LBi London

LBi appoints creative directors Gavin Gordon-Rogers and Gemma Butler

Posted by Calvin Lau January 16th, 2012

London: Global marketing and technology agency, LBi, is expanding its creative department with the appointment of Gavin Gordon-Rogers and Gemma Butler as creative directors.

The hires strengthen LBi’s creative leadership and reflect an increase in demand for the agency’s blended approach to digital marketing.

Based in the agency’s Edinburgh office, Gavin and Gemma will be tasked with bringing their creative flare to LBi’s media arm, bigmouthmedia. They will provide creative guidance to global brands such as Skype, BUPA, Play.com and British Airways.

For the past twelve months Gavin has been working as Interactive Creative Director at Wieden + Kennedy. Prior to this Gavin and Gemma worked together at Agency Republic where as Executive Creative Director and Creative Director respectively they led the agency to win Marketing magazine’s Digital Agency of the Year in 2008.

Simon Gill, LBi’s Executive Creative Director, said: “We’re thrilled to have Gavin and Gemma join us. They have an enviable track record and are a fantastic addition to our UK creative team. Their appointment demonstrates our commitment to making LBi a renowned creative force, as we continue to put creativity at the heart of our blended offering across bought, owned and earned media for our clients.”

Anil Pillai, LBi’s UK Chief Executive, said: “Already 2012 is shaping up to be a great year for LBi with a host of exciting client opportunities on the horizon. Gavin and Gemma are both great characters and will be central to our constantly evolving agency culture.”

Gavin and Gemma added: “We’re really excited to be taking on this new challenge as LBi embarks on the next stage of its journey. We’re also especially happy to be teaming up again.”

LBi’s creative team has grown by over 20% over the last year. During 2011 LBi produced a raft of award-winning work for clients including Coca-Cola, Lloyds, Sony Ericsson, Peroni and Virgin Atlantic.

Contact

Gareth Jones
+44 (0) 207 063 6263
gareth.jones@lbi.com

Tags: agency republic, British Airways, bupa, creative department, Creative Director, gavin gordon-rogers, gemma butler, play.com, Skype, wieden + kennedy, Wieden and Kennedy

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Sony Ericsson launches Xperia Studio for artists and creative collaborators

Posted by Calvin Lau September 26th, 2011

London and New York: Sony Ericsson has launched Xperia Studio, an always-on entertainment platform for artists and collaborators to create and share their most innovative content.

Sony Ericsson’s Xperia Studio invites a range of creative thinkers, intellectuals and hackers – from collaborative artist collectives in Denmark to astrophysicists in New York – to take its range of Xperia handsets to their absolute limits, and ultimately to ‘remake reality’.

The first phase of the project has seen collaborators from around the world use Xperia handsets to create a flame-thrower camera flash, view the universe with the naked eye, capture the perfect wave and create a song from the ambient sounds of Paris. Each influencer project has been video-documented and uploaded to the Xperia Studio platform, an always on content theatre that showcases the interesting and innovative work being done as part of the global initiative. Xperia Studio also lives on Facebook and Twitter.

Moreover, Xperia Studio is unlocking creative thinking by asking participants to share their projects and contribute otherwise inaccessible experiences to a central, self-sustaining resource for this influential community and consumers alike.

The project underlines Sony Ericsson’s heritage as an innovator that continually blurs the lines between entertainment, technology and communications.

The first round of collaborators involved in the Xperia Studio project includes:

- Illutron, a collaborative interactive art studio in Copenhagen
- Dr. Joshua Peek, a Hubble Fellow and astrophysicist at Columbia University, NYC
- Ed Sloane, a lifelong surfer and innovative surf photographer from Victoria, Australia
- Annabel Linquist – an artist and musician from NYC

In each instance, Sony Ericsson has provided the collaborators with Xperia handsets and the means through which to document the work.

Chris Clarke, Chief Creative Officer of LBi, said: “It’s a real treat to work with a client so determined to break the tired old marketing paradigm. Sony Ericsson has been focused all along on creating something interesting and engaging. What’s so exciting about this is the way storytelling and technology combine to tell emotive stories. We’re excited to see where this will go in the future.”

