The BlueCurrent Group Continues Asia Expansion With Launch in Mainland China

BEIJING, July 11, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The BlueCurrent Group today launched in Beijing, marking the formal entry of the specialist agency into the mainland China market. BlueCurrent combines insight and intuition to help prominent individuals, companies and organizations manage their reputations and strengthen their brands.

The launch further expands the reach of BlueCurrent — a member of the Fleishman-Hillard family of brands — which entered the Asia Pacific market in 2006. Starting in Japan to offer influencer marketing services, the group's footprint expanded in 2011 with the establishment of BlueCurrent in Hong Kong.

With its focus on marketing communications, brand-building campaigns and crisis management, BlueCurrent operates in the sweet spot where social media, search and public relations converge.

In Beijing, BlueCurrent combines a powerful mix of advanced search engine and social media strategies with traditional communications to offer clients a range of offline and online services. Specialized capabilities include:

• Brand communications
• Crisis management
• Consumer marketing via Web-based channels, such as micro-blogging
• Reputation and brand perception monitoring
• Search engine results improvement/optimization
• Media relations and publicity management
• Content creation and distribution
• Influencer identification and tracking
• Community management

Angela Fu serves as vice president of the Beijing operation, overseeing the BlueCurrent brand in mainland China. She holds 16 years' experience working with multinational corporations and international PR agencies, specializing in strategic planning, public relations and marketing.

Lynne Anne Davis, Fleishman-Hillard's president for Asia Pacific, said: "Companies talk about embracing digital and social media, but they need more understanding as to how to execute integrated strategies that get real business results. Our BlueCurrent agencies in Japan and Hong Kong have already provided influencer marketing solutions for many customers and have earned exceptionally good reputations. We aim to bring these complementary services to the mainland, the world's biggest Internet market, with the extension of BlueCurrent."

Li Hong, president of Fleishman-Hillard in China, added: "Expansion of BlueCurrent's deep insight and rich experience in brand communications, crisis management and consumer marketing via Web-based channels – such as blogging, micro-blogging, social network sites and emerging social media tools – will further enrich our products and services and boost our capacity for helping customers manage challenges in an era shaped by constantly evolving changes and opportunities."

BlueCurrent Japan, which has more than doubled revenues in the past three years, has been described as a "thought leader in digital and word-of-mouth marketing" by The Holmes Report, one of the industry's most influential publications.

About BlueCurrent
The BlueCurrent Group is a network of agencies, wholly owned by Omnicom Group and a sister agency of global communications company, Fleishman-Hillard, that helps individuals and organizations protect, manage and grow their reputations and build more lasting social currency.

The BlueCurrent Group offers the values and personal dedication of an entrepreneurial organization, with access to a diverse network of PR practitioners, analysts and digital specialists in over 80 offices around the world. To learn more about The BlueCurrent Group, visit the agency's website at www.bluecurrentgroup.com.

About Fleishman-Hillard
Fleishman-Hillard Inc., one of the world's leading strategic communications firms, has built its reputation on creating integrated solutions that deliver what its clients value most: meaningful, positive and measurable impact on the performance of their organizations. The firm is widely recognized for excellent client service and a strong company culture founded on teamwork, integrity and personal commitment. Based in St. Louis, the firm operates throughout North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East, Africa and Latin America through its 80 owned offices. For more information, visit the Fleishman-Hillard website at www.fleishmanhillard.com. Fleishman-Hillard is a part of Diversified Agency Services, a division of Omnicom Group Inc.

About Diversified Agency Services
Diversified Agency Services (DAS), a division of Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE:OMC) (www.omnicomgroup.com), manages Omnicom's holdings in a variety of marketing communications disciplines. DAS includes over 200 companies, which operate through a combination of networks and regional organizations, serving international and local clients through more than 700 offices in 71 countries.

About Omnicom Group Inc.
Omnicom Group Inc. (www.omnicomgroup.com) is a leading global marketing and corporate communications company. Omnicom's branded networks and numerous specialty firms provide advertising, strategic media planning and buying, digital and interactive marketing, direct and promotional marketing, public relations and other specialty communications services to over 5,000 clients in more than 100 countries.

SOURCE Fleishman-Hillard Inc.; The BlueCurrent Group