Innehållsförteckning för Awards 2020 issue 65 från NZ Marketing

Let’s face it, if you’ve made it this far through 2020 (relatively) unscathed, then you’re winning. 2020 has been a challenging year for many individuals, businesses and brands. From muted media (Bauer comes to mind) to bumbling brands (and there have been a few) trying to find their footing in a new Covid-19 world, uncertainty has been the order of the year. Adapting to survive has become a mantra by which many have been forced to live. For others, however, winning hasn’t meant simply surviving, it’s been about thriving. Embracing the change and being bold about the moves needed and the direction headed. It’s been about being constantly motivated, no matter the stumbling blocks, to achieve something exceptional, truly Next Level. I’m reminded of a quote by tennis great, Maria…

2degrees’ commitment to Fighting for Fair has been recognised on Campaign Asia’s top 1000 brands, as the Kiwi telco celebrates a rise in its global rankings. Campaign Asia’s Top 1000 Brands study is the most comprehensive consumer opinion survey in Asia Pacific, that considers not only campaigns, but the wider decisions a business makes and how that impacts reputationally. 2degrees climbed the New Zealand list to 50th place, up 24 places on last year and the highest-ranking New Zealand telecommunications provider. “This phenomenal rise is a huge milestone for us – it puts us right alongside inspiring local brands such as Whittaker’s and global innovators such as Dyson. More than ever, consumers are actively seeking out brands that take meaningful action when it matters. We’re glad that 2degrees has been…

The way we consume media has changed a lot over the past decade. As Internet accessibility and advancement in mobile technologies have increased, social media and streaming services have become go-to channels of choice for the majority of Kiwis. Dominated by the likes of YouTube and Facebook, with 74 and 73 percent of the population claiming to use each platform respectively. This according to Statista publication ‘Most active social media networks New Zealand 2018’ which also pointed out that kids’ content made up three of YouTube’s most popular media-ran channels in 2018, with Cartoon Network Australia having the largest number of views at around four hundred thousand, and One 4 Kids with just over 174 thousand views. “YouTube is proving lucrative for advertisers with three separate FMCG areas attracting large…

Satellite Optus Renewal - Assessing importance of Satellite delivery Sky Next Gen Box - Assessment of Opportunity - Acquisition and retention benefits Sky Broadband - Go to Market Insights - Key Opportunities across Sky segments Major Content Renewals - Assessing customer value, advocacy and churn risk Partner Insights: Sport - New Zealand Rugby - Netball New Zealand Partner Insights: Entertainment - Discovery - Rialto - Country TV sky…

“Gone are the days where catalogues were dropped in a free-for-all style, casting the net wide and hoping to convert,” writes Tim MacMillan for ReachMedia. “We now have a wide range of data around demographics and purchasing behaviours available to us, be it New Zealand census data, electronic transaction data for brands or categories mapped against households, or even anonymous mobile location data, we are now more informed and strategic than ever about who we’re sending mail to. Our clients tend to be either all on board from the get-go or pleasantly surprised at just how accurately we can pinpoint and strategise sends.” The new breed of letterbox marketing companies applies smart targeting to mailers, enabling marketers to dial up the ROI they get on any campaign. There is increasing…

Following a tough second quarter, the Out of Home Media Association of Aotearoa (OOHMAA) have reported some positive news – their Q3 2020 revenue is posted at 23.2 million, up by 163 percent from Q2. While still down 35.8 percent on the same quarter in 2019, this is a strong recovery after the obstacles placed by Covid-19. Digital revenue continues to showcase continued growth, reporting a 64.2 percent share versus static in comparison to 61.4 percent on the same period in 2019. Natasha O’Connor, OOHMAA General Manager, tells StopPress that the uplift of the Out of Home market shows advertisers continue to recognise Out of Home as an essential part of their media schedule. “Like every business, Out of Home was impacted by the pandemic, however, it continues to prove…

