by Charlie Mathews (@CharlesLeeZA) A brutal year for some, a victory for others. Several well known agencies closed their doors in 2017 but the year also marked the rise and rise of local black agencies and black creatives. Viva!
Charles Lee Mathews (@CharlesLeeZA) is the founder of TheWriters.co.za, a boutique strategy and content shop that helps brands better connect — and engage with — the people who matter most. When not writing, or thinking about human behaviour, Charlie creates The Marketing Mice exclusively for MarkLives.
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by Oresti Patricios (@orestaki)The year is almost done but, before you get there, a standing ovation, please, for the three best advertising campaigns of the year. The Odd Number, Joe Public and King James — it’s time to pop out the champagne and celebrate!
If you haven’t already seen Monday’s countdown from no. 10 to no. 4, view it now before we reveal the Top 3 ads. The winners’ list is drawn from the year’s Ad of the Week winners, and involved days of debate between the judges.
This campaign, sponsored by Sanlam in partnership with the City of Cape Town and Cape Town Tourism, has gotten top South African musicians to produce two-minute versions of their songs for people to sing along to in the shower. The idea is to encourage shorter showers, thus potentially saving thousands of litres of water in the drought-struck region. The campaign has even caught the attention of TIME, which featured it in the world/climate change section of the website in November 2017.
The campaign communicates a simple message, in a fun way, with a clear call to action. Even if people don’t go to the trouble of downloading the song, at least this will make them that much more aware of how they may help in a small way, every single day, by just keeping the shower short.
As South Africans we love to laugh at ourselves, and this was proven by many of the ads this year. SA’s fried-chicken outlet, Chicken Licken, has long competed with other purveyors of fast-food chicken by using humour in its marketing message.
Chicken Licken was featured as Ad of the Week three times this year, more than any other single brand. Its new agency as of mid-2016, Joe Public United, featured seven times this year, also more than any other agency. So, it’s not surprising that one of these — and its first ad for Chicken Licken, nogal — made it to the second spot: the funny, fantastical story of Rodwell Tshabalala, hero of the African Space Programme, directed by Pete Pohorsky of Plank Film Productions.
The campaign extended into other media, getting the public to weigh in on who it was who could have stolen the crispy chicken en route to the space station. Out of this world!
Brand SA took a huge risk by telling stories set in some of the ‘darker’ aspects of SA culture. But, ultimately, it all paid off, with powerful ads that speak of optimism and human rights, thanks to our progressive constitution.
One mini-documentary featured a young man from the Cape Flats, an area renowned for gang violence, which is a major contributor to Cape Town’s ranking as SA’s ‘murder capital’, and one of the world’s most-dangerous cities. Through a series of quick-cut montages and narration that suggests a more-sinister path, the viewer is surprised to find that the lead character, Imraan Christian, is not buying a gun — his ‘shooting’ is with a cine camera as he documents life in the ‘hood’.
In fact, Christian is a real-life hero who has spearheaded several initiatives to assist children at school and end gang violence. This young activist is someone who will be an ambassador and example for the youth of Cape Town in a long-term, sustainable way.
A second mini-documentary is about a Malawian hip hop artist who, despite experiencing the effects of xenophobia, has faith that our constitution will protect his rights.
The power in these documentaries directed by Anthony Bila of The Rudeboy Collective is #InspiredByMyConstitution. The South African Constitution has been recognised as one of the world’s most progressive. It is the anchor that allows all South Africans to depend on their basic human rights, equality, freedom and justice.
For its production values, honesty and powerful message, this campaign is our Ad of the Year for 2017. May it herald a great 2018, not only for the advertising community, but for everyone proud to call South Africa home.
For cracking the Top 10, shout outs for making our list twice to director Ross Garrett of Darling; production company Darling itself; post-production houses The Upstair Ludus and Left for making our shortlist twice; and composer Markus Wormstorm for making it three times. [If we have left anyone out due to incomplete credits, please let us know — ed-at-large.]
