FOCUS: AGENCY OF THE YEAR AWARDS 2000 - Who the finalists were, and why they lost out

<p>Ogilvy & Mather, Agency of the Year for two years in a row in 1998 </p><p>and 1999, Leo Burnett Bates and BBDO were all just pipped at the post by </p><p>Saatchi & Saatchi for the top accolade this year. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>All the agencies racked up major account wins, created truly impressive </p><p>campaigns and turned in a respectable performance at awards shows around </p><p>the region, however, all lacked that extra little something that made </p><p>the difference. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The race was so close that for the first time, MEDIA asked all the major </p><p>agencies for submissions to argue their case as to why they should win </p><p>the Agency of the Year award. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Some agencies were honest and declined the invitation, saying they were </p><p>still in the midst of reorganising and restructuring. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>For the majority of the others though, they went in with guns </p><p>blazing. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>But as the smoke dissipated, there were only a few left standing. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The losing finalists were on a par with Saatchis when it came to big </p><p>account wins and the creation of some memorable campaigns. However, they </p><p>could not match Saatchis' record of taking 'Best of Show' at some of the </p><p>top awards shows around the region, including MEDIA'S Asian Advertising </p><p>Awards 1999. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>- O&M Asia-Pacific won the most awards for the region in Cannes this </p><p>year, along with major successes in the One Show and The Clios. Its new </p><p>wins included Motorola, Japan Telcom and Rolex, translating into a </p><p>growth rate of at least 30 per cent on 1999. This is on top of the fact </p><p>that it has been aggressively expanding its interactive capabilities to </p><p>ensure the fullest potential of the Internet can be offered to its </p><p>clients. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>- Leo Burnett won such accounts as Wrigley (China), Prudential </p><p>(Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, China and Indonesia) Chung Hwa Telecom </p><p>(Taiwan) and Shinsei Bank (Japan), resulting in a revenue growth of </p><p>almost 20 per cent. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The agency also bagged large numbers of awards at shows in </p><p>Asia-Pacific. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Its creative high point came in Malaysia, where it took the Golden </p><p>Kancil for client Petronas. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>- Bates has picked up Singapore Airlines e-booking account, President </p><p>Milk and the huge NCIC account in Taiwan. Impressive ads, e.g for Nokia </p><p>and Heineken, also counted. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>- BBDO pulled in 32 awards at MEDIA's Asian Advertising Awards and the </p><p>AdFest. Its list of new wins were impressive: Visa Asia-Pacific, Maxis </p><p>Telecom in Malaysia, Singapore Tourism Board, and New Zealand Milk and </p><p>Pizza Hut in the Philippines. </p><p><BR><BR> </p>