22 May 2006
Media release – for immediate release

Piggy Banks Take Off

Proof that pigs really can fly, Bank of New Zealand’s piggy bank-themed television commercials (tvcs) have taken off with consumers. After only three weeks on air, the animated tvcs were voted top of the TV Top 10, AdMedia magazine’s monthly chart of New Zealand’s favourite commercials as measured by research company TNS*.

The success of the piggy bank commercials is described by AdMedia’s David Gapes as a “smash hit”, unprecedented in the history of the survey. “In the five years we’ve been running this survey there’s never been an ad that has achieved the number one position on debut.”

Customer and staff response to the commercials has been overwhelmingly positive, says Shona Bishop, Bank of New Zealand General Manager Marketing.

“It was a bold new direction for us, but everyone seems to love our piggy banks. Our own pre-launch research told us that we had something very special, and that’s been borne out by the TNS research. We couldn’t be more thrilled, and can’t wait to see the customer and consumer response over the long term.”

Public response worthy of particular mention is Linda Hodge’s Year 5/6 class at Matamata Primary School. Linda was so inspired by Bank of New Zealand’s advertisements that she changed her teaching plan to incorporate the piggy banks. The children created their own papier mache piggy banks, which are now prominently displayed at Bank’s Matamata branch in Arawa Street.

“We said that we hoped to differentiate Bank of New Zealand and set a new benchmark for advertising for the finance sector. It’s early days, but I think we’ve made some very good progress towards that goal,” says Ms Bishop.

ENDS

*The survey was conducted By TNS NZ amongst 1000 people throughout New Zealand aged 15+ between May 5th and 11th 2006.