OPINION:
Like many people (see the comments after the Herald's initial story), my gut reaction was to have a go at Vodafone NZ's new name, One NZ, and new colours, which it will adopt in the New Year.
But I'm also wary that I got a bit caught up in
Vodafone NZ's 'One NZ' rebrand: Five clear problems - why they won't ultimately matter
An image from Vodafone NZ's rebranding campaign.
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1. It has racist connotations
The social media mob were quick to note that Pauline Hanson's One Nation across the ditch, the Waitangi Tribunal-bashing One New Zealand Foundation here, and other far-right nationalist groups like to use "one".
I don't see why a has-been Aussie politician and a fringe local group's use of "one" should forever prohibit its use by any other organisation.
And bear in mind that Vodafone NZ has presented "One" in an inclusive manner. The telco uses a lot of te reo Māori on its website and generally features a lot of inclusive messages.
It will be a case of One NZ undermining One New Zealand Foundation's negative message, not the other way around.
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2. The colours are a Kiwibank knock-off
"Welcome aboard - green is the new black," Kiwibank chief executive Steve Jurkovich posted to LinkedIn, cheekily posting images of Kiwibank black, green and white livery next to a One NZ image using the same colours.
But when Kiwibank launched, it faced National Bank - which also used black, green and white - and it fared just fine.
And, of course, there are only so many colours and One NZ's green roundel is totally different from any Kiwibank imagery.
Though if you do want to stay on a political jag, you could note that the Green Party uses green and white, so conspiracy theorists can see One NZ as both far-right and hard-left.
3. It will be impossible to Google
One NZ will fare in search just fine. Vodafone NZ can redirect to One NZ, and the telco - unlike fringe groups - will continue to buy search words on high rotate.
It definitely helped that Vodafone NZ secured the one.nz internet address (registered by a former staffer, who now works for 3Plus Consulting - one of the agencies involved in the rebrand).
4. Confusion with One News
When Vodafone NZ first unveiled its new brand on Wednesday, University of Auckland brand expert Bodo Lang told the Herald: "TVNZ won't be pleased about this." And indeed both the telco's new name and the type used were strikingly close to the state-owned broadcaster's long-time "One News" (it's more recently changed to 1 News).
But TVNZ claimed not to be fussed. "Vodafone operates in a different marketplace, we don't see this as a conflict," a spokeswoman said. Reminded that Vodafone NZ has its Vodafone TV partnership with Sky TV, the TVNZ spokeswoman said that initiative was winding down, so TVNZ stuck to its original statement.
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But whatever TVNZ thinks of One NZ, marketing veteran Andy Lark told the Herald that: "My concern is that in TVNZ's One occupies the 'one' place in our minds and that will be hard to overcome."
When the Herald put that objection to Vodafone NZ boss Jason Paris, he said the over-30s associated One News with New Zealand trust and credibility and (close your eyes, Simon Power) that no one under 30 would have any idea what the "One News" debate was about.
Still, it remains a bit of a messy one.
5. A teo reo opportunity missed
Some said Vodafone NZ should have gone with One Aotearoa, Tahi NZ or even Tahi Aotearoa if it really wanted to achieve its aim of becoming a more local brand.
Paris - who introduced himself in te reo Māori at the One NZ launch event - said One Aotearoa was not considered as an option.
But he also said: "We are committed to supporting Te Ao Māori and normalising the use of te reo through Whārikihia, our Māori strategy, and through honouring the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. We also support numerous digital equity and youth programmes."
Auckland University's Lang said Vodafone NZ had struck the right balance here.
"Aotearoa is really resonating with some people, but it can be divisive for others. Some people are comfortable with it, but some are not - and [telecommunications] is a mass-market product," he said.
The Auckland University academic said the practicalities of the global roaming market - where most inbound tourists will be looking for an "NZ" - probably also played a part in the decision (and it's notable that Paris said Vodafone NZ lost around $100m in roaming revenue during Covid border closures, so it's no small detail).
The last word
The last word goes to former Telecom executive Rod Snodgrass.
"Everyone is a re-branding expert. It makes me piss myself," Snodgrass said.
"Just remember who did the Spark rebrand. His name is Jason Paris.
"The first month was full of negativity, closet experts and frankly opinions from people hiding in the stands chucking rocks - many were inside of Spark - then, nek minut, everyone loves the Spark rebrand and you can't find a person who thought it was a bad idea.
"All the branding experts can probably get back to their day jobs."
