Tag: anz

Wellington, New Zealand – New Zealand state-owned bank and financial services provider Kiwibank has launched its first major brand overhaul, with the aim to reflect ‘modern’ Kiwi culture.

The new brand identity includes a new logo, which was inspired by the te ao Māori concept of a thriving Aotearoa, expressed through the native harakeke plant. It also includes new digital channels and a physical network, which includes agency services and business banking hubs, making it the largest physical network of all banks in the country, and will see updates and upgrades over the next few months.

Kiwibank has also launched a new brand platform, featuring a line-up of some of the most inspiring and innovative Kiwis, including Allbirds, Dawn Aerospace, UBCO, Emirates Team New Zealand, and Banqer, as well as pop duo sensation, Broods – all leaders in their respective fields and making a positive impact on Aotearoa and the world. It highlights the work each brand is doing in its industry to lead the way in creating a better world and celebrating what it means to be a Kiwi.

The campaign has been produced by creative advertising agency Special and will be distributed across television, radio, digital, out-of-home, and social, alongside media agency OMD, while the identity change was led by Kiwi design specialists ThoughtFull.

Moreover, Kiwibank has also launched ‘Co-own’, an alternative option to traditional homeownership where Kiwis can team up to get on the property ladder sooner. This seeks to help enable more Kiwis with their homeownership dreams.

Steve Jurkovich, Kiwibank’s CEO, shared that when they looked at their brand, they wanted to understand what it meant to thrive and reflect on how modern Kiwis see themselves and their culture today.

“After 20 years in business and as we look ahead at the change the bank is undertaking, it is the right time to better reflect the bank we are today and the ambition we have for the future for our customers, communities and country. Kiwibank has ambitious plans for the future and is investing substantially to become the bank of choice for even more Kiwis. We are two years into a five-year transformation that will see us continue to grow and support Kiwi, balancing purpose and performance to make Aotearoa better off,” said Jurkovich.

Meanwhile, Simon Hofmann, Kiwibank’s general manager of brand and marketing, noted that they are in the process of changing thousands of customer touch-points from the website and digital tools, customer communication and social channels, to the app and ATMs. 

He further shared that their physical stores are being reimagined, as they are launching a new brand ‘Local for Kiwibank’ across their network of 100 partner sites which offer express banking services.

“The brand platform and campaign reflect what it means to be Kiwi, featuring Kiwi brands that are modern, game-changing, and passionate. Kiwibank is proud to be the bank that is helping Kiwi thrive and ‘This is Kiwi’ demonstrates our purpose – Kiwi making Kiwi better off,” added Hofmann.

New Zealand – As Kiwis celebrate the return of international travel with borders reopened, Air New Zealand‘s loyalty programme Airpoints has launched a new creative campaign that is designed to show New Zealanders how they can transform their everyday spending to unlock the power and joy of travel. 

The campaign, which was developed in partnership with creative agency Bastion Shine and dentsu, includes a 60” AV and a social campaign directed by Adam Stevens and produced by Good Oil. 

Titled ‘Don’t Live Pointlessly’, the campaign shows why travel should be prescribed as a therapy to relieve stress, grow relationships, and aid mental health, and how Airpoints want all New Zealanders to experience those benefits.

Andy McLeish, Bastion Shine’s chief strategy officer, shared, “The Airpoints programme has been around a long time and there is a huge opportunity to connect with a large part of the member base. We wanted to re-ignite emotional connection with the Airpoints programme through its largest benefit – that it enables anyone, no matter who they are, to get closer to their travel dream every single day.”

Meanwhile, Rich Maddocks, Bastion Shine’s chief creative officer, said, “Reminding Kiwis how they can live a life less ordinary through the power of travel was a fertile creative territory, rich with insight. The challenge for us was to bring that narrative to life in a way that was as interesting as it was true. Hopefully, we’ve done that.”

The campaign is already available across broadcast, digital, social, and OOH. Further activity is also set to launch over the coming months aimed at enhancing engagement with the programme and showcasing the multiple ways to earn and spend Airpoints.

