Monty!

KARMA!!!!

I liked the Dustin Hoffman/Bob Geldoff campaign. What was wrong with it? Sure it represented a tonal departure from the Big Corporate stance normally adopted by Telstra, but that's a good thing, isn't it?

The fact that they like and have gone with the extremely dated, done-to-death stuff by Singo's speaks volumes about where they're at.

Maybe the client felt they had too few staff left to service the account.

12:15
I don't think it should be called Singo's anymore as he has nothing to do with it.
Banjo's should now be called Singo's.
What ya reckon all? or does anyone care?

The Hoffman/Geldof/McEnroe thing was rubbish. Tonal departure? Just not funny, credible or in any way true. Celebs were there for no relevant reason and were poorly utilised - the agency deservedly got spanked.

SOM won't be a great move but BWM now has the lion's share and that's deserved too, at least based on the work.

According to the client, Patt's wasn't creative enough, so they gave the business to SO&M who've been dictating their shit creative to Patt's the whole time.

WTF?

I smell secret, inside, smelly handshakes.

12:15pm, I am never normally negative on this blog, but you're an idiot.

they have no one but themselves to blame,
do a shit campaign - loose an account
its how the cookie/industrie crumbles/works

2:55, thank you for your insightful and patient analysis. Perhaps you could now go a step further and state your reasons for waving a dismissing Emperor's hand at the comments made by 12:15.

3:18, it's usually factors other than the creative that lead to a change of agency. Most clients don't know shit from clay or apricot jam. Example: Teltra's new work from SOM. You clearly haven' been around for as long as you'd like us to imagine.

I thought all Sydney creatives were awesome? AHAHAHAHAHA

Singo's is not Singo's anymore. The main man now lives at Banjo's, so the ex SOM should now be called Ogilvy & Mather once again.
Neither of them ever amounted to much anyway in recent times.
M.C.

To be honest, both Y&R and SOM rapidly nodded their heads to whatever ridiculous demands the vapid drones at Telstra shat out for so long it won't really make much of a difference where it goes. The last bastion of creativity for Telstra actually exists in BWM - a comment I wouldn't think of writing two years ago.

I feel sorry for Nigel, honestly I do. He's now suffering the horrible fate dealt to client pleasing senior management - do what an idiot wants for long enough and you'll cock up his business so badly he'll fire you.

Try pushing back a touch next time - you might just save a gigantic client and thirty staff.

12:58
SING GOES TO BANJO'S.
I agree it should be the old boring O&M again.
Toni G.

GPY&RIP

These big telcos need to start trusting smaller more creative companies, maybe this may be a good thing?

Will Y&R please take the "Patts" bit off their name and let the legendary Aussie agency rest in peace. It's been dead for years now and doesn't deserve to have its name trashed by association.

Proof the band-aid solution to re building an agency doesn't work. Fire 150 and re build with like minded people.

Having just finished up a contract there (no need to explain why) I must say that the guys left there, and the guys that were there before the big cull are some of the nicest blokes (and chicks) I've worked with.

Like any decent agency, a lot of great work gets presented.

To everyone taking potshots – I understand it's the blog and it's good to have a bit of a laugh but please have a bit of empathy for the poor bastards in the creative department with no control and little say over what's been going on in boardrooms they don't even know exist.

They're nice, talented people (rare to have both qualities these days) and they deserve a little better than that. Why kick a team when they're down?

so you fire all the suits and acct people who deal directly eith telstra and dont tell telstra... dont be surprised if they fuck off too. duh

Dear Andy
What 's your claim to fame. Your an arsehole and an embaresment to this industry. Basically your a waste of space, mate!

agree with 624. the patts that was great is long gone, let it rest, it deserves some dignity

Great news (except for the poor sods at Y&R).

Having worked freelance on Telstra at BWM, Patts Old and briefly Patts/Y&R consecutively, this renews my faith in karma.

BWM presented good stuff and got it sold. Patts Old presented good stuff but couldn't sell it. Patts/Y&R presented crap and sold it..

