Business Herald ad campaign scoops top award

A multimedia advertising campaign by the New Zealand Herald has taken the top prize for house advertising at the Norske Skog Newspaper Advertising Awards.

The award was granted for the Business Herald's Budget 2000 campaign, aimed at branding the business daily as a strong pro-business champion with the editorial courage to challenge politicians on important issues.

The judges commented that the "nice, strong" series of ads - in print, radio and wrap executions - achieved its objectives: to raise the profile of the Business Herald's Budget coverage and increase overall circulation of the Budget issue by 20,000.

The strategy underpinning Budget 2000 was a partnership with Deutsche Bank in which the financial institution underwrote the eight-page, standalone section in return for solus advertising.

The Herald team said this strategy increased editorial space for Budget coverage and preserved independence for the writers.

The ads were devised by Whybin TBWA's creative team, Herald assistant editor Fran O'Sullivan and former promotions manager Sarah Fraser.

Fran O'Sullivan said that with a creative budget of $12,000, there was no room for soft pedalling.

"We had to cement the Business Herald's economic and business commentators as authorities, touch hearts and minds with our business readers and bring some humour to economic marketing in four hard-hitting days."

The Business Herald will further expand its editorial coverage online and offline in Budget 2001, published on Friday, May 25.