by Irashath A. Manik
With the turn of the century the overcrowded concrete jungle of Male', the capital of Maldives saw an exponential growth in outdoor advertising. Almost all major junctions are filled with billboards of advertisements of different corporations. Local TV and radio channels broadcast advertising more than any real content. More space is allotted to the advertisers and their products on daily news papers and magazines. But why do all these advertisements fail to sell its brands / products? Why do they increase negative perceptions instead of propelling their companies? The darker side of this industry could be one of the reasons.
Dhiraagu Plagiarizing Superman movie poster creating D-Man (2008)
The corruption
The survivors in this industry are comparatively few, two of the largest advertising agencies are closely linked to the former first family. It is not by chance that almost all advertising projects by the government and government owned corporations were awarded to these agencies. Some of these organizations were forced to accept expensive and redundant proposals put forth by them. Some examples include the awarding of projects without fair bidding process such as the Airport advertising, promotional books, events and most of the advertising of Maldives Tourism Promotion Board (MTPB), Ministry of Transport driver's license, National Stadium billboard and a large amount of unnecessary advertising from the previous telecom monopoly Dhiraagu.
In some cases the advertising deals are also awarded through consultation firms comprising of middle-management staff who handle the advertising departments of these companies. They deal directly with the creatives of the advertising agency. Most of the companies lack long term marketing plans, budgets and schedules. Creative concepts are demanded usually at the last minute which limit development of any effective campaigns backed with market research. The marketing staff usually select the 'safest' proposals for top managers to approve; ones they would approve unquestionably. And when presented the audience also fail to notice them as well thereby creating a huge waste of effort and money from the product's perspective. In many cases the service providers are unable to provide what is promised by the advertisements making customers loose trust in these companies.
Wataniya & Dhiraagu
An interesting development occurred when the 2nd telecom operator Middle-east based Wataniya was granted license to operate mobile telephony in 2004. With its incorporation, one of the two advertising companies (who continued advertising for Dhiraagu) split forming a new company initially catering only to Wataniya on a Multi-Million dollar retainer contract allowing the owning family to cater to both of the largest visible advertisers in the country. Some of the advertising campaigns produced were not well thought out and in many cases plagiarized exact copies of ideas from other international advertisements. Dhiraagu is worse! Their mesh of corruption is deeply linked to the undemocratic roots of the company and the country. The billboards serve as communication between these two telephony companies in an ongoing feud between them, contributing to the mass billboard graveyard of Male'.
Plagiarized Wataniya advertisement (2008) and its original (2007)
Think big
Now consumers are more powerful and educated ever before. All big advertisers of the industry (government and private) should re-think how to use their advertising budget in a way to benefit their company, making their products more sellable to their target market instead of using this money to be on the good books of a few powerful people while making insulting advertisements. The sad story behind each of the shady deals reflects on the final advertisements. The incompleteness and the miscommunications tells the consumers the story of the company.
Currently no financial organization in the Maldives is willing to support the younger advertising companies. If we would like to see the advertisements become more meaningful instead of the dull and target-less ones we come across, an effort has to be made. The communication gap between consumers and companies needs to be closer. It is time for companies like Wataniya & Dhiraagu to take initiatives and act. On the positive side there are a lot of creative artists working in the advertising industry. For the creativity to flourish corruption has to vanish.
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35 comments:
Sounds like a bitter new comer to the Advertising industry or reject from a big firm. I have dealt with the so called small companies and big companies and the difference: reliability. The small companies are not ambitious enough. They do one job and is satisfied with the money. The next time around we have to run after them. No one takes responsibility and we ultimately lose. Big companies! well, we can go after them if they don't deliver. They are more responsible. I also believe there is a lot of talent out there but we are not simply looking for the one digital design. We are looking at turn-key jobs with reliable delivery. The so called small groups need to prove themselves first through small jobs.
BTW, you might have not been reading the news lately. The Airport, Stadium and MTTB jobs were all tendered.
Here is a related article from 6 years ago from Maldives culture. http://www.maldivesculture.com/news/maldives_president_photos01.htm
Great article. More young writers should be brave like this author and write and talk about corruption in their fields of interest, or about corruption in places where they worked in under the Regime, remnants of which remain within the system, creating a climate of fear that democracy may be lost after all.
Exactly to the point!! Please note that the present website bid being evaluated at MTPB is most probably going through the same channel. No INFORMATION regarding the EVALUATION team has been /or will NOT be released. I see this as corruption holding information
Its just been too long that a company like Dhiraagu (Cable and Wireless) been abusing the people. Not only through adverting but by their rip off service. I wonder where the Telecommunication Authority of Maldives it doing about it.
Even with the new government the unfair bidding procedure is still the same. I personally have witnessed unfair bidding procedures within this month in three different government bodies and one of them is MTPB. I have all the written evidence of the above matter in detail. If government is concerned about the growing industry of creative professionals they need implement a better, fair and more transparent bidding procedures fast, in the form of regulations and/or guidelines.
