ABT’s launch video for Holden’s Coupe 60 concept car ran away with the ‘Best in Show’ accolade, picking up an AVPA Gold Award. 

The Australian Video Producers Association (AVPA) is Australia’s premier industry organisation for video production professionals. AVPA exists to encourage and promote excellence in all areas of video production; to guide the development and implementation of quality standards, guidelines and codes of conduct throughout the video production industry; to act as an advocate for our members to ensure fair and equitable treatment by government and the private sector; to provide our members with valuable information resources and industry networking opportunities and to provide a national forum that allows members to share knowledge and expertise.

ABT’s China arm, ABT Creative, was featured in an article profiling the recent growth of the Snickers brand in China in the lead up to the Beijing Olympics. According to the Wall Street Journal, the buzz created around the ‘Snickers Street Olympics’ has paid dividends, with an increase in Snickers sales of 75% in the first quarter of 2008, compared with the same time last year. Snickers is now the No. 2 brand in China’s US$438 million chocolate market.

The Wall Street Journal quotes ABT Creative’s CEO Peter Grose in relation to the strategy in positioning Snickers as an on-the-go snack, ‘Right now, people would go have some noodles if they got hungry during the day, but we want to suggest that Snickers is a little more convenient.’

ABT has announced two staff appointments for its interactive and marketing teams. Steven Skrekovski joins ABT as Art Director - Interactive, while Claire Kowarsky steps up as Marketing Manager with responsibility for ABT’s offices in Melbourne, Sydney and Beijing.

With a rich background in multimedia design, Skrekovski was previously Digital Group Head at sister Photon company, Belong. There his work on client accounts as varied as BMW, Elwood Jeans, Glaxo SmithKline and top four bank, NAB, covered motion graphics, interactive branding plus digital film and photography direction.  Skrekovski’s folio highlights include his MADC awarded, motion graphics work for Club NAB, a Commonwealth Games brand experience environment, plus his placing as a Best Animation Create Award finalist with a cinema film for Elwood Jeans.

Kowarsky’s new Marketing Manager role represents a logical shift from her previous work in Business Development and PR positions. In developing strategies and implementing marketing campaigns for the firm’s Australian and Chinese offices, she will work closely with ABT’s business development teams onshore and offshore. Kowarsky started her communications career with Y&R’s Brand Experience arm in Amsterdam and since then has enjoyed work for not-for-profits Open Family and SEDA (Seeing Eye Dogs Australia).

ABT CEO Antony Gowthorp welcomed these staff appointments:
”Steven and Claire really understand the strategic and integrated brand offering provided by ABT; both are big picture thinkers well able of looking outside the box for creative solutions. Claire’s appointment is testament to ABT’s ‘grow our own’ philosophy.”

ABC Radio National broadcast an interview with ABT’s Peter Grose on Friday, 14 August, getting Peter’s expert insight into successfully doing business and branding in China.

In the piece, Peter sketched out some savvy ways that businesses, cities, industries and countries could do better business in the Chinese market.

Experiencing Australia as a business brand

Peter – CEO of ABT Creative in Beijing – was interviewed by Mick O’Regan, the host of The Sports Factor. Mick was interested in ABT’s expertise in establishing corporate connections between Chinese businesses and Australian brands, particularly in the background to the Olympic Games.

Based in Beijing, Peter talked about ABT’s ‘In & Out’ strategy, which helps Australian brands and corporations better communicate and engage with stakeholders within China. ABT also offers a similar expertise to help Chinese businesses and brands break into Australian and other international markets.

Mick and Peter discussed ABT’s work for Austrade in setting up Business Club Australia: ABT conceived, constructed and is staging a huge business networking club that occupies an entire floor of the Beijing Hilton. In this networking hub, ABT’s brand experience expertise helps host discussion panels, forums and commercial presentation all within a business lounge environment.

ABT; international brand experience experts

Understanding the way that Chinese businesses and governments like to do business, Peter emphasised to Mick how the Chinese ‘way’ is to establish personal relationships first, then do business later. During their talk, Peter demonstrated ABT’s international brand and relationship marketing expertise.

All those companies and organizations planning to make their presence felt in China today, or around Beijing’s World Expo in 2010, might want to drop Peter a through our China office to ensure they present and promote themselves to best effect.

Australasian brand experience agency ABT has picked up two new pieces of competitive pitch business in the shape of Ortho Clinical Diagnostics – a Johnson & Johnson Company plus a major project for FMCG brand Campbell Arnott’s.

The Ortho Clinical Diagnostics win is significant for ABT as it marks their strategic desire to handle holistic branding work in the pharmaceuticals & pathology sector. Ortho Clinical Diagnostics are a leading provider of ‘early’ screening, diagnosis, monitoring and confirming services to help disease prevention and spread.

ABT will plan and execute elements of the Australian roll out of Ortho Clinical Dignostics new global branding campaign plus support two major new product-related launches in 2008.

In adding leading Australian FMCG company Campbell Arnott’s to its client project roster, ABT’s principal role will be to support the internal communications function to produce and stage the firm’s 2008 conference summit.

Speaking about the wins, ABT CEO Antony Gowthorp said:

“These wins reflect a welcome vote of confidence in ABT’s brand experience skills by both client companies. We’re delighted to have won the work especially in competitive pitch situations.”

ABT’s ever resourceful resource manager Beatrice Claflin shares her thoughts on what makes a candidate interview-worthy.

This article first appeared in B&T, Australasia’s highest circulating Marketing, Advertising and Media Magazine.

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You’ve seen the dance concerts, extreme sports and celeb parties. And you thought Gen X and Y consumers were a tough audience to impress. But how do you go about making your retail partners understand the key role they play in supporting your brand?

Engaging retail staff and channel partners to embrace and deliver the brand values in the retail environment is a global challenge for all retail brands, yet brand experience is a proven performer for B2B marketing, just as it is for B2C. Learn how it captures the hearts and minds of all stakeholder groups to ensure your retail partners are not only motivated to perform but also convey your brand experience at every consumer touchpoint.

In a special presentation at the Asia Pacific Experiential Marketing Summit 18-19 Sept 2008, ABT CEO, Antony Gowthorp, will joined by ex-MINI Marketing Manager Jason Miller and Honda Australia’s Marian Dekker to discuss international challenges and solutions. With seven new vehicle launches planned for Honda in 2007/8, Marian can reveal a range of topical insights. Along their journey, Antony, Jason and Marian will visit B2B brand experience marketing to the tough dealer audience and other best practice examples.

If you’d like to attend, check out the details on-line

Peter Grose, CEO of ABT Creative, shares ideas and examples of how fresh thinking is boosting business for companies looking to capitalise the opportunities presented in China.

This article first appeared in Australia China Connections, the bilateral business bulletin read by more than 60,000 business people in Australia, HK and P.R China - July/ August issue 2008.

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ABT Art Director (and occasional agony aunt) Neil Edwards gives ‘tough love’ advice for overworked and under-worked-out agency staff.

This article first appeared in B&T, Australasia’s highest circulating Marketing, Advertising and Media Magazine.

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This feature first appeared in Human Capital magazine. For more information or to subscribe visit www.hcamag.com

Journalist Iain Hopkins talks to Peter Fulcher-Meredith, Communications Director ABT about whether employee engagement is the elusive magic bullet that is the key to successful business. The indications point to a resounding ‘yes’.

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