The Communications Council relaunches as Advertising Council Australia; aims to re-inject confidence in the future of advertising
The Communications Council, Australia’s peak non-profit industry body representing companies in the advertising industry, has relaunched today with a new name: Advertising Council Australia (ACA).
The relaunch entails an overhauled strategic direction that will see a number of key initiatives rolled out in 2020/2021 aimed at adding immense value for ACA members and the advertising industry as a whole.
Says Mark Green (pictured below), ACA chair and CEO at The Monkeys: “Our purpose is to foster the long-term prosperity of our industry and to elevate advertising as a profession. Now is the right time to reclaim advertising and to refocus what we do as an industry body, re-evaluate what we stand for, the programs we deliver and how we present ourselves to the broader business community.”
Green was speaking at a special webinar today where he and the board announced the relaunch and presented the organisation’s refreshed strategic direction.
ACA CEO Tony Hale (pictured below) said today’s relaunch was about reclaiming the term ‘advertising’ and “reinjecting confidence in our industry.”
Says Hale: “The relaunch of our brand and the new strategic direction we are taking are also key to the future of our organisation, the value we offer to our members and the Australian advertising industry.”
Says Laura Aldington (pictured below), ACA board member and Host/Havas CEO: “Advertising is synonymous with creativity, which is what defines our industry.
“Creativity is the force that builds successful brands, and deploying great creativity as a commercial imperative has actually never been more important than in these times.”
The relaunch follows extensive consultation with ACA members who have given whole-hearted support to the project, the timing of which reflects a push by the organisation and its membership to build confidence in the advertising industry.
Backing the brand refresh, ACA is developing several programs aimed at enhancing advertising industry standards, and providing maximum benefit and value for its membership.
Says Michael Rebelo, ACA board member and CEO of Publicis Groupe Australia & New Zealand: “Raising the advertising industry’s professional standards is a heightened focus for the Board. Whilst the name change is important to signal the new strategic direction, programs such as accreditation and the advertising effectiveness reports aim to enhance our value to our clients.”
Key ACA programs and initiatives include:
● Accreditation – ACA will be reintroducing accreditation for its members in the second half of 2020 and evolving over the following two years to set minimum standards for members to meet.
● Reconciliation Action Plan – ACA has submitted a RAP to Reconciliation Australia. Amongst the key programs is a commitment to help build pathways for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders to the industry.
● Advertising Industry Labour Agreement – ACA has worked with the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) in conjunction with the Media Federation of Australia (MFA) to create an Advertising Industry Labour Agreement (AILA), enabling the industry to cover key skill shortages. This benchmark agreement is available only for ACA and MFA members and will be instrumental in attracting and retaining top talent globally.
● A completely revamped awards program for both the Effies and AWARD Awards – both have been designed to not just celebrate the very best work but develop a greater understanding of what leads to cutting edge creativity and proven effectiveness.
● Advertising Effectiveness – ACA has already published two ground-breaking reports (Australian Advertising Effectiveness Rules and Winning or Losing in a Recession) authored by world authorities on effectiveness, Ron Brittain and Peter Field. These reports, which have achieved international recognition, will be complemented by a series of future studies that will help build insights into what drives effectiveness in a fragmented marketing landscape.
Says Green: “These initiatives will help shape a new era for the Australian advertising industry and strengthen the value of our profession to the wider business community during a period in our history when this has never been more crucial.”
The rebrand announced today will include a completely new corporate identity, developed by brand and design consultancy Maud.
Assets including a new visual identity for Advertising Council Australia with a new website being launched today and other marketing materials progressively rolled out over coming weeks.
23 Comments
This is a very big step forward for the industry after many years of going backwards. Seriously about f**** time
They said they don’t want their old logo back
About time. Good move.
They talk about creativity yet there isn’t one creative leader on the team.
Nice to see advertising no longer considered a dirty word by advertisers.
I’m sure someone somewhere has rebranded before. Hope you’re going to credit them for it
Why would a new minted industry body settle for the same logo as another way better known industry body? Particularly when design is a pillar of the industry. Disappointed.
