At the time you thought nothing of it but the next time you’re in Waterstone’s (other good book stores are available) the name of the book suddenly pops back into your head. The next thing you know you are stood at the till with a copy of it in your hand. Congratulations, you’ve just succumbed to the marketer’s latest trick up their sleeve – subterfuge marketing.

That innocent conversation you witnessed on the train wasn’t as innocent as you first thought. It was for your benefit and was played out by two actors paid by a marketing agency to sit on the train and discuss the book at length for other passengers to overhear.

It’s a sneaky tactic, but one that more and more canny marketing companies are using to promote their clients’ products, be it books, clothing, music or the latest coffee brand to hit the high street.

Sony Ericsson, for example, notoriously used subterfuge marketing to launch a new camera phone by hiring teams of actors pretending to be tourists who wanted to have their photo taken.

Gone then are the days when we were told, “don’t believe everything you read”. Now it appears that we can’t believe everything we read, see and hear.

So why are brands using subterfuge marketing to sell to us? Basically, it’s because we don’t trust or like advertising anymore. According to research, the average Briton is bombarded by 3,000 marketing messages a day and fewer than 15 per cent of British adults trust adverts. As a result, brands and their agencies have had to employ new tactics to reach their target audiences.    

Today it’s all about targeting, infiltrating and influencing conversations, whether it’s on the train, via email or using one of the many social media tools such as Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, Bebo etc. Rather than shouting at consumers, it’s about engaging with them.

Employing actors to pose as real consumers may be the new thing but marketers having been using stealth and subversive marketing tactics for years. Take for example viral emails, product placement and celebrity endorsements. All are designed to lull the consumer into a false sense of reality.

And now, with the advent of social media, that reality has become even more blurry.

Twitter is a good example. Does John Smith really love Starbucks’ tall, extra shot, whipped cream, skinny, vanilla, soya latte that much, or is he being paid to say he does? Does Jim456 really think his new Nike trainers are like “walking on air”? Maybe, but I guess we’ll never really know.

What we do know is that consumers are becoming increasingly attuned to and sceptical of marketing messages. The challenge for brands and marketing agencies is coming up with new ways of influencing their audiences. For consumers, it’s deciding who to trust and who to believe.

So the next time you buy a book, think back to the last time you were on the train. Your decision may have been influenced by a couple of actors. 

ENDS

CBRE’s Ashley Hancox emerged from a ten hour “power nap” especially – he went to his hotel on Wednesday night for 40 winks and failed to wake up until Thursday morning. Must be the Lee Evans-look-alike’s new job, as regional head of offices, taking its toll.

Tom Bloxham of Urban Splash turned up for pre-dinner drinks, but either didn’t like the seafood on offer or had a more pressing engagement, as he didn’t stay for lunch. Still, his suit left a lasting impression. One wag quipped it was from Stevie Wonder’s new clothing range.

Peter Crowther, of Bruntwood, was a popular attendee, as he has a war chest for acquiring office space in Birmingham. He said he loved coming to the city as it is “always sunny”.  Peter hails from Manchester, where, as we know, it’s always raining. Perhaps this is the elusive new marketing campaign Birmingham has been looking for. I can see it on a banner draping provocatively from the AWM apartment next year, right opposite the Manchester balcony: “Birmingham: it’s always sunny. Ha, ha”.

Mike Whitby’s speech was, as usual, passionate and upbeat. Though there was some concerns over the number of city transport projects in the pipeline. Apparently, on the Birmingham stand in the exhibition hall this morning he announced there were nine. By lunch this had reduced to eight. Let’s hope the New Street revamp is still on track.

Word has reached me of Birmingham’s Alternative MIPIM event, held yesterday at Anderson’s Bar and Grill. More than 100 attendees by all accounts, including Dom Stokes and Jon Andrews from Stoford, who flew back specially from MIPIM to do the double. And why not? Because as we all know, while it’s 19 Degrees in Cannes, it’s always sunny in Brum.

But no, as Gary Taylor of Argent helpfully pointed out, here on BMI Baby Flight WW6529 was the great and good of Birmingham’s property community.

And, as Glenn Howells, added: “If this plane crashed it would set Birmingham’s property sector back by, er, at least three weeks.”

Leading the contingent was the leader of Birmingham City Council, and his lovely wife Gaynor.

There were plenty of lawyers on the plane: Martineau had wheeled out no one less than their newly minted senior partner, the avuncular Andrew Whitehead. Alex Jones of Mills & Reeve was here for a few days, impressively with only hand luggage. While Anne O’Meara, of Hammonds, had brought along a female colleague to up the female quotient.

A trio of Barclays bankers, who apparently have money to lend (!), took up one row.

As well as Birmingham’s own Starchitect Glenn Howells, Gary Church of NewChurch Integrated Architecture and Engineering represented the design community. Apparently he does a nice line in sheds and, if you’re in the market for a new waste facility, he’s your man.

There were even a few developers here. As well as Taylor, representatives from Miller and Stoford have made the trip.