In the two years as CMO at Lotto NZ, Annemarie Browne has quickly proved she is a powerhouse when it comes to marketing strategies. Her first draw included a complete overhaul of the then siloed divisions, which turned out to be a million-dollar idea, so to speak. Browne has risen to senior leadership positions across a broad range of respected companies, including CEO of Aspire2Business, Global VP Marketing at Orion Health, GM of Marketing TVNZ and GM of Seek NZ. Yet it is her work at Lotto NZ that encompasses everything she loves about marketing, including putting the customer at its heart. “A customer first attitude, with a passion for emotionally engaging creative, a smart and collaborative team around you and a thirst for knowledge,” is what Browne thinks it…

THE CHALLENGE To celebrate Cardrona’s 40th anniversary, the in-house marketing team were tasked with creating a unique campaign while driving brand preference and increasing pre-season sales after five consecutive years of growth. All of this needed to be achieved on a tight budget. To add a layer of complexity, in December 2019 Cardrona acquired Treble Cone. Paid activity now also had to communicate the benefits of a dual-mountain offering. The pre-winter campaign period of February to May is crucial; committed skiers religiously purchase Earlybird passes and visitors dream and plan winter holidays. Halfway through March, however - Cardrona’s largest online sales month - Covid-19 added another complexity that was almost impossible to prepare for. THE RESPONSE The team pivoted from a sales focus to one of transparent and empathetic messaging…

THE CHALLENGE Despite being one of New Zealand’s most loved and trusted brands, as the lens of society changes the demand for ethical products has risen. Meaning, Whittaker’s needed a long-term plan to retain its increasingly consumer conscious consumer base. Good Honest Chocolate (GHC) has always been at the core of everything the brand does, however Whittaker’s hadn’t reviewed the overall saliency of its outward purpose in this space. It became imperative that Whittaker’s should devise a long-term plan that could demonstrate its commitment to be a moral and ethical company. GHC needed meaning behind it and material actions were to be used as proof points. The major problem to overcome was finding Whittaker’s definition of new trust so that the brand wouldn’t age with its consumers. THE RESPONSE Abiding…

THE CHALLENGE After witnessing low conversion rates for online campaigns, it became clear to Equifax and Kiwibank that there was wasted media spend going towards showing ads to people who did not meet the approval criteria for lending products. At the same time, this was also a poor experience as being told “No” is not the best impression for a prospective new customer. The next challenge was to link the rich offline data Equifax held to digital identities to enable highly targeted audiences to be used in Kiwibank’s campaigns. The challenge then became for Kiwibank to improve this metric so that it could deliver significant value from an acquisition cost perspective and efficiencies by reducing the proportion of referred applications. I.e. how could Kiwibank target people that matched its credit…

THE CHALLENGE Meridian is one of the ‘gen-tailers’, power generators that also retail to customers. Solid, established and very corporate – a blue-chip company if ever there was one. But its conservative stance, 51 percent majority government ownership and its reputation as a reliable dividend stock for investors belies a business with a unique point of difference. Unlike other gen-tailers Meridian had been generating 100 percent renewable energy from hydro lakes, wind turbines and solar for many years. The problem was that this 100 percent renewable track record wasn’t being recognised or rewarded by consumers in a low interest market where understanding of renewable credentials was confused at best. Identifying the Meridian brand as a key lever to improve already low levels of churn, and allow for higher margin acquisition,…

THE CHALLENGE With the arrival of Covid-19 and the subsequent Lockdown, many New Zealanders have been affected financially. However, those who were already financially disadvantaged, were hit even harder during Lockdown, including those families and children who are a part of the KidsCan trust. Like other organisations, heading into Lockdown caused a significant funding shortfall for KidsCan and with no Government funding, a solution was needed, and fast. To ensure these families didn’t go hungry, KidsCan launched the 19for19 campaign, which encouraged anyone who could donate a mere $19 to the trust to do so. Turning the number 19 into something positive was the driver behind the initiative, and was something KidsCan believed Kiwis could, and would like to, rally around. THE RESPONSE Created in an extremely difficult environment, everyone…