Industry body number 5,378,414,684 and industry initiative number 8,524,784,673
It really shows how backwards we are as an industry and why most agencies are struggling (pre-COVID)- we have gone back to the 80’s. The world has moved on – Advertising is an important part of the mix but its not the only focus and its not the future focus for client spend. Growth will NOT come from advertising for agencies. This is a great example of why this industry body lacks relevance and its old school. This is driven by the leadership of this body’s comfort zone for their personal careers – not whats right for our industry. Really frustrating and embarrassing and why agencies are losing relevance. #notmyindustrybody
This is a positive move. We have been so bloody confused as to what industry we are in that it is little wonder we struggle to stand up for the value of what we do. Rather than throw stones lets stand up and be counted and fight the good fight collectively. Despite the ongoing vitriol on industry blogs the australian advertising industry has been doing some of the most innovative work in the world. Lets get behind the work and the industry.
‘Commercial creativity’ has limped along as the more current moniker for advertising for a while now, but it felt kind of clunky, manufactured and seemed to say everything and nothing. It makes sense to return to a term that’s universally understood and evolve, contemporise, expand and add value to it over time.
People don’t want to get into advertising, nor do they want to get into communications. They want to get into a career that fosters and nurtures creativity. The Creative Council of Australia would have seen enrolments go up 1000%. Our agency does a lot more than advertising. As would many of the members the Advertising Council would want to attract. Advertising is a small part of what our industry does, and what we get paid for. Crazily bad move.
this logo is SOOOOOOOO ontrend. Flattened, stripped back, black and white. Its exactly the same look of every other logo in 2020. Where is the creativity? Stop all reading the same shit.
Dear aptly named Absurd. Below is just one of many definitions of advertising, this one from Britanica. Central to it is…. ‘promoting a good that is for sale’. Many clients do understand and encourage creativity. Many agencies from CEO’s down want to do great work. However we all swim in a very hard nosed commercial reality pond. Perhaps you’d like to both name yourself and add intelligently to the debate about what your ..’lot more than advertising’ adds to both your clients and your own financial success.
“Advertising, the techniques and practices used to bring products, services, opinions, or causes to public notice for the purpose of persuading the public to respond in a certain way toward what is advertised. Most advertising involves promoting a good that is for sale, but similar methods are used to encourage people to drive safely, to support various charities, or to vote for political candidates, among many other examples”.
The vision of the anointed at work…
First stealing the Adobe logo for award, now stealing the Chartered Accountants logo for this… who is doing their design? It’s worse than free, it could get you sued especially when it’s a registered trademark.
ACA is already taken as the Australian Counselling Association
https://www.theaca.net.au/
A good step forward for the industry. And about time.
…add to ACA, as well a needs Counselling: Mr Google tels me ther are 27 (and still counting), ACAs.
If you enter ‘ACA,’into your search engine you get Consulting Architects, Computers, A Current Affai, et al … plus my all time facourite – ACA (Adult Chilren of Alcoholics.)
How sad.
Was it ACA Design who did the dreadful logo? Or ACA Mulile Auto-Electricians who fix the wiring at the soon-to-be-forgotten TCC? Or ACA Joinery which make the office desks? What were you thinking?
A name change changes nothing.
As you know, the only advertising association worth its membeship and leadership and which keeps up with the times, is the UK’s IPA. They have kept their rather curious brand name and status over the years by delivering value to its members.
Yes, ACA, you really do need some counselling. With an emphasis on selling.
Haters. Put your name to it.
Professionals. Get behind it.
Let’s get to work.
How about we all focus on how we make this industry more trusted, respected and deemed a genuine professional service. The anonymous detractors and to be frank, the moderators of this blog, do very little to forward the standards of our industry. Whether you like the name or the new logo who really cares. Let’s all agree that we collectively need to start acting like professionals before we press ‘post comment’ on this blog and in the way we come together to forward the interests of the advertising industry.
The dip-weeds who rat on anything, whether it be forwards, backwards or even sideways need to buck up. The furture of our industry is at stake.
Hats off for recognising what we do is actually advertising. Hats off for a renewed call to renew what that means. And fuck off to the narrow-minded detractors ripping this and every other good thing on this blog apart. You really need to be banned from the industry, your narrow-mindedness and detracting comments are at a detriment to us all. Moderation is definitely required.
I worked in advertising, then a bank, then a non for profit, then a tech company. I felt so much more creativity at the bank, NFP and tech compared to my time at the ad agency. Also the first year I left the ad agency, my salary tripled! Good times outside of advertising on all fronts – the creative outlet, the money and the diversity of thought (meeting more folks, not just white folks from bondi), it’s wonderful!