Taxi: You can’t argue with science.

In the global ad biz, Taxi is synonymous with smart, funny, memorable, “wish I’d done that campaigns” – like the spot that forever associated the “Good Morning, it’s great to stay up late” song with ED in the minds of Canadians, or a certain mini Mexican wrestler who wormed his way into pop culture to the point of getting his own series. But the fact that the agency’s work for brands like Viagra and Koodo delivers equally enviable business results is less well known.

That’s surprising given that agency CEO Rob Guenette says TAXI has won more advertising effectiveness awards at the CASSIES than any other Canadian agency.

“Taxi is largely, and in some cases, exclusively recognized as a creative agency. When we started looking at the domination of the effectiveness awards, it even came as a surprise to us because we sometimes believe what the press writes about us and what clients say about us, and that is our creative prowess,” says Guenette. “When we saw the numbers, we went ‘holy crap’ – we are the most effective agency in Canada according to the CASSIES, and by a wide margin.”

Since the launch of the Cassies in 1993, the year after Taxi opened its doors, the agency has collected 46 wins, including 15 gold awards. But TAXI’s effectiveness can best be attested to by the longevity and stability of its client roster.

The agency’s longest-standing client Telus, with TAXI for 18 years, is perhaps not surprisingly also its “winningest” client at the CASSIES, with seven in total. Other big-bottom-line campaign successes were created for Boston Pizza (six awards), who has been with the agency for four years, and former client Mini (also six awards), who was with TAXI for 10 years. Other multiple winners are Koodo, Kraft, McCain, Pfizer and WestJet; many of these success stories are longterm efforts.

The exceptional loyalty and campaign longevity, in tandem with TAXI’s enviable track record of awards at top international creativity shows like Cannes, has led to rapid growth.

The agency that was founded by Chairman Paul Lavoie in Montreal 22 years ago now also has offices in Toronto (1992), Calgary (2005), Vancouver (2007) and New York City (2004). And in Toronto, since the founding premise was never to exceed 150 people in any one location, TAXI is actually two agencies – TAXI and TAXI 2 (2006).

The agency has always been integrated, and although there isn’t a hard delineation between departments, its planning capabilities have been getting a boost recently from Mark Tomblin, formerly leader of the Leo Burnett planning group in London and CSO at TAXI for the past 18 months. When he joined, Tomblin was given carte blanche to bring its planning up to the agency’s world-class creative standards.

Tomblin says, “Planning is at an interesting stage in its development across the world right now: the digital revolution has placed agencies under tremendous pressure. But the basic principles still apply – get the right people with the right skills and attitude in the room and then respect each other’s expertise. And if you end up chasing a specific piece of technology or a particular medium, then you’re putting the cart way in front of the horse. Get the idea first and then decide where it’s best expressed.”

Guenette says, “We’ve built the agency on the notion of doubt and by that I mean, never assume. When you tackle a problem, it doesn’t matter if you’re in the account group, planning or creative – start with doubt. It’s all too easy to follow established norms and old paradigms.

When you start with doubt, chances are you’re going to end up with something fresh, memorable and compelling. And effective.”