The ICA/Canada Post survey of marketing budgets, conducted by NTC Research and based on information provided by a panel of 270 senior marketing executives in Canadian companies, showed that current marketing budgets were revised up in the final quarter of last year, ending 2006 on a strong note. Further robust growth is signalled for the coming year, with budgets boosted by healthy profits and business expansion plans.

The upward revision to current marketing budgets in Q4 was the second-strongest seen over the past two-and-a-half years (22% of companies reported upward revisions while just 9% reported downward revisions). All categories of marketing spend monitored by the survey were revised up, with main media advertising and Internet seeing the largest gains. The latest increase in budgets suggests that 2006-07 accounting year will have seen the strongest marketing spend growth recorded since the survey began in 2003.

Meanwhile, provisional data on new budget setting for the 2007-08 accounting year (based on responses from around 75% of the survey panel) indicate that marketing budgets have been set higher than 2006-07. Half of all companies have reported an increase in spend compared to just 17% reporting a decrease. However, although up on the initial budget setting seen for 2004 and 2005, the rate of growth indicated is less buoyant than last year. Growth in 2007 is set to be led by the ‘all other’ marketing category, reflecting strong Internet and e-commerce growth.

“Marketing executives reported a further boost to current budgets in the final quarter of last year, citing good sales and profits – as well as strong competition – as factors driving the increase,” says Jani Yates, Acting President of the ICA. “The data therefore suggest that business conditions and economic growth remained solid in Q4. Looking ahead, the strength of the budget increases signalled for 2007 suggests that companies are clearly optimistic about the coming year and have the finances to support this confidence with a further increase in marketing spend.”

Main media advertising – good end to 2006, but growth may weaken in 2007
Current media advertising budgets were revised up substantially in Q4, seeing the second-largest revision since the survey began three-and-a-half years ago. Furthermore, for the second consecutive quarter, and only the second time in the entire survey history, the improvement to media budgets was the largest of all main marketing categories. Growth is set to slow in 2007, however, with provisional budget setting for the year being the weakest since 2004 and the lowest of all marketing categories.

Direct marketing – further boost to budgets in Q4, but growth may slow in 2007
Current direct marketing budgets were revised up in Q4 rounding off a good year for direct marketing which, over the course of 2006 as a whole, saw higher upward revisions on average than any other category with the sole exception of Internet marketing. Provisional data on the setting of new budgets for 2007-08 point to a further increase in direct marketing spend, but the resulting increase signalled is the weakest recorded in the three-and-a-half-year history of the survey.

“The need for greater measurement and campaign ROI has accelerated the growth in the direct marketing category,” said Laurene Cihosky, SVP of Canada Post’s Direct Marketing, Advertising, and Publishing line of business of Canada Post. “The demand from our business partners to leverage our expertise in developing strategic direct marketing programs and products clearly indicates that there will be a continued focus on customer segmentation and data modelling to derive more value of the marketing budget and ultimately, the existing customer.”

Sales promotions – below par growth in 2006
Sales promotions budgets saw the weakest rise of all marketing categories covered by the survey in Q4 (albeit by only a small margin), suggesting a slightly below par performance and loss of share. Faster growth is signalled for 2007, however, with the rate of growth set to exceed that of both main media advertising and direct marketing (according to provisional new budget setting data).

‘All other’ marketing – set for solid growth in 2007 after weak 2006
‘All other’ marketing enjoyed the second-strongest upward revision seen over the past two-and-a-half years in Q4, but looks set to have under-performed compared to the competing main marketing categories over last year as a whole. Given that this category includes fast-growing Internet activities, other constituents – such as sponsorship, PR and corporate communications – are likely to have seen disappointing growth last year. But this is set to change next year, as data on initial annual budget setting for 2007-08 indicate that ‘all other’ marketing is set to enjoy the fastest growth of all main survey categories.

Internet marketing continued to be revised up in Q4, as has been the case throughout the survey’s three-and-a-half year history, but the extent of the rise was the weakest seen over the past year-and-a-half. The rate of growth nevertheless still far outstripped that of all other categories of marketing, suggesting that the Internet continued to acquire an increased share of total marketing spend (estimated at 5%).

NOTES
The ICA/Canada Post Survey of Marketing Budgets is researched and published by NTC Research on behalf of the Institute of Communications and Advertising and Canada Post. The report features original data drawn from a panel of Canadian marketing professionals and provides a key indicator of the health of the economy. The survey panel has been carefully selected to represent all key business sectors, drawn primarily from the nation's top 1000 companies.
Data for the survey were first collected in Q3 2003. The survey uses the same methodology as NTC’s UK survey of marketing budgets, known as the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising Bellwether Report, which has become widely-watched as an accurate advance indicator of UK marketing and advertising trends. For more details of this report please visit www.warc.com\bellwether.

The Institute of Communications and Advertising (www.ica-ad.com), founded in 1905, represents Canada's communications and advertising agencies. ICA's member agencies and subsidiaries account for over 90% of all national advertising in Canada. ICA promotes higher standards and best practices, and serves as the largest source of information, advice and training for Canada's communication and advertising industry, whose economic impact is worth $14.5 billion annually.

The Canada Post Group, a Canadian crown corporation (Canada Post, and its subsidiaries and joint ventures: Purolator Courier, Progistix-Solutions, epost, Intelcom and Innovapost) has strong market presence and generates $6.9 billion in revenues annually. Through a network of 7000 outlets, Canada Post services over 14 million destinations across Canada and is recognized as one of Canada’s top 10 brands – one that Canadians trust. Canada Post’s direct marketing division provides Canadian marketers with simple and smart solutions to ensure the success of campaign ROI. Through expert marketing services and a suite of targeting tools and such as Geopost™ Plus, Smartmoves™, and The lookbook™ catalogue, Canada Post enables marketers identify high value prospects and convert them into profitable customers. For more information on Canada Post’s direct marketing services, visit www.canadapost.ca

NTC Research (www.ntc-research.com) is a division of NTC Economics Ltd, one of the world’s largest providers of international economic indicators to financial institutions. With its unique blend of skills in market research, economics and statistics, NTC Research specialises in business surveys, including its highly-regarded Purchasing Managers’ Indexes. Some 36 surveys are currently conducted across eighteen countries. The surveys are closely watched by central banks around the world, as well as economic analysts and the financial markets. NTC is the sister company of the World Advertising Research Center (www.warc.com), the largest single source of online intelligence for the marketing, advertising, media and research communities worldwide.

FUTURE RELEASES
The ICA/Canada Post Survey of Marketing Budgets is published quarterly (January, April, July, October editions). Subscriptions to the survey can be purchased from www.warc.com/ica. Two levels of service are available: (1) Standard report (PDF): $495 per annum; (2) Data service, which includes spreadsheets of historical data and PDF reports: $595 per annum. For subscriptions, please contact Charlotte Shand, Tel: +44 1491 418 700 email: charlotte.shand@warc.com.
To be added to the press release distribution list please contact: Joanne Ingrassia, The Kenilworth House, at (416) 693 9462 or thekenilworthhouse@sympatico.ca.

(TORONTO: January 12, 2007) – From enhancing management skills and performance to inspiring creative leadership and perfecting pitching and presentation skills, ICA has just launched Nourishment for the Whole Brain, a series of workshops. These practical, skill-enhancing workshops key in on critical areas of performance required by today’s marketing communications professionals.

One of ICA’s key roles is to promote innovation and advancement through professional development programs. ICA is well-known for its CAAP accreditation program (Canadian Advertising Accredited Professional), the industry recognized Gold Standard for elevating communications and branding skills. CAAP helps participants build innovative communication solutions and enhances the value of the contribution they make to their businesses.

The Nourishment for the Whole Brain workshops include:

High Performance Account Management (2-day workshop) Feb 26-27, 2007 - This is an advanced workshop, recommended for experienced Account Supervisors and Directors. It offers senior managers an accelerated approach to cementing client relationships and building account performance.

Superheroes of Account Management (2-day workshop) March 26-27, 2007 - This workshop is recommended for Account Supervisors with some initial experience in the role. Essential account management skills are developed in this workshop addressing relationships, business context and personal performance.

Creative Leadership (1-day workshop) March 23, 2007 – This workshop is designed for all senior agency team members (inter-disciplinary). The course focuses on six key aspects of leading and inspiring great creative results and builds both the thinking and then the actions inherent to engaging creative leadership.

The Art of the Pitch (1-day workshop) March 30, 2007 - In today’s market, having great ideas is only half the battle. Being able to sell them is the true secret to success. This interactive workshop addresses the unique challenges faced by both Creative and Account Team members in pitch and presentation scenarios.

Presenting with Power (2-day workshop) April 19-20, 2007 - This is the one presentation workshop that every Account Manager should take. Enhance presentation impact and reduce the up-front preparation time needed for key meetings and reviews. Learn to leverage unique strengths and build a personal presentation style.

Writing that Sells (1½-day workshop) April 23-24, 2007 - Provides a practical approach to creating powerful business writing that sells. Learn how to write persuasive briefs and recommendations that motivate the reader to take action.

Fundamentals of Advertising in Action (12-evening workshop) February 21 – May 9, 2007 - Designed for people who want to enhance their knowledge of the industry and learn more about how the communications process works. Explore the principles of branding, communications strategy, research and media planning and learn about creative production processes.

An election of Officers of ICA is slated for December 11, 2006.

“It is an exciting and interesting time for the Advertising & Communications industry in Canada and a new era for the ICA,” says Marchand. “We have a new mandate for our members to execute, a new CEO to find to fill the gigantic shoes of Rupert Brendon, and a new resolve to demonstrate the important contribution agencies are making to their clients’ businesses. I’m thrilled to be working with the talented ICA board and staff over the next year as Chair.”

Marchand has distinguished himself in the Canadian marketing and advertising community as a champion of great advertising and an ardent believer in the power of creative communications to build business. He has been closely involved in breakthrough business building, marketing campaigns as both a client and ad agency executive.

Before moving to Cossette, Marchand spent more than three years as President and CEO of the creatively-renowned ad agency Lowe Roche, which amongst other things successfully launched Virgin Mobile and helped get David Miller elected Mayor of Toronto.

