After five years ASB parts ways with Saatchi’s
After five years of award-winning advertising, ASB has parted ways with Saatchi & Saatchi New Zealand, believed to be sharing its business with a range of specialist marketing companies.
Says Saatchi managing director Paul Wilson: “We have created some truly innovative and effective work with ASB that has really connected with Kiwis, like ‘Clever Kash’, ‘Run Down Your Rate’, ‘Snap Scholarships’, ‘Ball Dogs’ and ‘Like Loan’ to name but a few. I am proud of these progressive, much-loved campaigns and of all the people who created them. We wish ASB every success for the future.”
Roger Beaumont, ASB’s Executive General Manager, Marketing & Communications confirmed that ASB had opted for a change of direction, led by an increased focus on customer experience, in support of the Bank’s strategy.
“We have enjoyed a fantastic five-year relationship with Saatchi & Saatchi and would like to thank the team for their contribution to the success of our brand. Together, we have produced some outstanding work, created some world-class campaigns and won a number of major awards.
“Our strategy, however, has continued to evolve, and with this comes a need for a new way of working. With this in mind, we have reviewed our current agency relationships and are looking to move to a model where we’ll be working with a suite of specialist agencies. We are currently finalising discussions with a preferred party to manage our digital, direct and data-based marketing requirements and will look to add other specialist agencies to our roster in future.”
Beaumont confirmed that ASB will continue to work with Saatchi & Saatchi on a transitional basis until the end of the calendar year.
The news comes just a month after the appointment of Toby Talbot to the chief creative officer role at Saatchi & Saatchi.
6 Comments
We are all very competitive in this industry, whether it be fighting for awards or new business. But, I don’t think anyone will be pleased to see this news. This must leave Saatchi’s on the precipice of disaster and the NZ advertising landscape would be all the poorer without them.
From someone at a rival agency, I hope that they find a way to survive this!
what’s toby gunna be working on now!?
I wonder when this was decided? Before or after the big new appointment..
Assignment has lost a couple of people lately, maybe they’ll have him back? Be quite a coup and reasonably stabilising for their Auckland office.
Effies Winner 2016 – Snapchat scholarships.
8 Gold/Silver Axis 2016 – Clever Kash.
Grand Axis 2016 – Clever Kash.
Cannes Grand Prix-Digital and Innovation Lions 2016 – Clever Kash.
AWARDS DON’T EQUAL LOYALTY!
The business we’re in is one of wins and losses, and hopefully if you’re really good, you get to keep them for sometime. ASB moves, and the landscape changes. And maybe Saatchi needed to have changed a lot more than it did to keep a client like ASB – who knows. Either way, this business isn’t about supporting old agency brands for the sake of it. Everyone needs to be relevant or die.