Psion, the handheld computer company, has appointed Spirit to
oversee its multi-million pan-European account ahead of a full review of
the global business next year.
The UK-based company, which announced it was looking for an ad agency
earlier this month, appointed Spirit on a short-term basis following a
pitch against FTC and Dutton Merrifield. Spirit will repitch for the
global account next year.
Advertising for the brand has been handled on an ad-hoc basis in the
past and this is the first time that the company has appointed an agency
of record.
’Our whole business model is changing,’ Alasdair Seton-Marsden,
marketing director at Psion, said. ’Busy professionals know about our
products, but we are always trying to widen our target market.’
Seton-Marsden joined Psion from Microsoft in September this year.
Media planning and buying are handled on a country-by-country basis with
John Ayling & Associates in charge of the UK business.
Psion produces a range of handheld computing devices, including the new
Revo and Series 3 and 5 devices. It competes with Microsoft’s operating
system, Windows CE, and the 3Com-owned Palm Computing.
’This is a tremendous product and we hope we can build a long-term
relationship with Psion,’ Richard Hammond, the managing director at
Spirit, commented.