Before that Mr. Marchand was Vice-President of Marketing at Molson Breweries in Canada and led the marketing team that developed the signature “I Am Canadian” campaign and the groundbreaking commercial “The Rant”, voted one of Canada’s top 10 ads of all time.

Marchand’s connection to leading brands and world-class marketing communications involves some of the top names in the packaged goods industry where he worked in Brand Marketing at Campbell Soup Company U.S. and Procter and Gamble.

Marchand is also an avid supporter of Not-For-Profit organizations including Habitat for Humanity where he sits on the National Marketing Committee and President’s Council. Marchand currently holds a seat on the Advertising Standards Council Board (ASC).

ICA welcomes new and continuing board members:

Board of Directors 2006/2007 (* - new)

• BBDO, Domenic Caruso
• Bos, Claude Carrier
• Cossette Communication Group, Brett Marchand
• Colour, Chris Keevill
• *Cundari Group, Garry Lee
• DDB Canada, David Leonard
• DRAFT FCB Group – Canada, Peter Shier
• Genesis Media, Bruce Claassen
• GJP Advertising, Peter Jeffery
• *Hendrick & Associates, Gary Hendrick
• john st, Arthur Fleischmann
• JWT Canada, Martin Shewchuk
• Leo Burnett, David Moore
• Marshall Fenn, Jim Kabrajee
• *PHD Canada, Fred Forster
• RED Communications, Monique Fikar
• *Ryan Partnership Canada, Amey Harding
• TAXI, Rob Guenette
• TBWA\Toronto, Philip George
• Wasserman & Partners, Doug Conn
• zig, Andy Macaulay

ICA would also like to thank the following for their commitment and contributions to ICA’s Board of Directors as they step down, having completed their term on the Board:

• Bensimon Byrne, Jack Bensimon
• JWT Canada, Tony Pigott
• Marketel, Jacques Duval
• Zoum Armada Inc., Jacques Chalifour

Note: There will be an election of officers on December 11th.

The Institute of Communications and Advertising (www.ica-ad.com), founded in 1905, represents Canada's communications and advertising agencies. ICA's member agencies and subsidiaries account for over 80% of all national advertising in Canada. ICA promotes higher standards and best practices, and serves as the largest source of information, advice and training for Canada's communication and advertising industry, whose economic impact is worth $14.5 billion annually. Each year, ICA member agencies also donate millions of dollars in pro bono work to help support over 100 local, regional and national charities and non-profit organizations.

ICA develops initiatives, programs and best practice guidelines to help build better ICA agencies and so improve their real and perceived value to clients. This includes the quarterly ICA / Canada Post Survey of Marketing Budgets, Agency Search, Canadian Marketing Pocket Book, Client/Agency Opinion Study, Measuring and Valuing Brand Equity, and the CASSIES, the only Canadian advertising awards show that recognizes proven business effectiveness, backed up by rigorous published cases.

Special 10th anniversary awards, the Brendon-Elwood Award for Best Performance for leading advertisers and agencies, were based on the cumulative track record across all ten Cassies events held so far. Honours went to:

Advertisers
Gold - Pfizer
Silver - Labatt
Bronze - Unilever

Agencies
Gold - Bensimon Byrne
Silver - JWT
Bronze - BBDO

The Brendon-Elwood was named for Rupert Brendon, President and CEO of the ICA, and Peter Elwood (former President of Unilever, now retired). In 1993, Rupert Brendon, at that time Chairman, CEO of D'Arcy Masius Benton & Bowles, was the driving force behind creating the CASSIES. Peter Elwood is a former Chair of Judges, and has been a hands-on supporter of the CASSIES for many years.

CASSIES Co-Chairs in Toronto were Andy Macaulay, President, ZIG and Geoff Craig, VP & GM, Home and Personal Care Canada, UNILEVER. In Montreal, co-chairs were Jacques Chalifour, Chairman, Zoum Armada and Tony Mougios, Director of Marketing, Michelin North America (BF Goodrich). Emcee in Toronto was CBC’s news anchor Sarika Sehgal.

CASSIES Chair of Judging was Stephen Graham, Executive Vice President, Corporate Marketing & Convergence Officer, Rogers Communications Inc. Graham led a 15-person panel of high profile senior-level judges representing advertisers, account management, creative, media, account planning, research, direct marketing, public relations, and academia. The Judging Panel was:

Lynn Anderson, VP, Marketing and Alliances, Hewlett-Packard (Canada) Co.
Sabina Bastian, VP, Strategic Planning & Account Group, TAM-TAM\TBWA
Ron Beasley, President, ABM
Suzanne Bourret, VP, Strategic Planning, Saint-Jacques Vallée Young & Rubicam
Richard Burjaw, VP, Beverages, Pepsi-QTG
Doug Checkeris, President and CEO, The Media Company
Michael Clancy, Principal, Director of Creative & Strategic Planning, Brandworks Int’l Inc.
Frédérique Delagrave, Brand Solutions Manager, Labatt
Alain Desormiers, President, Touché! Media Marketing
Robert Duhamel, Associate Director, Product Management and Sales Support, Sympatico/MSN
Heather Fraser, Director, Designworks & the Design Initiative, Centre for Integrative Thinking, Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto
Dominic Loporcaro, Marketing & Communications Consultant
François Poulin, Partner, 2B
Andrea Southcott, President, TBWA\VANCOUVER
Trish Wheaton, President, Wunderman

The CASSIES Benchmarking Committee, introduced last year to the judging process to ensure all entries met necessary criteria before being passed on the Judging Panel, consisted this year of CASSIES editor David Rutherford, ICA President and CEO Rupert Brendon, former Thomas J. Lipton and Unilever President Peter Elwood, and past Chairs of Judging - John St. President and CEO, Arthur Fleischmann and Taxi Montreal President and Daniel Rabinowicz.

CASSIES is presented by the Institute of Communications and Advertising (ICA), the Association des agences de Publicité du Québec (AAPQ) and Le Publicité Club de Montréal (PCM).

To win at the CASSIES, cases have to show impressive business results and prove, convincingly, that these results were substantially caused by the advertising.

CASSIES was honoured with key sponsor support as follows:

GOLD: Yellow Pages Group
SILVER: Association of Canadian Advertisers
BRONZE: Marketing Magazine; CHUM

MEDIA SPONSORS: BBM (Research); Canada Post (Direct); Sympatico MSN (Interactive); Pattison Outdoor (Outdoor)

WINNERS CIRCLE SPONSORS: Audit Bureau of Circulations; Promotional Products Association of Canada; Radio Marketing Bureau; and the Television Bureau of Canada.

PRINTING: Transcontinental
PATRON: Adbeast; Bensimon Byrne; Rogers

CASSIES is the only Canadian advertising awards show that recognizes proven business effectiveness, backed up by rigorous published cases. As such, the CASSIES Awards are highly valued by both advertisers and agencies alike. Since its inception in 1993, CASSIES have recognized the business achievements of more than 160 campaigns from Canada’s top advertisers and agencies. All award-winning case studies can be viewed in the Case Library section of the CASSIES web site at www.cassies.ca.

The NABS CareerSite is being launched (www.nabs.org – click on the ‘CareerSite’ button at top of page) and is already starting to fill up with resumes from across the country. The opportunity to post available positions is now being extended to other companies, members of related industry associations and advertisers.

In 2007, NABS is planning to launch a companion French-language CareerSite, as an extension of its' Quebec-based chapter – BEC - Bénévolat d'Entraide aux Communicateurs.

The NABS CareerSite will offer the following features:

• Post jobs and search resumes 24/7
• Direct access to qualified candidates across all industry sectors
• Secure job management tools that allows you to post and edit jobs
• Automatic pre-screening of candidates into “A-lists” and “B-lists”
• A unique resume database
• Search by over 10 different criteria
• 60-day job postings that can be revised or updated at any time

On the CareerSite home page, all employers can click on the “How to Post” pop-up checklist that describes in easy to follow steps how to register and list job opportunities. You can also keep your company name confidential if you choose when posting jobs as well.

Mike Fenton, president & CEO of NABS Canada, said, “The launch of the ‘NABS CareerSite’ is a new initiative to help advertising and media professionals in dealing with personal and career assistance issues. This free, fully automated, online resource comes in response to continued requests to NABS from job seekers, looking for another option in helping them with career and transition challenges.”

For more information, please contact:
Mike Fenton, president & CEO of NABS Canada, at 416.962.0446 or mfenton@nabs.org

Committee members have piloted the code and proceeded to full implementation at their respective agencies and media companies. Usage of the code is voluntary and those agencies not yet using the code are encouraged to start from this point moving forward.

Agencies currently using the code include: Bensimon Byrne, Cossette, Draft FCB, Enterprise, JWT, Leo Burnett, PHD, and Y&R.

Below is an example of a code and what each component means:

CCBB-000-6T30E

CC = the client code in 2 characters
BB = the brand code in 2 characters

000 = the commercial number, starting with 001 allowing for 999 spots in one calendar year

6 = the year, being 2006. By 2010 systems will allow for more characters
T = T for television, C for Television combo, H for High Definition, B for Billboard, R for radio
30 = Length of spot - if commercial is 120 seconds use 2M (for 2 minutes)
E = English, F for French (other language codes also available)

For more in-depth information, please go to www.ica-ad.com.

ICA Traffic Committee Members:

Committee Chair: Edith Boyland, Leo Burnett

ICA Members: Mary Ann Prochazka, Jenny Terakita, PHD; Debbie Ramsingh-Girdmarrie, Janet Baggs, Jean Parks, Enterprise/JWT; Dami Jayawickreme, Elspeth Smith, Ana Miric, Omnicom; Donna Nadeau, Cossette; Stefanie Saganski, Draft FCB; Andrea Tortolo, Lorena Baggio, MBS/TMC; Fay G-Khan, Darlene Martin, Donor Canada; Simon Cuerden, Bensimon Byrne;Jani Yates, ICA

Industry Representation: Mike Darley, CBC: Rhonda Bagnall, TVB; Mari K Herr, Alliance Atlantis; Carm Santangelo, CTV; Ada Belmonte, Sportsnet; Rosanna Pighetti, CHUM; Donna Campbell, Global; Gianna Morlando, CityTV; Mary Dibadj, Insight Sports; Morgen Dittburner, Nadia Virzi, Rogers

For further information, please contact Jani Yates, ICA at 416-482-1396, Ext. 230, jyates@ica-ad.com

BACKGROUNDER
The following is a more detailed explanation for the need of a standard commercial code, from the ICA Traffic Committee:

1. Consistent code from booking, to dubbing, to billing:
BENEFIT: decrease discrepancies with electronic billing where there are a restricted number of characters permitted in the commercial code field and shortened versions don’t match.

