Agency touts non-traditional business model, announces new appointments
TORONTO, Feb. 23, 2015 /CNW/ - TRADER Corporation, top provider of automotive digital marketing solutions, has selected Toronto-based CO-OP Advertising ("CO-OP") as its new communications agency partner for autoTRADER.ca, home of Canada's #1 automotive marketplace.
Effective immediately, CO-OP will provide advertising services for autoTRADER.ca, kicking off with national television work launching today and digital campaign development to follow in spring 2015. The win comes on the heels of a competitive pitch process, involving a number of agencies that concluded in early January.
CO-OP has been tasked with evolving the autoTRADER.ca brand positioning and applying a fresh creative lens to Canada's #1 automotive marketplace.
"We were drawn to the CO-OP team initially because their fresh, flexible approach to resourcing aligned perfectly with our needs as an agile, dynamic advertiser," says Ian MacDonald, director of marketing, TRADER Corporation. "But most importantly, this approach allowed both parties to focus solely on the core of the matter – the ideas and the work – the quality of which ultimately won our business."
Inherent in its name, CO-OP is modelled after the traditional "co-operative" association concept, with a future-forward twist that allows the agency to flex and shift team structure and size to meet the needs of clients.
"At the epicentre of CO-OP's unique business model lies our ability to scale up talent and teams as the work demands it," says Adam Roach, founding partner, CO-OP Advertising. "Our core group of senior leaders strategically assemble the right teams at the right time from the agency's network of world-class talent. This translates to campaign budgets being maximized in field and not consumed by excessive retainers."
The customized agency model has proven successful – new partnerships have been forged with major brands, clients who appreciate the lean yet uncompromising business structure and collaborative philosophy behind the offering. Since its inception in 2012, CO-OP has produced work for an array of partner clients, including Midas, Weed Man, Kivuto and Topstone. The latest addition of autoTRADER.ca to the client roster signals a new era of business growth and expansion for the company.
Over the past year, the agency has responded with the acquisition of top industry talent featuring specialized expertise in advertising account services, creative services and public relations, including Peter Brough (formerly of Zulu Alpha Kilo) appointed as Managing Director, Pete Ross (formerly of Taxi) as Creative Director and most recently, James Loftus (formerly of DDB) as Vice President, Strategic Communications. Rounding out the leadership team is Anya Switzer, account director, based in Calgary and overseeing Western Canada operations.
"We've all spent considerable time honing our skills and developing our crafts individually and have now joined together as a collective force," says Peter Brough, managing director, CO-OP Advertising. "A commonality, something that we all could see happening, was this industry shift around top talent resisting the confines of the traditional agency model. Further, we saw clients yearning for collaboration with their agency partners to realize deeper efficiencies, to spend smarter yet still keep the focus on high-quality, creative output."
Brough adds that the cost-effective CO-OP model is helping to even the playing field in terms of providing top caliber creative for all clients - big and small.
ABOUT TRADER Corporation
TRADER Corporation is a trusted Canadian leader in online media, automotive consumer marketplaces and automotive-focused digital marketing solutions. The company's best-of-breed product portfolio includes dealerSMARTsolutions, a full arsenal of tools and technology to turn automobile dealerships into serious online competitors, and velociT Solutions, a robust offering to help clients make faster and smarter inventory decisions based on real time local market knowledge. Online marketplaces and destinations include: autoTRADER.ca™, autoHEBDO.net™ and Autos.ca. Visit www.tradercorporation.com for more information.
ABOUT CO-OP Advertising
CO-OP Advertising is a collaborative, full-service, integrated agency partnership. Headquartered in Toronto, the agency specializes in creative marketing and communications solutions, including advertising, strategic planning, design, CRM, interactive, social media, digital response and public relations. The agency offers a future-forward business model that seamlessly flexes and shifts team structure and size based on client needs, while celebrating creative collaboration outside its walls. CO-OP combines the heavy-lifting capabilities of a traditional agency with the agility of a modern collective to produce captivating creative and deliver uncompromising business results. Visit www.wearecoop.ca for more information.
SOURCE CO-OP Advertising
Image with caption: "CO-OP Advertising (CNW Group/CO-OP Advertising)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20150223_C7348_PHOTO_EN_12453.jpg
or to schedule an interview, please contact: JAMES LOFTUS, CO-OP Advertising, 416.898.4579, [email protected]
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