CGU Insurance Rescues Australia’s Ambition in Brand Relaunch via The Monkeys
Last year, almost half a million ABNs were cancelled, many of them business ideas that never got off the ground. Lost ABNs are symptomatic of a bigger societal issue: ambition has become a dirty word. Unlike other insurers, CGU Insurance believes your most important asset is your ambition. So to tackle this problem, CGU has launched ‘ABN Rescue’, an integrated campaign developed by The Monkeys, part of Accenture Interactive, to help ignite the ambitions of small business owners in Australia.
The centrepiece of the campaign is the rescue of a lapsed small business called DOMUTS: donuts for dogs.
DOMUTS the brainchild of a working mum, Thea, and her young son, Marcus, was all-but-dead six months ago. CGU Insurance stepped in to work closely with Thea to help her realise her ambition, providing advice and assistance to get DOMUTS off the ground.
CGU supported Thea’s ambition by gifting DOMUTS with an AFL Grand Final spot, launching DOMUTS on a grand scale during one of the most watched TV events of the year.
Directed by Jeff Low at Rabbit Content, the film tells the story of DOMUTS, showing dogs from everywhere making the pilgrimage to Dogtopia, where DOMUTS blossom. It even has a special message for dogs, embedded in a frequency only they can hear.
Additionally, as the spot features animals, CGU Insurance has pledged .05% of its media spend to support The Lions Share Fund, a United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
Other campaign elements of the ABN Rescue campaign include content films, influencer engagement, PR and social, along with a dedicated website that houses a custom tool that lets people explore the business trends in their area.
As part of the wider out of home component of the campaign, special-built ‘Ambition Wanted’ installations have also transformed empty shopfronts around Sydney into visions of ‘what-could-be’. Projections of potential businesses transformed these forgotten spaces, inspiring locals and bringing life back to dwindling retail strips.
Says Sally Kiernan, marketing director, CGU Insurance: “As a long-standing champion of ambitious Australian small businesses, we are looking to inspire Australians with an idea to follow their ambition.
“CGU insures and protects the goals of Australian small business owners. That’s why we’re helping Thea make her ambitious idea a reality. DOMUTS has faced its hurdles but we believed that with a little support from the right people, we could get the DOMUTS business back on track. Through sharing Thea’s story, we hope to inspire many more people to revisit their own business ambitions and give it their best shot.”
Says Vince Lagana, executive creative director, The Monkeys: “With so many ABNs dying every year, we knew Australians were losing their ambition. This inspired ‘ABN Rescue’ – a campaign dedicated to getting Aussies everywhere to reignite their small business dreams. We shone a light on one of those small businesses, DOMUTS, to inspire the rest of Australia. After all, we know everyone loves dogs. And who doesn’t love donuts?”
While other insurers are content just getting businesses back on their feet, CGU wants Australia to recapture its entrepreneurial spirit. In addition to helping DOMUTS get back on track, CGU Insurance is offering three Ambition Grants worth $40,000 each. Anyone looking for an ‘ambition boost’, can apply for a CGU Ambition Grant at www.cgu.com.au/abn-rescue.
