Different, nimble, daring: For the first time Y&R crowned Campaign Brief NZ Agency of the Year

Sticking to the belief that everything you want is on the other side of fear, one New Zealand agency embraced a sizeable dose of bravery to produce some of the year’s most talked about work: calling for a burger wars ceasefire, bringing five kids back to life to save others for Road Safety Week and convincing a nation to drink Breast Milk. Y&R New Zealand is Campaign Brief NZ Agency of the Year.

In December 2014, Y&R New Zealand launched a new agency motto for the year ahead. The purpose was to empower everyone across the business to relentlessly pursue the best results for clients. It read, ‘Don’t Die Wondering’.

According to Y&R chief creative officer, Josh Moore, nobody ever became great without first being brave: “Fear is the greatest inhibitor to great work, fear of people saying no, fear of getting it wrong,” he said. “Often a ‘no’ to a great idea is actually an internal business barrier, we focus on finding out what those barriers are and then help our clients overcome them.”

The motto encourages clients and staff alike to take stock and come to grips with what is holding great work and great results back. A positive attitude is another quality he doesn’t take for granted, attributing it to producing ideas that other agencies can’t or won’t.

“We see ourselves as different, nimble and daring, and there’s nothing we can’t do if we all work together. Plus once you’re on a roll, success breeds more positivity and the ideas become even more fun. Consumers gravitate towards brands having fun and then the clients ask for more, so the lesson is to stay relentlessly optimistic. Have fun.”

And fun’s been had. Take McWhopper for example. It’s a personal highlight for Moore, who says it represents everything the agency has become – the perfect blend of creative and modern media thinking that brings the ‘Don’t Die Wondering’ ethos to life.

The campaign saw Y&R NZ client Burger King Global call for a ceasefire with its longstanding rival McDonald’s, proposing that on Peace Day, 21st September 2015, the two restaurants would end the beef by setting aside their differences to join forces and cook up the ‘McWhopper’ – a peace-loving burger that combines all the best ingredients from Burger King’s iconic Whopper and McDonald’s Big Mac.

The rest you can read in the latest issue of Campaign Brief, which includes the annual CB Agency Hot+Cold Charts, out next week.

You can view past CB issues and subscribe at Campaign Brief Online or contact Mina via email.