2. It is critical for billing purposes that the information in the first 8 characters includes the client, brand and commercial code.
BENEFIT: stations will have invoice matching both electronic and paper and will be more efficient for reconciliation.

3. A standard code format would ensure there aren’t multiple codes for one spot.
BENEFIT: Reduce room for error of running the wrong spot.

4. Combos are bought as a :30 and sent to stations as a split :30 (combo). Currently both ID codes are needed and given a space restriction of 12 characters. Therefore, the codes are being abbreviated.
SOLUTION: TVB and CBC will issue a new approval number that represents the 2 x :15 as a unit. The commercials do not need to be resubmitted, just sent in electronically with the 2 existing approval codes. TVB/CBC will give this priority since it is just a new number required and no approvals. Agencies in turn will give the combo a new number. This will apply for Technical Revisions and Revisions.

In 1993, Rupert Brendon, at that time Chairman, CEO of D'Arcy Masius Benton & Bowles, was the driving force behind creating the CASSIES. Peter Elwood is a former Chair of Judges, and has been a hands-on supporter of the CASSIES for many years.

The award will be based on the cumulative track record across all ten Cassies events. There will be a Gold, Silver and Bronze award for both the leading advertisers and agencies. In alphabetical order, these are the top ten candidates for the honours.

Advertisers

• Familiprix
• Irving
• Kraft
• Labatt
• Molson
• Ontario Gov't
• Pepsi
• Pfizer
• Toyota
• Unilever

Agencies

• Arnold
• BBDO
• Bensimon Byrne
• Bos
• Cossette
• Diesel
• john st
• JWT
• MacLaren McCann
• Taxi

Judging for CASSIES 2006 is complete and a record 39 awards will be handed out this year, including a Grand Prix. CASSIES Co-Chairs in Toronto are Andy Macaulay, President, ZIG and Geoff Craig, VP & GM, Home and Personal Care Canada, UNILEVER. In Montreal, co-chairs are Jacques Chalifour, Chairman, Zoum Armada and Tony Mougios, Director of Marketing, Michelin North America (BF Goodrich).

The CASSIES will be celebrated this year at a luncheon on Thursday, November 16, 2006 at the Westin Harbour Castle Hotel in Toronto and at the Ritz-Carlton in Montreal. Tickets are available by emailing efarge@ica-ad.com or go to the Order Form at www.cassies.ca.

CASSIES is presented by the Institute of Communications and Advertising (ICA), the Association des agences de Publicité du Québec (AAPQ) and Le Publicité Club de Montréal (PCM).

To win at the CASSIES, cases have to show impressive business results and prove, convincingly, that these results were substantially caused by the advertising.

CASSIES is honoured with key sponsor support as follows:

GOLD: Yellow Pages Group
SILVER: Association of Canadian Advertisers
BRONZE: Marketing Magazine; CHUM

MEDIA SPONSORS: BBM (Research); Canada Post (Direct); Sympatico MSN (Interactive); Pattison Outdoor (Outdoor)

WINNERS CIRCLE SPONSORS: Audit Bureau of Circulations; Promotional Products Association of Canada; Radio Marketing Bureau; and the Television Bureau of Canada.

PRINTING: Transcontinental
PATRON: Adbeast; Bensimon Byrne; Rogers

CASSIES is the only Canadian advertising awards show that recognizes proven business effectiveness, backed up by rigorous published cases. As such, the CASSIES Awards are highly valued by both advertisers and agencies alike. Since its inception in 1993, CASSIES have recognized the business achievements of more than 160 campaigns from Canada’s top advertisers and agencies. All award-winning case studies can be viewed in the Case Library section of the CASSIES web site at www.cassies.ca.

The ICA/Canada Post survey of marketing budgets, conducted by NTC Research and based on information provided by a panel of 270 senior marketing executives in Canadian companies, showed that current marketing budgets were revised up in Q3 as companies reported improved business performance, with rising sales and profits feeding through to increased marketing spend. One-in-five companies revised up their annual budgets for the current year while just 12% reported a decline.

The latest upward revision represents a further improvement on already strong initial budget setting for the current year, and follows a survey record upward revision in Q2. The overall increase signalled for the current year therefore looks set to be the strongest recorded since the survey began three years ago.

“Many companies appear to have set their 2006 marketing budgets cautiously at the start of the year, reflecting concerns about future prospects as oil prices hit new highs – and looked set to rise further – and interest rates were being hiked aggressively. With energy prices down from their peaks and the economy holding up well in the face of higher interest rates as the year has proceeded, marketing spend has been raised in Q2 and Q3 to sustain sales growth,” says Rupert Brendon, President & CEO of the ICA. “The survey has a good record of anticipating changes in economic conditions, and the upturn signalled by the latest survey is consistent with robust economic growth, business investment and profits in Q3.”

All categories of marketing spend monitored by the survey were revised up in Q3, although rates of increase varied.

Main media advertising – above-average gain
For the first time in the survey’s history, of the main marketing categories (i.e. excluding the Internet sub-category), main media adspend saw the strongest upward revision to current budgets in Q3, albeit by only a narrow margin. Higher sales and profits, as well as intense competition and new product launches, encouraged increasing numbers of firms to raise their advertising spend. At the same time, reports of budget trimming continued to drop. Just 8% of respondents reported a downward revision to media budgets while 18% reported an upward revision.

Direct marketing – further robust growth
Current direct marketing budgets were revised up in Q3, rising for the fifth successive quarter. The rate of increase signalled was weaker than the survey’s three-year record high seen in Q2 but was above that recorded for total marketing spend and was the second-strongest of all main survey categories.

Upward budget revisions were reported by 15% of companies compared to just 5% reporting a decline. Increases to budgets were commonly driven by greater experimentation with direct marketing, increased sales revenues plus a need to support new product launches.

The upward revision to direct marketing budgets in Q3 points to a further boost to particularly strong initial budget setting at the start of the 2006 financial year, when direct marketing enjoyed the strongest budgeted growth of all main categories of marketing covered by the survey (and also the strongest seen in the three-year history of the survey). These data therefore suggest that direct marketing is set to receive an increased share of total marketing spend in 2006.

Sales promotions – weaker trend evident
Current sales promotions budgets were revised up on average in Q3. Upward revisions were reported by 13% of survey panel member companies compared to just 7% that reported a downward revision. However, at +6.7%, the resulting net balance was the weakest recorded since the survey began three years ago, and represented a marked contrast to the peak seen in Q2.

Furthermore, for the second consecutive quarter (and only the fourth time in the survey’s history), the rate of increase signalled by the upward revision to sales promotions budgets in Q3 was below that seen for total marketing spend. This points to a movement of funds away from sales promotions, towards main media adspend, direct marketing and the Internet.

‘All other’ marketing – sees weakest gain
The ‘all other’ marketing category saw the weakest upward revision of all main survey categories in Q3, with upward revisions reported by 12% of companies and downward revisions noted by 8%. This is despite the inclusion of Internet-related marketing in this category, which continued to follow the trend of above-average growth seen throughout the survey’s history. This therefore suggests that the other constituents of the ‘all other’ category, such as PR, market research, corporate communications and sponsorship, saw especially weak growth in Q3.

Internet marketing - continues to outperform
The Q3 survey showed that Internet marketing continued to show stronger growth than total marketing, as has been the case throughout the survey’s three-year history. Some 22% of companies reported an upward revision to current Internet budgets while only 2% reported a decrease, resulting in a net balance of +20% (against +8% for total marketing).

NOTES
The ICA/Canada Post Survey of Marketing Budgets is researched and published by NTC Research on behalf of the Institute of Communications and Advertising and Canada Post. The report features original data drawn from a panel of Canadian marketing professionals and provides a key indicator of the health of the economy. The survey panel has been carefully selected to represent all key business sectors, drawn primarily from the nation's top 1000 companies.

Data for the survey were first collected in Q3 2003. The survey uses the same methodology as NTC’s UK survey of marketing budgets, known as the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising Bellwether Report, which has become widely-watched as an accurate advance indicator of UK marketing and advertising trends.

The Institute of Communications and Advertising (www.ica-ad.com), founded in 1905, represents Canada's communications and advertising agencies. ICA's member agencies and subsidiaries account for over 90% of all national advertising in Canada. ICA promotes higher standards and best practices, and serves as the largest source of information, advice and training for Canada's communication and advertising industry, whose economic impact is worth $14.5 billion annually.

The Canada Post Group, (www.canadapost.ca) a Canadian crown corporation (Canada Post, and its subsidiaries and joint ventures: Purolator Courier, Progistix-Solutions, epost, Intelcom and Innovapost) has strong market presence and generates $6.9 billion in revenues annually. Through a network of 7000 outlets, Canada Post services over 14 million destinations across Canada and is recognized as one of Canada’s top 10 brands – one that Canadians trust. Canada Post’s direct marketing division provides Canadian marketers with simple and smart solutions to ensure the success of campaign ROI. Through expert marketing services and a suite of targeting tools and such as Geopost™ Plus, Smartmoves™, and The lookbook™ catalogue, Canada Post enables marketers identify high value prospects and convert them into profitable customers. For more information on Canada Post’s direct marketing services, visit www.canadapost.ca

NTC Research (www.ntc-research.com) is a division of NTC Economics Ltd, one of the world’s largest providers of international economic indicators to financial institutions. With its unique blend of skills in market research, economics and statistics, NTC Research specialises in business surveys, including its highly-regarded Purchasing Managers’ Indexes. Some 36 surveys are currently conducted across eighteen countries. The surveys are closely watched by central banks around the world, as well as economic analysts and the financial markets. NTC is the sister company of the World Advertising Research Center (www.warc.com), the largest single source of online intelligence for the marketing, advertising, media and research communities worldwide.

