Ad Theft

Alex Shifrin from eXile writes about ad theft that is still common in Russia.

So the other day I decided to hold a tender for pizza. My idea was to call four different pizza delivery places, and let them in on my little plan, which was very simple -- each of the places would have to deliver a pizza to my office by the middle of the day, I'd eat them over the next week, and whichever pizza I liked most, I would pay for. Well, at least partially pay for.
If that sounds incredibly stupid, then you now understand how an advertising agency feels when it's called by a potential client to pitch for new business.

In addition to every other pitfall, the ad market in Russia runs a very possible risk of having your ideas outright stolen. Take for example the case of a major beer distributor, which I'll just call Ass Candles Ltd. Ass Candles is a beverages distributor, meaning that they negotiate exclusive distribution deals with various brands, and distribute these throughout Russia. In Ass Candles' case, they handle many of the top imported beers you probably drink.

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Such thefts were pretty common just 10 years ago but I rarely hear about them today. First, only start-up agencies would agree to submit scenarios or even concepts for free. Pay us 5 000 dollars and we'll answer your pitch. Second, there are means to put the thief on the black list. You can do it, for example, through sostav.ru