The latest agency news, campaigns and client wins (and losses) making headlines across Aotearoa.
It’s no secret that Christmas has turned into a massive marketing success story that pushes product sales over the holiday period every year. But, if Christmas was conceptualised by a modern advertising agency, would it still look and feel the way it does today?
It’s not unusual to see tears around Christmas, whether it’s due to a flying elbow from a competitive shopper at the mall, bad presents that just don’t hit the mark or drunken family sparring around the table. And Apple is embracing this potentially tearful time with a heart-string tugger of an ad via TBWA/Media Arts Lab and Park Pictures’ Lance Acord that shows a granddaughter sprucing up an old love song with the help of Apple technology as a gift for her grandmother.
The final tip of the hat, 21-gun salute and celebratory cheer of the year go to Sky, the Health Promotion Agency and Air New Zealand.
After recording record lows in US sales last week, McDonald’s has fought back against critics by hiring former Mythbusters host Grant Imahara to show viewers what’s really in McNuggets.
A new range of print ads from IAG owned State Insurance are illustrating ordinary accidents with a series of surprising print ads.
A girl with telekinetic powers didn’t end very well in Stephen King’s novel Carrie, but DDB and the Sweet Shop has given this literary reference a more positive spin in a new spot for Sky, which depicts the young protagonist seemingly controlling the movement of a murmuration of starlings.
When it comes to alcohol, the tastes of the nation are changing, with wine, cider and more expensive, more interesting, high alcohol beer all on the increase. And this has led to a decrease in the consumption of mainstream beer. As president of the Brewer’s Guild Ralph Bungard says: “New Zealanders still love beer, there’s no doubt, but they don’t want to drink those classic big brands by the crate-load anymore.” So, as we head into prime drinking time, here are some trends on New Zealand beer consumption taken from ANZ’s report on the craft beer industry, which have been brought to life by Dot Loves Data.
Fresh from selling a majority stake to JWT, Wellington digital agency Heyday has some more good news to share: it’s been reappointed as Z Energy’s digital agency after a pitch that is thought to have involved Touchcast, Springload, Envy and two others.
Over the course of the last year, StopPress attracted 1.6 million unique page views. And while we don’t necessarily cover depressing war stories, political scandals or the latest nude photo leak, it has been encouraging to see that those in the media, marketing and advertising communities deem it worthwhile to click on a few of our stories once in a while. Here’s a rundown of the pieces that attracted the most clicks this year.
FCB has continued poking fun at beer drinking culture with a series of three satirical videos that showcase the Not Beersies versions of home brewing, pouring that perfect drink and hosting a beer garden.
In an effort to remedy the statute of culinary limitations that says decadence ends with Christmas ham, Ostro has created a series of Christmas vouchers, each of which carries the promise of more taste bud-appeasing goodness to follow.
Powershop is cashing in on the gaffes of politicians through a refer-a-friend campaign that laughs at our past and present leaders in various states of strife. After poking fun at Judith Collins and pissing off John Banks, the retailer is back with a campaign that has Mana Party MP Hone Harawira the butt of the joke.
Google has released the leaderboard of the ten ads that were the most popular among Kiwi viewers over the course of 2014. And this list, which is determined through an algorithm that factors in paid views, organic views and view rate (how much of a video people chose to watch), provides an interesting glimpse at some of the key viewing trends in the online space over the past year.
Christmas is a time of joy, love and a fair bit of excess for most, but it’s a tough time for struggling families—and those without family or friends to share the day with. Many charities try to get people who have enough to donate something and UK charity KidsCo and Droga5 have released a powerful 90 second spot showing that for some kids without the required parental support, Christmas is just another depressing day.
Standing outside Wellington’s Te Papa Museum is a cargo container tagged with warnings of the prehistoric live cargo carried within. And in the event that skeptics doubt the veracity of these cautions, the growl that comes from within serves to quickly convince them that something terrifying is concealed behind the corrugated iron. This quirky outdoor installation forms only part of the multi-faceted campaign that Te Papa Museum has rolled out over the past few months in an effort to encourge families to purchase tickets for ‘Tyrannosaurus: Meet the Family’, an exhibition that showcases the period when reptiles reigned supreme.
When it comes to magazine readership, some titles have pass on rates in the teens, meaning that one copy of, for example, Woman’s Day, is read by multiple people. The ‘reading-it-in-the-waiting-room’ factor is often talked about as a major reason for that, and even if they’re reading an older issue, which they often are, it still counts. But why are waiting rooms filled with crappy old magazines? Thankfully, a team of Auckland researchers have discovered the reason: thieving patients.
Yesterday, at the Auckland War Memorial Museum, the Committee for Auckland announced some of the key findings that have been compiled in its latest report called ‘Auckland as a Creative City’. The principle theme delivered during the breakfast event was that “Auckland needs an over-arching strategy to unlock the potential of its creative sectors and grow the economy to make the city more globally competitive.”
