attitudes and strategies in the multimedia age, earlier this week. Senior editors are invited to participate in the online survey.

SOUTH AFRICA

Call to enter cross-media advertising competition
DARMSTADT, GERMANY: This year will see the IFRA XMA Cross Media Awards for newspaper publishing houses presented for the third time – with the project topic “Cross-media Advertising”. The final date for interested publishing houses to register is 30 June 2008.

New media continues to grow in influence to purchase
A US survey shows that new media is further fragmenting the influence of traditional media, even more among minorities in the US.

Fleishman-Hillard boosts African footprint
Fleishman-Hillard International Communications has extended its reach in Africa with an affiliation with Tell-Em Public Relations in Kenya. In addition to the company's offices in Cape Town and Johannesburg, this adds to its' affiliate relationships with Quadrant Company in Lagos and TRACCS in North Africa.

Zimbabwe inflation soars past 100,000%
Zimbabwe's annual inflation rate has soared to over 100,000%, according to official figures released on Wednesday, 20 February.

Affluent African Americans represent 45% of AA buying power
According to a recent Packaged Facts study, reported by Marketing Charts, African Americans are crucial to the consumer economy, with a population of 39 million and buying power of $892 billion, and expected to exceed $1.1 trillion in 2012. This represents a cumulative growth of 28.4% during the forecast period.

Bank's profits rocket
[Walter Wafula] Crane Bank, one of Uganda's most solid indigenous financial institutions, has grossed UGX18.7bn, up by 50.5% (UGX6.3bn), from UGX12.5bn earned in the financial year 2006, according to its latest financial results.