Advertising & Promotion Campaigns

Making domestic travel tangible

Marketing
Page: 11 : May 2008

LexisNexis Summary: Advertising & Promotion Campaigns

TNS is trying to find out why fewer Australians are travelling in their own county than in the past. Bronwyn White, of TNS Leisure & Travel, says its research will focus particularly on families and people aged between 18 and 30, referred to as adultescents. White says previous research has indicated that these groups felt that ignored by past domestic tourist marketing campaigns. Lawrence Franklin, of Tourism Australia, said the body is hopeful that TNS's findings will be of use to it in promoting local tourism

Products & Services

Life thrives in the laneways

The Age
Page: A8 : 28 May 2008
Original article by Chris Vedelago

LexisNexis Summary: Products & Services

Developers are responding to public demand, with six new retail laneways in Melbourne in the planning stages. Melburnians love to indulge themselves in the restaurants, cafes and shops of the eclectic and intricate network of laneways, such as the historic Block Arcade and Royal Arcade, or the modern Degraves Street and Centre Place. The establishment of new retail laneways not only responds to public interest, but maximises the profitability of space for developers

Warrant offers tailored loans

The Australian Financial Review
Page: 34 : 28 May 2008
Original article by John Wasiliev

LexisNexis Summary: Products & Services

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia has launched a new options and lending (Opals) equity product. The offering, which is a hybrid of instalment warrants and a protected loan, differs from a protected equity loan in that borrowing can be tailored to suit an investment strategy. Investors will be able to borrow between 50 per cent and 100 per cent of the investment portfolio value. Moghseen Jadwat, of the bank's structured investments division, claims the product has been designed specifically for self-managed superannuation fund investors

E-Business

Sensis erects auction block with special appeal to Australian buyers and sellers

The Age
Page: A14 : 28 May 2008
Original article by Malcolm Maiden

LexisNexis Summary: E-Business

Telstra's Sensis will launch Trading Post auctions online in mid-2008 in order to compete with eBay Australia. While eBay has a strong international base of buyers and sellers, the Trading Post venture may well succeed on the basis of its well-established name, its promise not to charge for up to 50 listings per month and a cap strategy on successful sales fees. Sensis CEO Bruce Akhurst will take the risk of launching the online auction against the enormity of eBay, as the company must find a way to justify its overpriced purchase of the Trading Post in 2004

Marketing Strategy

Wizard braces for a torrid meeting

The Australian
Page: 37 : 28 May 2008
Original article by Adele Ferguson

LexisNexis Summary: Marketing Strategy

Franchisees of the Wizard Home Loans business in New South Wales will hold a meeting on 28 May 2008. They are likely to seek answers from management including chair and founder Mark Bouris on the unexpected sale of the company by GE Money. Wizard has been affected by the global credit crisis, but also suffered due to franchisees being unhappy at the commission and other policies of GE. Among these is the forced selection of GE offshoot Genworth as the mortgage insurance provider, despite its relatively high charges. Bouris meanwhile is said to be interested in reacquiring the business he sold to GE in 2004, or in forming a joint venture with GE and Challenger Financial Services

Marketers set their sights on sexy seniors

Marketing
Page: 11 : May 2008

LexisNexis Summary: Marketing Strategy

The recent rise in interest rates, along with the suggestion of a economic downturn, is not bothering over-55s in Australia. With the vast majority owning their own homes, they are the generation with the highest level of discretionary spending, something that marketers are finally realising. Chris Cormack, of Senioragency Australia, notes that women in their sixties can potentially influence the purchasing habits of four generations by their decisions

Consumer Behaviour

It's all mine!

Australian Property Investor Magazine
Page: 24-25 : June 2008
Original article by Matthew Liddy

LexisNexis Summary: Consumer Behaviour

People whose address postcode is 6425 are the most likely group in Australia to own their home outright, according to SQM Research. The postcode takes in the small towns of Moorine Rock and Dulyabin east of Perth in Western Australia, where over 80 per cent of homes are owned outright. The capital city suburb with the highest level of outright home ownership is Laverton North in Melbourne, with 60.1 per cent of residents owning their home outright. Suburbs with high outright home ownership rates offer a number of attractions for real estate investors, including less competition from other rental properties

Top end of town hit by house price rise despite growing income

The Age
Page: A7 : 28 May 2008
Original article by Carol Nader

LexisNexis Summary: Consumer Behaviour

The housing affordability crisis is also affecting affluent Australians. Research by the National Centre for Social & Economic Modelling at the University of Canberra found that, among the most affluent 10 per cent of Australians, outright home ownership fell from 35 per cent in 1995-96 to 28 per cent in 2005-06. The proportion who were still paying a mortgage increased from 43 per cent to 50 per cent

CBA gains popularity

The Australian Financial Review
Page: 59 : 28 May 2008
Original article by Eric Johnston

LexisNexis Summary: Consumer Behaviour

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) has moved up a place in the latest round of customer satisfaction rankings. The bank's move into third position comes at the expense of rival, the National Australia Bank (NAB). While the CBA added nearly two percentage points in the year to 30 April 2008, the NAB slipped back 0.3 of a percentage point. It is the first time since July 2004 that the CBA has occupied the third ranking on the banking customer satisfaction list. Westpac is currently ranked second on the list