MIG Newsletter - Vox Pop

Mar 09

Click here to read the introduction

In these tough times it pays to look after your existing customers and, as the company expands, offer levels of service to new customers that make signing up with MIG a no-brainer. To this end MIG has set up a specialist team to deliver value-added services to clients.

DIG-IT catches up with Andrew Jackson, the new head of client services, to find out what it entails - and what it means for the business.

DIG-IT: Andrew, hi: why has MIG formed this new client services operation?
Andrew: Basically, to focus on providing even better service to clients. MIG has always put the customer first, but we have identified that in this day and age you need to be totally client focussed - and totally compliant too - while delivering better value for money. It is also down to us to make sure that all services get better and better audience responses for our clients.

DIG-IT: So how are you going about this?
Andrew: We are adopting a new approach for the company to work with our media and non-media clients more closely, so that we can be more pro-active in client services.

DIG-IT: How so?
Andrew: We will be working much more closely with account managers to think ahead of ideas for developing the service they have and to develop the responses they already produce to existing services. My job is to bring together the products and the creatives.

DIG-IT: What is the main day-to-day challenge of making this happen?
Andrew: Compliance is obviously a big part of it: there is a lot of leg work in compliance with major broadcasters, but this isn't the be all and end all. The real challenge is to be fun and compliant, while also thinking of the things that can change, for the better, how the audience interacts with that service and within the compliance rules.

DIG-IT: Is the demand there from audiences?
Andrew: Most definitely. People still have a huge hunger to interact and we need to make sure we can best service that need.

DIG-IT: So things are looking better for the interactive industry after all the TV service issues; what does 2009 have in store then?
Andrew: Audiences are showing their confidence in competitions and services and the industry is on the up again - it was tough, but we have sorted the problems and it is now looking really good. As I say, People have a hunger for interaction.

DIG-IT: How will this translate in to actual services - what kind of things will be hot in 2009?
Andrew: Big for this year will be mobile TV game playing, particularly the playing along with TV games and gameshows on the mobile. We are also going to see a boom in good old fashioned text voting when it comes back - that will be very interesting to watch. 2009 will be a growth year and we are growing with it.