Ad of the Week, published on MarkLives every Wednesday, is penned by Oresti Patricios (@orestaki), the CEO of Ornico, a Brand Intelligence® firm that focuses on media, reputation and brand research. If you are involved in making advertising that is smart, funny and/or engaging, please let Oresti know about it at clientservice@ornicogroup.co.za.
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by Emma King (@EmmainSA) I think I speak for many of us when I say that I’m looking forward to the end of the year, both with some trepidation and some relief. As is the case every year, time seems to rush past faster and faster; how did we get here so quickly? It was surely only the other day when we were sitting down to earnestly plan what this year would entail. And yet… what a year. What a year. Bring on the time off; it feels well-deserved.
This time of the year is often one for reflection and contemplation. In no particular order, here are some of the things that resonated with me over the past year.
Smaller is sometimes better
It’s not the first time this has been said and it certainly won’t be the last. Agencies that are not looking for ways to make their business models smaller and nimbler will struggle, as clients look to partners who can turn excellent work round quickly without massive, cumbersome teams.
The past year has seen a number of the bigger, established local agencies suffer from some serious blows. On the flipside, however, I’ve noticed many smaller hot shops building their business through innovative new business models, based on small core teams, serviced by excellent contractors and freelancers.
Mediocre isn’t going to cut it any more
When times get tough, the weakest links get let loose. There are so many examples of poor work being produced by agencies and, with this, I’ve seen many clients moving their work to agencies and suppliers that they trust.
Agencies don’t have the buffers to support staff who coast through under the radar, letting other people carry them, anymore; and clients don’t have the budgets to have multiple reverts with agencies who just don’t get it, or who waste time and money with enormous account teams in every meeting.
I still believe here is enough of a pie to share among all (or at least most) of us, but only to those that deserve it.
The ride will continue to be bumpy for some time yet
The past year has certainly been no joy ride, and the economic tremors we have felt here are sure to continue as our political situation continues to be unstable. However, we’re not alone: Trumponomics, Brexitonomics and more continue to give our foreign friends the heeby-jeebies and there’s no sign of it calming down for them, either.
The solution? Apart from putting all eggs in a Bitcoin basket, the same holds true of every phase of economic uncertainty — hold tight and ride it out, if possible.
I would add, for those in our industry, there is the need to consciously make changes to operate in a way that is tighter and nimbler. See point one above for those who are finding the economy particularly tough. Massive account teams, duplicated roles and bogged-down ways of working just won’t cut it any more.
Things aren’t necessarily getting worse; we’re just more aware of them
If 2016 was the year in which all of our favourite celebrities died, 2017 was the one where we found out all the ones left were really creepy. In the tsunami of relegations about celebrity sex pests and the resulting #metoo stories, it would not have been surprising to assume that things were suddenly getting out of control. But I think it is a case of us being more aware — and of people standing up and saying enough is enough — rather than things necessarily being “worse” than before.
Harassment and bullying of women and the young — and any other groups who are marginalised or weak — is not new. Every woman in the industry I know has a story, or many, to tell of how they have been at the receiving end, whether it be unwanted sexual attention, or being patronised, downtrodden or “mansplained” to by men in the workplace. And things are not going to suddenly change but, the more they are spoken about, and the more we say they are “not OK”, the more things will start to transform.
In times of darkness, look for light
It’s pretty easy to get downcast when looking at the news and social media feeds awash of people talking about the demise of the country, impending economic doom and so on.
So, here’s the thing. It’s not just us who are in a shitty place. Have a look around the world. Having lived and worked overseas for more than a decade and, after having come home again, I can promise that the grass is not always greener on the other side.
While we are all bitching and moaning about how tough it is, there are others who are using this time to their advantage. In times of downturn, innovation and entrepreneurship flourish. While we sitting here talking about the lack of opportunity, there are a load of global brands and companies from around the world coming to South Africa — and Africa — to build their fortunes.
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I have a strong belief that our reality is driven by our thoughts and actions. Which means that how 2018 unfolds for us will very much be down to the changes and outlook that we implement now.
Emma King (@EmmainSA) is the owner and MD of The Friday Street Club (@TheFridayStClub). She is allergic to bad grammar and ampersands, but likes working her way through piles of novels and travelling the globe. She contributes the monthly “Dissident Spin Doctor” column on PR and communication issues to MarkLives.com.
