Some said they saw it coming, but when ProDesign made the announcement in May that it would be closing its pages for good, it was a sad occasion for many. But at the end of the day, revenue is king and AGM opted to channel its energy and money to the more lucrative interior design sector, with ProDesign editor Michael Barrett taking the reins of the new venture. Last week the fruits of Barrett’s labour were displayed for all to see when AGM launched new magazine Interior.

He’s been on gardening leave since his surprise resignation from the role of chief executive at MediaWorks TV in June. And now it’s been announced that Jason Paris will take over the role of chief marketing officer at Telecom, replacing the outgoing Keiren Cooney, who took a big media battering over the Abstain for the Game campaign and is set to take up the role of chief communications officer with the National Broadband Network company in Australia. 

The DDB NZ and NZ Lotteries combo is a pretty bloody good one, as evidenced by the wins in the TVNZ-NZ Marketing Awards. And, following on from its much-loved Wilson epic, which is the most liked Lotto campaign to date, the duo are hoping to fill the coffers even further and sell the mid-week dream with a refresh of Big Wednesday.

Tui thrives on taking a slightly different approach to events or issues of national significance. So it’s not surprising to see a cheeky rugby-related billboard erection from the trickster beer brand that demonstrates the extent of Kiwis’ hospitable nature.

From psychic Kiwis to psychic cows to the TAB’s prediction chicken, New Zealand rugby augurs are looking for signs to give them confidence the All Blacks will break their 24 year Rubber Wool Cup drought. But, like GNS vs Ken Ring, we base our predictions on hard data rather than snake oil, as can be seen very clearly with the first of our weekly, alternative Rugby World Cup infographic predictions that generally have absolutely nothing to do with rugby and were created by infographics.co.nz. This week, if the RWC is to be won ‘up front’, here are the likely contenders based on average penis size, although it should be noted it may be something of a hollow victory for France as the data wasn’t available for Fiji, Tonga, Samoa and Namibia.

We may have been slow off the mark here in New Zealand to adopt them, but QR (Quick Response) codes are finally making their move, popping up everywhere from outdoor advertising to shampoo bottles. Now, in a more ethical application of the technology, Kiwi company All Good Bananas has announced all its bananas will come equipped with a code, helping connect shoppers with the growers of their fruit — the first time the technology has been used in such a manner in New Zealand. 

As you may have noticed, there are a host of rugby-themed promotions and, for the sponsors, RWC ticket giveaways being offered at the moment. And nzherald.co.nz and M&C Saatchi have come up with a good’un by asking Kiwis to send in their best rugby-related words or phrases, along with their definitions. And, thanks to official sponsor ANZ, the best ‘rugbyism’ added at rugbydictionary.co.nz and then voted for by the people will get tickets to the final. But wait, there’s more. There’s an extra special treat on offer for all you creative boffins in adland. 

The call for entries for the 2011 RSVP and Nexus Awards has been put out. So marketing gurus are once again being encouraged to showcase shining examples of the campaigns and projects they’ve created that stimulate a conversation, ask for a response, prompt some deeper brand involvement and lead to a sale, lead or other measurable change in behaviour. 

70 magazine covers were entered and the seven esteemed judges have spoken, with 25 magazines across five different categories making it through to shortlist stage of The Maggies, a national poll to celebrate and award the best covers of the past year.

If you like The Onion’s hilarious horoscopes or the many varieties of alternative fortune cookies, then you’ll probably also like Barnes, Catmur & Friends new Mis-Fortune Cookies for Hell Pizza, which offer a slightly different take on the typically positive messages usually found inside the traditional Chinese versions and are being sold in all 66 stores around the country. 

Showing how widespread sustainability initiatives have spread, everything from banking to architecture was honoured at last night’s Northern Sustainable Business Network (SBN) Awards and even new kid on the directories block Localist managed to score some brownie/greenie points with the judges.

The first three years of the Ministry of Health’s National Depression Initiative campaign led to significant increases in people’s willingness to seek help and help others with depression, with the John Kirwan ads encouraging patients, and particularly men, to speak more openly to their doctor about mental health issues. And the next phase of the campaign aimed to convert awareness into action and motivate people to help themselves. Enter The Journal, an interactive, pragmatic, self-management e-therapy programme accessed through www.depression.org.nz that was focused on mentoring people with mild to moderate depression. 

Grabaseat is known for its slightly risque promotions, such as last year’s Cougar Army at the NZI Sevens, and, with the arrival of Rico on the scene, the naughty child’s sense of marketing humour even seems to have rubbed off on its more staid parent Air New Zealand. Grabaseat has continued that trend for yet another pseudo RWC campaign called the World Trophy of Fun. 

Fashion Quarterly is a bit of an institution in the world of Kiwi fashion. And now it’s about to add a bit of class to the worlds of food and interiors with the latest addition to its stable, Fashion Quarterly Entertaining.

A steady diet of rugby is expected for the next few weeks, but it’s important to get a regular dose of culture as well so we don’t all turn into Colin Meads. And where better to do that than Artworks, an exhibition where more than 100 New Zealand artists will be on show at St Mathew in the City, including the unique ‘Treasures’ collection, an assortment of never seen before drawings and sketches from renowned New Zealand artists including Dick Frizzell, Bill Hammond, Dame Louise Henderson and Max Gimblett. We’ve got six double passes (tix valued at $20 each) to give away and all you have to do is give us your best impression of a chinstroking art critic and come up with a ridiculous critique of one of these paintings. 

The agri-technology sector doesn’t ordinarily conjure up associations of top brand design, but Dow Design is feeling pretty chuffed with its efforts to rebrand argi-technology brand, Stafix. It’s out with the bright yellow lettering on a green background of old and in with a simpler green on white look that creates “in-store standout”. And, following research into what farmers deem to be a universal symbol of power and strength, apparently you can’t go past  ‘High Noon’ the red Angus bull.

During the Rugby World Cup, close to 100,000 visitors are expected to grace our shores and, if the throng of diners at the new Wynyard Quarter is any guide, they’ll be spending plenty of time and money sampling our food and beverages inbetween games. It’s a great opportunity to show tourists what we can do and, as part of its in-restaurant marketing push, Fly the Flag, Silver Fern Farms and Bidvest are doing everything they can to get Kiwi meat into visitor’s gullets by supplying New Zealand grown lamb, venison and beef to 138 leading restaurants around the country, including Logan Brown and Pravda in Wellington, the Hilton in Auckland and Tatler and Millbrook in Queenstown.

Marketing for $5 a day? As young Kiwi campervan rental company Lucky Rentals has shown, it’s not impossible – if you’re willing to crowdsource.