THE CHALLENGE For 60 years Marley has been a market leader when it comes to supplying New Zealand with high-quality electrical products. Yet, marketing partner, Tendfold Creative, could see the gap between Marley and its competitors was closing. With the implementation of a new mandatory system for the manufacture of Conduit Systems from early 2019 – a core Marley range – it was the perfect time to let the market know the inherent value of it conduit over competitors. It was also identified that the absence of strong branding or product names had led the market to identify with functional labelling based on duty rating/usage and colour (e.g. Medium duty – grey/orange), as opposed to the Marley brand. The team made it clear that although they are market leaders, much…

THE CHALLENGE In telco, credibility is built around network performance and reliability. People don’t want to worry about coverage issues, slow speeds or losing connection. A concerningly low percentage of people thought Skinny had a credible network versus competitors in the market. As a no-frills, price-lighter, Skinny is focussed on the ‘basic’ telco market, offering good quality mobile and broadband without the extras. Despite a successful re-brand in 2018, the Skinny team probed further discovering that people perceived the brand still to be not well established, or as popular as other telcos. Wanting to become a bigger player, Skinny’s future was back in doubt with parent company Spark. So how to build credibility? Big brands like Spark and Vodafone benefit from their size – with people translating ‘big’ into ‘popular’,…

The Godfather’s Michael Corleone once said “It’s not personal, it’s just business.” But is business ever not personal? And isn’t business best when it’s very personal? When business gets personal we can all feel valued and recognised as people. We can feel confident bringing our whole selves to work. We can innately understand the needs of consumers. We can support and connect with our co-workers. We can build brands that emotionally connect with consumers. When business gets personal, we pour our hearts and souls into everything we do and know we’re making a difference. The Making Business Personal Relay was born out of a desire to emphasise the importance of bringing humanity into every aspect of business – not just to be kinder to each other, but to make the…

Since leaving university, Jacqui Robins has flourished through an impressive marketing career which helped her land her current role as NZME’s brand manager for radio brands ZM and The Hits. Although successful within her role, Robins says one thing many people out of the industry don’t appreciate is the amount of strategy and planning that goes into marketing, explaining it is more than a ‘glorified colouring-in-department’. Robins set her sights on brand manager two and a half years ago as the opportunity to work in radio, alongside stations she had listened to growing up, was too good to pass up. “I was really interested to pull back the curtain and find out how it really works and what goes into the production, and it was definitely more than I thought.…

A marketer who knows how to get the most out of her magazine advertising is Karen Warman, Marketing Manager at Resene. Taking home the Supreme Advertiser of the Year at the Webstar Magazine Media Awards 2020 – recognising those advertising partners who really GET magazines, who understand what magazines can offer as part of a media mix, and who work with publishing teams to use the medium creatively and to great effect – Warman shares what makes her strategy so successful. THE JUDGES SAY RESENE REALLY UNDERSTANDS MAGAZINES AND HOW TO USE THEM, WHAT INFORMS THIS UNDERSTANDING? Many years ago we started as complete newbies with no magazine involvement at all. We went down the traditional path of magazine advertising and then over time found that we had more of…

Smart Displays is New Zealand’s first residential-based digital screen media company. Using strategicallyplaced 43” HD digital screens the OOH player is helping communities, businesses, and brands connect across its dynamicAuckland network. Since 2017, Smart Displays have successfully delivered on their initiative to combine broadcasts and campaigns with residential building management notices relevant to the community. It has done this by installing 43” HD digital screens across the heart of Auckland, into lobby and lift entrance areas of high-density residential developments. Proud supporters of local communities, Smart Displays help to promote awareness of projects and events in the area where people live, work and play. “We are excited to be the first OOH company to broadcast in this sector, reaching out to a varied demographic of mostly young to middle-aged, urban…

EFFIE ELATION The New Zealand Marketing Association are thrilled be announced as a finalist in the 2020 Effie Awards. The Mark Ritson WFH Marketing Bootcamp has been judged as a finalist in the Topical Marketing (Current Events) category. Born out of the Covid-19 Lockdown, the Bootcamp was a great success and a result of a fantastic MA team who got it to market within two weeks, and delivered to marketers within six weeks. “A massive thanks to Mark Ritson who believed in our idea and helped us make it happen. This ended up being the largest event MA had ever held with over 600 marketers enrolling, and over 4,200 viewing the free seminar on YouTube in two weeks,” says John Miles, CEO, Marketing Association. “Just like every one of our…