Sydney, Australia – Re, the global design business agency under M&C Saatchi Group, has appointed Remi Couzelas, former head of brand planning at full-service agency 303 MullenLowe, to be its new group head of Optus, an Australian telecommunications company. 

In his new role, Couzelas will be overseeing Optus’ business across both Re and the telco’s bespoke built in-house offering, Yes Agency, as well as leading the integration of projects with other agency village partners.

Aside from his previous stint at 303 MullenLowe, Couzelas has already served as the strategy director of Optus at Re in 2018, where he worked closely with the telco’s marketing leadership team, leading the brand planning and development.

Commenting on his appointment, Couzelas said, “The opportunity to come back to Re and M&C Saatchi Group, combined with a strong desire to work with the Optus team again, felt like something I could not say no to.”

Meanwhile, Melissa Hopkins, Optus’ vice president of marketing, said, “We are super excited to welcome him back to the family in this new extended role.”

Patrick Guerrera, the CEO of Re and Yes Agency, noted that Couzelas’ first tenure at Re and the M&C Saatchi Group was phenomenal, and he has made an extraordinary impact on Optus.

“We’re also thrilled to have him back culturally, where he always shared his strategic brilliance and a huge sense of fun,” added Guerrera.

New Zealand – As New Zealand relaxes border restrictions to welcome tourists, Air New Zealand has launched a new safety video that features its ‘Tiaki Promise’, which encourages both New Zealanders and international visitors to care for the place, culture, and people.

Titled ‘Tiaki and The Guardians’, the story follows Tiaki, a young man who boards a flying canoe and sets off on an adventure across Aotearoa. With the help of Air New Zealand and Julie, who is a character that embodies the rest of New Zealand, Tiaki visits four Māori guardians including Papatūānuku (the land), Tangaroa (sea), Tāne Mahuta (forest), and Ranginui (sky). Along the way, he seeks advice from these guardians on how better to look after them.

Jeremy O’Brien, Air New Zealand’s general manager of brand and marketing, stated that they want tourism to build back better than it was before and part of that is to share with the visitors a sense of kaitiaki – to encourage them to act as guardians of the country. 

He further shared that their safety videos are world-renowned and through them, they have an opportunity to educate and inspire on the importance of Tiaki and everything it stands for, which is about being good hosts and good visitors.

The airline worked closely with the New Zealand Māori Arts and Crafts Institute to design the waka and its carvings. From there it was taken to the various filming locations and flown on wires to create realistic shadows and textures for post-production. Moreover, the cutting-edge LED stage screens, used in The Mandalorian TV series, helped to bring the legends of Māori culture to life.

O’Brien said, “I’d like to thank Pou Tikanga and storyteller, Joe Harawira, New Zealand Māori Tourism and the New Zealand Māori Arts and Crafts Institute for guiding us, right from concept to the building of the waka, and the cultural formalities we followed throughout. The collaborative effort has helped us share this story and the principles of Tiaki authentically.”

The film has been already rolled out across Air New Zealand’s international and domestic fleet and is available to view online.

Australia – Out-of-home (OOH) media company JCDecaux has been awarded a tender by Queensland Rail, which will expand its current portfolio, retaining existing formats and adding new digital assets and locations across Australia’s second-largest state. 

JCDecaux has been providing advertising solutions to Queensland Rail for over ten years, and with the new tender, another 10-year contract will be commencing in July 2022. This will see JCDecaux add 13 new roadside digital large format sites and six digital bulkheads in various locations, which will allow advertisers to have access to consistent advertising opportunities across the entire Eastern Seaboard, from Sydney Trains to Queensland Rail.

In addition, full-motion audio and video digital XTrackTV screens will be deployed at stations including a brand-new deployment at Brisbane’s Central Station. About 50 existing static sites will be replaced with 75-inch screens, providing high resolution, quality viewing of the campaign, which doubles the number of digital locations.

Steve O’Connor, JCDecaux’s CEO, said, “Queensland is poised for further economic vibrancy as it begins its preparations for the 2032 Olympics. Our expanded station and digital presence will provide brands with a wealth of new advertising opportunities to connect with its growing population.”

