Yes, They Can!
By Layla Romero
Marketer of the Year, the BCAMA’s most prestigious honour, is awarded annually to recognize a local organization’s superb execution of an integrated marketing campaign. This year, Vancity Savings Credit Union was recognized as the 43rd Marketer of the Year for its iconic Make Good Money campaign. In fact, this was Vancity’s third time being awarded this honour – an impressive first in the history of the BCAMA.
Although BCAMA President Sarah Finstad was unable to be at the Marketer of the Year Gala on November 6th, her video greeting set the tone:
Held at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver on Wednesday, November 6th, the sold-out Gala welcomed Vancouver’s elite and up-and-coming marketing professionals from a cross-section of industries and clients. As the jovial crowd mingled in the foyer, a host of Vancity’s business members proudly offered a variety of samples from the stations that dotted the perimeter of the room. Many guests were also spotted bidding on an array of silent auction items that had been generously donated by the event’s sponsors.
Attendees were ushered into the elegant banquet room where, in stark contrast to the displaced forest at last year’s Gala honouring 2012 winner Capilano Suspension Bridge Park, the large screens decorating the front of the room gave no hint as to what we would be seeing in Vancity’s presentation.
Sarah Finstad (via her video greeting), Kerry Plowman, Darrell Hadden and Shafina Hajee all took the stage to share a little about their involvement with the BCAMA and the Marketer of the Year award.
The presenters emphasized on the fact that results were the dominant factor in driving in the selection process of the Marketer of the Year winner. While this year’s runner-up (rumored to be a notable firm in the security industry) had demonstrated a remarkable campaign strategy, we soon came to understand that Vancity trumped all of the short-listed finalists with the undeniable success of their marketing efforts.
As Vancity’s Linda Morris (Senior Vice President of Business Development, Member and Community Engagement) and Richard Seres (Vice President, Marketing) took to the stage, the banquet room erupted in thunderous cheers and applause. The Vancity staff had come out in droves that night, and they could hardly contain their delight as their leaders accepted the Marketer of the Year award from Kerry and Shafina.
Once the crowd settled, Linda and Richard launched into the story of the creation of the Make Good Money brand concept. In partnership with Wasserman + Partners ad agency, they had created the Good Money concept to bridge the public’s recognition of Vancity’s community outreach with their comparatively lesser-known image as a savvy, full-service credit union. In connecting their members’ financial needs with their desire to grow their communities and the local economy, Vancity had created a hotbed for social and economic innovation while increasing their members’ reliance on them as their primary financial institution. Humorous quips and breeziness aside, Vancity had delved deep into their research, resources and untapped creative potential – with explosive results.
To help illustrate the process, Linda and Richard welcomed the astonishingly talented young singers of Project Limelight (a proud recipient of Vancity funding) onto stage. The audience cheered each time the singers performed snippets of popular songs, with lyrics rewritten to reflect Vancity’s rebranding process.
The BCAMA would like to once again congratulate Vancity on winning the 2013 Marketer of the Year award, and they extend thanks to the judges, sponsors, volunteers and everyone whose efforts made the Marketer of the Year award and gala possible.
Layla Romero (@laylayuki) has been a member of the BCAMA Marketline Committee since summer of 2012. Her unconventional career arc has now landed her in the financial industry, where she happily spends her days planning the marketing and community outreach projects for a local credit union.