FUTURE RELEASES
The ICA/Canada Post Survey of Marketing Budgets is published quarterly (January, April, July, October editions). Two levels of service are available: (1) Standard report (PDF): $495 per annum; (2) Data service, which includes spreadsheets of historical data and PDF reports: $595 per annum. For subscriptions, please contact Charlotte Shand, Tel: +44 1491 418 700 email: charlotte.shand@warc.com.

MHOL recognizes its six inductees in the categories of Visionaries, Builders, Enablers and Mentors. Each inductee will be celebrated during the annual MHOL gala on Thursday February 1, 2007 at the Granite Club in Toronto.

Visionaries – Great entrepreneurs who created enduring, valuable and iconic Canadian brands.

• Ted Rogers
  President and CEO, Rogers Communications Inc.

• George Cohon
  Founder, McDonald’s Restaurants of Canada Ltd.
  Founder, McDonald’s Russia
• Andrew Brandt
  Former Chair and CEO, LCBO

• Terry O’Malley
  Former President and Creative Director, Vicker & Benson
• Jacques Bouchard (posthumously)
  Founder, Publicité BCP

• Rupert Brendon
  President and CEO, Institute of Communications and Advertising

The Client Brief: A best practices guide to briefing communications agencies is based on research conducted with more than 100 clients and 100 agencies, and is designed for use with all types of communications agencies.

The guide refers to a written brief as the most important piece of information issued by a client to an agency, since it is from the brief that all work flows. The better a company’s corporate or brand position is defined and the more thoughtfully its key business issues are described, the more likely it is that an agency will be able to apply its specialist skills to produce great solutions.

A properly composed brief will save both clients and agencies time and money, and will provide a platform for equitable remuneration, the guide adds.

The Client Brief was originally produced by associations representing the British marketer and agency sectors. The document has been fully annotated with footnotes by the ACA and the ICA to ensure its applicability for Canadian marketers and agencies.

The document is available for downloading by clicking here:
English
French

For further information, contact:

The CASSIES will be celebrated this year at a luncheon on Thursday, November 16, 2006 at the Westin Harbour Castle Hotel in Toronto and at the Ritz-Carlton in Montreal. Tickets are available by emailing efarge@ica-ad.com.com or go to the Order Form at www.cassies.ca.

Graham led a 15-person panel of high profile senior-level judges representing advertisers, account management, creative, media, account planning, research, direct marketing, public relations, and academia. The judges, who award CASSIES Gold, Silver and Bronze, are:

• Lynn Anderson, VP, Marketing and Alliances, Hewlett-Packard (Canada) Co.
• Sabina Bastian, VP, Strategic Planning & Account Group, TAM-TAM\TBWA
• Ron Beasley, President, ABM
• Suzanne Bourret, VP, Strategic Planning, Saint-Jacques Vallée Young & Rubicam
• Richard Burjaw, VP, Beverages, Pepsi-QTG
• Doug Checkeris, President and CEO, The Media Company
• Michael Clancy, Principal, Dir. of Creative & Strategic Planning, Brandworks Int’l Inc.
• Frédérique Delagrave, Brand Solutions Manager, Labatt
  Alain Desormiers, President, Touché! Media Marketing
• Robert Duhamel, Associate Director, Product Management and Sales Support, Sympatico/MSN
• Heather Fraser, Dir, Designworks & the Design Initiative, Centre for Integrative Thinking, Rotman School of Management
• Dominic Loporcaro, Marketing & Communications Consultant
• François Poulin, Partner, 2B
• Andrea Southcott, President, TBWA\VANCOUVER
• Trish Wheaton, President, Wunderman

CASSIES is presented by the Institute of Communications and Advertising (ICA), the Association des agences de Publicité du Québec (AAPQ) and Le Publicité Club de Montréal (PCM).

To win at the CASSIES, cases have to show impressive business results and prove, convincingly, that these results were substantially caused by the advertising.

CASSIES is honoured with key sponsor support as follows:

GOLD: Yellow Pages Group
SILVER: Association of Canadian Advertisers
BRONZE: Marketing Magazine; CHUM

MEDIA SPONSORS: BBM (Research); Canada Post (Direct); Sympatico MSN (Interactive); Pattison Outdoor (Outdoor)

WINNERS CIRCLE SPONSORS: Audit Bureau of Circulations; Promotional Products Association of Canada; Radio Marketing Bureau; and the Television Bureau of Canada.

VENUE: The Westin Harbour Castle
PRINTING: Transcontinental
PATRON: Adbeast; Bensimon Byrne; Longwoods International

CASSIES is the only Canadian advertising awards show that recognizes proven business effectiveness, backed up by rigorous published cases. As such, the CASSIES Awards are highly valued by both advertisers and agencies alike. Since its inception in 1993, CASSIES have recognized the business achievements of more than 120 campaigns from Canada’s top advertisers and agencies. All award-winning case studies can be viewed in the Case Library section of the CASSIES web site at www.cassies.ca.

Current marketing budgets were increased in Q2 by 29% of companies compared to just 6% that reported a decrease. Companies boosting budgets commonly cited improved business confidence, higher than anticipated sales and rising profits.

The latest upward revision to budgets represents a further improvement on already buoyant initial budget setting for the current year, and follows on from robust growth in 2005/6. Marketing spend showed the largest annual rise yet recorded over the survey's three-year history in 2005/6. Some 38% of companies reported an increase in spend last year while just 16% reported a decrease.

“The outlook for 2006/7 has improved, with marketing spend set to rise at the fastest pace for at least four years,” says Rupert Brendon, President & CEO of the ICA. “This survey has exhibited a good track record of anticipating change in economic growth (GDP) over the past three years, and the upturn in both marketing and advertising spend signalled by the Q2 survey is consistent with an acceleration of economic growth, driven in particular by improved corporate profits.”

All main categories of marketing spend were revised up in Q2, although internet-related marketing and direct marketing saw the sharpest upgrades, which therefore suggests further gains in share of total spend for these two categories.

Companies commonly reported a preference for direct marketing and the internet due to their perceived lower cost and greater accountability, especially compared to main media advertising. Of particular note, the upward revision to direct marketing was the largest seen in the survey's history for this category.

Media adspend –upward revision a survey record
Main media adspend (covering TV, print, cinema, radio and outdoor advertising) saw the weakest upward revision to current budgets of all categories of marketing spend in Q2. However, the rise was nevertheless the largest quarterly gain recorded for main media spend in the survey's history, as rising corporate profits and expectations of solid sales growth in coming quarters encouraged increasing numbers of firms to raise their advertising spend. At 26%, the percentage of companies reporting an upward revision to budgets significantly outnumbered the 11% that reported a cut.

Direct marketing – saw strongest upturn of all categories
Current direct marketing budgets were revised up on average to a greater extent than any other category – albeit by a small margin. 30% of companies reported an upward budget revision compared to 3% indicating a decline. The resulting net increase was the strongest in the survey’s three-year history.

Internet – continues to outperform other categories
One-in-four companies reported an increase to internet-related marketing budgets in Q2 against just 2% reporting a decline, outperforming all other categories with the exception of direct marketing. The internet is now estimated to account for 4% of total marketing spend, having shown strong growth throughout the survey’s three-year history. However, the extent to which internet marketing growth exceeded that of total marketing was substantially smaller than in previous quarters in Q2.

Sales promotions – sharpest upturn for two years
Current sales promotions budgets were revised up by one-in-five companies in Q2 against only 3% reporting a decline. The resulting net increase to spend signalled was the largest for two years, though lagged that of both direct marketing and the ‘all other’ category, which includes the internet.

‘All other’ marketing – survey record rise
On average, current budgets for the ‘all other' category of marketing were revised up to the largest extent in the survey history in Q3. Upwards revisions were reported by 27% of companies compared to just 3% noting downward revisions. The improvement in this ‘all other' category signals not only a further boost to internet-related marketing, included here and also monitored separately (see above), but also rising spend on activities such as sponsorship, market research, PR and corporate communications.

NOTES
The ICA Survey of Marketing Budgets is researched and published by NTC Research on behalf of the Institute of Communications and Advertising. The report features original data drawn from a panel of Canadian marketing professionals and provides a key indicator of the health of the economy. The survey panel has been carefully selected to represent all key business sectors, drawn primarily from the nation's top 1000 companies.

Data for the ICA survey were first collected in Q3 2003. The survey uses the same methodology as NTC’s UK survey of marketing budgets, known as the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising Bellwether Report, which has become widely-watched as an accurate advance indicator of UK marketing and advertising trends. For more details of this report please visit www.warc.com\bellwether.

The Institute of Communications and Advertising (www.ica-ad.com), founded in 1905, represents Canada's communications and advertising agencies. ICA's member agencies and subsidiaries account for over 90% of all national advertising in Canada. ICA promotes higher standards and best practices, and serves as the largest source of information, advice and training for Canada's communication and advertising industry, whose economic impact is worth $14.5 billion annually.

FUTURE RELEASES
The ICA Survey of Marketing Budgets is published quarterly (January, April, July, October editions). Subscriptions to the ICA survey can be purchased from www.warc.com/ica. Two levels of service are available: (1) Standard report (PDF): $495 per annum; (2) Data service, which includes spreadsheets of historical data and PDF reports: $595 per annum.

For subscriptions, please contact Charlotte Shand, Tel: +44 1491 418 700 email: charlotte.shand@warc.com.

To be added to the press release distribution list please contact chris_williamson@ntc.co.uk. Alternatively, press releases can be viewed and downloaded from the press center on NTC’s website (www.ntc-research.com).

