Regmerk.co.za launches new mathematics website with free worksheets and assessments for teachers, learners and their parents.

Regmerk.co.za is a new Mathematics resources site for Afrikaans speaking learners in the senior phase. We give educators, parents and learners access to our growing knowledge base, which includes free assessments, useful articles and fun ways that learners can use to improve their marks.

Lourens Breytenbach, owner of Regmerk.co.za, says “If you do an online search for mathematics worksheets, assessments and summaries in Afrikaans, you will find that there is a constant and growing need for these resources.”

Visitors can download a free e-book with more than 50 pages filled with colourful articles, fun assessment questions and a printable collection of worksheets and summaries.

Here’s what you will find in our FREE e-book:

• 20 questions to see how “clever” you are
• Find out how you can improve your maths marks without studying more
• 10 Mistakes parents make
• 20 worksheets filled with printable exercises and summaries

Regmerk.co.za is a brand new project and promises to provide tons of useful maths resources for learners in the senior phase. Visit: www.regmerk.co.za and download the free e-book to learn more.

On the dawn of Youth Dynamix’s 15th year anniversary next month, we reflect on how the youth market has transformed in this short space of time and how marketers have had to adapt to survive.  

There’s no doubt, the marketing of goods and services have undergone a profound transformation over the past 15 years. Regulatory advances, new technologies and increasingly open global markets have all played their part in changing how the youth react and interact with products and services.  

The information conundrum….

Children and young adults are more significant forces in the marketplace now. But, while new technologies offer more access to information overall, many young consumers today lack the necessary skills to cope with the increasingly complex, information-intensive marketplaces they’re faced with.  

With many companies struggling to differentiate themselves in a highly competitive open market, they’re forced to bundle related products and offerings, making it difficult for consumers to compare them. As a result, young consumers have had to learn more about markets in order to make good decisions.  

“Show me, don’t tell me”

The youth’s ability and willingness to trade with a company depends on their level of confidence in it. That’s why it’s so important you don’t ignore brand activations. There are very few marketing activities as powerful as brand activations. This because they involve experiential, interactive, emotive and sustainable involvements with the brand. Overall, brand activations offer a more holistic view of the product and allow for an emotive connection with the brand – you cannot offer using new technologies alone.

Be sure to get the most out of your budget…

All engagement and communication campaigns developed by Youth Dynamix (YDx) include an element of measurability.  This gives you the assurance that you’ve met your ROI and have made a relevant impact in the market.   YDx is a youth & family specialist research and marketing agency.

To activate your brand in the youth market, contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 071 551 8200.

www.ydx.co.za

Johannesburg – December 2014 ‒ 21 ICONS South Africa in conjunction with its proud sponsors, Mercedes-Benz South Africa, will launch a series of activations and exhibitions at various consumer touch points around the country.

The events will demonstrate that the project has built an integrated, multimedia platform to impart key attributes and messages of extraordinary South African leaders of the past and present to the public and to connect with local and international audiences.  

The 21 ICONS project is an initiative aimed at documenting the lives of iconic individuals through fine art portraits, intimate conversations and short films, behind the scenes photography, written narrative as well as feature length documentaries into a truly converged visual experience to shape perceptions and transform societal norms, and impacting the communities around them. 

The first leg of the campaign kicked off on Saturday 22 November at the Cape Town and OR Tambo international airports where promoters handed out copies of the City Press, the projects chosen print media partner, and created awareness and hype about the ‘Me & My Icon’ selfie competition. Members of the public are encouraged to snap a selfie with a 21 ICONS collectable portrait poster inserted in the newspaper and post the picture alongside a short personal message to the featured icon on the 21 ICONS Facebook page. Readers can enter the selfie competition until 7 December 2014 and on 10 December an official draw will be held at Media 24 head offices and the winner of the new Mercedes-Benz C-Class will be announced. Each week the ten best entries are selected by the City Press editorial team and 21 ICONS South Africa will ensure that all the personal messages reach the relevant icon. Weekly prizes are awarded to the top three entries including Momentum Asset Management unit trusts, Nikon Coolpix cameras as well as 21 ICONS Season I collectable coffee table books. The 50 overall winners will then be entered into a lucky draw for the chance to drive away in a new luxury Mercedes-Benz C-Class. With an extended entry period until midnight on Sunday 7 December, readers can enter during this period using either the poster of Paralympian athlete, Zanele Situ who appears in this week’s issue or next week’s icon, writer Miriam Tlali whose portrait will be revealed. 

