Setting great store by it

Andrew Walmsley on Digital, page 13

DSGi hands group position to O'Keefe

By Joe Thomas

PC World marketing director Niall O'Keefe has been promoted to oversee all marketing for the DSGi group following the departure of Anna Burleigh, marketing director ol Currys and Dixons.co.uk. O'Keefe, who becomes marketing director of DSGi, joined PC World as marketing director in June 2007 from Orange, where he was vice-president of global brand. Burleigh, who was responsible for repositioning the Currys brand and rolling out a fresh brand identity, left the

O'Keefe moves from marketing airector roie ai PL World

company last month without a job to go to. She joined DSGi in 2003 and spent three years as brand director before being promoted to her most recent

role in September 2006. Previously, she had worked at Argos as brand controller. Burleigh's exit comes just weeks after she oversaw an

overhaul of the Currys brand, which involved giving its advertising a more humorous approach (Mariceting, 24 June). It also included the sponsorship of The Simpsons on Skyl and the introduction of the strapline 'We can help', backed by a focus on the retailer's service proposition. Currys' advertising is handled by M&C Saatchi. A spate of recent strategic changes at DSGi are believed to be in preparation for the UK arrival of US electronics retailer Best Buy. Earlier this month Best Buy hired ex-Kingfisher managing director Kevin Styles as its UK marketingdirector.

Almond takes up global role

Diageo UK marketingdirector Philip Almond is to become global brand director for the company's Baileys liqueur. Based in Dublin, Almond will join the global marketing leadership team. He takes over on 15 September from Sharon Keith, who became global brand director of Baileys in November 2006. She is leaving the company to return to South Africa. Almond'ssuccessor will be announced later in theyear. Almond has been instrumental in driving the category marketing agenda for Diageo via initiatives such as'raise your spirits'. He has also handled its responsible drinking programmeandbeencentraltothe development of the creative for the industry-wide Campaign for Smarter Drinking.

Visit London lines up I Love NY partnership

By Alex Brownsell

Visit London is to tie-up with its corresponding body in New York to help arrest a decline in visitornumbersfromtheUS. The capital's tourism agency is in talks with ! Love NY about several collaborative projects. including the provision ol media space. I Love NY owns a portfolio of outdoor media sites in the city to which Visit London will have access. In return, Visit London will negotiate special deals on behalf of I Love NY across Transport for London's network of advertising sites. The US is traditionally one of London's strongest markets with a tenth of the capital's visitors arriving from North America. However, in the first quarter of 2009, visitor numbers from the US fell by 10% year on year. Earlier this year, the tourism agency rolled out its ongoing 'Only in London' campaign in North America, focusing on the capital's unique experiences, sights and attractions.

GoComparexom strategic shift

GoCompare in 'opera' push

GoGompare.com is launching its first multimillion-pound brand campaign as it looks to reclaim market share from Gomparethemarket.com, The TV ads break lonight (Wednesday). They will introduce an opera-singing brand character called G io Gompario, the creation of veteran husband-and-wife advertising team Ghris Wilkins and Sian Vickers, who were behind the Sheilas'Wheels campaign. In the first ad Gio is shown singing in a coffee shop to the tune of the George M Cohan classic Over There, but using the words'GoCompare'. GoGompare.com has previously run ads highlighting its star-rating feature. The shift follows Gomparethemarket's risein market shareon the back of its'meerkat'campaign. Profile, page 20

LONDON $ 5 9 9 -/LIGHTS AND 3 NIGHTS HOTEL

BRITISH A|RWAS'

Visit London keen to attract more visitors from the US, traditionally one of its strongest markets

Separately, the Mayor of London's office is holding a pitch to find a range of agencies to carry out a rebrand of the capital ahead of the 2012 Olympic Games. Agencies will be expected to ensure that local residents are happy with any future brand

identity. The process, which will cost an estimated 600,000, is being managed by Dan Ritterband, the Mayor's director ofmarketing. The fresh London branding is expected to be rolled out next year. Promotional bodies such as Visit London, Film

London and Think London will also be rebranded in line with the overhaul. Visit London launched its latest visual identity, designed by brand consultancy Wolff Olins, in July 2008, backed by the strapline 'See the world. Visit London'.

marketingmaQazine.co.uk

19 August 2009 Marketing 3