Publicis and Accenture Song are top of the pile (again) in B&T’s new business rankings for July.
Back in March, Publicis and Accenture Song placed first on the creative and media podiums for their Spotify and NRMA wins, respectively.
This time, the businesses showed their more playful sides with Publicis One picking up Lego’s mammoth global media account and Accenture Song (with help from The Monkeys and Droga5) picking up Tourism Australia.
Last time out, Special and PHD led the way after winning IGA and Volkswagen, respectively.
So here’s a look at this month’s new business winners. As ever, they’re based on COMvergence billings data, where available, and the size and prestige of the account — which can count for more.
Media Agencies
Bronze: Hatched — Swaggle
Right at the start of the month, Hatched was announced as the media agency for online pet store Swaggle, following a competitive pitch.
It’s working as part of an agency village with creative agency The General Store and was working to deliver planning and buying across transit out-of-home in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, Broadcaster Video on Demand (BVOD) and performance media.
“We are thrilled to be putting our e-commerce and retail smarts to work in partnership with Swaggle to drive brand growth,” said Hatched Sydney managing partner Cat Edghill.
Silver: Sparro — Under Armour
Traditionally known as a paid digital media and SEO agency, Sparro has been expanding its operations with a data science team, acquisition of Jack Nimble and building out affiliate and above-the-line teams in the last two years.
“We were really impressed with Sparro’s digital-first approach, balanced with their above-the-line capabilities,” said Priscilla Larke, head of marketing at Under Armour.
“Our customers are finding products and inspiration beyond professional athletes, both online and through emerging platforms. Sparro is finding media solutions that allow Under Armour to meet our audience wherever they are,” added Larke.
Gold: Publicis One — Lego
When a brand spends more than $AU600 million on media, you’d expect it to be in the top spot come the new business rankings.
Following an 18-month pitch process, Lego finally decided to part ways with Initiative and chose Publicis One as its global media buying and planning agency of record.
Publicis One is a bespoke model and team for the Lego Group — aren’t these becoming popular — and be expected to continue exploring relevant and authentic ways to engage audiences while strengthening the brand’s connections with customers.
“We were impressed with Publicis One’s depth and breadth of expertise, as well as their aligned cultural values. We look forward to working together to further enhance our ecosystem, leveraging their insights and capabilities to create engaging and meaningful experiences for our audiences. Together, we aim to inspire children and families globally, nurturing creativity and fostering learning through play,” said Julia Goldin, chief product and marketing officer at the Lego Group.
Creative agencies
Bronze: Thinkerbell — GWM
Every agency wants a car brand — but who’d have thought there’d be such a clamour for Chinese car brands five years ago?
On the final day of the month, Thinkerbell popped up as the new creative and strategy agency for GWM (aka Great Wall Motors) in Australia and New Zealand across brand, retail, dealer and sponsorships.
The news of Thinkerbell’s win followed a particularly spectacular release from The Hallway on the same day saying that it had parted ways with GWM, the account was out for pitch and that it was looking for a new “ambitious” auto client.
“Thinkerbell’s body of work over the past few years has been impressive and we look forward to working with them, delving into their ‘Measured Magic’ and partnering together to take the GWM brand to the next level,” said Steve Maciver, head of marketing and communications, GWM Australia and New Zealand.
Silver: BMF — Endeavour Group
Another win right from the start of the month was BMF picking up Endeavour Group’s creative agency across its portfolio of brands including Dan Murphy’s and BWS.
M&C Saatchi had been the incumbent on the BWS account, while the rest had been held by Thinkerbell.
“We made the decision to move to a single creative partner to help us lift the role and influence of creativity in our organisation,” said Endeavour CMO Jo Rose.
“BMF is known for their ability to activate creative work in an increasingly digital and data-led environment, and this is something we are incredibly excited to see them enhance across our brands.
“Having one partner will help us be more purposeful in the way we grow our brands, by ensuring they are playing distinct but complementary roles in serving the full spectrum of our customer needs.
Tasty stuff.
Gold: Accenture Song, The Monkeys, Droga5 — Tourism Australia
The trade press lost its collective mind when the news broke that Tourism Australia had given its creative and digital accounts to Accenture Song, The Monkeys and Droga5.
Rumours had been rife that The Monkeys were in the frame to win the account — but the inclusion of Droga5, as well as flying David Droga himself in for the pitch, along with Accenture Song’s Nick Law, would have made this trio of agencies tough to beat. In fact, they beat out Clemenger Group, Publicis Groupe and a joint effort between incumbent M&C Saatchi and hot shop Howatson+Co.
“We have a very specific brief at Tourism Australia with a global footprint that sees us actively market into 15 key international markets. Our campaigns have set a high benchmark over the years and as our operating environment continues to evolve we need to ensure Australia stands out on the world stage,” said Tourism Australia managing director, Phillipa Harrison.
“During the tender process Accenture Song, along with The Monkeys and Droga5, proved they were best placed to provide Tourism Australia with the integrated global creative and digital services we need. We look forward to working with them to showcase the best Australia has to offer to the world.”
“We will be working closely with Accenture, The Monkeys and Droga5 to remind the world why ‘There’s Nothing Like Australia’ and are excited to learn more about the creative ideas and big thinking they can bring to the table as we look to get Australia’s tourism industry back on a path of sustainable growth,” added Tourism Australia CMO Susan Coghill.
“I would also like to take this opportunity to thank M&C Saatchi and Digitas for all of their hard work over the past five years. It was a challenging period and thanks to both agencies we were able to pivot into the domestic space, with the Holiday Here This Year campaigns, and once international travel resumed we launched our current global campaign Come and Say G’day welcoming travellers back to Australia.”
Accenture Song CEO and Australian expat David Droga said: “This win means a lot. Professionally and personally. We are thrilled by the wonderful opportunity, immense responsibility and the rekindled partnership.”