The airport activations will continue until Sunday 30 November and Monday 29 December at Cape Town International Airport and OR Tambo International Airport respectively where Season I’s unique short films and exquisite portraits as well as the latest Mercedes Benz C-Class will be on display.  

The winner of the ‘Me & My Icon’ competition will emerge from a lucky draw and be given the keys to a new Mercedes-Benz C-Class during the car handover scheduled to take place at The Victoria & Alfred (V&A) Waterfront in Cape Town on 13 December.

Supporting competition content will be aired on the V&A Amphitheatre screens ahead of the competition closing date and the Season I short films flighted during the competition period.   

Early next year the 21 ICONS project will also be showcased at the V&A for an extensive, full-spectrum indoor and outdoor exhibition.  

The promotions intend to encourage the community to actively engage with the icons and these platforms offer a unique opportunity to align the brand with a remarkable collection of South African leaders. 

About 21 Icons South Africa21 ICONS South Africa is an annual collection of photographs and short films of South Africans who have reached the pinnacle of achievement in their fields of endeavour. These men and women have been an inspiration through their extraordinary social contribution. It is not a definitive list and does not denote any ranking. 

The short film-series documents the conversations between Steirn as the photographer and filmmaker and the icons. Each short film provides insight into both the subject and photographer's creative approach to the portrait. 

Season two of 21 ICONS South Africa is proudly sponsored by Mercedes-Benz South Africa, Momentum Asset Management, Nikon, Deloitte and the Department of Arts and Culture. Season two debuted on Sunday 03 August continuing for another 20 weeks, one of 21 short films will be screened every Sunday on SABC 3 at 20h27.  

On each of these Sundays, a poster of the icon’s portrait, taken by Adrian Steirn and his creative team, will be published in the City Press to form a memorable collection that everyone can own.Media partners include SABC 3, City Press (Media 24), Provantage and Mxit. 

Social Media:21 Icons engages with the public through:Twitter: @21Icons Website: http://www.21icons.com Mobisite: www.21icons.com Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/21Icons Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/21ICONS/ iTunes App Store: http://tinyurl.com/lf3cfzm Google Play: http://tinyurl.com/ovtcy45 

On behalf of 21 ICONS South Africa 

Ornico Launches The Media Report 2014  

Sandton, South Africa – Wednesday 26 November 2014. Brand Intelligence™ and media research company, Ornico, today launched its second annual edition of The Media Report. Aimed at helping brands, marketers, media companies and advertising agencies better understand the forces that shape the sub-Saharan media sector, The Media Report 2014 is an electronic magazine available free for download from MarkLives.com or Ornico.co.za 

With over a hundred pages of insights on Africa’s media and research industry, The Media Report 2014 includes contributions from amongst South Africa’s most influential editors and advertising personalities. Gareth Cliff, SA’s ‘enfant terrible’ of radio, talks about streaming media and the reinvention he and his team effected with CliffCentral.com.  

Undoubtedly the most influential and powerful woman in the media in South Africa, former Editor-in-Chief of Huisgenoot, You and Drum, Esmaré Weideman – the CEO of Media24 – speaks about her responsibility for the commercial success of Africa’s largest publishing group, and talks about freedom of expression, advertising, independence and media monopoly. 

