CAANZ LAUNCHES DIGITAL LEADERSHIP GROUP TO PROVIDE UNIFIED INDUSTRY VOICE
The Communication Agencies Association of New Zealand (CAANZ) launched the Digital Leadership Group (DLG) at a function in Auckland today.
The DLG has been established to provide a unified industry voice with the aim of helping New Zealand businesses embrace the digital environment and develop commercial opportunities.
The DLG is made up of senior digital leaders drawn from CAANZ members who are exposed to international trends and who are at the forefront of helping clients succeed in the digital marketplace.
DLG members are united in their concern with the lack of digital progress in New Zealand and are collectively charged with getting New Zealand businesses to creatively engage audiences online and to promote the digital skill set within agencies and their clients.
DLG Chair Darryn Melrose (pictured) said New Zealand may have a slightly misleading image overseas as a technologically advanced digital market. This has largely been off the back of the success of digital animation companies like Weta Studios in creating stunning visual effects for films like Lord of the Rings and King Kong.
“However, scratch the surface and there is a different reality to digital development in New Zealand. Whilst success stories do exist in New Zealand with the likes of Air New Zealand, and the ASB, the vast majority of New Zealand businesses have been slow to adopt effective ‘business to business’ and ‘business to consumer’ digital strategies commonplace in other OECD countries.
“Many New Zealand businesses don’t effectively engage the services of creative digital agencies and largely limit their online presence to ‘brochureware’,” said Melrose.
The DLG believes the time is right for New Zealand businesses to make advances in developing digital relationships with local and international customers. There is a global and local consumer base that is both willing and able to transact with New Zealand businesses.
Digital advertising represents a move from traditional ‘push’ advertising to a more interactive conversation with customers. International research shows that for advertising to be effective it must talk with someone rather than about something.
“Unfortunately, many marketers in New Zealand still view digital as a non-core advertising medium rather than viewing it as an effective medium to create dialogue, edify customers and generate new revenue streams. Creative digital content should be an integral part of a company’s marketing mix,” said Melrose.
The DLG will run a Digital Forum in February 2009. The forum will focus attention on assisting New Zealand businesses to develop effective digital strategies.
20 Comments
Funny how a membership organisation can launch an initiative to all and sundry but not tell its members.
“DLG mem.bers are united in their concern with the lack of digital progress in New Zealad and are collectively charged with getting New Zealand businesses to creatively engage audiences online”
Quite possibly, thi is one of the most-self serving things ever seen from your industry and clients are expected to stump up for it. So let’s get this right – the agencies who have invested too much in people and technology are now accusing clients of not spending enough?
What a massive conflict of interest. As a client I’m not buying it one bit.
Who are the senior digital leaders that have been selected for DLG?
Nice one Peter – just keep your head in the sand and carry on spending lots of money on TV ads that nobody is watching. If the industry had more clients who’s performance KPI’s included accountability for results maybe we’d see a change in attitudes. Of course there’s nothing like a recession to provide some renewed focus.
At a guess, are they from agencies desperate for more digital revenue and online awards? Not much media neutrality in that message for clients is there? Agree with Peter. Conflict of interest. Looks like a revenue drive dressed up as an education drive whether it is or not.
Peter has a good point Paul. And you talked about TV, not Peter. (Doesn’t Aim have the TVNZ account too?) IMHO TV delivers audience reach that not a lot of NZ websites or online can. But if you don’t know media, (like I do and you apparently do not, Paul), then you probably don’t know what really delivers results.
Comments like yours make this whole initiative very interesting for TVNZ. A major client of Aim and a major sponsor of CAANZ. Just what they need I bet.
Conflict of interest? Give me a break and grow up. Digital agencies aren’t a charity. Nor are Ad Agencies. They exist to help their clients market more effectively to their customers. Nothing wrong in promoting that message, especially when we ALL know that we are years behind other countries in this space. Working together (now that’s a first!) to help move NZ on to where it needs to be in the world is not a bad thing. Unless you are a marxist-greenie.
Good on them for doing something about it rather than complaining or whinging – which others on this blog seem happy to limit themselves to.
It’s a good initiative.
First item on the agenda for the initial meeting: Getting the CAANZ website up to speed…nothing about this group on the site and the most recent item in the ‘Latest News’ is dated 23/10
I wonder why Melrose would want to flatter ASB?
Apparently ‘nobody watches TV anymore’.
Well, something like 700,000 nobodies watched the Fair Go Ad Awards this year; TV ABOUT ADS!
For the average Joe Plumber the internet is boring. You are still nerds.
Members are:
Darryn Melrose (Chair) AIM Proximity
Rick Osborne CAANZ
Peeyoosh Chandra Ogilvy
Tony Gardner Saatchi DGS
Adam Good Clemenger Group
Robert Harvey TBWA\Whybin\Tequila
Dean Howie CAANZ
Andre Louis Publicis Digital
Matt Scott DraftFCB
Scott Sinclair Clemenger BBDO
Amanda Watts CAANZ
Direct people. CAANZ people. And one digital leader – Adam Good.
Christ alive
With the exception of Adam Good you could write the digital knowledge of many of them on the back of a postage stamp.
Considering you could fit the digital knowledge of most clients in the market at the moment into a pin head they should be OK. NZ is not even at ground zero in so many areas anything that tries to move things forward has got to be good.
TVNZ is about delivering content through every screen – increasingly the TV in TVNZ is not going to be about Television – they know this. So far from being a negative they’re embracing the changes, they have to to survive and remain relevant. It’s just that many of their advertisers have not.
Apart from Adam Good and Scott Sinclair that’s fairly light digital experience! I know there are other award winning CAANZ agencies with digital expertise out there that would add a lot more value. Very cozy group indeed.
What happened to the IAB?
What a waste of time. This is just political to look good in front of clients. Get some real digital thought leaders in there and that will make a difference!
Scott Sinclair – represent!