Graham leads a 16-person panel of high profile senior-level judges representing advertisers, account management, creative, media, account planning, research, direct marketing, public relations, and academia. The judges will assess who wins CASSIES Gold, Silver and Certificate of Excellence awards, and are:

• Lynn Anderson, VP, Marketing and Alliances, Hewlett-Packard (Canada) Co.
• Sabina Bastien, V.P. Strategic Planning & Account Group, TAM-TAM\TBWA
• Ron Beasley, President, ABM
• Suzanne Bourret, VP, Strategic Planning, Saint-Jacques Vallée Young & Rubicam
• Richard Burjaw, VP, Beverages, Pepsi-QTG
• Doug Checkeris, President and CEO, The Media Company
• Michael Clancy, Principal, Director of Creative & Strategic Planning, Brandworks International Inc.
• Frédérique Delagrave, Brand Solutions Manager, Labatt
• Alain Desormiers, President, Touché! Media Marketing
• Robert Duhamel, Associate Director, Product Management and Sales Support,Sympatico/MSN
• Heather Fraser, Director, Designworks & the Design Initiative, Centre for Integrative Thinking, Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto
• Jean-Marc Léger, President, Leger Research
• Dominic Loporcaro, Marketing & Communications Consultant
• François Poulin, Partner, 2B Interactif
• Andrea Southcott, President, TBWA\VANCOUVER
• Trish Wheaton, President, Wunderman

The CASSIES, Canada’s only advertising award show that is based on proven business effectiveness, backed up by rigorous published cases, will be celebrated this year at a luncheon on Thursday, November 16, 2006 at the Westin Harbour Castle Hotel in Toronto.

Further details on how to enter all, CASSIES categories can be found at www.cassies.ca/howtoenter. To win at the CASSIES, cases have to show impressive business results and prove, convincingly, that these results were substantially caused by the advertising.

CASSIES is presented by the Institute of Communications and Advertising (ICA), the Association des agences de Publicité du Québec (AAPQ) and Le Publicité Club de Montréal (PCM).

CASSIES is the only Canadian advertising awards show that recognizes proven business effectiveness, backed up by rigorous published cases. As such, the CASSIES Awards are highly valued by both advertisers and agencies alike. Since its inception in 1993, CASSIES have recognized the business achievements of more than 100 campaigns from Canada’s top advertisers and agencies. All award-winning case studies can be viewed in the Case Library section of the CASSIES web site at www.cassies.ca.

The first graduates of the Bachelor of Business Administration program with a concentration in Brand Communication will receive their degrees at the School of Business’ graduation ceremony on June 8, 2006 with another group of graduates expected in the Fall Convocation in October. One of the first graduates has already found a position as program manager for a software company and said in a letter to one of his professors, “I have already put the concepts you have taught me to good use here. There is little branding experience in this company (and it seems to extend to the industry in general). For this reason, my specialization in brand communication has become an invaluable resource.”

Fundraising in the advertising and marketing community has now raised $1.65 million of the $2.5 million budget to fund Canada’s first university chair in Brand Communication. The list of donors has grown from an initial 20 to 33 (see www.mcet.ca for full list). But there is still much more to do to further develop the program.

“Although we have come along way in the past two years in constructing the Brand Communication program, a number of tasks remain and we still need lots of support,” says Rupert Brendon, chairman and trustee of MCET, and president and CEO of the Institute of Communications & Advertising.

The graduations represent the culmination of Phase I of the construction of North America’s first Brand Communication program, funded by MCET. The broad goals of Phase I were to establish the curriculum framework, build awareness of the program, develop a teaching team and continue to develop industry contacts and participation. Through a variety of steps these goals have been achieved.

• A specific course in Brand Communication (Bu492h) was developed as the cornerstone course of the concentration. The course has been offered twice, attracting 35-40 students and receiving very high student evaluations.
• An MBA with Brand Communication concentration was also approved by the University and is currently available with a new course in Strategic Brand Management at the core. It is also attracting 40 plus students and receiving high evaluations.
• Existing BBA and MBA courses have been modified to incorporate additional brand and brand communication content. Brand communication strategy has become a theme woven through a variety of marketing courses.

The framework of the program has been constructed and next steps include filling in the curriculum structure, as well as well as creating the Centre of Excellence in Brand Communication. The Centre will consist of advisory groups and a research centre networked to feed into the curriculum of the Brand Communication program. The objective is to bring a more formal structure to the program and create channels to allow for the flow of information from our industry partners into the program. The Centre will consist primarily of 4 bodies:

• Executive Committee
• HR Director’s Advisory Group
• Curriculum Advisory Group
• Research Centre in Brand Communication

“Over the next few months, we will be contacting our industry partners to assist in identifying the appropriate individuals to join the Advisory Groups and Executive Committee,” says Brendon. “This will also provide an opportunity to clarify our industry partners’ expectations and identify key timing issues, for example when co-op placements would be desired.”

Other opportunities will also be examined to advance the development and profile of the Brand Communication program, including:

• Begin the development of a national survey on advertising, marketing communication, brand communication and branding issues.
• Investigate sponsoring a Special Session on Brand Communication at the Administration Sciences Association of Canada’s (ASAC) annual conference.
• Investigate holding an Annual Symposium on Brand Communication.
• Introduce a proposal to offer a Master of Science in Brand Communication that will be processed through the University, the first of its kind in North America.
• Work to add faculty to the Marketing department with an interest and expertise in fields related to Brand Communication.

“Overall, Phase II will seek to build on the framework put in place over the past year,” said Dr. Brad Davis, associate professor, marketing communications and research with Laurier’s School of Business & Economics. “The goal will be to formalize relationships with participating organizations and ensure a continuous flow of information into the curriculum. By creating an organizational structure that facilitates interactions between our industry partners and the university, we hope to be able to bring topical issues into the classroom experience as well as coordinate activities over a longer time frame.”

“We now have graduates emerging from the Brand Communication program. As we move into Phase II, we hope to be able to see the fruits of labour continue to appear in the form of an enthusiastic working relationship with our industry partners and a continuous stream of the country’s most coveted Marketing graduates,” said Davis.

Chair of Judging for this year’s CASSIES is Stephen Graham, Executive Vice President, Corporate Marketing & Convergence Officer, Rogers Communications Inc. The judging panel will be announced at a later date, along with the Co-Chairs of this year’s event.

And to get ready, a practical seminar on How to Write a Convincing CASSIES Case, which uses past CASSIES winners as the gold standard, is being offered May 18th at the ICA offices, led by CASSIES Editor David Rutherford. For more information and tickets for this limited space seminar, contact ICA at (416) 482-1396, Ext 229.

Further details on how to enter all, CASSIES categories can be found at www.cassies.ca/howtoenter. To win at the CASSIES, cases have to show impressive business results and prove, convincingly, that these results were substantially caused by the advertising.

CASSIES is presented by the Institute of Communications and Advertising (ICA) , the Association des agences de Publicité du Québec (AAPQ) and Le Publicité Club de Montréal (PCM).

CASSIES is the only Canadian advertising awards show that recognizes proven business effectiveness, backed up by rigorous published cases. As such, the CASSIES Awards are highly valued by both advertisers and agencies alike. Since its inception in 1993, CASSIES have recognized the business achievements of more than 100 campaigns from Canada’s top advertisers and agencies. All award-winning case studies can be viewed in the Case Library section of the CASSIES web site at www.cassies.ca.

The ICA Survey of Marketing Budgets, conducted by NTC Research and based on quarterly information provided by a panel of 270 senior marketing executives in Canadian companies, showed that current marketing budgets were revised up in Q1. The survey data also indicate that 2005 saw the strongest growth of marketing spend since the survey began three years ago. That spend is set to rise at an even faster rate in 2006.

Current marketing budgets were increased in Q1 by 27% of companies while 21% reported a decrease. Although the resulting net increase was the weakest quarter recorded since Q4 2004, the latest improvement indicates further growth of marketing spend as companies boosted budgets in response to good sales and healthy profits.

The uptrend in marketing spend indicated by the robust growth seen last year and upward revision to budgets in Q1 is set to continue. When setting new budgets for the 2006/7 accounting year, 51% of companies reported that budgets have been set higher than actual spend in 2005/6, outnumbering those that registered a decline by four-to-one, to result in a net increase of 38%.

“The overall increase that is being signalled for 2006/7 is the most buoyant picture of initial budget setting recorded by the Survey so far, which we began with NTC in 2003,” says Rupert Brendon, President & CEO of the ICA. “This Survey has proven to be an excellent indicator of not only advertising industry health but business health in Canada overall.”

Media adspend – revised up, but growth only modest
Media adspend budgets (covering TV, print, cinema, radio and outdoor advertising) were revised up on average for the fourth consecutive quarter in Q1. However, the rise was only modest and the smallest recorded over the past year. At 22%, the percentage of companies reporting an upward revision to budgets only just outnumbered the 20% that reported a cut. The net increase signalled was also the weakest of all types of marketing covered by the survey with the exception of the `all other' category.

Internet – spend moved to internet marketing
Internet-related marketing continued to see notably stronger growth than other forms of marketing in Q1, suggesting a further marked gain in share of total spend. Internet marketing is estimated to account for approximately 4% of total marketing spend, up from around 3% a year ago.

Sales promotions – growth exceeded only by internet marketing
Current sales promotions budgets were revised up on average in Q1. Upward revisions to budgets were reported by 14% of companies while just 6% indicated downward revisions. Although the resulting net increase signalled was the weakest seen in the three-year history of the Survey, the improvement was the strongest of all survey categories with the exception of internet marketing for the sixth consecutive quarter.

Direct marketing – revised up for third quarter running
Current direct marketing budgets were revised up on average for the third successive quarter in Q1. The increase to budgets was weaker than the rise seen in Q4, with 16% of companies reporting an upward budget revision, compared to 11% indicating a decline.

‘All other’ marketing – current budgets left unchanged
On average, current budgets for the `all other' category of marketing were left unchanged in Q1. Upwards revisions by one-in-eight companies were offset by downward revisions by the same proportion of firms. The stagnation in budgets contrasted with upwards revisions to the other main categories of marketing spend. As this `all other' category includes internet-related marketing, which rose sharply again in Q1, the survey suggests that budgets for activities such as sponsorship, market research, PR and corporate communications were marked down during Q1.

2006-07 budget breakdown – provisional data
Direct marketing saw the strongest rise in new budgets for 2006-07, with some 38% of companies reporting an increase in budgeted spend for the new accounting year, compared to just 11% highlighting a decrease. The resulting net improvement signalled was the strongest of all main categories of marketing covered by the Survey, and also the greatest seen in the three year history of the Survey. Direct marketing budget increases were closely followed by sales promotion and media adspend. The weakest rise for next year is set to be the ‘all other' marketing category, which points to below average growth for activities such as corporate communications, sponsorship, PR and market research.