Other contributors include Chris Roper, Editor-in-Chief of the Mail & Guardian, who answers questions about editorial independence and honest information. Herman Manson, founder and editor of Marklives.com, talks about the marketing site’s investigative approach to trade media. Anton Harber, Adjunct Professor of Journalism, writes on the fine balance that delivers autonomy in newsrooms and enables journalists to produce more interesting, impactful and useful journalism. 

The Eyewitness News Editor-in-Chief, Katy Katopodis, answers 15 questions on her life, her values, the hurly-burly of daily news, and media independence. But that’s not all. Paulo Dias of Primedia Broadcasting explains the difference between technology and trust in radio, while Lyn Jones, Marketing Manager of Continental Outdoor Media, explores effective out of home advertising in Africa. 

The theme of The Media Report 2014 is independence. “Despite the fact that media independence and open information are the hallmarks of democracy, what we’re seeing is that there is an ongoing attack on media freedoms both in Africa and across the globe,” says Oresti Patricios, CEO of Ornico. 

“The most recent findings of the World Press Freedom Index, which is undertaken by Reporters Without Borders annually, shows that media freedom is on the decline on all continents,” bar Asia. “Africa is one of the biggest culprits and the freedom index indicates that when it comes to media transparency, this continent is in real trouble,” he says.

“Independent media is critical to Africa’s growth, not only because the press can be a watchdog that reports on abuses of power, but also because it educates and informs. Media independence is important to Africa because the media sector plays such an important role in economic growth and social development. Which is in part why we’ve invested resources in creating this media annual,” says Patricios, who adds that this media annual will become a permanent feature of SA’s publishing landscape.

Download your free copy The Media Report here: http://website.ornico.co.za/newsletters/  

-ends-

ABOUT ORNICO:

Ornico provides Reputation, Media and Brand Intelligence™ research across the African continent, making sense of the tsunami of brand, advertising and media information flooding the media space. By collecting and analysing media data and brand publicity across many media channels, Ornico helps put marketing decision makers in the know about the most important strategic decisions they'll ever make regarding their brands. Ornico employs a dedicated team of over 120 people in offices in South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya and Ghana, and has clients that include many of Africa's top companies.

Ornico - Know how. To grow.

CONTACTS: Oresti Patricios – CEO

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Twitter: @orestaki  

Mongezi Mtati – Marketing Manager

Call: 011 884 5041

Ornico Head Office: Tel: +27 11 884-5041

Fax: +27 11 783-6931

Twitter: @OrnicoMedia

Web: www.ornico.co.za

Have you ever tested yourself to the extent that you felt like giving up? That there is not a drop of energy left in your body, yet sheer willpower pushes you to persist and complete what you have started?  

Actor, Ivan Zimmermann plans to add a new dimension to mountain biking – he will depart from Cape Town on 9 January 2015 and plans to reach Cairo by 9 May 2015 as part of the Tour d’Afrique 2015.   

Zimmermann will ride with a team of Tour d’Afrique, a Canadian group known for organising bicycling trip through Africa.  Tour d’Afrique has been recognised as the world’s longest and most challenging mountainbike stage adventure. This will be the 13th edition of the Tour d’Afrique – a test of a  mind, body, and bicycle that will stretch through ten countries.  

“I have always dreamt to travel through Africa for a good cause,”says Zimmermann. “I initially thought I would do it on a motorbike, but I have done several mountainbike races during the past year and have subsequently decided to cross Africa from one point to the other on a bicycle.”  

The main sponsors of Zimmerman’s venture are SAICA (the South African Institute for Chartered Accountants), who will be running an internal motivational campaign, Leaders Never Quit, in conjunction with the trip, and SAGE Pastel. Ivan will also attempt to raise 12 000 tins of food for the Can-a-Kilo initiative as part of the adventure.  

“I plan to raise one tin of food for each of the 12 000 kilometres covered by the Tour d’Afrique. This food will be distributed by the Hanna Charity and Empowerment Foundation in South Africa,” says Zimmerman. Collection points for the tins can be found at www.ivanzimmermann.com  

“At this stage I am the only South African in the group,” he explains. “I will be responsible for setting up my own tent and will have to service my bicycle myself, but there will be a support team should I need assistance.”  

