Drugi jezik na kojem je dostupan ovaj članak: Bosnian
By: Stana Šehalić
The past year was very successful for the New Moment agency. They won two Lions at last year’s Festival in Cannes, the world’s largest festival of creativity. With these awards New Moment agency has confirmed the continuity of their creative work at a festival which is known as the toughest competition at the global level. In addition, for their Button for Help campaign, the agency received the Good Cause Grand Prix in the category of innovative campaigns, a Golden Drum in the category of direct communication, a Silver Drum for outdoor and a Special Mention Award for a campaign directed towards the future.
We talked with Jasmina Nikolić, Client Service Director of New Moment Belgrade, about awards and what they mean.
If we were to take awards as a benchmark, 2015 was very fruitful for New Moment. The awards you gathered at the UEPS 2015 competition in December confirm the continuity of the services New Moment offers its clients. How do you see and experience these awards?
Awards are an official confirmation of the creative potential of an agency, but they also say something about the people who work in award-winning agencies – about their ability to recognize the opportunities hidden in briefs, good team coordination, the account people that presented it all to the client, and of course the creative director and creative people who made it.
Awards from international festivals open the doors to new markets. Coincidentally or not, after winning the Lion at Cannes we won a client from New York.
Local awards also mean a lot to us. To receive 19 UEPS awards in different categories is an excellent confirmation both for us and for our clients that we have made something wonderful and memorable together.
Almost since its establishment, New Moment has been recognized among the professional and broader public as a very creative advertising agency, built on the concept laid down by its founder Dragan Sakan. What is New Moment today?
We live to create – that’s New Moment.
New Moment still believes that ideas can move the world. Everything we do is aimed at empowering people, brands, companies, cities and states, to change the world for the better.
You also won the award for PR Agency of the Year. What is your take on PR today, and its importance and position in the communications industry?
PR is a much more important and more complex function than it seems, and its importance will only grow.
First of all, we are facing new generations with individuality and sophisticated sensors resistant to every kind of propaganda. Therefore, the essential thing for the building and nurturing of a reputation is socially responsible and honest action in external and internal communications.
Second, PR is expanding its channels of influence, and these are online. The individuals and companies who realize this and successfully integrate it will be the winners.
PR on digital platforms and social networks – how does New Moment practice it?
Our online presence strategy is not to rush to reach everyone, but rather for everyone who is interested in us to come to us, and for them to have a nice time when they do.
We write about what drives us, what we look forward to, what we love, what we strive for and what inspires us.
On Facebook, Twitter and Instagram we share everything that is important – events in the life of the agency, news from the field, and we present ourselves – one person at a time. We have a cute blog written by our Dragica, our ‘hot pepper’ whom we nurtured from a seedling.
The Gallery NEW MOMENT is a cult place in the Belgrade cultural map. It was founded by Dragan Sakan in 1995, with the idea that advertising must transform into ARTvertising, and on its tenth birthday a permanent exhibition was established. Where does the Gallery stand today on the continuum from advertising to ARTvertising?
The gallery today is a “magnetic” place in which art, literature, rock and roll and jazz mingle, and is successfully led by Lazar Sakan. New Moment Gallery gives art to Belgrade, and Belgrade recognizes this. The exhibition “Cuatro gatos” was seen by 20,000 visitors, and the line to get inside once stretched over half a block. It was a sight to see. We strive to ensure that the Gallery increasingly supports artists and nurtures art.
For years now you have been successfully conducting the Festival Piran Idea as an event of creativity. After a decade and a half, do you think that the Festival has fulfilled its purpose, and that the dreams of the founder Dragan Sakan have been realized?
Saki would be proud of the concept, guests and speakers that we have had at the Festival over the last 5 years. It’s not every day that participants of a festival have the opportunity after a workshop to have dinner with, for example, the global creative director of one of the best brands in the world. This is the Piran Idea. Networking with creative directors, with a lot of soul and hedonism.
I believe that his dream will live for a long time, because the need for new ideas is endless.
Apart from the logical continuation of your already initiated activities, what will the business strategy of New Moment focus on this year?
In addition to local and regional clients, we focus on new markets. Balkan creativity for the whole world! Our vision is to innovate and implement new ideas in the global market.
We have made the first step on this path and we already have one client in Canada and one in the US. Right now in the US media there is a campaign created by New Moment Belgrade for Ariel Property Advisors.
What are the qualities, or rather specificities that position New Moment on the domestic and foreign advertising scene?
Creativity in the heart of our company;
30 years of tradition and experience with over 500 brands;
Regional presence in 9 countries, which is increasingly important for clients who are conserving resources, centralizing communication, facilitating logistics and increasing satisfaction, as trust, partnership and quality of service transfer from one country to another;
Passion in everything we do, thanks to all the good people of New Moment, who love their jobs.
How would you assess the current advertising scene at home, since as a jury member you have had the opportunity to gain insight into a large amount of the production?
There is generally visible progress every year and competition is growing in terms of the local conditions.
There have been several high quality campaigns, but also much more interesting examples of the creative use of unconventional channels. It will be truly refreshing when more advertisers resist the expected messages and campaigns.
The region abounds with fantastic creative people and I hope that advertisers from all over the world will engage agencies from the Balkans, rather than poach creative people from this region.
You are a member of the Management Board of the oldest national association in this profession, which has existed for 55 years, which brings together numerous agencies, and through its awards somehow presents the overall annual activity of a large number of agencies. What does the existence of such an association mean for local marketing communications?
For over half a century UEPS has gathered and connected agencies, advertisers and media. It summarizes developments in the market and issues annual awards. In addition, it organizes various lectures during the year, all thanks to the enthusiasm of professionals who breathe life into this mission. All this is something that really needs to be appreciated.
New Moment supports the work of all professional associations and we are trying to contribute to their operations. Our wish for UEPS is that it remains the headquarters of local and regional connectivity, networking and representing the best of our creative industries for the next 50 years as well.