Calgary creative agency ZGM Modern Marketing has added two big brands to its roster, being named AOR for Tourism Calgary, and chosen for brand and product campaigns by Direct Energy.
“Both organizations bring a unique challenge and we couldn’t be better positioned to take that on,” said ZGM partner and president Dan King.
The Tourism Calgary win follows a review that began with 25 agencies, and the mandate includes both traditional and digital communications.
“The team at ZGM stood out with their strategic approach and their creative solutions for both leisure and business, as well as for their deep understanding and connection to the city of Calgary,” said Jeff Hessel, Tourism Calgary's senior vice-president of marketing, in a release.
Hessel recently told the CBC that about 80% of the city’s tourists are from Canada, but Tourism Calgary sees international markets gaining in significance into 2025 and beyond. The city expects tourism to inject about $3.2 billion into the local economy in 2024, from about 8.7 million visitors—surpassing recent pre-pandemic levels of about 8 million visitors in 2019.
ZGM said the city wants to build its brand as a “top-tier destination for national, U.S. and overseas” visitors.
Meanwhile, Direct Energy—an electricity and natural gas retail provider in Alberta for two decades—hired ZGM to help increase brand recognition and consideration, as well as new customer acquisition.
“With our collective bench strength in creative, media and conversion, we see an opportunity to cut through the noise and increase Direct Energy’s profile across Alberta,” said ZGM’s partner and chief strategy officer, Rob Fairhead.
“We are excited to work with ZGM as we introduce a refreshed Direct Energy to Albertans and continue to empower our customers as they make decisions for their home and lifestyle,” said Dan Smith, brand marketing and creative director at Direct Energy.
After acquiring Vancouver design firm Dossier in 2023, ZGM now has about 125 employees across Calgary, Edmonton, and Vancouver, and calls itself the “largest independent agency” in Western Canada.