This is very true.
Its all false advertisement like No:1 service provider Dhiraagu, fastest internet connection, coverage in the entire maldives. This all BULL
Dhiraagu is ripping us off, their bill is so complicated to understand or to read....
Agree with this article 100%, Dhiraagu is the worst as you have said.Corruption is from Head to toe. I dont understand why "The Auditor General" have no guts to ENTER Dhiraagu.
This is a very good and short analysis of what's going on. Wataniya pays Think over RF 100,000 a Month for making these copycat ads. That is not including the production cost. I wish that you label some of these people who are involved.
One other reason that these adverts fail to reach the consumer is that they are not based any research. Usually the marketing execs at these companies are not qualified for the job so only way for them to survive is to align themselves with one of these firms like THINK who are much more interest overheads then the clients needs. The industry is so small here that there is no way of advertisers to asses there campaigns. Small creative firms stand no chance unless they are funded by mega rich moguls like Sato or a big company like BIG cos the banking systems have no facilities for small firms to invest. And these two companies own all the advertising real estate in Male' so the advertisers are bullied in to getting bargain.
Mass advertising would work in bigger markets like India and China. It is effective only when products are so commoditized and so competitive the only means of differentiation is through maximum exposure.
Maldives does not meed mass advertising. The two companies Artline and BIG are so narrow minded people, they don't realize the damage they are doing to the island culture by erecting signs of globalization.
Having your wet dreams on being an adverting company is one thing. Its disgusting for the tourists to see the global sign tags shouting out from all buildings of Male, when all they expect is a beautiful island.
Also the Goverment should stop giving contracts to these companies to destroy the facade of Male.
Hope there is a regulation on outdoor adverts soon considering the negative social impacts those unrealistic sublime messages create.
thi dhiraagu ga ulhey sales manager ali riyaz aai marketing ge bodakah hunna mirshaan aai dhemeehunge hissaa onna india ge kunfunin hurihaa isthihaaru thakeh hadhanee, mee corrupt vefa thibi dhemeehun
labour and youth and thinking very BIG indeed
As anonymous 12:59pm says, Airport, Stadium and MTPB are tendered. And so is most other government corrupt projects handed over. The process is not transparent and usually fixed. You will know this when you compare the living condition of the middle management of these companies and the salary they get. Mirshan is an example.
What a shame! copycats! Think is really a copycat! From their name to all their advertising. And stupid Wataniya paying for copycats
multi million dollar industry?
Before we talk about the advertising comapanies I believe we should protect the small to medium business first. Look at Dhiraagu. They are too BIG... They basically hold monopoly to fixed line communication, Has been the monopoly as the local ISP until Focus Infocom came up to whom the government gave a blind eye in terms of facilitating. Then the mobile monopoly until Wataniya and the same reaction from government towards Watainya.
AND NOW the BIG one... Recently the government of Maldives has awarded the maintenance, running and upgrade of the Maldives National IT infrastructure to Dhiraagu..
Monopoly being rebuild again...
We need answers... Government needs to sell the shares of Dhiraagu and open the market....
Where are the guys who shouted that "If" they come to power they will cut down Dhiraagu to its size? I can name one of them, Mr State Minister of Home Affairs Mujuthaba. I told him that day "He cant touch Dhiraagu, NOBODY CAN" As annonymous said. NOT EVEN THE AUDITOR GENERAL CAN
"Art is either plagiarism or revolution.” So this maybe revolution. Ask Dhiraagu
the anonymous No1 who dealt with the so called small companies and big companies. now i see why you don't have a problem with these copycats. delivery and reliability would not be a problem if someone else has done it before.
Umm one thing i would like to say here is that i dont get clearly what writer is trying to explain about the Advertising industry in Maldives. and it seems he/she doesnt understand how it works and doesnt have enough knowledge on sdvertising, specially in MAldives. any of you guys cannot say that advertising may works the same way it does in anywhere else in the world.
and i feels that Wataniya is stealing exactly the same concept which another company has done, they've done this quite few times.
hehe this writer does not have any idea of how the ad indeustry is working here in MAldives and does not have enough knowledge on Advertising and how it works but he/she wanted to write something on advertising. you better do some analysing and do some interview on advertising in Maldives and
I think the writer is talking about Think Associates, Big & Artline working with consultant companies formed by marketing and management staff of big companies like Dhiraagu, and many private companies. This is by far the best article on this subject. She should have become more specific.
Hi dear young writer,
There is nothing good or bad in the visuals, jingles or spots as log as the advertiser is satisfied. Here in Maldives most of our entrepreneurs and corporates want an ad. They are so busy that they don't bother how the advertising dollar is spent. Your frustration is more imminent than a professional analysis. So better be in a more unbiased mode when you write again. Plagiarism in advertising; never heard! Copying the concepts of an ad and spinning it around is very common in most ads we find around the globe. Survey shows that only 3-5% of original ads are designed every year. So no harm... We can have only copy ads as we are not paid adequately to spend so much of energy in engaging in such a process....