“I really like that you have this space for us to be able to give feedback on your products and services” “I’m quite impressed that all these options are being discussed and I’m asked for my opinion” “I appreciate the opportunity to participate in shaping the future of SKY” “Thanks for giving us this opportunity to have a voice” “I think what you are doing with Sky Nation is very timely as the future will not look like the past” “Existing customers have felt ignored for a long time and the changes are starting to become visible that this is changing” “Thanks for listening to customers and trying to provide products that have been raised or requested” “Keep up the great work, love that you are getting constant feedback from…

In the New Zealand media market, radio has fared the best of all the traditional media platforms as the largest reach medium with 3.3 million listeners per week. Revenue has remained consistent alongside audiences staying strong, also in line with the worldwide trend for the platform. At the same time, there has also been strong growth in digital consumption of radio brands both with audio streams and social media interaction. Jana Rangooni, RBA CEO reports radio revenue stable around $280 million in recent years, although like listening, some of that is now from digital platforms, something likely to be a growing trend in coming years. At the time of Lockdown earlier this year, radio overall reached 83 percent of New Zealanders aged 10 years or over, on a weekly basis.…

In 2018, Acton came to Mosh with the desire to build a social media presence for Indomie noodles. While delicious, at the time Indomie was seen as the “foreign noodles” among local offerings. Fast-forward a mere two years and Indomie’s value market share of instant noodles in supermarkets is 42 percent, they’re growing ahead of the category, have over 20,000 fans on Facebook, and regularly see organic reach of over 20,000. All on a budget that is a fraction of that spent by other large FMCG brands. However, the noodle brand didn’t get there on cruise control. “Upfront planning was key, but even before that, finding the right social media manager and content team,” says Joanne Hall, Senior Brand Manager at Acton. Mosh began by laying down some stringent KPIs…

Liv Glazebrook has always had a combined passion for food and marketing. Her impressive career working with iconic Kiwi brands like Heinz Watties, Lewis Road Creamery and Whittaker’s has seen her produce incredible campaigns. It is her current role at Whittaker’s – leading several major campaigns as well as managing the brand’s entrance into the Canadian and Middle Eastern market – that has won her this accolade. Following her degree in Food Innovation and Marketing at the University of Otago, Glazebrook chose to apply her skills in product development roles. During her summer internship at Heinz Watties and then two years with Lewis Road Creamery, her passion for food creativity started to be replaced with a desire for marketing. “I found myself looking over at the marketing team with a…

THE CHALLENGE Kiwis love good fried chicken! Testament to this is that New Zealand has the second highest number of Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) outlets per capita in the world. Given these salivating stats, for years, many have tried and failed, Tegel included, to produce a product that gives Kiwis that same experience but with the convenience of fried chicken from the freezer. Internal researched showed that Kiwis are turning to the likes of Uber Eats to buy and have delivered to their doorstep fried chicken and nuggets from their favourite quick-service restaurants. The mega trend towards convenience demonstrated that brands can’t go wrong focusing on innovations that save consumers time and make their day to day lives simpler and easier. While popular takeaway foods like nuggets had been in…

THE CHALLENGE FCB and Foodstuffs joined forces in 1995 and since then have gone through numerous CEOs, CMOs, brand managers, strategists, writers and art directors. In 2007, FCB presented Stickman which has been PAK’nSAVE’s running campaign for the past 12 years with more than 25 creatives involved. Although the dynamic partnership was seeing success after success - the evolution of the Stickman campaign evident of this - the challenge came down to competition. In 2007 PAK’nSAVE was under threat as Woolworths Australia had purchased Progressive, including supermarkets Foodtown, Woolworths NZ and Countdown, and had begun offering benefits like fuel discounts and Onecard. By 2009 the three supermarkets morphed into one monster brand and the new ‘Countdown’ would use massive Australian buying and marketing to attack PAK’nSAVE’s low-price position. In 2012…