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by Emma Strumpman (@emmastrumpman) & Franci Cronje. Is a brand such as LUSH, offering personal care products, both ethical and trendy?
Fresh cosmetics brand, LUSH, once posted an image via its local Instagram account, featuring a young female consumer purchasing “Toothy Tabs” instead of regular toothpaste. The Toothy Tabs are part of LUSH’s ethically- and environmentally-conscious movement — underpinned by the tagline “Ditch the Tube, Use the Tab” — encouraging consumers to make a positive impact on the environment by using its innovative, vegan and preservative-free toothpaste tablets instead of regular toothpaste.
The post highlights an intriguing issue: young consumers might be willing to buy a drastically different type of product, even if it is a daily essential such as toothpaste, to align themselves with the ethical and sustainable values of a brand.
Ideal
In an ideal world, incorporating CSR should be an inherent part of all branded products, so much so that consumers should not have to worry about considering CSR when making purchases, assuming that all products are ethically sound.
In this small research initiative, the majority of respondents indicated that the brand’s aesthetically-pleasing, ‘cool’ factor is the primary attribute as to why they are brand-loyal. The research found that youth are primarily loyal to LUSH’s ‘coolness’. They also find it aesthetically pleasing and stylish. Some participants were not initially aware of the brand’s CSR strategy since its product design doesn’t highlight this aspect. The LUSH brand’s success in appealing to the fashion- and style-conscious youth largely derives from its emphasis on fun, eye-catching product design.
It also appears that LUSH South Africa advertises its ‘cool’ factor mainly through social media engagement, whereas its ethical value is emphasised in the in-store experience. These platforms — the physical stores and social media platforms — are the two most-popular ways that youth interact with the brand. While respondents believe that LUSH does not promote its CSR efforts adequately, the brand is sufficiently communicating its ‘ethi-cool’ value to South African audiences through a combination of its two most-popular contact points. It seems that youths have been motivated by the brand to perceive ethical consumption as ‘cool’, but they have not been stimulated by LUSH to actively consume more responsibly, particularly for cosmetics.
Day-to-day actions
In spite of this general awareness and display of compassion, youth generally do not incorporate elements of a conscious consumer — such as recycling, buying organic produce and purchasing ethical or Fair Trade brands — into their daily lives. This indicates that the attitude-behaviour gap persists among SA youth; in other words, youth claim to care about the welfare of the society and the environment around them but their day-to-day actions do not reflect this sentiment.
Response to this study reflect that SA youth would like more brands to focus on a brand’s ethical value. It is interesting to note that LUSH South Africa in 2016 launched a social media campaign conveying the brand’s cheeky, youthful personality, as well its commitment to a CSR strategy. The campaign bears the slogan, “We prefer to be naked like over 100 of our products”, similar to the promotions run by LUSH Australia in 2015. The local campaign comprised images of South African LUSH employees in the nude — posted on Instagram and Facebook — with various LUSH products modestly covering parts of their body, and a caption that reads: “Plenty of our beautiful massage bars, bath bombs, soaps (and more) are available completely stark naked. They’re better for the environment while still being as brilliantly effective for you.”
Sadly, despite the willingness to buy ethically however, young people see LUSH products as too expensive to acquire on a regular basis. They don’t form part of potential ethical consumption patterns since these young consumers generally do not have as much disposable income as an older, working-class market segment.
‘Natural’
Rather than being a go-to brand for ethical cosmetics as such, it was found that more young consumers are becoming loyal to LUSH as a brand for products containing desirable natural ingredients. The latter acts as a key selling point for LUSH. That these natural ingredients are intertwined with the brand’s commitment to its value system to the extent that they are ethically-sourced is the most-important quality. Yet, most respondents that claimed to be loyal to the brand for the products’ natural ingredients didn’t mention the source of these ingredients as being important to them. In other words, youth prefer cosmetics to contain natural ingredients — as opposed to synthetic materials, such as the preservative methyl — but to them ‘natural’ doesn’t mean that they are necessarily worried about the production or sourcing of these ingredients.
