News & Press / February 10, 2010

ICOM Members Respond to Colleagues in Turkey with a "Ticker Ticker"

When ICOM member Fikir Merkerzi had only four days to prepare a competitive pitch for new business, coming up with the idea--a humorous one--was easy, but getting it across in the pitch--authentically and inexpensively--to the prospective client, the Turkish Machinery Promotion Group, more challenging.  Although Turkish machinery manufacturers export to 200 countries and are very successful internationally, that's not so domestically. The campaign idea for domestic use played on this international success by having satisfied users across the globe express their satisfaction in Turkish -- "tikir tikir," which sounds somewhat like "ticker ticker" in English and means "they work properly no matter what."

The Istanbul agency Fikir Merkezi called upon ICOM agency partners to send a short video with a person from the agency saying "tikir tikir" in his or her own accent. Four days later, Fikir Merkezi had 25 responses from ICOM agencies around the world. The presentation with the sample video was a big success because it clearly demonstrated how the idea would be implemented. Fikir Merkezi won the business and created a polished, professionally produced version with the slogan “They work 'tikir tikir.' If you want to buy high quality machines, choose Turkey." The campaign has been so popular that the agency has created another commercial, this time featuring the presidents of the top seven holding companies of Turkey, offering their own versions of "ticker ticker."

The rough cut used in the pitch and featuring ICOM colleagues: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7RA3rpNjPg

The launch commercial based on the pitch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Ax9mKCXGOw

The second phase of the campaign featuring the giants of Turkish industry: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=akJHRS1bSlU