THE CHALLENGE It’s common practice to observe a moment of silence within sporting fixtures. But when it comes to men’s mental health, silence is the last thing we need. To get Kiwi men talking to their mates, BC&F Dentsu saw the opportunity to collaborate with New Zealand Rugby and reframe a moment of silence to a moment AGAINST silence. The collaboration meant BC&F Dentsu gained access to the nation’s most influential men and the epitome of New Zealand masculine culture: the All Blacks. It was decided that on September 7 2019, before the All Blacks game against Tonga, fans would be asked to break tradition and talk openly with those around them. THE RESPONSE BC&F Dentsu weren’t just getting New Zealand Rugby to buy into the idea; they had to…

THE CHALLENGE Invivo & Co knew that to go global, they’d need to go big. The team had previously seen great success launching their Sav with Graham Norton in 2014, but knew they needed to expand their product range and grow presence in the US if they were going to continue to succeed. A challenge for the group was that in the US, NZ wine is still foreign to many. However, with the interest in the US from buyers for another celebrity collaboration, Invivo & Co were able to leverage the Sarah Jessica Parker (SJP) brand to capture more wine drinkers. They also knew that gaining traction in such a saturated market would be difficult. A strong point of difference and a comprehensive marketing plan was needed to stand out.…

THE CHALLENGE Founded by two friends AJ and Shane and owned by Mix Limited, essano Rosehip skincare first went to shelves in 2014. With its unique pink packaging and blossoming relationship with retailers, the brand soon became a competitor to renowned skincare brands. Although thriving in a heavily competitive market, by 2019, sales began falling and essano’s success within the $84 million NZ skincare category had gone largely unnoticed. It was at this pivotal point that the team decided to alter their focus to better marketing and revitalising sales. To achieve better results, essano was then transformed from a product range to a consumer-focused master brand. Nielsen data showed essano received some of the strongest levels of repeat purchase from customers that had trialled it. However, the same data revealed…

THE CHALLENGE Carpet Court have long been associated with plush, high-end carpeting following their 2009 TVC featuring a real-life Rhino living on their carpets which then cleaned up like new. Given the success of this campaign and customer perception that the brand is only associated with quality carpets, Carpet Court knew it would be a challenge to move into the hard-surface flooring space which many of their customers had pivoted towards. The company saw hard-surface growing 15 percent per annum, yet knowing they’d never shake the Rhino reputation, decided to use it to their advantage. THE RESPONSE The Carpet Court found through brand workshops that they needed to engage and disrupt the market like their 2009 Rhino TVC did. Yet, through focus groups they also knew they couldn’t use an…

Former track and field athlete and Les Mills International Founder and Executive Director, Phillip Mills, left the “unhealthy” music industry in 1980 when he had a vision to bring together the worlds of sport and performing arts. Starting with branded aerobics classes like Jazzercise and Jazzergetics, he was able to energise his father’s Auckland-based Les Mills gym. At a time when the modern fitness market was just taking off, his bold marketing moves would soon lead to the development of a chain of Les Mills gyms throughout New Zealand and Australia. Over the following decades he, his wife Dr Jackie Mills and their teams created dozens of other classes like Bodypump and Bodybalance, which are some of the global fitness market’s biggest brands, taught by 140,000 instructors in 21,000 gyms…

163 percent How much OOHMAA’s Q3 2020 revenue was up from Q2 3Awards dish scooped up at the 2020 Webstar Magazine Media Awards 2,402,200Listeners MediaWorks radio reaches every week 1.4 millionPeople tuned into TVNZ 1 to see the General Election unfold 10The number of years Facebook Groups has been around 13Categories Special Group were finalists in at the B&T Awards 40,000Digital screens World Out of Home Organisation’s #OurSecondChance appeared on worldwide THE FACES OF OUR INDUSTRY SERIES By putting individuals and their stories in the spotlight through this series, StopPress in partnership with Google, hopes to reinforce the need for greater diversity in the industry. There are some exciting profiles in the pipeline - Melissa Taylor, General Manager-Agency Sales at TVNZ and Aimee McCammon, CEO New Zealand at Augusto -…

