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Everyone loves a comeback: Griffin’s takes the biscuit at TVNZ-NZ Marketing awards

More than 700 members of the marcomms fraternity ventured to the Langham last night to celebrate the country’s best marketing ideas, strategy and execution, listen to Te Radar take the piss out of the industry and try to do a bit of business. And Griffin’s came away with the major gong for the hugely successful re-introduction of Choco-ade biscuits to Kiwi shelves. 

The relaunch was a physical manifestation of its ‘Dear Griffin’s’ brand platform. And by engaging with consumers directly via social media, it was able to gain richer insights and developed a new product that Kiwis not only wanted, but were prepared to pay a premium for. Facebook allowed it to have more conversations, about more of its products, with more of its consumers, every single day, and at scale. And after they were launched, the biscuits were so popular it clocked in with $1 million of retail sales faster than any other product in New Zealand grocery history, knocking the Avatar DVD off its perch

As the judges said: “This entry was a really good example of really listening to the market, understanding exactly what makes them tick, then translating that into a creative promise that really hummed. And it left the brand in an outstandingly good position as a result.”

Also winning industry or judge’s choice awards (see below for full list) were AA Smartfuel, Heart Foundation, Les Mills International, MediaWorks, New Zealand Lotteries, NZ Tax Refunds, Pfizer New Zealand, The Warehouse Group, Z Energy, Switch Kites, Unitec, Stihl, BNZ and ANZ. No awards were handed out in the business or technology categories. 

Mark Callaghan, chief executive of Frucor Beverages, was honoured with the 2013 Marketing Excellence Award. His noted attributes were the constant embracing of transformation, the fostering of marketing talent and the ability to strike a balance between innovation and risk with a great marketing discipline and systems.

Mike Cunnington, now deputy commissioner, information, intelligence and communications at IRD, took the Marketer of the Year title (maybe the award is cursed: last year’s winner Ian Moody swapped Westpac for a short stint at BNZ just before his win was announced) for his outstanding management of the merger of the National Bank and ANZ brands during his tenure as head of marketing at ANZ.

“Mike is a marketing thought-leader and commercial executive who has taken marketing throughout ANZ, positioning it as the leading function to deliver transformational plans with outstanding results,” said the judges. 

Jess Hall, direct marketing assistant at Farmers, was awarded the Rookie Marketer of the Year title for exhibiting a breadth of understanding of the challenges her business faces and how marketing in all its guises can be applied to benefit the business.

For the first time ever, two Marketing Hall of Fame inductees came from the same organisation: Mike O’Sullivan and William (Bill) Peake of BrandWorld. As Marketing Hall of Famer Richard Brookes, associate professor of marketing at the University of Auckland, said: “Unconventional thinkers and doers, both of them. We need more like them.”

Check out the winners and their stories at www.everythingmarketing.co.nz. And we’ll also be featuring the winners on StopPress over the coming weeks.

Winners

Fairfax Media, Supreme Winner: Griffin’s Foods Limited, Griffin’s Choco-ade Biscuits

TVNZ, Marketing Hall of Fame: Mike O’Sullivan, BrandWorld, and William Peake, BrandWorld

Marketing Excellence: Mark Callaghan, Frucor Beverages

News Works NZ, Rookie Marketer of the Year: Jess Hall, Farmers Trading Company

Colmar Brunton, Marketer of the Year: Mike Cunnington        

Consumer Products and Services: AA Smartfuel, AA Smartfuel Acquisition Strategy

New Zealand Trade & Enterprise, Export: Les Mills International, Les Mills SMARTBAR™

BrandWorld, Fast Moving Consumer Goods: Griffin’s Foods Limited, Griffin’s Choco-ade Biscuits

Mailshop, Financial and Banking: NZ Tax Refunds, WooHoo – Differentiating a Brand by Owning a Feeling

Lifestyle/Travel/Leisure: Pfizer New Zealand, Champix – Helping Smokers Quit a Dying Habit

Not-for-Profit: Heart Foundation, Heart Week 2013

Public Sector: New Zealand Lotteries, Making Big Wednesday a Success

Morton Estate, Retail: The Warehouse Group, What Kiwis Want

Sponsorship: Z Energy, Good in the Hood

Utilities/Communications: MediaWorks, The Block NZ launch – How TV3 Turned New Zealanders Into Block-a-Holics

&Some, Emerging Business/New Brand: Inverno Trading Ltd, trading as SwitchKites, Creation of Global Kitesurfing Brand

TVNZ, Innovation: Bank of New Zealand, BNZ YouMoney Launch Campaign

Insight: ANZ Bank New Zealand, ANZ Brand Transformation Programme

Fairfax Media, Marketing Leadership: Unitec Institute of Technology, We Make the People Who Make It

Boston Digital, Transformational: Stihl New Zealand, Stihl Brand Campaign

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