When considering the brand’s communication style, it seems that LUSH is doing something right. Its social media platforms are the second most-common way that youth engage with the brand, next to viewing the products in-store. It successfully forms a strong bond with local consumers through social media engagement that is predominantly perceived as fun and friendly. Armed with a conversational tone, slang, cheeky comments, and referring to consumers on a first-name basis, the brand forms a strong emotional bond with youth.
However, this study revealed that, while almost all participants displayed awareness that conscious consumerism is necessary, the LUSH brand has not successfully encouraged them to actively consume with environmental awareness.
Change in mindset
Overall, while it is understood that the brand does not operate in a vacuum, LUSH has made headway in changing youth mindsets to expect all brands to be as transparent about and accountable for their actions, as LUSH is, in order to win their loyalty. A change in mindset is perhaps the first critical step in encouraging more youth to consume more responsibly. In so doing, the gap between youth attitudes and behaviour may be bridged. One participant put this in a nutshell: “If LUSH can do so well without animal testing, why can’t other brands?”
Emma Strumpman (@emmastrumpman) is a journalism and brand communication graduate. She’s a travel and outdoor adventure enthusiast, with a desire to use her creative skills to make a positive impact on the environment and especially marine conservation.Franci Cronje is currently the national manager of blended learning at Vega School and anchors the honours research projects there. Research for this article was conducted in the authors’ capacity as honours in brand leadership students at Vega School, a brand of The Independent Institute of Education.
by MarkLives (@marklives) Avatar South Africa has announced the appointment of Grant Sithole (@blaxem) as joint executive creative director alongside Brett Wild.
“Veli [Ngubane] and Zibusiso [Mkhwanazi] have led the way, by winning and retaining huge pieces of business,” says Sithole. “I love the new positioning of ‘ideas that move people’ and it’s really exciting to be able to contribute my take on this vision – 2018 promises to be dope.”
Sithole joins Avatar from Bakone, where he was creative partner. He spent more than a decade at FCB Africa, rising from intern to creative director, and a year at Ogilvy & Mather South Africa, before joining Bakone. He has worked on various blue chip brands, including Coca-Cola, Vodacom, Toyota, Old Mutual, FNB, Tiger Brands, DStv and Standard Bank.
Growing up in Meadowlands, Soweto, Sithole entered the industry through a copywriting course at the AAA School of Advertising before being offered an internship at FCB.
“We have built Avatar on the premise that, to be respected internationally, we need to be preferred locally,” says Ngubane, who is chief creative officer of Avatar, an M&N Brands subsidiary. “We were lucky enough to bring on internationally awarded ECD, Brett Wild, earlier this year, and now we have Grant, who, as joint ECD, will help drive Avatar forward creatively.”
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Cheryl Hunter (shelflife at marklives.com)’s weekly pick of all things new — product, packaging, design, insight, food, décor and more!
Nando’s latest TVC
Publicis tells Africa to #OwnYourCrown
Visa evolves sensory branding
Fixing South Africa
Nando’s shows yet again in its just-launched TVC that, while there are many things about our country that make us smile and sometimes shake our heads in bewilderment, we have always found a way to fix the things we care about.
Comments Doug Place, chief marketing officer of Nando’s Southern Africa, “We want all our ads to be slick, smart, uniquely South African and, of course, funny. We are often inspired by South African’s and want to give voice to the issues many people have. We understand that South Africa is facing and has faced some challenging times. We’ve always managed to find a way to fix and change what needs to be fixed and changed. It’s time we remember this and time for us to do it again,”
The recently released Queendom campaign from integrated communications agency,Publicis Machine, for African haircare products, Dark and Lovely, draws on talent from across Africa to create a 100% African production that celebrates the uniqueness of African hair.
The campaign, which encourages African women to #OwnYourCrown, had already garnered over 1.4m views on Facebook a month after the campaign went live mid-September 2017 with social media teasers, followed by the release of a bespoke music video featuring Blue Mbombo, Minky Mothabela, Lindi Ngubeni and Wendy Ntinezo — four different but remarkable African women who wear their individual hairstyles with pride.