NOTES
The ICA Survey of Marketing Budgets is researched and published by NTC Research on behalf of the Institute of Communications and Advertising. The report features original data drawn from a panel of Canadian marketing professionals and provides a key indicator of the health of the economy. The survey panel has been carefully selected to represent all key business sectors, drawn primarily from the nation's top 1000 companies.

Data for the ICA survey were first collected in Q3 2003. The survey uses the same methodology as NTC’s UK survey of marketing budgets, known as the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising Bellwether Report, which has become widely-watched as an accurate advance indicator of UK marketing and advertising trends. For more details of this report please visit www.warc.com/bellwether.

FUTURE RELEASES
The ICA Survey of Marketing Budgets is published quarterly (January, April, July, October editions). Subscriptions to the ICA survey can be purchased from www.warc.com/ica. Two levels of service are available: (1) Standard report (PDF): $495 per annum; (2) Data service, which includes spreadsheets of historical data and PDF reports: $595 per annum.
For subscriptions, please contact Charlotte Shand, Tel: +44 1491 418 700 email: charlotte.shand@warc.com).
To be added to the press release distribution list please contact chris_williamson@ntc.co.uk.
Alternatively, press releases can be viewed and downloaded from the press center on NTC’s website (www.ntc-research.com).

"Our members fully agree with the recommendations contained in the Gomery Commission's Phase 2 Report and we support Prime Minister-designate Stephen Harper's intention to adopt an Accountability Act as his government's first piece of legislation,”said ICA President & CEO, Rupert Brendon. "We intend to point out that a critical element of an effective plan will be for the government to establish an arms-length agency, like in Ontario and the United Kingdom, to make decisions about which agencies receive government contracts and to ensure Canadian taxpayers receive value for money.”

"We believe it is important for the new government to quickly establish rules of transparency, accountability and professionalism to prevent bad management in future advertising activities, including any program through which the government may chose to sponsor events,” added AAPQ President and CEO, Yves St-Amand.

The Gomery Commission included in their report three of the seven recommendations submitted by ICA and AAPQ in their June and October 2005 memoranda (available at www.aapq.ca and www.ica-ad.com):

Firstly, in the ninth chapter, which pertains directly to the advertising industry and its agencies, the Commission recommends that the Government should amend its current definition of "advertising" to conform to accepted advertising industry standards.

Secondly, Justice Gomery identifies training and certification as two of the best ways to promote competent management of advertising and sponsorship activities for advertisers as well as for public servants who will have to assess their ideas and concepts.

Thirdly, the Commission recommends comprehensive audits and independent assessments to determine the value of advertising programs and initiatives chosen by its departments and agencies.

"These notions of professionalism, independence and accountability included in these recommendations will guarantee judicious choices and meaningful results," explained Mr. Brendon as he reiterated ICA's and AAPQ's full support to the new government project of moving quickly at implementing new "clean" rules.

About AAPQ
The Association now has 43 member agencies which generate nearly 75% of the industry's total revenues in Quebec. Defending the industry's interests and understanding its challenges, AAPQ is committed to represent its member agencies and to provide current and future decision makers with tools and work conditions that will allow the industry to successfully face the new challenges in the future.

About ICA
Celebrating its 100th anniversary last year (founded in 1905 as the Canadian Association of Advertising Agencies), the Institute of Communications and Advertising represents Canada's communications and advertising agencies. ICA serves as the largest source of information, advice and training for Canada's communications and advertising industry, whose economic impact is worth approximately $14.5 billion annually. Each year, ICA member agencies also donate millions of dollars in pro bono work to help support over 100 local, regional and national charities and non-profit organizations.

Information:
Yves St-Amand
President and General Manager
Association of Quebec Advertising Agencies
(514) 848-1732
st-amand@aapq.ca

October 25, 2005

Introduction Notice
In the interest of being concise, we have chosen not to automatically refer to the evidence. Therefore, we recommend that you also consider the Memorandum that was submitted to the Commission on June 10, 2005.

Recommendation 1 Implementation of a Certification program for advertising agencies

During the Commission’s work, we noticed that services rendered to the federal government by some firms, referred to as marketing communications, promotion and public relations services, too often failed to correspond to the definition of our member agencies’ products and services. Therefore, a significant confusion seemed to prevail during the entire duration of the Commission’s work as to the terms used to describe various professional expertise and required training and skills.

We also noticed that some witnesses usurped the “firm” status and presented their organization, after only a few days of operation, as a legal, viable, experienced firm, with the personnel and staff required to meet the Government needs or, at the very least, the admissibility criteria of various programs.

We know from experience the difficulties involved in working in our business sector, and the efforts our members have to make on a daily basis to ensure the survival of their firms, maintain their quality standards, and be able to draw decent income and reasonable operating profits.

Therefore, it seems important to us, on the one hand, to protect these assets which represent an original Canadian resource, and on the other hand, to ensure that the main work provider in Canada, the Government of Canada, benefits from the expertise it requires. In this context, we recommend the creation and implementation of a Certification Program for advertising agencies. This program would be administered by the industry’s associations (AAPQ and ICA) and would be implemented jointly with the Canadian Government. In exchange, departments and Crown corporations of the federal government would commit to award their marketing communication contracts only to « certified » agencies.

This program would allow Government departments and Crown corporations to:

• confirm data presented by firms such as number of employees, billings and place of business;
• confirm the nature of services and expertise offered;
• confirm compliance with a specified quality program and a code of ethics;
• reinforce compliance mechanisms pertaining to codes of ethics currently in place.

This would allow the associations:

• To reinforce the application of their code of ethics and to add to the limits imposed by it, by denying an agency the right to stay on the Canadian Government’s list of official tenders for a given period, if the agency failed to comply with the Code.

The implementation of such a program would require from the federal government that it meets the following conditions:

• The openness for change;
• The need for a major investment in money and human resources for the start-up of the program;
• A firm commitment to implement the program jointly with the industry’s associations.

The Government’s financial commitment is important for the following reasons:

• Government departments and Crown corporations are the most important advertising clients in Canada;
• in the first phase, this program would profit only to the Government and would be used to improve the performance of its system;
• the marketing communication firms of Canada are competing with other similar firms worldwide, and significant additional costs would only reduce their competitive strength;
• the majority of agencies in Canada can be considered as small and medium businesses and therefore do not have adequate resources to finance the start-up of such a program.

Moreover, this Program could be adaptable. Until the adoption of the Program described above, departments and Crown corporations could allocate, in a call for tenders, extra points to member agencies of one or the other association, these agencies having to comply through their membership with a code of ethics. This proposal could be modified according to the contracts awarded.

Additionally, we have in Canada a self-regulating system in advertising that is the envy of many countries. This system, which was implemented 50 years ago, is being managed by Advertising Standards Canada (Normes canadiennes de la publicité). NCP-ASC administers and promotes the Canadian Code of Advertising Standards and handles complaints concerning advertising from consumers and special interest groups. It also administers a Trade Dispute Procedure (disputes between advertisers) as well as other advertising codes of ethics whose application is voluntary. It also pre-clears advertising copies on food and non-alcoholic beverages, cosmetics, consumer drugs, and in English Canada only, children’s advertising.

We believe that if we were able to implement such a successful, professional and thorough system, jointly with the federal and provincial governments of Canada, advertisers, media and advertising agencies, we certainly can create and administer a Certification Program for advertising agencies for the greater benefit of all stakeholders.

Recommendation 2 Creation of a Standing Working Committee that would gather representatives from the federal government, AAPQ, ICA and ACA

Several times in the past, our associations tried to re-establish communication with public and elected officials of the Canadian Government in order to discuss the global functioning of the contracting system. Recently, we have had to wait almost a year to obtain a meeting with the responsible Minister.

In our industry, business relationships totally rely on one essential proposition: the close and privileged contact between the client and his supplier. How can we create and develop the best strategies possible if we do not know our clients and do not communicate with them on a daily basis? In the past years, the relationship between our industry and the federal government has deteriorated to the point where several of our members have simply decided not to respond to the Government’s calls for tenders, depriving thereby the Government of valuable and original expertise. How did we get to that point?

Without blaming either party, it is clear that a climate of mistrust has been created, largely nourished by the misconception between one party’s needs and the other’s realities. It is commendable to try to ensure that taxpayers’ money is well spent, but the pendulum seems to have swung to the other extreme.

To illustrate this situation, a couple of weeks ago one of our member agencies based in Montreal received a request from a federal department for copies of an existing video document. The request was made under the condition that the agency would issue a call for tenders, and it was required from that agency that the copies be delivered the next day in Ottawa. One must think of this as a normal situation? The time frame for such a call for tenders was however absolutely unrealistic considering the emergency of the request (the department asked the agency not to use messenger services to deliver the copies) and the amount of money involved (just a few hundred dollars). This is not an isolated case. It is a case like hundreds of others that spoil the working atmosphere and show that viable communication does not exist.

Furthermore, during the entire duration of the Commission’s work in Montreal, many journalists came to AAPQ and ICA for information on the contracting process used by federal departments and Crown corporations. They said they came to us because they could not get interviews from the Government on this specific topic.

Though we understand the difficult climate in which public and elected officials had to work in the past two years, we believe that regular communication with the associations would have been very positive. We would have been able to exchange and better understand each other’s position.

We therefore recommend the creation of a Standing Working Committee that would include representatives of the Association of Quebec Advertising Agencies, the Institute of Communications and Advertising, the Association of Canadian Advertisers and the federal government. The Committee’s participants would meet at least twice a year in order to discuss the contracting process, the selection criteria, and the proposed wage grids. They would ensure that dialogue between the industry and one of its major clients is restored, thus making it easier for an awarded agency and its client department or Crown corporation to work together on a daily basis.

Recommendation 3 Creation of an independent federal agency in charge of contracting communication services

Several times in the past it was recommended to the federal government that it create an independent agency that would be responsible for contracting marketing communication services. This type of agency already exists in Canada (Ontario Advertising Review Board – OARB) and in the United Kingdom (Advisory Committee on Advertising – ACA), and appears to respond well to the objectives of transparency, equity, added value as set forward in Mrs. Sheila Fraser’s recommendations.

For AORB, the selection process of agencies is transparent, and decision-making is distant from political influences.

