Slovenia! This is your wake-up call.
Is Slovenia a true paradise for doing business? “Yes” for advertising agencies and “No” for brands.
In the Netherlands it is the opposite. Brands are strongly developed and advertising agencies... well… not really…, I mean, if you compare it world-wide. But anyway, still ten times better developed than in Slovenia.
The main reason why Slovene agencies stagnate instead of developing further, or worse - even decline - is because of pitching. In Holland, we also pitch a lot but that’s absolutely nothing when you compare it to Slovenia. In this country the market is a single, gigantic, humongous pitch.
What’s the difference? If you win a pitch in Holland you sign a contract with a client for the next couple of years. In Slovenia you pitch for every project. That means that every time a client wants to communicate something, they are going to pitch.
Don’t be surprised that Slovene beer brands like Union or Laško will choose Publicis to do their image campaign, because they won their pitch, the new summer beer will be promoted by pitch winner DDB, the packaging design will rest in the hands of a local agency Arih (who also won the respective pitch), the new beer in spring time goes to pitch winner Grey, and the on-line campaign will be assigned to a design studio (let’s say Armada), whereas, finally, the new alcohol free beer campaign will go to me.
The negative consequence is that every agency does it differently, with a different philosophy, with other creatives on the job. That’s why you can never build a crystal clear brand. Confusion on the part of the Slovenian consumer is complete. No brand experience whatsoever. Truly messy brand behavior. Disruption the wrong way. The truth - well told in ten different ways. And so on....
Recession makes it all totally chaotic. Because in times of social decline and economical crisis clients want to have direct results (Sell! Sell! Sell!) and they for sure don’t care (anymore) about a good image feeling. That’s the main reason why companies with their brands go bankrupt in Slovenia.
But how can I substantiate then that Slovenia is a true paradise? Yes, it’s a true paradise for agencies seated outside Slovenia – namely, the inane Slovenian pitching system opens opportunities for independent advertising agencies from abroad.
The hugest problem that former Yugoslavia (not only Slovenia) faces is that advertising agencies can hardly produce original and steel-strong ideas that build immortal brands.
No, Slovene agencies are always busy winning pitches based on friends’ politics, or begging like spoiled children to get clients accounts or impress new clients with imposing blah-blah Ad- bullshit.
Some foreign agencies will recognize themselves in this. Please, for their sake, don’t even think about export. You won’t survive.
No. I have in mind agencies from abroad that have proven themselves to be extremely successful. If those talented brothers and sisters opened shop in a city like Ljubljana, they would conquer a significant if not the biggest piece of the Slovenian market share in no time.
Please Slovenia, wake up! Don’t die in your sleep!
Martin Mol
