These achievements follow the agency's dominant performance at the 2009 Loeries, Eagles and Apex awards ceremonies, as well as being best agency at Cannes. Its performance was also recognised by Financial Mail's AdFocus which listed Ogilvy Johannesburg as Agency of the Year. The judges' decision was unanimous and also included the Effective Advertising Award, which has only been awarded twice, both times to the agency. It also won the inaugural African Agency Network of the Year on the back of its award-winning work throughout Africa.
"This is wonderful validation for our philosophy of brand and talent liberation. It also demonstrates our resilience in the face of tough economic conditions," said Ogilvy SA CEO Nunu Ntshingila.
It was the Johannesburg office that garnered the three largest account wins. The Cell C pitch saw it pitted against Morris Jones, Grey SA and DDB. The Johannesburg agency's MD, Julian Ribeiro believes it was the agency's strategic insight into the client's challenges, combined with great creative execution that won the agency the account. "We used our brand liberation philosophy to develop memorable work that will resonate with consumers," he commented.
The agency won the FIFA business in a pitch against five other agencies which involved the conceptualisation and execution of a 2010 World Cup promotion. "Winning this project is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and our experience on several other 2010 related accounts - from BP to South African Tourism - certainly played a role in the account win," added Ribeiro.
Its global Coca-Cola win follows the incredible success of the 2007 and 2008 Coca-Cola "Brrr" campaigns. Up against Ogilvy Paris in a pitch to extend the refreshment campaign across Africa and the Middle East, the Johannesburg agency was awarded the business on the strength of its strategic insight into these nations and its ability to leverage the company's network to establish high-quality in-country partnerships. From a creative perspective, it was this success in developing a campaign that transcends borders and resonates in the myriad different cultures represented in the region that won the business.
The Brand Activation's pitch for project work on SAA also proved successful and will include both ATL and BTL elements. These new projects will also feature a digital element to be developed by Ogilvy Interactive, the agency's digital division. Ogilvy PR Worldwide in Johannesburg also contributed to the group's success by winning the PPC and Castle Lager accounts.
"Most satisfying of all is that we have demonstrated our talent and abilities across such a diverse range of disciplines and industries," commented Ntshingila. "The awards we won were on behalf of multiple clients across a variety of categories, and our new client wins are equally diverse in nature. It says a lot about the talent at our agency."
