A continuous flow of great automotive marketing ideas

Former journalist, communications expert and auto industry commentator, Kurt McGuiness has been telling tales his entire career, having worked on iconic media brands including Top Gear and FHM. Now, as Volkswagen Group Australia’s corporate story-teller, McGuiness develops multi-platform content and experiences for the Volkswagen Group’s brands, bringing the ‘World of Volkswagen’ to its legion of fans worldwide. As the size and influence of traditional media continues to decline, McGuiness has had to rely on his TV and publishing experience to find new, engaging ways to reach customers and fans. Whether it’s racing mountain bikers to afternoon tea in a luxury SUV, trekking with sled dogs to explain how all-wheel-drive works, or using 360-degree technology to take fans on a hot lap with a difference, McGuiness continues to push the envelope for what is possible with owned media, whether the old guard like it or not.

Wayde has 30 years’ hands-on experience guiding brand research and strategy projects including 20 years with the Principals team.

After beginning his career in brand research with Kodak in New Zealand and the UK, Wayde served 10 years in strategic planning posts with Young & Rubicam in London, New York and Sydney where he worked for key clients including Scottish Courage Breweries, Air Canada, The Times, The Conservative Party, Ray Ban, AT&T and MetLife. Wayde joined George Patterson as Planning Director in 1994 working on Carlton United Breweries, National Australia Bank, News Limited and Optus.

In 1995, Wayde helped found Principals where he has led brand vision projects for many great Australian brands including Arnott’s, Audi, Austrade, Australia Post, Fairfax, Fox Sports, Hyundai, JBWere, Lend Lease, Lexus, Lion Nathan, MLC, QBE, Subaru, Telstra, Toyota and Unilever.

In 2007, Wayde began work to develop the Brand Alpha research model, in partnership with brand analytics experts, The Navigators. To date the model has been used to measure more than 150 brands in 7 countries.

Bio coming soon…

With 15 years’ experience in advertising and marketing, Ali is a firm believer in getting out from behind the laptop screen, finding real insight and combining that with other data for fresh strategies.

Now CSO at VMLY&R (say that three times fast), she leads long-term strategy across the client portfolio and heads up the strategy team across Australia and NZ.

Ali led strategy on Aldi at BMF for six years, during which it grew from 4% to 12% market share. She’s also worked on Apple, TfNSW, Dulux and Schweppes, among many others.

Ali has been lucky enough to win a range of Effie awards, including Gold and Agency of the Year awards. She contributes to the industry through the APG Committee, mentoring, conference speaking, and is an occasional panellist on ABC’s Gruen TV show.

Her side-hustle comes in the form of two small children, a busy and rewarding not-for-profit…

Stephen started his career in Perth, Western Australia over 18 years ago. His career has taken him all over the world, where he has worked at some of the world’s most creative and effective agencies.

Stephen returned to Australia, and Clemenger BBDO Melbourne, from London six years ago. Over the years Stephen’s work has been recognised globally for both effectiveness and creativity – his campaigns for Snickers ‘Hungerithm’ and the TAC ‘Meet Graham Project’ are two of the most awarded campaigns in the world. In 2017 Stephen was recognised as the #1 Creative Director in the world. He is particularly proud of being part of the team that lead Clemenger BBDO to be named The Won Report’s, and WARC 100 Most Effective, Global Agency.

Stephen has a wealth of client knowledge working on utility (including energy), automotive, financial institutions, insurance, FMCG and Government to name a few.

At Clemenger he has been responsible for leading the creative on a range of their clients including Airbnb, TAC (Transport Accident Commission), Origin Energy, Mars, NAB, Seek, BMW/Mini and Myer.

As an Industry Head, Sean leads Google partnerships across Automotive, Retail, CPG and Media, he is also the Business lead of Google Melbourne. Sean is passionate about digital and marketing, with nearly two decades of working with diverse businesses across all aspects of business development and strategic leadership.

Sean experience includes developing partnership business plans, global deal structuring and commercialization planning through building high-performance teams and bring diverse groups together to deliver commercial outcomes that create value for both Google, it’s customers and partners.

As the Head of Product Management and Marketing for Mercedes-Benz Vans Australia & New Zealand, Sabine Wagner brings twelve years experience working with Mercedes-Benz across Germany, UAE and Australia. Responsible for product management, sales planning and reporting as well as the marketing/PR strategy for Mercedes-Benz Vans in Australia and New Zealand, Sabine has played an integral role in bringing new products to the Australian market since her appointment to the position in 2016.

Known for their reliability and durability, the Mercedes-Benz Vans range includes the Sprinter, Vito, Valente, V-Class, Marco Polo ACTIVITY and the X-Class ute. With an emphasis on innovation, strength and category leadership, Mercedes-Benz Vans have pioneered many modern safety features and future-oriented technologies in their range. Uniting comprehensive vehicle concepts with typical Mercedes-Benz design expertise, the range offers options to support any customer.

Sabine was appointed Head of Product Management and Marketing in November 2016, having previously spent over two years as Market Manager for Sales Overseas, where she was responsible for the management of sales operations for Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Her extensive experience with Mercedes-Benz includes roles in product strategy and marketing, both in Australia and abroad. In her time as Head of Product Management and Marketing for Australia & New Zealand, Mercedes-Benz Vans has maintained a market-leading position within the van segment, with successful launches of new vehicles such as the X-Class further building the brand’s profile.

Sam joined the Destination Group of Companies in 2018 to lead the development of Incentive and Business Insights Programs (IBIP).

Having spent the past 15 years working in industries undergoing major disruptive change, Sam has developed a passion for leadership, marketing, innovation and brand positioning in changing environments.

In 2019 Destination’s IBIP programs were recognised by Australian Marketing Institute Awards for Marketing Excellence as national winners in the category Product/Service Revitalisation.

By taking an entrepreneurial approach to the traditional model of rewards programs, Destination has been able to transition and position the brand in a rapidly changing market.