Explains Audrey N’gadi, Publicis Machine business unit director for Dark and Lovely, “The African haircare category has traditionally been divided between those who prefer a sleeker, relaxed style, and those who opt for keeping their hair natural. With two primary product lines catering to each separate target audience, the Dark and Lovely brand had an inherent, internal disconnect. By encouraging black women to #OwnYOurCrown, no matter their style preference, we have unified the two ostensibly disparate target audiences and thus the brand, creating a unique space for the brand that resonates with its entire audience.”
To ensure full 360-degree brand communication, Publicis Machine has redesigned the Dark and Lovely website, as well as Facebook page and Instagram account, all supported by two TVCs and a full print campaign.
Visa has announced a suite of sensory branding, including new sound, animation and haptic (vibration) cues, that will help signify completed transactions in digital and physical retail environments. These have debuted in Visa’s global advertising campaign celebrating the 2018 Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang.
In recent extensive consumer research commissioned by Visa across eight countries to identify the impact of sensory branding on perceptions of both Visa and its ecosystem of partners, up to 71% of respondents thought a website was secure when the Visa logo was visible, yielding a higher likelihood to complete a transaction. So, in a digital world filled with connected wearable devices, Visa’s sensory branding elements are designed to evoke those same emotions, even in environments where the traditional Visa logo is not visible.
Says Lynne Biggar, Visa chief marketing and communications officer, “For 60 years, the Visa brand has been a global symbol of innovation, speed, trust and security. As payments become increasingly embedded in commerce, the notion of ‘Everywhere You Want To Be’ takes on even greater meaning for our brand and as new payment experiences continue to take shape in the world; this suite of sensory branding elements will give consumers the assurances we know they want every time they use Visa.”
Visa is also developing pilot programmess with national merchant and point-of-sale (POS) hardware vendors for 2018.
Shelf Life is MarkLives.com’s weekly column covering all things new. Notify us of yours at shelflife at marklives dot com. Want to sponsor Shelf Life? Contact us here.
Cheryl Hunter (@cherylhunter) has written for the South African media, marketing and advertising industries for more than 15 years. A former editor of M&M in Independent Newspapers and contributor to Bizcommunity, AdFocus, AdReview and the Ad Annual, she has also produced for various television networks and currently consults on communication strategy and media liaison.
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by TJ Njozela (@tj_njozela)Working in an ad agency means we don’t get some of the perks our friends and family get working in other industries. It’s been scientifically proven that we’re more likely to find a unicorn fawn in a mystical forest than get things such as bonuses and 13th cheques. Ok, maybe it’s not scientifically proven but, deep down, you know it’s true. So how in the world are we supposed to make it through one of the most-commercialised times of the year?
December is to the year what Friday is to a long week. Instead of rushing to the office bar merrily singing TGIF, we rush to the bottle store shouting “Ke Dezemba boss” because, unlike Friday, December presents with an entire month to take a break from adulting and make bad life decisions. But, for every Friday, there’s a Monday and, for December, that Monday is January. Unlike Monday though, it can’t be fixed with a cup of coffee, painkillers, and a bacon, egg, and cheese toasted sandwich, because what makes January feel like Monday every day is how broke you will be. Here are a few tips to help you avoid Chronic January Brokeness this time round.
Be as stingy as client service
Because it’s silly season, you want to have as much fun as possible without worrying about timesheets, meetings about meetings, and working like a beast to meet an urgent deadline but only getting feedback days later. Like a creative with an open brief, it’s absolutely amazing until you find out what the budget is. Suddenly, for every great idea you have, there’s a client service person saying, “There’s no budget for that.” In one review, your script that opens on a sunny beach in the Maldives opens on the Jukskei riverbank instead.
The moral of the story is that you want to do everything over the holidays but, when you find yourself daydreaming about sipping piña coladas on a yacht, have a beer on a tube in your swimming pool, because there’s no budget for that.
