Citat companies 2014
Lars Lundström, Head of Citat Companies and Managing Director of Citat AB
Going strong in the Nordic region
Citat Companies are a group of marketing communication agencies providing services on the Nordic and local level.
Citat Companies operate in Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Norway and Ukraine. We are altogether 150 communication experts.
We work in close cooperation with our partners and our sister companies in Nordic Morning. Citat Companies is one of the largest agencies in the Nordic area focusing on creativity and production, and we are constantly developing our competence and adaptation to quickly developing market needs.
Staying one step ahead of our competition requires continuous focus on efficiency, development and increasing the value add for our customers.
2014
2014 was a challenging year for Citat Companies. In Sweden, some of our large accounts have been saving and we have come second place in some important pitches and procurements. The macro situation in Finland is affecting the Finnish agency and the war in Ukraine affects mentally the entire Citat team. The volume challenges and the need for competence development has led to restructuration of the company.
These challenges have resulted in a negative result, of which a majority is due to restructuring costs following our restructuring programme. There has also been a lot of development and realization opportunities. In Sweden, we acquired a part of the agency Leon which adds important competencies and customers. we also won a number of new customers and achieved very strong development in the relationships with our most important customers this year.
The digitalization of our deliveries continues, and accelerates. In addition, we have updated and modernized the Citat brand and our own channels.
2015
Next year looks more promising for Citat Companies. We have updated our strategy, and we will focus on developing our offering and working in closer cooperation with the other Nordic Morning companies. We will also continue the digital transformation and competence development in order to meet the changing demands of our customers. Our major goal for 2015 is increasing our profitability.
Citat AB
Citat AB is a customer-centric agency that creates and produces marketing communications and content. We work in very close and long-term cooperation with our customers, which vary from large international companies to small local companies and the public sector.
We create and produce great communication across all borders. This means that we strive to help our customers in reaching their communication goals across geographical and organizational borders, in different disciplines and all channels. We create and activate quality marketing material and content regardless of technique and channel in the fastest and most efficient way possible.
Our services range from digital advertising, sales support material and content for social media channels to global adaptations and apps. We also help our customers with tactical advice and selected solutions such as B2B sales support, web management and events.
We serve four major customer segments: international B2B companies, retailers and fast moving consumer goods, financial services, and the public sector.
Due to digitalization, the market is rapidly and constantly changing. New channels, services and platforms are continually emerging. The focus continues to shift away from push campaigns in paid channels, toward integrated communication across owned, earned and paid channels, where the value for the receiver is the focal point.
Our role is to help our customers in this transition into more and more modern ways of communication. The combination of our competencies, experience and scale enables us to provide stable, long-term operations with our customers.
There are a lot of structural changes in the market, and the competition is strong and unconsolidated.
Citat Oy
A Finnish Citat Oy is a marketing communications company that creates genuine encounters between the customer’s brand and the end user. Citat Oy both creates strategic plans for and implements marketing campaigns.
The services comprise design, branding, various digital applications, data analyses, integrated marketing campaigns, sales promotion and social media actions. While the scope of individual projects varies, the focus is always on creating added value for the customer.
The customers include both B2C and B2B companies such as Danske Bank, Nets, Kärkimedia and Fazer.
The Finnish market for marketing communications is relatively small and highly competitive. The competitive landscape is fragmented since many new operators have entered the market and are targeting the same customers. At the same time, customers’ purchasing behavior has become more cyclical. The use of competitive bidding has increased and long-term development work has become more difficult due to fragmentation.
One of our biggest challenges, but also one of our greatest opportunities, is differentiating Citat Oy from the competitors. We focus on strategic marketing, which involves building long-term partnerships with customers.
Understanding the customer’s business and operating environment helps in choosing and planning the right services and marketing communications functions that create quantifiable added value for the customer’s business. A strategic approach to marketing and quantifiable results are our most significant competitive advantages.
We have 15 employees. In addition, we have an extensive cooperation network consisting of consultants, subcontractors and freelancers. The networked organizational structure enables broad expertise and flexible service provision.
2014
In 2014, we increased the share of service design in our business operations to 20 percent, and strengthened Citat’s brand awareness. However, due to market changes and intense competition, we did not achieve all of our business targets.
In a market environment that is constantly changing, it is challenging to find competent personnel and maintain personnel competence.
Our service design for Kärkimedian Baari won in its category in the Grand One digital media competition, was the runner-up in the Finnish Vuoden Huiput (“Best of the Year”) competition, and was awarded a bronze medal in the highly recognized European Epica competition.
2015
The market will remain intensely competitive. We will increase our focus on branded service design, the development of user encounters, and leveraging data. We aim to continuously build new networks and identify reliable partners. We will also engage in closer cooperation with our sister companies.
ABOUT OUR SERVICES
Loyalty marketing is good service
Jesse Sandqvist, Marketing Strategy Director, Seed Digital Media
“A strategic loyalty marketing plan helps in finding the right customers and developing customer relationships.”
Advanced storytelling
Alexander Corneliusson,
Account Manager, Citat:
"By using the latest virtual reality hardware, Citat and Nobel Biocare break new ground in the advanced, creative storytelling domain."
Creating better service and interactivity
Aleksi Lampinen, Managing Director, Citat Oy:
"The user experience must be positive and content must be easy to find irrespective of the terminal device used or the time of day."
Get social with your content
Pixie Sartang, Head of Social Media Strategy, JG Communication:
"Marketing in the digital space is about captivating an audience in an instant. Companies need to stand out and be just that little bit more interesting."