Batey drops clients and retools agency

<p>SINGAPORE: Batey Ads has resigned all its accounts except for five </p><p>so it can focus on core competencies and work on major clients it said </p><p>are committed to building brand equity. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The agency will stop working on 10 accounts, which include the Raffles </p><p>Hotel, Four Seasons Hotel and the Singapore Zoo. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>It will retain the Singapore Airlines, Singapore Tourism Board, the OCBC </p><p>banking group, telecommunications company StarHub and Mercedez-Benz </p><p>businesses. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The agency wants to move beyond just advertising and do the sort of work </p><p>it already does for its long-standing client Singapore Airlines - from </p><p>brand strategy development to brand communication management. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"This is of most value to clients who have a long-term commitment to </p><p>building brand equity and want to fulfill that commitment by investing </p><p>significantly in the brand," said Robert Kay, joint chief executive </p><p>officer of Batey Ads. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"The nature of the business is changing faster than most (advertising) </p><p>people appreciate - you can't make progress if you're stuck in the </p><p>past," Kay said. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"We're putting a stake in the ground and saying this is what we stand </p><p>for, this is what we're good at." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>He said it was a hard decision to make because it meant parting company </p><p>with 10 clients. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"These clients did not require the more comprehensive service we provide </p><p>or the associated costs." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The agency discovered work from its smaller clients was insufficient to </p><p>keep some account management and creative teams actively employed. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The advertisers who were dropped tended to run tactical rather than the </p><p>long-term brand campaigns that Batey wants to work on. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"We'd like to work for smaller clients at the high value end (brand </p><p>consultancy, strategy development and so on) but we found ourselves </p><p>dealing in the (creative) execution," explained Nick Marrett, joint </p><p>chief executive of Batey Ads. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Marrett said Singapore had plenty of creative hot shops capable of doing </p><p>the sort of work which the clients Batey had dropped were in the market </p><p>for. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Resigning the accounts and re-engineering the business has resulted in </p><p>Batey retrenching 11 per cent of its head count. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Kay declined to disclose the actual number of people laid off although </p><p>industry estimates range between 13 to 20 staff. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The response from clients has generally been positive, with the retained </p><p>clients claiming the move demonstrated Batey's commitment to their </p><p>business. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Clarence Pong, Singapore Airlines worldwide advertising and promotions </p><p>manager, said: "It is reassuring to know of the enhanced commitment this </p><p>move will bring to our already long-standing relationship with </p><p>Batey." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Clients no longer with Batey were unwilling to comment publicly except </p><p>to say that the parting of ways was amicable. </p><p><BR><BR> </p>