FCB NZ takes out Most Effective Agency of the Year title at the 2017 NZ Effie Awards last night
New Zealand’s advertising and marketing industry professionals gathered at The Langham Hotel in Auckland last night to recognise and celebrate the country’s most effective marketing campaigns at the 2017 NZ Effie Awards, organised by the Commercial Communications Council in association with TVNZ.
MC Te Radar presided over the evening, which was themed ‘You can’t argue with that’ – a reference to the fact that an Effie is recognised globally by advertisers and agencies as the industry’s pre-eminent award, representing the pinnacle in advertising effectiveness. The Effie programme is held in 40 countries and has been run by the Comms Council in New Zealand for 15 years.
Of the 19 Golds awarded on the night, FCB New Zealand (above) won 12 of them for its work with four clients. Its ‘Escape My House’ campaign with Fire and Emergency New Zealand won five, including Most Effective Integrated Campaign, Best Strategic Thinking, and Most Progressive Campaign, while Fire and Emergency New Zealand was awarded Most Effective Client of the Year (left). FCB New Zealand’s golden run continued with three Golds for its ‘Go Balls Out’ campaign for Testicular Cancer New Zealand, and its ‘Energy Made Wonderful’ campaign for Mercury Energy scoring Golds for Best Strategic Thinking, Most Effective Integrated Campaign, and Consumer Services. Its ‘Nudging Towards a New Normal’ campaign with Maritime NZ won Gold for Sustained Success.
The Effies executive judging panel went on to award FCB New Zealand Most Effective Agency of the Year, and the Grand Effie for its ‘Energy Made Wonderful’ campaign for Mercury.
Says Nick Baylis, one of this year’s executive judges: “The grand Effie picked itself. An insightful strategy that led to bold, single-minded creative that humanised electricity. The campaigns influence from churn reduction to share price stacked up in what is undoubtedly one of the hardest categories to generate consumer engagement – effectiveness made wonderful.”
It was also a great night for Saatchi & Saatchi New Zealand and Amplifon – Bay Audiology, with ‘The Emotional Hearing Test’ campaign winning three Golds for Best Strategic Thinking, Most Progressive Campaign, and Consumer Durables and a Silver for Most Effective Integrated Campaign.
Lion and DDB (left) picked up Gold in the Best Strategic Thinking category for ‘Tokyo Dry. The Other Side of Steinlager’, as well as three Silvers and a Bronze, and it was also selected by the judges as the winner for Hardest Challenge. DDB also picked up a clutch of Bronze and Silver awards for work with Lotto, TradeMe, McDonalds NZ, AA Insurance and Speight’s.
Colenso BBDO won Bronze, Silver and Gold for its campaign ‘Beer Bottle Sand’ with DB Breweries, as well as Gold and two Silvers for ‘Child Replacement Programme’ with Mars NZ, along with Bronze and Silvers for campaigns with IAG and Heart of the City.
Special Group and 2degrees were regulars on the winners’ podium, racking up six Silvers for its ‘Data Hunt’ campaign, while Special Group also won two Bronzes with Lion for ‘Pure Potential’.
Craig Baldie (left), national marketing director of Lion, won the Individual Marketer of the Year Award for 2017. This award recognises a marketing client who led their agencies in the marketing of a brand that has clearly excelled in the last 12 months and beyond – someone who really understood their business issues, had clear objectives and inspired their agencies to even greater heights over the longer term.
Comms Council CEO, Paul Head, said of the judging process: “I know it was a very difficult decision. The finalists are all brilliant marketers and have great relationships with their agencies, driving awesome, engaging work. In the end, the judges chose the person they felt had driven continuous innovation in the category and led work across a portfolio of long established brands and declining category demand. This marketer’s current campaigns are built upon creative platforms that endure; brand platforms born out of real insight into the consumer relationship and belief in the power of creativity to unlock this magic.”
The Commercial Communications Council congratulates all the finalists and winners at the NZ Effie Awards 2017.