Ivan says tongue-in-the cheeck, “I think I might need all the support possible to finish.  I know it is going to be tough, but I am determined not to give up at any point. Leaders never quit, despite how difficult the circumstances are. There might be days where I ask myself what I let myself into, but it will be on days like those that true leaders are born. Leaders never quit!”  

The trip to Cairo will stretch through Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Botswana, Namibia and South Africa. Zimmerman will take photos and videos and will share that with media on a regular basis. He is also planning to follow the trip with motivational talks countrywide.  

“This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, a dream that has become a reality,”says Zimmermann. A dream that will test me to my limits. But also a dream that will show the world that leaders never quit.”  

About Ivan Zimmermann  

Ivan was born free and with a great sense of adventure. He is known to the South African public as actor, for roles in Egoli, 7de Laan, Interrogation Room and Dit wat Stom is. He also starred in movies like Platteland, Verraaiers, the Egoli Movie and Spook van Uniondale. During next year he will be starring in Villa Rosa between January and March 2015 and in Vlug na Egipte between January and April 2015, both on kykNET. In his free time Ivan is a keen sportsman, participating regularlyinmountain biking, surfing and stand-up paddle boarding.  

FOR MORE INFORMATION  

NAME: Ilza Roggeband
E-MAIL: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.         
CELL: 083-448-2102
WEBSITE: www.ivanzimmermann.com
TWITTER: @IvanZimmermann1, @CANaKILO (#leadersneverquit, #12000km, #tourdafrique, #12000cans)
INSTAGRAM: eyevanzimmer
FACEBOOK: /Ivan.Zimmermann

The end of the year is marked by the termination of lease agreements and the increasing traffic of accommodation seekers on classified ads websites. As the traffic increases internet fraudsters see an opportunity and start creating false advertisement to take advantage of desperate seekers and rob them their money. These criminals put the life of internet users in danger.

Red Diamond World in partnership with various police stations has come up with a solution to combat these crimes, especially in student areas and is dedicated to bringing this negative exposure to an end. The company's main protected areas at the moment will be Hatfield, Sunnyside and Arcadia in Pretoria and internet users looking for accommodation or anything advertised online are advised to use the Red Diamond World Ads directory to find what they need since this web application only displays verified ads, supplied only by agencies which will make it easier to assist the users should the user be cheated online.

The company urges internet users to be very careful when searching for flats and apartments on the web. Users should be conscious of the fact that anybody post ads on other online advertising websites, allowing criminals to post anything and exposing you to crimes. The number of internet fraud victims is worrying and has been mainly a result of the numerous flexible and popular ads websites everyone runs to when they have a need.

On Red Diamond World Ads advertisements are sent to the website admin by companies and agencies the company has contracted with, which include real estate agencies around Hatfield, Sunnyside and Arcadia. No user has the ability to post any advertisement and no individual or person is allowed to contract with the company to publish ads on the web app, the company only works with other companies and agencies.

We are confident that this will reduce the number of internet fraud victims. Red Diamond World Ads will protect internet users and we encourage students in Pretoria to use it when searching for accommodation.

Website: rediamondworld.com

Adding significant value to its already sterling reputation as a leading supplier of transformational business and individual solutions to the technology, consulting and financial services sectors, the Transformation Capital Group (TCG) has recently acquired Dracore Investments.Based in Honeydew, Gauteng, Dracore provides a diverse and dynamic set of market focused and business operational solutions to customers in the financial, data sciences, social media and communications spheres.

This provides its customers with the necessary resources and expertise to effectively manage their customer lifecycle at every level and maximise market penetration. The new management team of the enlarged TCG company is - Mike Eslick, Reg Bath, Richard Peasey, Chantelle Fraser and Francois Meyer. Dracore can now tap into TCG’s global resources and specialist skills to enable its visions to establish and develop all-encompassing business services and solutions for clients across Africa.

