Sponsor (Sept-Dec 1957)

The marketing veep holds the purse strings, must okay all major national media decisions like network tv buys, and is key in choice of agency cisions, including the selection of air media? Those are questions all executives concerned with the preparation, buying and selling of advertising confront today. In the past few months, these are among major tv advertisers who have reorganized their ad management under marketing v.p.'s: Philip Morris appointed George Weissman; Chrysler Corp., James Cope; P. Lorillard, Emanuel Yellen; Shaeffer Pen Co., Edmund F. Buryan. Other firms, like Campbell Soup and Nabisco, have been operating their advertising planning under a marketing v.p. for a year or more. It's likely that more companies, large and small, will appoint marketing v.p.'s this year. The reasons: the complexities of our economy and the increasing complexity of advertising, particularly television. "It's difficult in today's complex business situation to know where selling and advertising leave off," says Nabisco marketing v.p. Lee Bickmore. "And it is more important than ever to have these efforts correlated and working hand-in-hand." The solution in many major companies today is to have advertising and sales executives working side by side and reporting to a marketing v.p. His objective: a well-meshed and harmonious joint effort. Originally the top advertising executive in most companies used to report to the top sales executive, since advertising was considered simply an aid to selling. Then as advertising grew in stature (and budget), particularly through the effectiveness and costliness of television, advertising came to rank more and more on a level with sales. A new phenomenon arose: The top advertising executive, like the key sales executive in a firm, reported to the president or executive v.p. of the company in a direct line of responsibility. "But it's difficult for the executive v.p. of a major company to be intimately concerned with the marketing of his products," as Ross R. Millhiser. assistant director of marketing at Philip Morris, explains it. "After all. he also carries the top responsibility for all company finance, for construction, expansion, supervision of subsidiaries and so forth. Therefore, many companies have found the need to install a key executive at an intermediary level to coordinate all the marketing functions." The pattern: Major multi-brand package goods firms tend to organize the various departments under the marketing v.p. along similar lines. For instance, Nabisco, Campbell Soup and Philip Morris all have corporate advertising directors: Harry Schroeter, Rex Budd and Roger Greene, respectively. These men function on a policy level as media coordinators between the various brands or divisions. But one of their most important functions is to negotiate and buy network television programing and help apportion it among the various brand groups that may be interested in such a vehicle. These advertising directors or v.p.'s report to the marketing v.p. in the same way that the sales vice president does. But advertising strategy and media breakdowns for the individual brands come not from them, but from the brand groups of divisions. When a Philip Morris agency makes a presentation of new plans, it has been worked out with the particular brand group involved. Roger Greene ha* probably been consulted throughout, but the primary responsibilitv for the planning lies with the brand group. Here's how he functions as media coordinator: Suppose Spud cigarettes decide to cancel some commercial schedules in a particular market. The brand ad manager first checks with Roger Greene, who sees whether another PM brand might want these schedules, before Spud cancels them. George Weissman, as the Philip Morris marketing v.p., is responsible for the entire company's advertising. But he does not get into the actual operation or execution of ad plans. The chiei marketing executive reports to the executive v.p. and is accountable to him for developing, planning, directing and coordinating all long and short-term marketing policies and programs. Therefore, the marketing v.p. is not likely to see any media representative, since he does not usually personally shape media strategy. On the other hand, network tv decisions, which used to need the approval of the company president (and as a formality, still do in some instances I frequent!) do involve the marketing v.p. For instance, John McGlinn, Campbell Soup Co. marketing v.p., does get into negotiations with top network brass when a new buy, or an extension of the station lineup might be in the offing. (For an analysis of Campbell's ad management, see "Campbell's New advertising team two years later," 1 June 1957 issue of sponsor.) The new Philip Morris: this is the trend for most big tv advertisers George Weissman, Philip Morris marketing v.p. (above) is responsible for all sales, advertising, marketing programs shaped by such top executives reporting to him as (1. to r.) Roger Greene, advertising \.1>.: Ray Jones, sales v.p.; conferring about net t\ with Marlboro brand mgr. T. S. Christensen, as-'t. mkt. dir. R. R. Millhiser 26 SPONSOR 28 SEPTEMBER 1957