Party like a creative
No one can trump creatives when it comes to being cheap or, as a copywriter would call it, “value for money.” They’re always the first at the boardroom raid, looting the spoils of an over-catered meeting. They drink the most at complimentary bars. Those biscuits you find when you check into a hotel? Gone in 60 seconds. And they eat enough at buffet breakfasts to sustain them until the next breakfast.
The lesson to learn here is that freebies are exactly that: free. As in, you don’t have to pay anything. So, the next time you get offered a sample of a dodgy beer that you’re not really into, get in touch with your inner creative and get value for no money. Take all the freebies that come your way, and you’ll be less cash-strapped when the Monday of the year comes around.
Think like a strategist
Of course, creatives and client service — and pretty much everyone else at the agency — don’t think about the long-term plan as well as a strategist does. They also don’t get the same luxury of time as strategists do with their jobs but we’ll save that debate for another day. When it comes to not being broke in January, the best strategic approach is to have a plan for it in advance.
The consumer insight is very simple: “I hate being broke at the beginning of the year, and I need a plan to make sure I make it through the month.” The strategic platform to help solve this problem for the LSM 5–8 target audience that works in an ad agency is: “Save now for later”.
It’s very simple: if you put away R300 every month of the year, you’ll have an extra R3600 to help you out in January when things get tough. It’s not a very sexy proposition but, then again, there’s nothing fun about being a responsible adult. Yawn.
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All in all, Chronic January Brokeness is a serious condition that affects a lot of people every year. Yet, by being realistic about what you can or can’t afford, embracing opportunities that allow you not to spend anything, and starting to plan now for the next holiday, you’ll be in a much-better financial state when the Monday of the year comes around. And, trust me, you’ll be so glad for it when you don’t have to survive on two-minute noodles halfway through the month.
Got any other ways to avoid being broke when the year starts? Leave a comment below.
TJ Njozela (@tj_njozela) is a creative group head at Net#work BBDO. With several years of experience in the advertising industry, he’s more than a writer; he is also a reader, a thinker, and an avid liker of things. He once walked from Joburg to Cape Town in 30 days to raise funds to buy wheelchairs for people in need. #30Days30Wheelchairs. TJ contributes the regular “Agency Life” column, in which he gives career advice for working within the advertising industry, to MarkLives.
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by Oresti Patricios (@orestaki)As the end of 2017 rushes headlong towards us (or as we rush towards it), let’s look back on the best of the ads we named as our Ads of the Week. It was a great year for TV ads but there were also mould-breaking experiential campaigns that illustrated once again how innovative South African agencies can be.
But which one was the best of the year? The judges went through a rigorous voting process to decide on our annual award of Ad of the Year 2017. Various shortlists were created, and then pared down to a Top 10, which will be presented to you over the next two editions of this column. It was really tough to choose, and voting was really close.
FCB Joburg and director Teboho Mahlatsi of Bomb Commercials have created mythical magic for South African Tourism in a story that takes a journey through our beautiful country. It’s a smart campaign that delightfully celebrates our country’s diversity of scenery and culture. Aimed at potential foreign visitors, it’s a kaleidoscopic journey through SA.
The mini-movie (also available as a short) tells the story of Bheki, who designs the traditional Xhosa wedding dress, known as the Mbhaco. When a princess asks him to create something unique for her wedding, he embarks on a countrywide journey to find inspiration; and through this process he exposes some of the highlights of SA culture, including township nightlife and Cape hospitality.
If it’s possible to encapsulate the spirit, beauty and charm of SA on film, this short movie has done so, and more. Showcasing everything that might appeal to most types of tourists, the story of Bheki’s journey wraps it all into a vibrant package that is rich in narrative and incredibly memorable.
Take a soap opera and combine that with WhatsApp, and what do you get? A daily soap that gets delivered to you, as if it’s happening in real time. The campaign was run using several dedicated WhatsApp groups that users were invited to join, and each day a new ‘episode’ took place, using the multiple capabilities of the WhatsApp platform, including photos, video messages, text messages and sound.
Funeral insurance can be a difficult sell and, for a long time, financial companies have tackled this by using direct marketing, hard selling, the fear factor or a number of other methods to try and make their brand top of mind. With this campaign, Sanlam and King James show that they get that advertising is changing. Engagement and hot content are critical to try and ensure people tune into a brand particularly for something that might be seen as a grudge purchase.
