Much economic damage was caused by Operation Protective Edge. In addition to the damage to businesses in the south of the country and around Gaza, sharp declines were also recorded in the shopping industry in the center of the country.
And if there is no shopping, then there is no advertising either.
The general advertising industry is currently experiencing a real drama. Due to the fighting in the south, dozens of employees have been forced to take unpaid leave; many campaigns have been frozen and postponed indefinitely, and office activity has been reduced to the point of complete paralysis.
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Even the offices that are still conducting business as usual, despite the security situation, are mainly busy with voluntary campaigns for global awareness or for residents of the South. The most prominent of these is the 'We Are All South' project, an initiative of the Tel Aviv-based Makan and Bank Leumi, which aims to leverage sales for businesses in the South through online purchasing.
Although the logic of disabling campaigns during war is not absolute, because it apparently depends on the consumption category, it nevertheless appears that advertising agency clients prefer to 'talk' to the consumer when he is at his best, rather than when he is preoccupied during combat.
The effects of the fighting on ultra-Orthodox advertising
Even without the fighting in Gaza, the Haredi advertising market has been fighting all year for every piece of the general budget pie. Ask any advertising professional about sectoral discrimination, and you will immediately receive an in-depth speech about the inequality in the distribution of advertising budgets to the Haredi sector.
So is the Haredi advertising market also suffering from a shake-up following Operation Protective Edge, and does the reduction in activity in large agencies also affect the activity of Haredi advertising agencies?
Eitan Dobkin management The Haredi branch of 'Habzafar'' And one of the senior marketing people in the Haredi sector, tells the Haredim10, about the direct consequences of the fighting, in the Haredi advertising industry:
""The Haredi advertising market is part of the Israeli market. The mood of the Israeli public, general or Haredi, is not at its peak during times of war and security tensions, and this is also felt among the Haredi advertising world. No one is in too good of a mood when alarms are sounding all over the country.".
""It is also important to understand that the broad mobilization of reserve forces in Israel did not pass over the ultra-Orthodox advertising agencies and the marketing managers of the marketing companies, and this directly affects their activities.
""You don't have to go far to understand that advertising moves that were expected for the summer months, when the Haredi consumer is on vacation 'between times,' have been postponed by several days, weeks, or will wait in the drawer for better days.".
""An example of this is the large and impressive campaign by the 'Afikim' advertising agency for an experiential activity by 'Osem' in the city of Elad. In light of the security situation, we can already see advertisements from Osem these days announcing that the park planned to exist in the intervening years will not exist.".
""This is a unique and unusual activity among the Haredi advertising market. Another example is the Bnei Brak Municipality's employment and education fair, which was supposed to be held about a week ago, and due to the security situation was postponed to the end of the month of Av.".
Is it appropriate to generally freeze campaigns during combat or is it better to divide them according to consumption categories?
""It is not possible to give a blanket answer to this question. The issue must be examined objectively, each case individually, the target audience, and whether it is directly related to the issues being affected at this time.".
""The consumer is not in much of a mood to go shopping or order one service or another when the guns are roaring and the alarms are sounding.".
""It is also important to remember that these days the great leaders of Israel have announced the cancellation or shortening of the holiday between seasons. This is a significant period of consumption in many consumer sectors, and this change will certainly affect the time the public has to carry out the shopping they planned for the new season.".
To what extent is it appropriate to include in campaigns during combat, content with a connection to combat, such as the Halperin Optics campaign - 'War Prices' or advertising about 'Discount for Southern Residents', etc.?
""The general public in Israel has a very high affinity for the issue of security, but the line between true identification and cynical exploitation is very thin. Many good people who truly wanted to strengthen the people living in Zion have already been heavily criticized for cynical exploitation.".
""If a company wants to strengthen the fighters or the home front, let it find the direct way to do so, and in today's era of connectivity, if it's real, it will get the credit.".
""But if it tries to gain a few more points through the newspaper, then the company will be criticized for taking advantage of the situation.".
""Regarding the residents of the south, if there is truly a benefit for the residents, and not just doing what is required for the sake of advertising, there is no doubt that the move will be positive. But it also needs to appear genuine and not take advantage of the situation," Dobkin concludes.
Analysis of advertising volume in the Haredi press during the operation
Hani Weiser, Founder ''Item - Media Information', Sorts out the data and presents an analysis of the volume of advertising in the Haredi sector in light of Operation Protective Edge - July 2014:
""The campaign began on July 8, 2014, in the second week of advertising in the month. The volume of advertising in the national Haredi press (in the ten newspapers included in the sample) ranged from 250 to about 320 pages and has recorded negative fluctuations since the campaign began, especially since the third week of July.
""The linear trend line undoubtedly shows a decrease in the amount of advertising, since the beginning of the operation in general and since the beginning of the ground operation in particular.
""This is a gradual decline, and it is difficult to say whether it is directly dependent on the security situation, but it can be seen that assuming the situation continues in the same format, the decline in advertising volume will also continue.".
""The 'Item - Media Information' project only began its activities about a month ago; data that will be accumulated over the coming months will be able to shed light and express more clearly the state of the advertising market during the days of the campaign, compared to the days following it," says Weiser.
