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client-agency relationships in perfect harmony

In this month's Marketing magazine, Richard Huntington, chief strategy officer at Saatchi & Saatchi, wrote a feature about client-agency relationships in perfect harmony. And fancy that, he used our Three work as an example, calling us a "very tight client and agency team."

We'd certainly like to think so, and as Richard says, it takes a pretty special client to buy an idea invovlving (in his alliterative words) "a CGI Shetland pony dancing its fetlocks off to a Fleetwood Mac floor-filler."

Thanks, Richard!

Three-Marketing-Sept14

"Some agencies and clients are just made for each other. By which I mean, they seem to get one another, and the result is confident work and a confident brand – partnerships such as The Economist and Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO, Audi and BBH and more recently John Lewis and Adam & Eve/DDB.

And so it is with Three and Wieden & Kennedy. You don't get away with a CGI Shetland pony dancing its fetlocks off to a Fleetwood Mac floor-filler without a client and agency relationship that is locked in step. A relationship in which there is a heap of mutual trust within a team with real empathy for the brand. Testament to this success is the fact that I have no idea which agency worked for Three before Wieden, and no recollection of any of its work.

But it's not just the brand fluff that it excels at. It is pretty tasty with the harder-working communications that land Three's propositions, too. Like this month's resident of the second spot in the Adwatch likeability table: the TV commercial for its #holidayspam campaign.

Here's the deal: Three has decided that data should cost no extra when its customers are on holiday in any of 16 selected countries. It's a top proposition, albeit that Three has cannily avoided most of the places that Brits tend to actually like going on their hols – Israel is currently a war zone and Denmark's only attraction is a statue of a diminutive mermaid.

To bring this to life, Wieden has found a neat creative insight that it's only the cost of using data abroad that stops all manner of horrendous holiday spam gracing our news feeds, courtesy of friends enjoying the beaches of Finland or wherever else. So Three is apologising to Britain for the irritation that this is likely to cause. 

It's not the most slickly executed campaign, especially in comparison with the brand spots, and, frankly, the outdoor and digital elements, such as the Holiday Spam Crisis Centre, are stronger than the TV. But this work delivers the business proposition like a sledgehammer. In a mobile market where you can run around the streets naked shouting "everything free forever" and people would ignore you, that's no mean feat.

So, all in all, a nice proposition, a sharp insight and decent work from what appears to be a very tight client and agency team. And thank God it is so tight, since Three is going to need all the help it can get from Wieden as 4G becomes standard issue."

ARLA AND WIEDEN+KENNEDY LONDON LAUNCH NEW ‘LET IN THE GOODNESS’ CAMPAIGN

Arla Foods’ main brand, Arla®, has launched a new campaign which aims to unite the Arla brand across different markets and introduces a new brand platform of ‘Natural Goodness’ with the line: Let in the goodness.

The global re-launch campaign, created by Wieden+Kennedy London, will form the basis of local campaigns in several markets, led by Denmark, Sweden, Finland and the Netherlands. The campaign seeks to communicate the Let in the goodness message in an emotional way, encouraging the public to make the most of the day, whatever it may hold.

The new platform launches with a TV commercial, directed by Mark Molloy, and a print campaign shot by photographer and food writer, Stephanie Congdon Barnes of www.3191milesapart.com. The print campaign features Congdon Barnes’ own friends and family captured in an un-staged, journalistic style.

Watch the TVC here.

The campaign is based on extensive research into the unique role dairy products play in consumers’ everyday lives, nourishing both body and soul. Whether it’s slurping an overflowing glass of milk or munching on buttered toast, the campaign highlights dairy as the thread of natural goodness that runs through life and prepares us for greatness each and every day. The work celebrates Arla’s reputation for producing and exporting natural and healthy dairy products.

The lead TV spot gives a glimpse into the morning routines of a broad cast of characters, juxtaposing familiar moments with a rousing voiceover that echoes the rhetoric of historical speeches.

Several product-focused campaigns have also been developed by Wieden+Kennedy London across the ‘Natural Goodness’ platform, starting with Arla Kærgarden butter in Germany and a campaign supporting Arla Finland’s commitment to sourcing local milk. These will be followed later in 2014 by work supporting Arla Buko cream cheese and the Arla Ko breakfast range in Germany and Sweden respectively.

Watch the Arla Kærgarden TVC here.

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