CHENNAI, Dec 23: Ogilvy and Mather (O&M), ranked third in the country, has started a creative workshop to offer design services to small companies (with annual advertising budgets less than Rs 15 lakh) under the banner of "Design Direct".

"Design Direct was conceived by O&M International with the intention of putting our creative resources to optimum use. The concept was also meant to make the O&M's creative pool available to companies which looked for a one-time advertising campaign and needed experienced advertising agencies to develop the artwork for them," Krishna Mohan, general manager, O&M, Chennai, told The Financial Express.

"Design Direct is an exercise being implemented in all O&M offices in the Asia Pacific region," he said. Mohan said this was being done to make their creative pool available to companies who approached O&M for such campaigns like sending direct mailers or any printed literature to a select band of potential customers. O&M's role, however, would be confined to the artwork stage.

Such companies need not necessarily be O&M's clients. They are the ones which have an advertisement budget of around Rs 15 lakhs or less and are those which normally could not afford to go to agencies the size of O&M but are in need of good creative designing for a smaller campaign. O&M is tapping this potential market and as an additional incentive is throwing in a 30 per cent discount to its one-time customers. The agency has also tied up with some printing houses like Print Systems Ltd, who undertake to find creative freelancers for their clients. Apart from roping in more business, Design Direct is also aimed at aiding O&M internationally. Design Direct units would also be used as design centres to develop creative for O&M's international clients. This would be done either by designing the entire artwork or adhering to the tailored requirements as specified by headquarters.

Design Direct, a six-month-old project in India, has already started adding to the bottom line. In Chennai alone, the company has thus far clocked in Rs 3 lakh from small business houses and has similar targets for all its centres in the country.

O&M also plans to hive off Design Direct into a separate profit centre. The agency also is also planning to recruit people to handle the marketing end of the business.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.