20th March, 2009

The John Caples International Awards, honors the best in direct and interactive marketing around the world.  Our agencies in Australia and New Zealand were very prominent at these awards last night in New York.  For the first time in Caples’ 31-year history Aim Proximity went on and won both prestigious awards including Best in Show award for its Valentine’s Day campaign for The Warehouse, as well as the Courageous Client award for its Yellow Pages work. Aim Proximity won eleven awards in total including three Gold, four Silvers and three Bronzes.

Clemenger Proximity Melbourne received three awards, including Gold for Mars Pet Food DM, one Silver and one Bronze. Clemenger BBDO and Clemenger Proximity Sydney combined for 2 awards, 1 Gold for Sega and 1 Silver for Vinnies. Proximity also received a Silver for Black Dog Institute ‘Paint by Numbers.

The John Caples International Awards, was founded in 1978 by Andi Emerson, a direct marketing pioneer, in order to honor well-recognized copywriter John Caples. With international chairs in 53 countries, it is funded by industry agencies, clients and suppliers; is run by industry volunteers and is judged by more than 100 active, senior-level, international creative professionals.

Aim Proximity work was certainly the big talk at the award show, with Love conspiracy consumer campaign for the Warehouse receiving Best in Show. The judges said it was due to its ability to engage buyers over a period of time and provide them with an unforgettable, extremely relevant experience – all while creating the perfect cross-sell opportunity for New Zealand’s largest retailer.

The idea was to draw in as many first-time male customers by promising them the ultimate way to impress their girlfriends or wives without having to spend any money.

The multi-touch campaign featured a ‘secret’ microsite for men only – accessible only upon completion of a “Are you a man?” quiz, e-mail messages and a live event that got the attention of both men and women. The retailer flew a plane with a romantic message reading, “Babe, I Love You” trailing behind it. Each male conspirator was instructed to tell the women in their lives that they had arranged for the special plane. By registering with the retailer, the men could vote for the message and for where the plane would fly. Naturally, they were also given suggestions for additional romantic Valentine’s Day gifts available at The Warehouse.

As well as winning Best in Show Aim Proximity won the Courageous Client award for its Yellow Pages iPhone Jonny / Consumer campaign work. For a traditional print directory business like the New Zealand Yellow Pages, the iPhone might be the last thing that you want your customers to think about. However, Yellow sought to bridge the gap between the public perception of its brand and its ability to be the go-to online source people could use for any and all needs.

That is why the judges felt it should receive the Caples brand for courage. The brand clandestinely sponsored ‘iPhone Jonny’ to become the first person in the world to purchase an iPhone. He waited in line for three days and three nights in front of an Auckland store and received worldwide exposure for the stunt. While in line, he managed to secure food and shelter, get a proper barbershop shave, work out on a stationary bike and even host a dinner party, all the while blogging about how he secured these lifestyle assets by using yellow.co.nz. The day after Jonny purchased the phone, Yellow revealed their secret using a full-page newspaper ad.

It was also fabulous to see Vodafone’s Innovation fold / Consumer campaign going on to win Gold in the Microsite category. Mobile phones do pretty much anything you need. That’s the basis of this innovative campaign from AIM Proximity for Vodafone New Zealand. See the blog posting about the campaign here The multimedia integrated campign used TV spots and print ads to show consumers the things they could “fold” into their Vodafone device, including maps, music, television and the Web. The ads, along with a mobile marketing element, drove consumers to a microsite that further explained all the bells and whistles that Vodafone mobile devices offer. The goal was to drive home the point that the agency was on the cutting edge by targeting teenagers who love the latest gadgets, hip 20-somethings on the go and executives who need information at their fingertips with the message that you can have some outdated items — such as paper maps and landline telephones — all in one Vodafone device.

Congrats to the Aim Proximity team for these three pieces of work;

Creative Director
Dave King

Head of Interactive Art
Aaron Goldring

Copywriter
Michelle Rajalingam

Art Director
Dan Fastenedge

Senior Digital Producer
Andrew Simpson

Digital Designer
Jason Vertogen

Digital Designer
Shanan Goldring

Production Manager
Paul Pritchard