Warren Moss, CEO of Demographica, says that the investment was made because of the immense quality of the CSO + Partners team. Moss says that from a Demographica point of view, it brings a true business consulting capability to Demographica and aligns well to the agency's long term vision.

"We're very clear about what we're doing at Demographica," says Moss. "We're building the greatest B2B marketing agency in the world; therefore, our skillset needs to be the best of breed for our clients. In order for this to happen, it's essential to have the right leadership, the right service offering and the right partners."

"Our investment into CSO + Partners aligns perfectly to this mission and reinforces the fact that Demographica's offering is the best breed, unique and will continue to add immense value to all of our clients and their business objectives," Moss adds.

"While CSO + Partners is not exclusively B2B (they work in B2C as well), over the last 18 months our clients have been blown away by the depth of expertise, and when we saw the value that they were bringing to Demographica clients, we moved swiftly to invest in them to help them grow," he says.

CSO + Partners comprises Beth Strauss, Wynand Coetzer and Werner Odendaal, who each have specific skills and expertise. The team works aims to close the gap between writing a good strategy and putting the business into a position where they can 'confidently execute' the strategy. According to the team, this is done by integrating three types of thinking: future thinking, behavioural planning and systems design.

"We help businesses understand their desired future, the behaviours required to make that future a reality and the systems required to support and enable those behaviours," says Coetzer. The trio has already delivered strategic work and management consulting services to current Demographica clients including MTN, Bryte, Old Mutual, Yes4Youth, Investec, Nedbank and the V&A Waterfront.

The CSO + Partners team are acting on a market opportunity where the demand for objective strategic advisory is growing. "We call it strategy without strings," says Odendaal. "Clients want an honest strategy that isn't created in a vacuum or with a preconceived creative execution in mind — they want what is good for their business, not what is good for the agency's business."

Strauss says that she is 'thrilled' that a respected company like Demographica shares the company's vision of 'raising the bar for strategic marketers across South Africa' and is looking forward to the journey ahead. "While we see the partnership with Demographica adding great strength to our ability to plan for B2B, CSO + Partners will have broader strategic scope, including B2C and long-term marketing strategies."

"We pride ourselves on our integration across the various disciplines — including ATL, BTL and digital. This ensures [that] we're writing strategy that best fits the client's objectives and budget. We are excited and privileged to go on this journey with Demographica," concludes Strauss.

For more information, visit www.demographica.co.za. You can also Follow Demographica on Facebook, Twitter or on Instagram.