OgilvyOne Worldwide, one of the world's most experienced and highly-awarded one-to-one marketing networks, welcomes Marcus Evans as Regional Director for the MENA region. Marcus has been brought on board to add his strategic CRM and Digital experience to the international team at OgilvyOne MENA. 12 years ago Marcus created the Ogilvy Loyalty Centre. Prior to this, Marcus was president of Proximity Canada, Chairman of Carlson Marketing Group UK, as well as a Worldwide Chairman of Bates Group’s Direct Marketing and Digital businesses. This new role sees Marcus’ return to the Ogilvy family. Marcus is a regular speaker on the conference circuit and was a guest lecturer on the MBA course at both London and Ashridge business schools. He co-wrote and presented an annual CRM Master class at the Institute of Direct Marketing both at their headquarters in the UK and on their diploma course in Europe, the US, Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand and Thailand. 

In Addition to Marcus, OgilvyOne Worldwide has also had Jon Haywood join the team as Business Director for OgilvyOne UAE. Jon will be responsible for building the team and offering a breadth of Direct/CRM and Interactive solutions for OgilvyOne clients. Before joining OgilvyOne, Jon was the Technology Adoption Planning Director at Publicis London. Prior to Publicis, Jon worked within many well-known organizations including: Banner Corporation (WPP), Strategic Interactive Group and Digitas. Jon has an immense passion for photography (a secret creative outlet) and he’s currently working on the development of his first photographic publication (and exhibition) which will be based on initial interpretations of his move to Dubai (“A Brave New World’). Jon is also a member of the European User Experience Association, the British and European Human Computer Interaction Association and the Royal Society of Chemistry. He is also working towards developing a similar organization of User Experience in Dubai.

Finally, OgilvyAction, the global activation services company of the Ogilvy Group, has welcomed Claus Adams as Regional Director for the MENA region. Claus has been with Ogilvy since 2002, where he joined as a Client Services Director in OgilvyActivation Germany and was later promoted to Managing Director in 2003. His current role will be to set up OgilvyAction in the Region. Prior to this, Claus started his career in a Full Service Agency in Germany working across a range of FMCG clients after which he joined BBDO Düsseldorf and McCann-Erickson Frankfurt where he set up their Brand Activation Business.

The Memac Ogilvy Group in Dubai launched a new company in the Middle East, called OgilvyAction.

The launch is significant for businesses because OgilvyAction will be the first company in the Region that specializes in the 'The Last Mile™' or the path along the decision to purchase.

With studies showing that anywhere between 40 - 70 percent of purchase decisions are made in the store, OgilvyAction enables marketers to cut through the clutter and reach consumers at key moments of truth, ultimately to influence their actions at the point of purchase.

OgilvyAction will help drive sales and brand equity in what they call 'The Last Mile™ - the distance a consumer travels between an attitude and an action'. They develop communications which ensures that their clients' brands are the ones chosen by shoppers, whether the purchase decision takes place in the street, at events, online or in-store.

The company's brand activation ideas and practices already have achieved outstanding success for major businesses around the world. Now, OgilvyAction is coming to the GCC for the first time, starting with Dubai, UAE.

With an escalating GDP of $600bn in 2006 and a population of 34 million, the GCC stands as the world's 17th largest economy*. As the economy booms, so does the level of sophistication in retail environments, with the Gross Leasable Area (GLA) expected to exceed 130 million square feet by 2010*. Given this rapid growth, OgilvyAction believes that today, marketers are coping with the transition from low-end grocer to high-tech, one-stop shops with a consequent shift in buying habits and overall consumer behaviour.

Whilst some changes are a global phenomenon, others are uniquely local. For example, with the development of high-end shopping malls in all major parts of Middle Eastern cities, a regional trend of 'mall shopping' has become a part of the consumers' lifestyle. The dominance of mall shopping has led to more experiential communications to reach potential buyers. It is also the reason why, in this market, the point of purchase experience is so key in converting shoppers to buyers.

Mr. Moutran founder and CEO of Memac Ogilvy states, 'We have brought OgilvyAction to the Middle East because we see a big need for these specialized 'Last MileTM' services and experts in consumer behaviour and activation. The growth potential for such services is so extensive that we expect to grow from 8 employees in the UAE to 20 employees by April 2008 and across 10 markets in the next 3 years. OgilvyAction is a proven expert on driving sales and building brand equity by favorably influencing consumer purchasing patterns. It is all about the 'big' brand idea that is communicated to consumers at various touch-points to steer consumer behavior along the path to purchase. Whether it's sampling, point-of-sale material, retail merchandising or experiential marketing.'

Steve Harding, CEO, EMEA, OgilvyAction added, 'OgilvyAction begins the process by analyzing the relationship between the brand, the shopper and the retailer. Then we develop insights using our proprietary planning tools such as MarketAnalytics and ShopperAnalytics. These tools enable the measurement of not only the impact of messaging i.e. clarity, quality, distribution and trade compliance of in-store communication, but also allow the importance of the various touch-points along the final path to purchase. These insights provide invaluable information on the impact of the brand's messaging during The Last Mile™.'

Richard Woodward, Business Director, OgilvyAction concluded, 'MarketAnalytics and ShopperAnalytics, both allow reporting at a summary level, various segments (channel, region, retail group, salesman or distributor territory) all the way down to the individual outlet, giving brands both visibility and insights on what is really happening at the point of purchase.'