Ampol is pushing its role at the centre of the Australian journey in a new marketing campaign as the company, along with consumers, navigates a move from petrol and diesel to electric vehicles and hydrogen.
The ad push, which outlines Ampol’s shift in focus using its refining sites and nationwide distribution network, comes after the former Caltex Australia rebranded as Ampol and the newly named company reclaimed its Australian heritage as a 100-year-old brand.
Matthew Halliday, Ampol’s managing director and chief executive, told The Australian Financial Review the campaign, created by Saatchi & Saatchi Australia, reflected the role Ampol wants to play in the energy transition.
“We’ve got a fantastic set of people and capabilities, a fantastic asset base through our network, and we see that we can really evolve that to play a key role in transitioning with our customers to low-carbon solutions,” he said.
The campaign seeks to position Ampol as the company keeping Australians moving, providing the fuel, the energy and the mobility solutions to keep Aussies moving on the forecourt, on the road or at home.
The ad campaign showcases Ampol’s commitment to green energy, with the TV ad opening on a shot of solar panels across an Ampol petrol station’s roof, moving to a shot demonstrating how Australians can use stations to fuel up or recharge.
Ampol launched its electric vehicle charging brand, AmpCharge, in April. The brand strategy and identity was designed by Houston Group, the design agency responsible for the former Caltex business’s transition to the Ampol brand.
“As light vehicle transport electrifies, we’re really focused on how we can provide those mobility solutions of the future to our customers,” Mr Halliday said.
“We’ve launched our AmpCharge brand as the best example off that, and we’re rolling out charging solutions from homes to workplaces and of course across our forecourt, and the brand is extending naturally as not only a provider of transport fuels energy and retail convenience today, but will be distributing different energy solutions in the future.”
Ampol is focused on meeting Australians’ energy needs into the future. It is planning a green hydrogen plant next to its Brisbane oil refinery, partnering with a start-up in hydrogen-based micro-generation and storage, and delivering on its goal of a national rollout of an electric vehicle charging network.
Mr Halliday said it was “critical” for a brand such as Ampol to help its customers navigate the energy transition. It wants to give Australians the confidence that when they are travelling around the country, Ampol will be there with the appropriate infrastructure – petrol or an electric vehicle charging station – to help them get to their destination.
Not one size fits all
“Today, they need to know from an EV perspective they can do that,” he said.
“We play a huge role across 80,000 business customers. Depending on the nature of their business, the solutions will be different from fleet customers who will likely go down an EV path to heavier industry where hydrogen or biofuels might play a more important role – how we work with them to help find the best solution for their business.
“It won’t be one size fits all. What is the best solution and how we can enable that through our asset base and through the capabilities that we’ve got across our business, that’s a really important role that Ampol will play in enabling the energy transition for our customers.”
Ampol will use its advertising messaging to help Australians understand how the energy transition is shaping and what services Ampol can offer.
“What you’re seeing from this campaign is how our brand story is evolving to reflect how the business is changing,” Ampol chief brand officer Jenny O’Regan said.
“To connect with customers with different energy offers and as the business continues to evolve, and bring other energy offers to light, you’ll see that our brand story and campaign continues to evolve so that we are reflected back to customers the different ways that Ampol is supporting their journey.
”If you think about where we’re heading in the future – potentially in hydrogen, biofuel, the actual physical store will likely evolve as well so that there is an experience of the future that we’ll be able to talk to customers about as time goes by. ”
The campaign is designed to help take Ampol through the next phase of its energy transition, kicking off with broader brand messaging highlighting to consumers’ what the company stands for, before celebrating its fuel credentials and later layering in messaging around its future energy initiatives such as EV charging.
“As we’re extending the brand to a broader form of energies, as we’re rolling out AmpCharge, for example, and as EV rollout really starts to take hold in Australia, you’ll see real resonance from customers as they connect the confidence they have in Ampol as a trusted fuels and convenience partner, really extending across into their connection and awareness of our AmpCharge and broader future energy offerings, be they hydrogen, biofuels or other offers,” Mr Halliday said.
Ms O’Regan said customers were already connecting to the idea that Ampol as a company is evolving and remains relevant to how Australians are thinking about energy.
“Relevancy is really key for us and why the campaign is positioned in that way. People see that we are progressive, that Ampol is relevant in their lives for what they need to do and what they need today is the part that continually changes,” she said.
Extracted from AFR