Scent is a powerful force, as evidenced by the intoxicating effect of KFC, the wafting aroma of baking bread that some believe is piped around supermarkets and Subway stores, the popularity of fancy candles, the existence of scratch and sniff, Air Wick’s latest ad and, of course, cartoon characters floating towards an apple pie on a windowsill. Shoes don’t have the best reputation when it comes to smell. But Ziera, fresh from winning Retail NZ’s supreme Top Shop honour, has turned that perception on its head and created its own fragrance called Fleurs De Printemps to waft through its stores.
The forecast for print adspend in 2015 and 2016 is rainy with a chance of bankrupt, according to ZenithOptimedia’s new Advertising Expenditure Forecast. And that’s led to a downgrade in its estimated total spend.
After around 18 months on air, Sommet Sports has been forced to pull the plug on its goal to bring free sports to Kiwis after struggling to find advertising revenue.
From the moment FMG and bcg2 met each other at the pitch process, there were sparks. The rural insurance company was already with Saatchi & Saatchi, but that didn’t seem to matter. bcg2 has since been awarded the creative contract for FMG going forward.
In a market cluttered market with various sports drink options, Mizone has launched a new campaign via Colenso BBDO that positions the brand as the ‘modern man’s hydration’ solution.
Throughout winter, Air New Zealand, Host Sydney and Diaries Downunder created a few entertaining snow-related clips that played on the ‘Meanwhile, in …’ meme. And the airline has continued that idea for Christmas by giving the children of Portobello on the Otago Peninsula a little surprise.
In a campaign announcing the release of the Moto 360 smartwatch, Motorola has aimed a satirical barb at the tropes that have so long provided content for cliched advertisements dedicated to high-end timepieces. Extreme closeups, slow-motion cinematography, snooty classical music and the soothing murmurings of an unseen narrator all combine to give each spot the look and feel of a standard watch ad. But just when it looks as though things are going to follow the usual script, things take a rather unexpected and very modern turn.
Barnes Catmur put a bit of effort into its Christmas gift. And it also delivered the goods with its Christmas card: a traditional festive scene that is subjected to client feedback and then modified accordingly.
Our weekly wrap of good things, strange things, funny things and other things from inside the intertubes.
As Mulberry’s #WinChristmas campaign showed, giving is basically a competitive sport these days. And that’s also true in the corporate realm, where many businesses attempt to one-up each other by giving expensive offerings of thanks to their VIPs. Just as The Downlow Concept took the opportunity to show off its skills and sense of humour with its Christmas message, Barnes Catmur & Friends has honoured its special friends with a bespoke whisky named in honour of the street where its office lies.
The IAB NZ has released its latest ad spend figures and, as would be expected, the amount spent on digital advertising has continued to grow, reaching a record $159 million in the third quarter of 2014, up 22 percent from the amount posted at the same time last year.
In yet more list-based news, Hotwire has released its sixth annual report into what it believes will be the big digital trends for the year ahead, whether that’s dresses that block mobile signals, data doctors or, the big one for 2015, consumers choosing how they consume content.
News websites are finding new ways to engage with their audiences, with Stuff.co.nz announcing Auckland users can now receive its news alerts through messaging app WhatsApp. Four days in and the new service is going great guns.
For the last 20 years, Sara Clemens has made an international name for herself in the tech industry, working for the likes of Microsoft, LinkedIn and now Pandora, where she was appointed chief strategy officer earlier this year. And while this title alone would be enough to intimidate some employees, Clemens thrives in these high-pressure positions and actually enjoys the challenge. StopPress recently had a chat with her about her previous successes and what she hopes to acheive in her new role.
‘Tis the season for lists (actually, as the popularity of Buzzfeed shows, it’s always the season for lists). And Contently, a company “where brands and advertisers can go to connect with freelancers and journalists to commission work on their behalf”, has released its round-up of the best content marketing of the year.
Fairfax media has bought in to a company where neighbours can chat about where to get the best flat white in their area, offer up spare bags of sheep dung to people nearby (true story), or find out what happens to the old clothes they’ve been putting in the bins by the church all these years. Neighbourly, an online social network for neighbourhoods, has partnered with Fairfax for a 22.5 percent share in its company, with the potential for more investment if the relationship pays off for both parties.
In the creative industries, the Christmas message is a time for experimentation and show-offery. And the Downlow Concept’s ‘annual non-denominational holiday video’ is a gem. Running the gamut of corporate video cliches, the production company responsible for 7 Days, Coverband, Hounds and fair few ads has created a glorious visual treat that includes generic words, shirtless men, fingers on fences, cutting-edge animation and, perhaps most importantly, gas heating. It also features Josh Thomson doing a fine impression of Little Richard.
Retinoblastoma is a deadly eye cancer that develops in children, and because the disease is so difficult to detect it often ends up stealing the sense of sight from its young victims. However, one of the easiest ways to determine whether or not someone is suffering from the disease is through the use of a smartphone—and you don’t even need an app.
Nominate a friend who’s had a shocker of a year, wear a silly suit, donate a pressie, buy a hairy t-shirt, or send a bike to Sri Lanka.