Tags: collaborative, interactive art, mobile, mobile technology, mobile video, online video, Sony Ericsson, Xperia

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BT Vision Introduces New Interactive Presenter

Posted by Calvin Lau September 7th, 2011

London: BT Vision has launched an innovative way to showcase all the features and benefits available to users with an interactive guide; and he’s there to tell you all abut BT Vision with a smile.

The application developed by LBi, Europe’s biggest digital marketing and technology agency, introduces visitors to a wealth of information, via a guided tour where customers can ask questions and play with the features of the BT Vision box.

The character has been developed using clever logic and data acquired through the questions most frequently asked of BT’s ‘Live Person’ virtual assistant, ensuring that customers are directed to the right information quickly and effectively.   He can even sing, dance and entertain customers asking the right questions.

Nick Wong, Director of Online at BT’s Consumer division, said: “. Our vision for BT.com is to build innovation on top of a strongly customer-focused strategy and to keep adding value to the overall online experience.  The work we’ve done with LBi to produce this rich demo matches a data-driven approach with a fun, interactive character that we hope will make learning about BT Vision simple and enjoyable for our customers.”

Iain Preston, Client Partner at LBi, added: “BT has always been mindful of how the technical nature of its products can be presented in ways which everyone can understand.  The launch of the interactive demo is a beautiful addition to BT.com, which LBi recently redesigned, taking a more content led strategy to give people a much richer and more engaging experience with the brand.”

The Guide shows potential customers the advantages of the sleek new black Vision+ digital TV box, which is a Freeview box and digital TV recorder all rolled into one. With BT Vision you can pause and rewind live TV, plus you can record up to 80 hours of TV at the touch of a button and there is something for the whole family – but if you do happen to miss something you can catch-up with the best of the last seven days TV from the five main channels, including BBC iPlayer.

BT Vision also brings you the latest from Hollywood and beyond with the latest blockbuster pay-per-view movies. Sports fans can also enjoy Premier League football and more by adding Sky Sports 1 and Sky Sports 2 plus ESPN to your subscription.

To find out more about BT Vision visit www.bt.com/telly

Tags: bt vision, CRM, customer service, interactive video

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LBi introduces learning initiative for clients and staff


Posted by Calvin Lau August 24th, 2011

London: LBi taps Hyper Island to explore collaboration during Master Class

LBi, the global marketing and technology agency, has announced today it will embark on a learning initiative in collaboration with a selection of its big-brand clients and their roster agencies to develop the group’s ideas around digital innovation and organisational change.

Hyper Island is collaborating with LBi to explore blending, hosting a Master Class

LBi has long believed in blending insight, creativity, media and technical expertise to produce the best and most innovative work possible. This approach lies at the heart of the agency’s strategic partnerships with clients such as Coca-Cola, Johnson & Johnson and Virgin Atlantic Airways.

LBi has enlisted Hyper Island – the world leader in the field of education for interactive communication, change management and leadership through collaboration – to host an intensive three-day Master Class in Karlskrona, Sweden, which will be attended by a blended team of clients, roster agencies and LBi staff.  During the Master Class, taking place between 30^th September and 2^nd October, LBi will explore and experiment with its approach to blending and collaboration.

Later this year, LBi will share the outcomes of the experience with the wider marketing and advertising community via a series of articles, seminars and workshops.

“We believe this initiative comes at a crucial time as CMOs are being asked to stretch themselves into new uncomfortable territory, ” said Chris Clarke, Chief Creative Officer of LBi.  “Marketing no longer stands alone, but sits at the intersection of product, technology and communication. This means our clients and their agencies desperately need new ways of working.”

“It’s all about the people. Media and communication technologies have converged, and the industry needs talent that is collaborative, unbound by disciplines, and able to thrive in a rapidly changing environment,” said Christina Andersson, Director of Short Term Courses for Hyper Island. “Hyper Island has worked with various organizations since 1995 to develop more creative and efficient coworker teams and more profitable workplaces, and we are proud to be part of this journey for LBi.”

Tags: blending, client relationships, clients, collaboration, digital agencies, hyper island, training

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