‘Most significantly, TCG shares our long term vision of developing sustainable business solutions by focusing on sustainability, socioeconomic empowerment, profitability and communal reinvestment,’ comments Chantelle Fraser. ‘I’m happy to report that we’ve already made significant progress and, with our combined market knowledge and innovative approach, we’re perfectly positioned to offer any enterprise, large or small, the very best solutions to optimise future opportunities and generate combined benefit to both TCG and its customer base.’

For more information, visit www.tcg-sa.co.za

Your brand has value. You might not be sure how much or where it comes from, but it still has value. This value usually relates to the products, people, and reputation surrounding it. Brands can, however, be diluted and lose value when customers feel annoyed, cheated or disappointed – when the brand fall of its pedestal and is reduced to “just another ordinary” one.

With the help of media intelligence providers, like ROi Africa, your brand’s value can be monitored and corrective actions can be planned pro-actively, all by knowing what the public and media think and feel about you.

Besides Lance Armstrong, who is the one sporting brand that came crashing down during the last two years – from a R21 million per year icon to a shamed brand liability? Oscar Pistorius!

This famous Paralympic athlete, who even competed successfully against able-bodied athletes and was seen as a role model for people facing severe challenges in life, was recently sentenced to five years in prison on a charge of culpable homicide for killing his girlfriend, model and law graduate Reeva Steenkamp.

His murder trial caused a media frenzy, in one hour alone (sentencing hour) ROi Africa saw over 110,000 unique items published in over 200 million platforms.

It was a landmark case in more than one way. A court application by media houses allowed for live coverage in the form of Tweets directly from the court room. On the top-yielding day of the trail, the verdict, over 400,000 unique items were reported mentioning the words “Oscar Pistorius” or “Oscar Trial”.

Tonya Khoury, the Managing Director of ROi Africa was the first media intelligence provider to start delivering reliable statistical analysis of media coverage worldwide, becoming a regular face on Channel 199 and SABC Newsroom.  

Mathapelo Matjokana, the producer of the Afternoon Talk with Ashraf Garda Show on SAFM, was one of the first media to use ROi Africa’s statistics on a regular basis, says that, “With the arrival of these statistics and analysis people were able to understand, for example, the Oscar Trial better as complex legal matters were broken down into simpler terms. It also allowed us to follow major events like these through a bird’s eye view with these analyses.”

“The Oscar Pistorius brand – like any other business brand – had to cope with the effect of an incorrect decision and the aftermath thereof. In the media coverage of the trial, it was evident how the media’s reporting affected Pistorius’ brand value. One can, as an example look at his sponsorships that have declined to zero. Well-known brands like Nike, Oakley, Thierry Mugler and BT have suspended sponsoring Pistorius, Nike came under fire after a 2011 billboard campaign with the wording'the bullet in the chamber” which proved to be almost prophetical.

The brands were mentioned regularly during the trial and jokes featured on social media which also negatively impacted Nike, resulting in the suspension of large sponsorships for Pistorius” says Khoury.

When looking at all media (news and social) over the past 100 days and in all languages, these four brands received the following publicity, in relation to Oscar Pistorius.

As the former sponsor with the biggest percentage of media mention, Nike’s coverage during the past 100 days can be broken down, the highest percentages of publicity was achieved on 14, 15 and 16 September, with all reporting on Nike dropping their sponsorship contract with Pistorius formally after he was found guilty by Judge Masipa and thus became a brand liability. These are insights that can be extremely valuable for any brand.  

“With these mentions, sponsors like Nike have gained publicity, but for the wrong reasons, which made Pistorius a brand liability. His brand value thus impacted negatively on a few other brands,” Khoury adds. According to media reports Oscar Pistorius was once the second most popular athlete, after Usain Bolt, but that is history now. During and after the case, he actually received more publicity compared to athletes that have experienced some kind of crisis in their careers,” she adds.  