The world’s most effective Government advertising campaigns are produced in the U.K. by the COI (Central Office of Information - see www.coi.gov.uk). Over 70% of COI’s staff (including the CEO) are drawn from the private sector and have public sector insight. It is, for the U.K. Government, a central source of information on the effectiveness of advertising campaigns. COI and its agencies regularly win awards on the effectiveness of their advertising campaigns (IPA Effectiveness Awards), with case studies that prove taxpayers get value for money. Despite numerous requests from ICA and AAPQ, the equivalent concept in Canada (Cassies) has never received a Government of Canada case study.

The COI’s agency selection process allows the Government to choose from a roster of agencies which are among the most creative ones in the U.K.; it does not simply appoint the one who offers the lowest price. COI’s Chief Executive reports to Minister of the Cabinet Office, but is overseen by the Advisory Committee on Advertising that contains private sector experts.

Recommendation 4 Conducting an independent study of the world’s best tender procedures for governments

During our last meetings with the responsible Minister, the Honourable Scott Brison, we suggested that an independent study be conducted worldwide in order to set up standards that would allow the assessment of the performance of Canadian processes when compared to the best practices of other major countries. This request was later confirmed to the Minister in writing. This study, whose cost ICA is prepared to share equally with the Government, could be conducted quite rapidly and would allow the adoption of specific actions designed to improve the existing system and its efficiency.

We still believe in the potential of such a study, and that it would accelerate the improvement of the existing process and re-establish a healthy dialogue between the various stakeholders.

Recommendation 5 Standardization of the contracting process within Government departments and Crown corporations

Many witnesses testified before the Commission that the contracting process differed greatly among the various Government departments and Crown corporations. We understand the approach of Crown corporations’ executives who wish to control the overall mechanisms that will allow them to better attain their objectives.

These disparities between the contracting procedures of Crown corporations result in high management costs for agencies that must respond to calls for tenders, and also reduce organizations’ capacity to benefit from maximum savings such as group purchasing in the case of media placement. We have assessed that Crown corporations could save almost 5% each year, which would be equivalent to millions of dollars in savings.

We therefore recommend that a standardization of the contracting process be considered, studied and implemented as soon as possible in order that a greater economy of scale be achieved by all stakeholders.

Recommendation 6 Registration with the Ordre des administrateurs agréés du Québec

Concurrent with the Commission’s work, many individuals (journalists, executives, agencies’ staff, etc.) raised questions as to business ethics, professional practice, and integrity. The Association of Quebec Advertising Agencies and the Institute of Communications and Advertising are not professional corporations as per the Québec’s professional system and its Professional Code, but they have a code of ethics that guides business decisions and behaviours as in other business sectors.

Owing to the lack of a professional corporation in due form and considering specific limitations in the creation of such a corporation, we suggest that executives from marketing communication firms claim the title of management professionals. Known as Chartered Administrator (C.Adm.), this title is issued and administered by the Ordre des administrateurs agréés du Québec. It provides managers, in all business fields and according to very specific admission criteria, professional supervision in order to govern their administrative acts. The title also obliges its holder to conform to a code of ethics (Code de déontologie des administrateurs agréés, R.R.Q., c. C-26, r. 10.01).

We believe that the executives of our member agencies meet those criteria and can demonstrate without exception their professional capacity as administrators. The Ordre des administrateurs agréés du Québec supports in a concrete manner the implementation within organizations of sound management principles (i.e. transparency, continuity, efficiency, equilibrium, equity and abnegation). We believe that on a daily basis, these principles already form the very foundation of our member agencies’ management. The act of claiming the Chartered Administrator title for our executives would confirm one more time the high level of integrity that inspires every one of them.

Recommendation 7 Public discussion on the importance of advertising in the democratic exercise

Finally, the last months have resulted in many discussions and forums on the role of marketing communication, more precisely advertising within the Canadian democratic exercise. Most of the issues raised pertained to the financing of political parties, the role of agencies, the alleged links between the awarding of government contracts and the participation in political campaigns, campaign costs and fees.

In more than one instance, these debates took place in a critical climate, without discerning and reflecting on the actual role of advertising and marketing communication in an electoral context. This was done without proper information on the costs and the money extended by governments for the financing of political parties. Furthermore, these debates took place with only marketing communication stakeholders in mind, even though everyone knows the range of professionals who have to be involved actively to successfully conduct an election campaign.

We believe that an open public discussion should take place so that the various stakeholders (suppliers, political parties, volunteer workers, donors, etc.) may update their methods of functioning in order to clearly define guidelines as to the involvement of strategy developers in marketing communication and the use of various tools made available to political parties. We also wish that other professionals, closely involved in the democratic exercise (lawyers, accountants, engineers, insurers, etc.) and who could be solicited in the organization of political campaigns, be asked to participate in this discussion and help clarify the situation.

Conclusion

The Association of Quebec Advertising Agencies and the Institute of Communications and Advertising have openly contributed in good faith to the public discussion; more specifically, the Association has actively participated in the Commission’s work.

We have invested much time and financial resources in order to:

• support the work of the Commission’s attorneys and propose them direction in their examinations;
• file a memorandum summarizing our perceptions as to testimonies given;
• respond to questions raised by the hundreds of journalists, and participate in public forums in order to inform the public on advertising agencies’ realities.

We invested time and resources that would have otherwise been spent on academic training and the promotion of our industry with international work providers, in response to the media convergence phenomenon. We did so to defend an industry that was harmed by the impact of the reprehensible actions of a handful of people.

Therefore, we hope that the analysis of the situation and most of all, the proposals and recommendations resulting from it will help our industry to restore the lost dialogue with the federal government and its various entities. We also hope that these will promote the adoption of specific actions that will simplify the tender procedures and the awarding of contracts.

The ICA Survey of Marketing Budgets, conducted by NTC Research and based on quarterly information provided by a panel of 270 senior marketing executives in Canadian companies, showed that current marketing budgets were revised up in Q4. Moreover, provisional data indicate that 2006-07 is set to see the strongest growth of marketing expenditure yet recorded by the survey.

Current marketing budgets were revised up in Q4. Just over one-in-five companies reported an increase to their existing budget whereas just 12% reported a decline. Although the resulting net increase was slightly less than seen in Q3, the Q4 revision builds on similar upward revisions in previous quarters and points to growth of marketing spend in 2005-06 well above that originally planned at the start of the year. Companies have reported that business confidence improved in Q4, reflecting good sales and profits which have in turned allowed them to boost marketing spend.

The Q4 survey also contained provisional data on the setting of new budgets for 2006-07. So far, roughly two-thirds of the survey panel have set their budgets for the next financial year (the remainder will do so in Q1), and more than half of these (52%) have reported an increase on 2005-06 budgets. Only 10% have reported a decrease.

“This overall net increase to annual budgets is by far the strongest that has been recorded since the survey began two-and-a-half years ago,” says Rupert Brendon, President & CEO of the ICA. “And while certain sectors of the marketing budgets are up more than others, it is encouraging to see the media ad spending was revised up for the third quarter running.”

Media adspend – revised up for third quarter running
Media adspend budgets (covering TV, print, cinema, radio and outdoor advertising) were revised up for the third quarter running. Contrasting with budget cuts seen at the start of the year. 19% of companies reported an increase to budgets while 14% reported a decrease. However, the net upward revision signalled was the weakest of all marketing categories in Q4.

Internet – growth outstripped other activities by wide margin
Internet-related marketing continued to see particular growth in popularity, with new budgets being revised up to a substantially greater extent than all other forms of marketing. The latest upgrade to internet budgets was also the strongest yet recorded by the survey (34% reported an increase compared to just 3% reporting a decrease). The internet now accounts for around 4% of marketing spend.

Sales promotions – strong rise, exceeded only by internet marketing
Budgets for sales promotions showed the second-strongest growth of all categories for the fifth successive quarter, being revised up to the greatest extent since Q2 2004. 22% of companies reported an increase to budgets while just 7% reported a fall. Companies reported the need to offer sales incentives in the face of tough competition.

Direct marketing – strongest rise since Q2 2004
Direct marketing budgets were also revised up to the greatest extent since Q2 004 as companies cited the lower cost and accountability of the medium, but the increase trailed that of sales promotions. One-in-five companies reported an increase but only one-in-ten reported a decrease.

‘All other’ marketing – below par growth
Budgets for ‘all other’ marketing activities were revised up in Q4, representing an improvement on the downward revisions seen in the previous two quarters. The increase was the best since Q2 2004 as 12% of respondents reported an upward revision while only 7% reported a decline. However, the overall net increase was the weakest of all categories except media adspend. This suggests that budgets for activities such as sponsorship, market research, PR and corporate communications are current under pressure.

2006-07 budget breakdown – provisional data
Sales promotions saw the largest increase in new budgets for 2006-07, closely followed by media adspend and direct marketing. The weakest rise for next year is set to be the `all other' marketing category, which points to below average growth for activities such as corporate communications, sponsorship, PR and market research.

NOTES
The ICA Survey of Marketing Budgets is researched and published by NTC Research on behalf of the Institute of Communications and Advertising. The report features original data drawn from a panel of Canadian marketing professionals and provides a key indicator of the health of the economy. The survey panel has been carefully selected to represent all key business sectors, drawn primarily from the nation's top 1000 companies.

Data for the ICA survey were first collected in Q3 2003. The survey uses the same methodology as NTC’s UK survey of marketing budgets, known as the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising Bellwether Report, which has become widely-watched as an accurate advance indicator of UK marketing and advertising trends. For more details of this report please visit www.warc.com/bellwether.

FUTURE RELEASES
The ICA Survey of Marketing Budgets is published quarterly (January, April, July, October editions). Subscriptions to the ICA survey can be purchased from www.warc.com/ica.
Two levels of service are available: (1) Standard report (PDF): $495 per annum; (2) Data service, which includes spreadsheets of historical data and PDF reports: $595 per annum. For subscriptions, please contact Charlotte Shand, Tel: +44 1491 418 700 email: charlotte.shand@warc.com.
To be added to the press release distribution list please contact chris_williamson@ntc.co.uk.
Alternatively, press releases can be viewed and downloaded from the press center on NTC’s website (www.ntc-research.com).