They had no interest in doing decent ads, or even ads that would work. It was all about ads the client would buy. I still have nightmares about a brief at SIngo's offices where they had 10 teams (mostly freelancers) from all three agencies taking directions from the twats at Y&R.

Every single creative person in the room was better than the dolts briefing and approving the work.

The campaigns presented were all sabotaged and fucked up by Y&R. Quite deliberately.

So... to you know who... you should be the first to go.

Except you've fled already.

To poor 9.55
I have been there, and done that and it works.
You are obviously sitting there wondering when the call will come.
The agency has been run badly for years the new team has been hired, what to keep the agency running badly. Get a reality check.
Kid.

George Patterson himself would be turning in his grave right now.
The whole situation is really sad.

And as usual, some of those who actually did their jobs now face the risk of losing them because some other people (obviously) didn't do theirs.

Dear 6:24, one of the best agencies in the region right now is called George Patterson Y&R. It's in Melbourne and seems to be doing rather well.

7.25. please...no more 'us creatives are the victims' and it's the suits' fault. that work should never have left the creative department, let alone the agency. they may be nice but they in't that talented.

everybody is equally to blame when the work is this bad.

8.41 they fired the suits because telstra took $4m off their fee and told them the suits were rubbish. they didn't want to do it, but they didn't have a choice. what would you like them to have done...promote them?

9.55 - agree.

Andy - Nice and easy taking away people's livelihoods isn't it. You're clearly a superstar mover and shaker. Muppet

Who knows? But, with all respect to those who lost their jobs, this might prove the best thing that ever happened to Patts Sydney. Look at Patts Melbourne after CUB/Fosters ran out the building. Yes, it was a bit unpleasant but they are definitely back with a vengeance and winning gold. For Cadbury, no more no less. Patts Sydney will be back. And Nigel is the man for the job. Read my lips.

10:35 and 6:24 should get their facts right before they open their big mouths.
Don't blame Y&R for fucking Patts. Patts people fucked Patts. Patts would still be great if Keith Cousins was still alive. So save us the Y&R fucked Patts bullshit.

Besides the 'Rabbits' spot of two years ago, what good work has BWM done on Telstra lately? The abortive rehash of Nilsson's Everybodys' talkin - 'with my laptop and phone combined'??!! My arse.

100% correct :15. Y&R didn't fuck Patts, greed did. And they know who they are.

1:09. If you've ever seen the suits at patts, you'd understand that 'CD' is merely a title there. You honestly can't blame the creatives. Sad but true.

Given that this was their biggest account does this mean another mass retrenchment?

Sorry 4.15, I had no intention of blaming Y&R for Patts demise.

I agree with you fully.

Patts demise wasn't homicide but suicide. Or perhaps fratricide, considering what happened after Ketih Cousins retired and what this successors did to both Sydney and Melbourne offices.

4.15 while I agree partially with your statement that Patts people fucked Patts this only happened after the great Geoffrey Cousins handed it on.

10.35 and 6.24 agree, Patts is long gone let it rest in peace. The Young and the Restless are responsible for the state it is in now and only have themselves to blame. It is beyond me why a certain person is still there they should have gotten rid of them a long time ago.

To be fair, Y&R was also once a great agency. Especially overseas. They had this great principle: Resist The Usual.

But since they became part of the great and amorphous WPP, well, the usual is what they are, with no resistance at all.

Both the esteemed names of Patts and Y&R deserve better than what they're getting, in Sydney at least.

In Melbourne they still seem to be trying, and occasionally achieving something.

But it still seems fairer to retire both names.

Ha ha! I am so glad I don't work in oz!

11:04

That certain person is no longer at the agency and is taking a long break so he doesn't break something else. His contract.

5:25

So which marvelous country do you work where you're free of retrenchments and account losses? Base on your arrogant childish little post I doubt you'll last long where ever you are. So where do you work or are you too embarrassed to tell us.

I work at Crispin Goodby Droga.