OJ Simpson: 64.75%
Usain Bolt: 18.42%
Lance Armstrong: 9.04%
Tiger Woods: 7.78%

As with any other brand, ROi Africa also looked at aspects like who and what were mentioned most with Pistorius, which is also an indication of his brand value. Smart Technology, managed by knowledgeable analysts enabled them to generate new angles and comparisons,like these,to keep the media and readers engaged.

“This technology, combined with personal input, identified key trends across all media platforms worldwide - over 2000 print titles that are taken from hard copy to digital format - and converted using the finest global reading technology. Broadcast media is converted from the verbal word to text within 2 seconds of it being aired. Immediate coverage is drawn from an excess of 200 million platforms in online and social media,” explains Khoury.

She adds, “Keeping track of what is being said about a company or brand, their industry of operations or specific topics of interest, and even their competitors can provide a much-needed competitive advantage,” adds Khoury.

Media intelligence on key competitors, main issues in the industry, top journalists reporting on your brand, top-yielding regions, comparative timelines and trends results in valuable instant insight. The successful use of media intelligence during crises depends on the severity of the crisis – in some cases most of the damage cannot be undone, but can be managed – as in the Oscar Pistorius Trial. But on the other hand one wonders what the influence of media coverage was on the eventual outcome of the case,” she says. "In the corporate world one would have a much better chance of using media intelligence information to minimise the onslaught of a crisis.

In conclusion, what Google (as probably the most prominent search engine for online media) says about you has become an important part of brand value management in a digital age – and it is better to monitor and analyse media coverage in your brand than being surprised by an onslaught by a crisis.

FOR MORE INFORMATION  

Tonya Khoury: 073 874 5377
E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Twitter: @tonyaroi / @roiafrica
Facebook: Facebook.com/roiafrica
Website: www.roiafrica.com

MAMMOTH BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE (BI) NAMES LAUREN SHANTALL (PTY) LTD AS ITS PREFERRED COMMUNICATIONS AGENCY FOR BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE AND BIG DATA CONFERENCE

Lauren Shantall (Pty) Ltd is proud to be managing the social media and communications for the two-day Mammoth BI Conference held at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) on November 17 – 18, 2014. The two-day conference and workshop will house some of the world’s foremost thought leaders in Business Intelligence, Big Data and Analytics.

The Lauren Shantall (Pty) Ltd stable of clients also include top local décor and lifestyle brands such Plascon, Inhouse Brand Architects, Willowlamp, Indigenus, GreenFin/MediFin and Probio. Lauren Shantall (Pty) Ltd provides an integrated communications offering, spanning social, digital and traditional marketing and perception management, also focusing on design and environmental clients.

Head of Business Intelligence at Saratoga, Mammoth BI Founder and Curator and self-proclaimed alchemist at TEDx Cape Town, Jason Haddock said, ‘The focus for the Mammoth BI Conference is to build a strong BI community in South Africa, dispel myths around conventional ideas on Big Data, create, and harvest a local community understanding in Business Intelligence’.

PRESS RELEASE ISSUED BY: Lauren Shantall (Pty) Ltd

If you haven't heard about it let me tell you more. Cybatar is a new social networking and collaboration application that allows users to send SMS messages to mobile phones for free. The network also allows users to share document files besides media files which is uncommon with all available social networks.

The company responsible for this product has developed their first application, being made available on stores and only available on Android devices for now. The development team on Red Diamond World is confident that it has developed an awesome product which will go viral a soon as the public becomes aware of it.

Cybatar comes as a more innovative service, on a different market with common social networking websites Facebook and Twitter and is not looking to substitute them but co-exist with them as the are very important especially for companies and professionals to increase their online presence which is a contribution Cybatar will make to users. This shows that Red Diamond World is in this for the long-run like big internet companies Facebook, Amazon and Google.Users can find the application on various Android application stores from today.

The application will reach more stores as time goes by and more application for Apple and Windows devices will be developed. Cybatar is currently available on HTML5 for all devices with internet access on http://www.cybatar.com and users are able to access all features.