This writer is an amateur who has no knowledge of the industry and what advertising is about. DO should now allow such amateur writter to publish content that are not reserached, analysed or interviewed. What is this writters background, knowledge, experience in the field or the know how on advertising!! Probably some street kid who is frustrated because he was rejected by Dhiraagu or Wataniya... hahaha...
OPEN CHALLENGE TO THE HON. AUDITOR GENERAL:
ENTER DHIRAAGU AND MAKE A LIST OF CORRUPTION JUST BY MIRSHAN AND MASOOD! ONLY THESE TWO! AND THEN GO FOR THE REST. YOU WILL HAVE ENOUGH TO WRITE 200 REPORTS LIKE THE ONE YOU WROTE ABOUT THE ATOLLS MINISTRY. YOU ALREADY KNOW THIS! BUT YOU CAN'T, WON'T OR ARE CHICKEN!!!!!
THIS IS A DARE, MR. NAEEM.
An excellent article, those corrupt companies and its associates are trying to divert the attention from the issue here.
Most of the accusations here are without any basis, just mere speculations. Agree there are malpractices and it is everywhere yet it is good for all of us to come up with proper facts instead of cry like a baby.
agree with thw writer....also pls note the MD of DHITV Masood is a senior executive of Dhiraagu trying to help out the corrupt Champaa Uchchu...so guess how the corruption could work in Maldives
Definitely he/she doesn't have any idea about how this industry runs in Maldives. I read it twice and didn't understand what exactly the author is trying to highlight.
As someone else has mentioned, small companies aren't reliable and big companies like Dhiraagu, Wataniya etc doesn't want to take chances like that. That's how the industry works everywhere in the world. Fortune 500 companies in the world doesn't pay cheap to the biggest advertising agencies in the world get their designs developed. Most of all those small companies ruin the market with cheaper prices that aren't worth the work.
As for Think....shame on them! Where are the ethics????
Why are these companies so copy cats? i am ashamed. There are many creative artists in Maldives. Why why why ??
This article encompasses how current situation of the Advertising industry. I am glad that someone wrote about this. This will go in history.
Copycats are corruption is something Gayyoom has put into the industry. And it is the responsibility of the new gov to make it more transparent.
On contrary to some of the comments, I think the author knows what she is talking about. Perhaps the commenters are too unaware of the what is going on deep inside. I suggest to read again few more times and also ask around. Gayyoom and his family's Artline, Think or Big may not give the correct answer.
Also read this. Designing the future
From Maldives Culture Article published on 2003.
Artline was formed around 1994 by young relatives of Gayyoom. Their mother is Hafeeza the daughter of Maumoon's sister Sakeena. Hafeeza's sons Maal and Fazaal run the company.
Artline receives the financial backing of Abdul Sathar Ali (Sato), who had allegedly embezzled millions of dollars from government funds while he was a director of Fisheries Projects Implementation Department (FPID) which was exporting canned tuna from Maldives.
FPID, the predecessor of Maldives Industrial Fisheries Company (MIFCO), was a department of the State Trading Organisation (STO) at the time. STO was functioning under the Ministry of Trade and it is alleged that Ilyas Ibrahim, brother-in-law of Gayoom, who was Minister of Trade and head of STO, collaborated with Sato in the embezzlement. In 1990, Sato's corruption was discovered and he was later put to trial but not convicted because of 'lack of evidence'.
Artline has won significant government contracts including the making of driving license cards. The contract was awarded without putting it on tender. Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation, currently headed by Minister Ilyas Ibrahim, issues driving licenses in the Maldives.
Business Image Group (BIG) was formed about three years ago. It is financially backed by Gayoom's Bangladeshi son-in-law Shuaib Shah who runs a successful law firm, Shah, Hussain & Co. in the Maldives. Some of the shareholders of BIG are also shareholders of Turquoise, a company that received a yacht marina and hotel contract earlier this year. It is said Ahmed Nashid from ADK Company won the bid but Gayyoom, upon returning from a pilgrimage to Mecca, altered the decision and gave the contract to Turquoise. Gayoom's sister-in-law Fareesha Ibrahim is a shareholder of Turquoise.
No doubt our beloved leader was feeling so pure after his circumambulation of the Ka'ba, he thought Allah would not notice this little transgression.
Artline and BIG are in fierce competition because both companies publish yellow pages in the Maldives. BIG publishes the official yellow pages of Maldives National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MNCCI), while Artline has its own separate yellow pages. Artline organises the official trade fair of MNCCI while BIG has recently been awarded the contract to publish the telephone directory of Maldives telecom company Dhiraagu.
Both companies attempt to outsmart each other in finding ways to please Gayoom, but the larger-than-life campaign billboards of Maldives leading torturer have become an embarrassment.
varah hithaama veri hihdhathi kameh libifaivaa golha ehge vaahaka kamah feney.
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