By Cassy van Eeden
Although she does not have years of agency experience behind
her name, Mouneimne learned a lot through freelancing and a short contract at
a PR agency. It was during this time she identified a shortfall in the
communications industry, which affects brands perhaps more than they realise.
She found that most established agencies are focused on
traditional forms of PR and are unable to offer clients other services such as
digital marketing, for example. This means that the brand either has to seek
out another agency to deal with other aspects of their account, or forgo those
services entirely.
“I think agencies sometimes push clients by telling them
what they need because it’s what they can offer. I saw that they weren’t able
to offer more because they didn’t have the know-how,” she explains. “The agency
is just so keen to fill the need and gain the client that they don’t open them
up to other possibilities.”
Mouneimne founded the agency based on her belief that having
one agency handling every aspect of a brand’s communication needs is far more
effective than splitting PR, digital and marketing between a number of
agencies. This is what she calls a 360-degree communications solution.
“That’s really what Jam Media is about. It’s about offering every
potential solution,” says Mouneimne. “It’s about being able to look at it from
every angle.”
The problem with having two or more agencies handling one
account is that there is often a lack of communication between them, says
Mouneimne.
During her time freelancing she observed that agencies
“wouldn’t be on the same page and there would be very few meetings between the
agencies”. This meant that the chain of communication often broke down. She
adds: “In the end, that impacts the client and their brand.”
Having more than one agency involved also limits a brand’s
potential. “As somebody working on a brand that is only allowed to do PR, it’s
almost like you don’t get to have an opinion on the other parts of the
communication cycle.” She argues that: “Everybody should be able to add on
something that can make it an even better campaign.”
Mouneimne says that, in today’s world, it makes no sense to
appoint more than one agency. “The reality is that all of it has become so
interlinked that I don’t think that you can say anymore ‘you do PR, I do
digital’. It is so multi-faceted now, that you’re going to overlap.”
Although Jam Media has only been fully operational since
September last year, the company already has a lot to brag about. The team,
albeit small, have taken on some massive campaigns and are now even being
hunted by noteworthy brands.
It is more than fair to say, then, that Jam Media’s
360-degree solution not only works, but it has seen a lot of success in just a
few short months.
While Mouneimne is happy to work with clients who require
Jam Media to work alongside other agencies, she believes that the 360-degree
approach is most effective when the team can be there “from the conception of
their marketing strategy and follow through with everything”.
She believes so strongly in the 360-degree approach that she
says more agencies should be doing it. “I don’t think that we’re niche, I don’t
that we’re anything that’s special. I think this should be the norm.”
It didn’t take long for Mouneimne to see where the
communications industry was heading, and to establish a business venture that
was going to keep up with it. She also hasn’t had to spend much time convincing
people to opt for a 360-degree solution. Surely these are signs that Jam
Media’s approach to communications is going to stick.
For more information,
visit the Jam Media website. Alternatively, connect with the team via Facebook
and follow them on Twitter.