Beyond marketing to mainstream New Zealanders, Marketing Minds is well-positioned to reach emerging and hard-to-reach ethnic markets, namely the Chinese, who have high home ownership and makes up 10.6 percent of Auckland’s population and 5.3 percent of the New Zealand population. Anne Casey, Head Marketing Consultant at Marketing Minds shares insight into how marketers can better reach these communities. IS MARKETING QUITE SEGMENTED WHEN IT COMES TO CULTURAL REPRESENTATION IN NZ? The migrant segment in New Zealand is expansive, profitable and growing. Over one million Kiwis are born overseas and there has been 11 percent annual growth in migrants since 2013. The local resident Chinese market is estimated to be over 260,000 people (excluding students) and continues to grow by at least 16 percent per annum. For marketers, this growing…

On leading the rankings in the D&AD Awards for NZ Agencies Leading D&AD was a really lovely moment for our agency and an amazing reflection on the team we are building and the partnerships we have with our clients. But being the only team to win a yellow D&AD pencil in Australasia and winning in the categories we did, is definitely a reflection of the direction the agency is taking. TBWA\MAKE led the product design element of the winning project and we have a lot more super interesting work on its way. It’s been another step towards some of the very big ambitions we have. On being the only woman heading up one of these agencies It’s a shame, as there are a lot of superbly talented women in the…

“The times they are a changin’,” Bob Dylan sang in 1964, and that sentiment certainly holds true 56 years later. Every year is fascinating in the media industry, but 2020 has been off the charts. During a time when Kiwis have valued local news and stories more than ever and television ratings soared, advertising revenues plummeted as brands grappled with constantly evolving Lockdown rules and hitting the right tone. The NZ On Air “Where are the Audiences? 2020” survey shows that despite the surge in streaming, linear TV reaches more than six out of 10 New Zealanders per day (61 percent) and holds New Zealanders’ attention the longest by a significant margin, at 2 hours 17 minutes per day. One of the biggest changes though is broadcaster video-on-demand (BVOD) where…

In the first week of April 2020, Kiwis were stunned at the news of the sudden and immediate shut down of New Zealand’s largest magazine publishing company Bauer Media. Although not entirely surprising, the closure and later sell-off is a stark reminder of the global magazine industry’s struggle to remain relevant and viable in an increasingly digital world. The buyout of Stuff by CEO Sinead Boucher from parent company Nine for $1, also another reminder of the challenge newspaper publishers face in remaining viable in the current digitally driven market. However, during those dark days of the first Lockdown, Kiwi’s engagement with the magazines they love soared, despite magazines being deemed non-essential. In June, July and August – in and out of various lockdown stages – talented people bravely launched…

THE CHALLENGE Sharesies’ purpose is to give someone with $5 the same investment opportunities as someone with $500,000. With Sharesies, anyone (kids included) can start investing, from as little as one cent. With huge customer acquisition goals – looking to get 150,000 Kiwis onto the online trading platform by the end of June 2020 – lacklustre and sporadic marketing efforts had meant this bold 100 percent increase was looking unlikely. Sharesies’ customer numbers of around 76,000 in December 2019 had largely been achieved through word-of-mouth, social (Facebook and Instagram) and Google Adwords. The main objective was acquisition, with an associated increase in brand awareness. The brand needed help to synthesise its message, and to build a media marketing campaign that would resonate with their customer base. Sharesies identified three specific…

THE CHALLENGE The longstanding ‘100% Pure New Zealand’ brand platform had succeeded at globally anchoring New Zealand as the ultimate destination for unadulterated, natural landscapes. But, despite this campaign’s effectiveness, each year it was getting more difficult to rise above the noise of its everlouder competitors. By 2018, growth in annual visitor arrivals had begun easing, leading to a plateau. This was partly driven by the fact that Tourism New Zealand was being significantly outspent by larger, better resourced and more accessible campaigns. With an already small share of the global market at 0.3 percent, Tourism New Zealand needed to reverse the trend to continue delivering the economic benefits of international tourism to New Zealand. Its small market share means that Tourism New Zealand would never be able to compete…