JCDecaux said that this ten-year contract has an option to extend beyond 2032.

In April 2022, JCDecaux has also been awarded an extended tender by the North Sydney Council to be its exclusive street furniture provider, which was inked for a term of nine years.

Sydney, Australia – ​Socially-led creative agency We Are Social in Australia has appointed Ben Clare, former group creative director at independent creative agency Emotive, to be its new executive creative director.

Clare’s creative reputation has been built over a 15-year career working in Australia and the United States. Aside from his previous role at Emotive, Clare was the creative director at TBWA Sydney, Clemenger BBDO Sydney, and Johannes Leonardo in New York. Over his career, Clare has also worked with brands including Google, Qantas, Tourism Australia, and Amazon, as well as Optus, and Skittles, amongst many others, helping them tell their stories in meaningful ways across film, digital experiences, and branded entertainment, as well as PR, and social.

In his new role, Clare will be leading the development of We Are Social Australia’s creative vision, working with a team of editors, copywriters, art directors, videographers, and photographers, as well as designers, delivering social-first ideas and integrated campaigns for clients including Samsung, Audi, Foxtel, and TikTok, amongst others.

Commenting on his appointment, Clare said that the opportunity to join We Are Social and help define its next chapter proved impossible to pass up. 

“More importantly, We Are Social is filled with lovely and talented people eager to take risks. It’s going to be a lot of fun,” added Clare.

Meanwhile, Suzie Shaw, We Are Social’s CEO for Australia, commented that he loves Clare’s work, and his energy. 

“Having him join the business at a time when we’ve got so many great clients all looking for interesting ideas, I’m seriously excited about the next creative chapter for We Are Social,” said Shaw.

Australia – Financial services brand Suncorp Insurance has launched a new campaign called ‘Resilience Road’, which aims to demonstrate and educate how resilient thinking can help save a home from the impact of ever-increasing climate events.

The campaign, which was developed in partnership with advertising agency Leo Burnett, was designed through the use of the data and insights from last year’s One House project by Suncorp. Assessing five houses in one of Australia’s most disaster-prone towns, Rockhampton, the campaign highlights how families could make resilience their next renovation. 

Moreover, Suncorp and Leo Burnett have also worked with The Glue Society to create a fully integrated content system that people can use, learn, and apply to their own homes. The project team has seen a transformation in the families that took part in how they looked at preparing for natural disasters and how much more control they could have over their fate.

Suncorp has also unveiled the Resilience Road Hub, a virtual demonstration of the project and a place where people can learn about upgrades to make to their own homes.

Mim Haysom, Suncorp’s executive general manager of brand and marketing, shared, “Following on from the success of One House, we created Resilience Road with the intention of taking the elements of our One House prototype into the real world, and to demonstrate how some relatively small and simple changes to your home could be the difference between your home surviving a severe weather event or not. 

“You can see from the reaction of the families we supported through the process, how transformative this thinking can be. Not just for one home, but for whole communities,” said Haysom. 

Meanwhile, Andy Fergusson, Leo Burnett’s executive creative director, said, “Since the inception of One House, our vision and ambition has always been to democratise resilience and make it accessible to all Australians. Resilience Road is yet another step in making our homes and community as resilient as possible.”

The campaign will run in Queensland across broadcast television, radio, online, and across social.

Australia – Australian media company Southern Cross Austereo (SCA) has elevated Rebecca Ackland, former people and culture manager at SCA, to the new role of chief people and culture officer.

In her new role, Ackland will be working to align culture and change initiatives at SCA to deliver against its strategic objectives. She will be reporting directly to Grant Blackley, SCA’s CEO.

Commenting on her elevation, Ackland said: “I feel privileged to work closely with Grant and the Leadership Team, and I couldn’t be more excited to continue to champion our award-winning culture, ensuring we place our people and our values at the core of what we do every day.”

Meanwhile, Blackley noted that Ackland is an exceptional executive who has built an amazing team of effective and passionate executives at SCA. 

