Rosabel Leo-Burnett has once again established itself as a creative force to be reckoned with in the Industry reports O’Lekan Babatunde who puts the Association of Advertising Agencies of Nigeria (AAAN) LAIF Awards in perspective.
Formed in 1978 as one of the leading Nigerian second generation agencies, Rosabel Leo Burnett sure rings a bell any day in the marketing and communication’s industry landscape. However, the event of the recent past years almost left the agency in a traumatized position owing to succession issue which has indeed become the nightmare of most businesses in the country and beyond.
This is evident in the fact that a number of companies never survived this problematic but inevitable situation; talk less of getting back its spark and creative ingenuity.
This is where the case of the Rosabel, the Nigerian affiliate of the Leo Burnett global network of agencies, becomes a study case for agencies in the throes of the succession hick-ups and trying to rekindle creative inventiveness. The recently concluded 2010 Lagos Advertising and Ideas Festival (LAIF) Awards proved that the owners of the of the agency have taken the right steps, after some falters though, to inject the right antidote to bring stability and progress even when the founders are out of the scene. The 2009 version of the creative festival awards saw the Aromire, Ikeja based agency cruising home with 1 gold 3 Silver medals. Envious record to some, but the authorities realized that the result leaves much to be desired for this agency. Therefore the restructuring continued.
Juxtaposed to the 2009 position, the 2010 LAIF Awards which held in Lagos penultimate weekend, if anything, points to the fact that Rosabel is back on its feet and would indeed occupy the enviable place as it once did in the industry. Though, the agency did not lead the medal table with it’s impressive 3 gold, 6 Silver and 5 bronze, – not minding the gold draught this year – its total of 14 medal places it in 3rd place coming behind Lowe Lintas’ 1 Silver Grand Prix, 1 Gold and 1 Silver; and DDB’s 3 Gold, 7 Silver and 5 Bronze.
Speaking on the quantum leap in the agency as exemplified by its performance at the awards, the agency’s Executive Creative Director, Clement Omemu, who probably have seen it all having generated over 15 years experience in the industry says it all boils down to the new leadership. According to Omemu, under the new leadership of the new Managing Director, Kayode Oluwasona, there is a new focus, new drive, the spirit is high among the committed staff and the goal is excellence.
To drive home the commitment, the Rosabel bunch is fired by a new creative credo – “Challenge the norm”, can we do it differently?” And so far the change infused has proved worth the while. Most of the agency’s entries are show stoppers; you just have to stop to have a second look at the materials! Example is the Mobiltel’s customer care ad which creatively merged the heart and the ear in a seamless style as distinct from the usual “smiling face of a damsel wired up with the ear piece” – gosh!
In a chat with M2, Kayode Oluwasona, Managing Director, Rosabel Leo Burnett says Rosabel’s performance at the awards is God’s doing and credit to pure determination to succeed against all odds. “As a group, we have our eyes on success and we are resolved to take back our leading role in the industry”.
Yes, talking about leading role, one who is adequately in-depth in the industry, is bound to remember campaigns like Hope 93’s “MKO is our Man o”, Ecobank’s “The Bank for Quality Banking…”, First Bank’s “First Bank o, nna do well o…” and Cadbury’s TomTom “The Big Black Sweet, wey get White lines…”. These are few of the great works consistently churned out over the years by Rosabel. This infers that the agency has never been a fluke at what it does. Moreso, its accounts and businesses spread evenly across different sectors of the economy. So also its awards, they cut across various categories making it one of the most versatile agencies in the land.
For Oluwasona, it takes doggedness, clarity of vision, sincerity of purpose and teamwork to build a good organization. Rosabel has got a good dose of each of these conditions in good measure he emphasizes. Hence, he plans to continue to lead the team to improve on the pluses while eliminating the minuses while they consistently check to review performances.
Putting it more succinctly, the duo of Managing Director and Creative Director agreed that it’s not a total surprise as Rosabel has always got the creative knack. However, they are resolved to be more proactive. “Change is inevitable in life, we keep innovating as this is found to be the rule of the game. If you are not tough, smart and passionate, you cannot play in this industry”.
Rosabel, having shot into the top-three league, indicates a sign of things to come for the agency and in the industry. It is noteworthy the fact that the agency was beaten by DDB by only one medal while Rosabel was also a major contender for the Grand Prix which Lowe Lintas won with its only gold. All these are instructive lessons on the revolution taking place in the agency.
With the awards, Rosabel has once again established itself as a creative force to be reckoned with. It cannot afford to lower the standard anymore. It is therefore, compelled to consistently improve to impact on the clients’ businesses more than ever before. This is the challenge for Kayode and his team players as representatives of the new order. A challenge, they cannot afford to fail. {jcomments on}
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