I shared a cab from the airport (just 140 Euro, gulp) with the lovely Lara Day of Want Space Got Space, but there was no time to lounge at my hotel as I was off to the jointly sponsored Martineau and Tuffin Ferraby Taylor party at Coventy City Council’s apartment. A very pleasant reception, spoiled only by the view of a crass Manchester banner draped across the exhibition centre opposite, proclaiming the northern city to be the nation’s “cultural beating heart”.  I went there once. I’d say they have slightly more culture than a yoghurt, so it’s not much of a boast.

Dinner with Martin Field of the Urban Land Institute was entertaining. He confirmed that global property giant Hines has signed a memorandum of association with Hammerson, Henderson and the Australian Future Fund and that the powerful four are looking at “opportunities south of the Bullring”. I hope that Birmingham City Council can rope them in soon, so they don’t go too far south.

So what of today?

The grandly titled “Leader’s Dinner”, hosted by Mike Whitby, is being held this evening. Sponsors of Birmingham’s MIPIM presence are required to attend this invitation only soiree, and are briefed to bring along a guest from outside the city.

None of them, from what I can gather, has any one lined up yet.  

One, who shall remain nameless, asked me what I was doing tonight. Strictly speaking, as I was born in the Black Country, I do qualify to attend the dinner. Unfortunately, I am otherwise engaged. I suspect the sponsors will be trawling the Croisette tomorrow for contenders.

So far, the big questions for the week have remained unanswered. Is Birmingham going to announce the name of its new Strategic Development Director (the job Clive Dutton wanted, but never quite got – he’s here, representing Newham, by the way)? Word is the City had more than 50 applicants, and have short-listed, but no names yet.

Or is Birmingham Development Company going to unveil it’s new-look for the Post & Mail building? Since Alan Chatham and Mark Billingham are no-shows, I somehow doubt it.

But the burning question, the one that has keep my phone and in-box buzzing all day, is has Mike Loftus been reunited with his underpants?

I have to say, when I arrived in Cannes, there was a faint aroma of camembert. Even though I am in France, for a minute I was concerned it might be Mike Loftus and his cheesy feet.

But apparently not, “the Walrus”, as he is affectionately known in Birmingham, emailed to say: “Mon valise est trouve et arrive”. 

Now, it’s a while since I did O Level French – two decades, and the rest – but I think he was trying to say: my suitcase has been found, and has arrived.

However, as this blog is for an austere organ like the Birmingham Post, I didn’t want to take any chances, so I checked on babelfish (the translation web site). Apparently, the literal translation is: “My bag east finds and arrives”.  Let’s hope there aren’t any French property investors looking to come to Brum this week.

Mike Loftus, of Locate in Birmingham, has emailed me to say he has lost his pants. He means ‘pants’ in the European – rather than the American – sense, which is serious, because it means he could be going commando for the week.

It seems Mike, with just 40 minutes to spare between landing at Brussels and his transfer to Cannes this morning, made the connecting flight, but his luggage didn’t.

To make matters worse, he’s in a ‘low budget’ hotel (ratepayers of Birmingham will be pleased to hear this) with no manned reception. The chances of his suitcase finding him are therefore slim.

Snapper Tony Flanagan also sent me a text to say the weather was hot (hurrah!) and helpfully advised me to bring some Factor 30 and a bikini. This was swiftly followed by a text from his cohort Andy Skinner, informing me that “the look this year is skimpy”.

I therefore asked Skinner if he had taken his thong along. He responded in the positive, but regrettably Flan had borrowed it and headed for the beach.

So here’s the outlook for Cannes: Flan, Skinner and Loftus rotating a Peter Stringfellow-style leopard print thong for the week.

It’s not too late for me. Anyone want to buy my ticket?

I don’t know whether it still is, but when I left university in 2001 public relations was one of the most popular career choices for eager graduates keen to make their mark – and their millions – in PR. This meant that competition for places was fierce, and none more so than in the Midlands.

So with a degree under my belt and a spring of optimism in my step I set out on my search for my first job. Unfortunately, little did I know that without any relevant experience, despite being fresh out of university, I stood little chance of getting a toe, let alone a foot, through the door.

Undeterred, I decided to do work experience with a few local agencies in order to get that all-important experience that employers were looking for. The exercise was invaluable.

Despite having had no real exposure to the world of PR, other than what I had gained from the six weeks of work experience, doors began to open. In the competitive PR job market it turned out to be the edge I needed over my competition. 

So if you’re a budding Max Clifford or Matthew Freud, take my advice and get out there. Afterall, I’m proof that there really is no substitute for experience.

The DOs and DON’Ts

If you are looking for work experience in PR, here are my five dos and don’ts:

1.     DON’T get your mom/dad to ring on your behalf to enquire about a possible placement, as we recently experienced. Communication is a pretty key element in PR, so if you can’t string a sentence together on the phone, give up now.

2.     DO be prepared. Research the companies you want to work for and find out as much as you can about them. Be clear on what you’re looking for, why you want to do it and what you hope to get out of the experience.

3.     DON’T expect an easy ride. You’re there to work and contribute to the business. Remember who’s doing whom a favour. You’re there to benefit from the experience so make the most of it.

4.     DO be enthusiastic. If you finish your work and have nothing to do don’t just sit there twiddling your thumbs, texting your friends or looking at Facebook. Ask for more work.

5.     DON’T waste our time. PR agencies get constant calls from people looking for work experience. Do it because you want to, not because you feel you have to.