“During her time as people and culture manager, Rebecca has shaped our people strategy, led change across all departments, and developed a deep understanding of the key business drivers and strategic challenges, as our business progresses its digital transformation. She has a clear vision and uses her expertise to help our leaders take ownership and drive change successfully,” said Blackley.

In February 2022, SCA has also announced the appointment of Lucia Elliott, former principal at marketing consultancy Creighton Ward, to be its new national trade marketing director. She was tasked to drive awareness and understanding of SCA’s total media portfolio.

Sydney, Australia – Media agency Initiative has appointed Daniela Rocchi to the new role of head of partnership for the Sydney team, and Justin ArIt to the new role of head of partnership for the Melbourne team. The move comes after Initiative restructured its partnerships department, aimed at bolstering its leadership team.

Rocchi’s immediate remit in Initiative is to lead the investment and partnerships across the Sydney market, bringing a genuine passion for investment to deliver the best results for clients. Having spent a decade at Initiative, Rocchi has been a stalwart in the agency’s transformation diving into every aspect of the business and proving herself to be a brilliant client adviser and an important partner to media vendors.

Meanwhile, Arlt brings his leadership skills to the Melbourne business. Up to date, he has been intimately involved in numerous Melbourne pitch wins and instrumental in rolling out several key internal processes.

Both will report directly to Simon Reid, Initiative’s national head of partnerships.

Commenting on her new role, Rocchi said, “I could not be happier to be moving into a role that I am extremely passionate about. What I love most about this role is that I will be building my industry relationships into strong partnerships and training our workforce whilst keeping the Initiative culture at the forefront of everything I do.”

Meanwhile, Arlt also commented: “I’m particularly excited to be working through the next evolution of our partnerships learning and development program which will help our teams build stronger relationships with our partners to deliver more meaningful results for our clients.”

Reid shared that given Initiative’s current rapid growth rate, now is the perfect time to restructure their partnerships team, providing huge benefits to their existing clients and allowing for continued agency growth.

“I am extremely proud of both Daniela and Justin and the fact we can promote within is a testament to the tremendous talent we have at Initiative. Both are masters of their craft, high-level negotiators, have built strong senior relationships in their respective markets and have been delivering year on year results for our clients. They both have extensive experience on a broad range of categories and will build formidable teams to benefit our clients,” he said.

Sydney, Australia – Shoppers in Australia and New Zealand are reported to spend less and be more selective in prioritising essentials during their online purchases, a report by BigCommerce, an open SaaS e-commerce platform.

According to the report, 30% of respondents also indicate they plan to decrease their BNPL spend, with 68% doing so to save money for essentials. Furthermore, 79% of shoppers would be likely or very likely to leave a website and purchase elsewhere if a website is too slow.

In addition, credit card as a proportion of last payments made has risen to 39% in 2022, up from 26% in 2020 and 2021. Debit cards have also become more popular as a payment method, increasing from 17% in 2020, to 21% in 2021 and now at 23% in 2022. The majority of purchases made after receiving a marketing prompt came from email (42.1% of respondents), while respondents who made a purchase after receiving an abandoned cart email have also doubled to 32% in 2022.

Shannon Ingrey, vice president and general manager, APAC at BigCommerce, said, “The beginning of the pandemic pushed shoppers online, and now they’re getting more selective with their spending to prioritise saving more. We’re at a point where retailers and merchants need to take an introspective look at their key services to address shopper pain points like website speed and fast delivery time.”

Meanwhile, 40% of respondents indicated they have chosen one retailer over another because of a loyalty program offering, with 69% saying they have used a loyalty program to claim a reward in the last three months. For 77% of respondents, free shipping is the number one preferred perk when it comes to these loyalty programs.

“It’s critical for retailers to ensure they have the right technology and infrastructure in place to prioritise fast, seamless experiences for shoppers. Understanding what consumers think and how they behave on a day-to-day basis will be key to the strategic decision-making of every merchant in 2022,” Ingrey concluded.