THE CHALLENGE For over 100 years, Anzac Day has been of huge significance to New Zealand. In 2020 however, due to Covid-19 and for the first time in history, Anzac Day services were cancelled. With only one month until Anzac Day and while under lockdown, a small team of five from the NZDF and RNZRSA needed to provide a focal point for the country to rally around. The challenge was to provide an alternative solution for those wanting to commemorate without venturing into public spaces and gathering with others, thus breaking their bubbles. As a result, Stand At Dawn was born. The team carefully considered campaign wording, ensuring they were in compliance with government messaging and supporting social distancing measures. The tagline “Apart, but together as one” and hashtag #StandAtDawn…

THE CHALLENGE By 2015 the Rhythm & Vines (R&V) festival brand had lost favour with and the trust of New Zealand’s youth, and needed a strategic marketing and communications plan to help turn things around. The business was also facing very public financial problems and unfavourable media coverage from crowd behavioural issues. New Zealanders are also renowned for being last minute ticket buyers, and when running a largescale music festival in one of the most remote regions in the country, this was problematic. How then could the festival build trust with ticket buyers so that it would create urgency amongst its largely school-leaving audience who had to largely rely on the decision-making of parents. At the same time change the perception that R&V is more than just a school leavers…

THE CHALLENGE In July 2018, AIA bought New Zealand’s largest life insurer Sovereign. Internally, AIA had to bring together the two businesses on a cultural level. The company had undergone massive change: a new executive team structure, a shift in location for some teams, and the announcement that the strong, well-known Sovereign brand would be retired. A core component of AIA NZ’s business strategy was to shift customer perceptions of life and health insurance from death to health and wellbeing. They hoped to achieve this through the launch of their AIA Vitality health and wellbeing programme, which provides people with tools to improve their health and offers rewards to keep them motivated. AIA Vitality was a new concept to New Zealand, and not at all like traditional insurance products, so…

THE CHALLENGE For many years Goodnight Kiwi operated as an animal who would signal the end of the day’s transmission and a reminder your kids were up too late. In 2019, his comeback was for a different purpose, to encourage New Zealanders to read with their children. Kiwi kids’ reading standards had dropped to an all-time low, and simply putting a book into a family’s hand and saying “read” wasn’t going to help. The Warehouse decided they needed an initiative that would help create shared reading experiences, celebrate books and create family bonds. THE RESPONSE The solution was to bring back Goodnight Kiwi. A legend that would be a symbol of education and would encourage families to read together and listen to tales on TV at the end of the…

THE CHALLENGE Smoking is one of the leading preventable causes of early death in New Zealand, and the Health Promotion Agency (Te Hiringa Hauora) is one of the many organisations aiming to achieve a smoking rate of less than five percent of the population in five years’ time. Although each cigarette packet is covered in harmful images and warnings, health consequences aren’t driving much behaviour change, especially with addiction involved. 31 percent of Ma-ori and 20 percent of Pasifika suffer disproportionately from smoking harm, so it was critical to launch a campaign that would inspire not only these ethnicities but New Zealand as a whole. New Zealand also has one of the highest rates of pet ownership in the world, higher still for Ma-ori. It has been proven that if…

THE CHALLENGE Meridian knew it needed to better align itself with the values of its agriculture customers. The challenge was finding a way to become one with farming and share their story in a meaningful relevant way so they could grow market share. They knew the brand did not have strong enough cut through in the farming sector and that those working in the industry were busy, faced with massive amounts of uncertainty around compliance costs and regulations, as well an ever-decreasing confidence in the market. Farmers were seeking out steady hands that they could rely on. Meridian needed to show that they were there for their customers and in it for the long haul, not just a promotion. THE RESPONSE They set about achieving this through three strategic pillars…