A new Board of Directors and Executive Committee were elected today at the Annual General Meeting of the Institute of Communications and Advertising. Peter Shier continues into his second year as Chair of ICA.

ICA welcomes new board members:

• Jack Bensimon, Bensimon•Byrne
• Claude Carrier, Bos
• Doug Conn, Wasserman & Partners Advertising
• Gerry Frascione, BBDO
• James Kabrajee, Marshall Fenn Communications

ICA would also like to thank the following for their commitment and contributions to ICA’s Board of Directors as they step down, having completed their term on the Board:

• John Clinton, Grey Worldwide
• Gary Hendrick, Hendrick & Associates Marketing Services

Board of Directors 2005/2006

• Jack Bensimon*, Bensimon•Byrne
• Jay Bertram, TBWA\Toronto
• Rupert Brendon*, Institute of Communications and Advertising
• Claude Carrier, Bos
• Jacques Chalifour, Zoum Armada Inc.
• Bruce Claassen, Genesis Media Inc.
• Robert Clarkson, Carlson Marketing Group Canada Inc
• Doug Conn, Wasserman & Partners Advertising
• Arlene Dickinson, Venture Communications
• Jacques Duval*, Marketel
• Arthur Fleischmann*, john st.
• Gerry Frascione*, BBDO
• Peter Jeffery, GJP Advertising
• Chris Jordan*, Young & Rubicam Group of Companies
• James Kabrajee, Marshall Fenn Communications
• Chris Keevill, Corporate Communications Limited
• Paul LeBlanc, Extreme Communications
• David Leonard, DDB Canada
• Andy Macaulay*, ZiG
• Brett Marchand, Cossette Communication Group
• David Moore, Leo Burnett Company Ltd.
• Tony Pigott, JWT Canada
• Peter Shier*, Foote Cone & Belding Canada

*Executive Committee Members

OFFICERS

• Chair, Peter Shier
• Past Chair, Jacques Duval
• President, Rupert Brendon
• Vice Chair/Treasurer, Andy Macaulay
• Vice Chair, Chris Jordan
• Secretary, Paula Rose

Celebrating its 100th anniversary this year (founded in 1905 as the Canadian Association of Advertising Agencies), the Institute of Communications & Advertising represents Canada's communications and advertising agencies. ICA serves as the largest source of information, advice and training for Canada's communications and advertising industry, whose economic impact is worth approximately $14.5 billion annually. Each year, ICA member agencies also donate millions of dollars in pro bono work to help support over 100 local, regional and national charities and non-profit organizations.

ICA develops initiatives, programs and best practice guidelines to help build better ICA agencies and so improve their real and perceived value to clients. This includes the quarterly ICA Survey of Marketing Budgets, Agency Search, Canadian Marketing Pocket Book, Client/Agency Opinion Study, Measuring and Valuing Brand Equity, and the CASSIES, the only Canadian advertising awards show that recognizes proven business effectiveness, backed up by rigorous published cases.

(TORONTO: November 8, 2005): Rupert Brendon, President and CEO of Institute of Communications & Advertising is pleased to announce the appointment of Suzanne Filiatrault to a new position at ICA as Director of Professional Development. Meghan Pollock has also been hired as Professional Development/Event Coordinator.

Suzanne is a well-grounded communication specialist with a 25+ year career in marketing, advertising, brand development and internet solution design. She has worked on both the client and agency side and most recently developed a product design consulting practise working with an array of brand development and research clients. On the client side, she has worked with, Canadian Hockey Association, Mediconsult Inc., Bowne (Quadravision), Cadbury Schweppes Powell, Monarch Fine Foods Inc, and The Hudson’s Bay Company (Hbc) and for agencies In-Sync,Vickers & Benson, Ogilvy & Mather and DMB&B.

Suzanne's passion for innovation and learning inspired her to pursue a Masters in Education from University of Toronto (completing Fall 2005) focused on workplace learning and organizational change. She is also a sessional instructor of communications and marketing courses with University of Toronto (Scarborough Campus, School of Management). Suzanne brings to her new role at the ICA the ideal combination of practical real-world communication experience combined with a fresh, educationally minded academic background.

Celebrating its 100th anniversary this year (founded in 1905 as the Canadian Association of Advertising Agencies), ICA represents Canada's communications and advertising agencies. ICA serves as the largest source of information, advice and training for Canada's communications and advertising industry, whose economic impact is worth approximately $14.5 billion annually. Each year, ICA member agencies also donate millions of dollars in pro bono work to help support over 100 local, regional and national charities and non-profit organizations.

ICA develops initiatives, programs and best practice guidelines to help build better ICA agencies and so improve their real and perceived value to clients. This includes the quarterly ICA Survey of Marketing Budgets, Agency Search, Canadian Marketing Pocket Book, Client/Agency Opinion Study, Measuring and Valuing Brand Equity, and the CASSIES, the only Canadian advertising awards show that recognizes proven business effectiveness, backed up by rigorous published cases.

The ICA Survey of Marketing Budgets, conducted by NTC Research and based on quarterly information provided by a panel of 270 senior marketing executives in Canadian companies, showed that marketing budgets were raised in Q3 as companies reported higher profits and launched new products in the light of solid business optimism for coming months.

Upward revisions to total marketing budgets for the current financial year were reported by 22% of companies in Q3, while just 12% reported lower budgets. The resulting net increase signalled was the largest since Q2 2004.

Companies raising their budgets attributed the increase to higher than anticipated sales and profits in recent months, as well as the need to expand their marketing activities to introduce new products.

Increases to budgets were broad-based by most commonly noted in consumer-facing sectors, including consumer durables, packaged consumer goods and retail.

Total marketing budgets for 2005 had initially been set higher than 2004, with companies expecting growth to surpass that seen in the previous two years, and the latest upward revision to current budgets suggests that growth of marketing spend in 2005 will be even greater than initially envisaged.

“This survey suggests that the 2005 financial year is set to be a strong year for marketing, especially for media adspend, the internet and sales promotion,” says Rupert Brendon, President & CEO of the ICA. “And as marketing acts as a leading indicator of economic growth, the wider economy is therefore also likely to show robust growth in coming months.”

The only category to see a downward revision to current budgets was the 'all other' marketing sector. The survey therefore suggests a shift of spend away from activities such as sponsorship, market research, PR and corporate communications and, to a lesser extent, direct marketing, towards the internet, sales promotion and media adspend. These latter two categories were often boosted by increased expenditure on new product launches, for which they are traditionally favoured.

Media adspend – revised up for second quarter running
Media advertising budgets (covering TV, print, cinema, radio and outdoor) were revised up for the second successive quarter in Q3. 19% of companies reported an upward revision, often citing improved profits and new product launches, while 15% reported a decline. The resulting net increase was below the survey high seen in Q2 but nevertheless signals a further improvement to adspend growth in coming months.

Sales promotions – revised up more than direct marketing and adspend
Current sales promotions budgets were revised up on average in Q3, extending the trend of rising expenditure seen throughout the survey's history. With only 8% of companies reporting a downward revision to budgets while 16% reported an increase, the overall net improvement signalled was the strongest of all marketing categories covered by the survey with the exception of internet-related spend for the fourth consecutive quarter.

Direct marketing – revised up, reversing cut in Q2
Direct marketing budgets were revised up in Q3, contrasting with a cut in Q2 (18% reported a rise while 14% noted a cut to budgets). Survey respondents attributed the increase to improved profits, higher than expected sales and, in many cases, an attraction to direct marketing due to its perceived greater accountability and low costs compared to media adspend. However, the extent of the Q3 upward revision was below that seen for both sales promotion and - by a smaller margin - media adspend.

Internet – saw the strongest growth of budgets once again
The internet continued to gain in popularity as a marketing tool in Q3, with internet-related budgets again seeing by far the sharpest upward revision of all fields of marketing, as has been the case over the past five quarters. Some 23% of companies reported an increase to internet budgets in Q3 compared to just 5% reporting a decline.

‘All other’ marketing – only sector to see a budget cut
Current budgets for ‘all other' marketing (which includes activities such as sponsorship, market research, PR and corporate communications) were revised down for the second consecutive quarter in Q3. Although only very slight, the decrease in budgeted spend was significant as this was the only broad category of marketing to see a decline, as had also been the case in Q2. Just 7% of survey respondents reported an upward revision, linked to higher than anticipated profits and sales plus new product launches, but 9% reported a decrease, commonly citing the need to reduce costs in the face of tough competition and higher energy prices.

NOTES
The ICA Survey of Marketing Budgets is researched and published by NTC Research on behalf of the Institute of Communications and Advertising. The report features original data drawn from a panel of Canadian marketing professionals and provides a key indicator of the health of the economy. The survey panel has been carefully selected to represent all key business sectors, drawn primarily from the nation's top 1000 companies.

Data for the ICA survey were first collected in Q3 2003. The survey uses the same methodology as NTC’s UK survey of marketing budgets, known as the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising Bellwether Report, which has become widely-watched as an accurate advance indicator of UK marketing and advertising trends. For more details of this report please visit www.warc.com/bellwether.

FUTURE RELEASES
The ICA Survey of Marketing Budgets is published quarterly (January, April, July, October editions). Subscriptions to the ICA survey can be purchased from www.warc.com/ica.
Two levels of service are available: (1) Standard report (PDF): $495 per annum; (2) Data service, which includes spreadsheets of historical data and PDF reports: $595 per annum. For subscriptions, please contact Charlotte Shand, Tel: +44 1491 418 700 email: charlotte.shand@warc.com.
To be added to the press release distribution list please contact chris_williamson@ntc.co.uk.
Alternatively, press releases can be viewed and downloaded from the press center on NTC’s website (www.ntc-research.com).

Consumer products company Unilever Canada is providing the lead donation. Several other companies, including 16 advertising agencies, have committed amounts that bring the total to $1.25 million – 50 percent of the goal. Other donors will be sought amongst advertising agencies, major marketing firms and media companies across Canada. The top five donors will join the MCET advisory board to provide the essential link between industry and academe, and ensure the curriculum is both current and relevant.

“We like Laurier grads enough to hire a lot of them,” said Geoff Craig, vice president and general manager, HPC Canada, Unilever Canada. “Now they will be able to hit the ground running.”

“We chose Laurier bec