While TV came out on top with over one in three nominations, newspapers lagged far behind with around one in 10 votes. "Being in a dominant position, they're not so receptive to change," said Jamie Lord, MindShare's Asia-Pacific marketing and business development director. "That is something to be looked at."
Magazines ranked second in the survey, which was conducted internally by WPP among more than 500 media buyers, planners and communications specialists in Asia, gaining almost twice as many votes as newspapers. "Magazines have to work harder, because they have a lower reach and a harder sell," Lord said.
When asked to name the three most important attributes of a good media rep, over 60 per cent selected responsiveness, while over half cited an understanding of client business and brands. The biggest challenge facing sales teams was seen as a lack of research to help them present their case, cited by almost 30 per cent of the survey, while around a quarter said media owners should offer their reps more training.
"We commissioned this survey among our agencies with a view to help them strengthen the relationships we have with all our vendors," said Mark Patterson, North Asia chief executive officer of GroupM, WPP's media resource.
"We plan to make detailed findings available to all key stakeholders."