Soccer reaches a huge segment of the South African population, so Absa’s sponsorship of the annual Premier League championship is a smart move, and its campaign to draw viewers is a masterpiece.
The story behind the ad tells the story of two young men who were born rivals: growing up they were always competing, be it playing foosball, breakdancing or indeed, soccer. In the final frame they are captured in mid-air, playing soccer at a big stadium, both going for the same ball.
The creative concept behind this TVC, directed by Robin Goode of Figment Films, espouses the truism that competition can make us stronger. The slogan is “Woza Nazo” — “Bring it on”. Or, as Absa says: “We’re turning up the rivalry this season in the Absa Premiership because, when rivalry comes alive, the game gets better.”
Bedtime stories, based on traditional African folktales, are celebrated in this experiential campaign, with a clever twist on the iconic KFC bucket.
Selected outlets for the famous fried chicken brand gave out special, laser-cut sleeves, which could be removed from the bucket. Customers downloaded an app, and placed their smartphone under the sleeve. The smartphone’s light, sound and vibration features were used to enhance a narrated story with sound effects. The light shines through the laser-cut stencils, projecting shapes onto the ceiling and walls. This concept helps to promote a tradition of storytelling, which is critical for young children to develop a love of reading.
Locally, KFC has been doing a lot more than selling fresh, tender and tasty chicken. The brand is an expert when it comes to reaching out to customers and growing loyalty, as this magical campaign proves — without a shadow of a doubt.
Kulula continues its tradition of making laugh-out-loud commercials, and this campaign is about haters that will put a smile on your face.
The concept is simple: we all hate those bores who drone on and on about their fantastic holidays, but who wants to negative? Kulula.com makes holiday travel affordable, so you don’t have to be a #travelhater. The scenarios are everyday events — an office celebration, two couples having dinner, and two guys in a canteen.
In each scenario, director Bevan Cullinan of Hammerhead TV, the ‘TravelHater’ (ie the person who didn’t go on a mind-blowing holiday) manages to express their hatred in a funny and creative way, with ‘accidentally on purpose’ subterfuge.
Joint #6. Bite-Size Ballet by TBWA\Hunt Lascaris for Joburg Ballet
A campaign to get more people to the Joburg Ballet takes this classical dance form to the streets, with a unique mashup of old and new.
Three short dance sequences were created by the company, based on suggestions from fans, and filmed by Darling directors Jeana Theron and Ross Garrett. Contemporary topical subjects were reinterpreted in dance: women abuse in August, Women’s Month; one of the most-hyped boxing matches in recent history, the ‘Money Fight’ between Floyd Mayweather Jr and Conor McGregor; and a ‘recap’ of the first six seasons of Game of Thrones, just prior to the airing of the seventh season.
By ‘taking it to the streets’, Joburg Ballet has demonstrated that it is both accessible and relevant.
#4. #untaggable by Ogilvy & Mather Cape Town for Audi Q2
Audi’s campaign is all about one of the brand’s newest models — the Q2 that doesn’t fit neatly into any descriptor. It has a luxury interior, coupé performance, off-road capability and urban style. To illustrate this concept, Ogilvy Cape Town produced an ad that says very little about the car but a lot about the philosophy behind the design.
To illustrate how ‘unusual’ is not necessarily a bad thing, the TVC — directed by Sam Coleman of Giant Films — features Thando Hopa, who is in part distinctive because of her albinism. Lawyer/activist/model/actress, she challenges the conventional concepts of beauty and embodies a certain enigmatic aura that is explored in this well-filmed and artfully styled piece.
Having looked at some of the brand’s international ads, I can honestly say that this is one of the most-original and -arresting ads for the car. In choosing Hopa as a symbol, Audi has entrenched the brand as one that challenges convention by creating something exciting and new, and providing a new definition of beauty and style.
Well, there you have it: the first part of our #Top10. On Thursday, I’ll reveal the top three ads of 2017, including the overall winner. Congrats to you all — this has been the crème de la crème of the crop, and proof positive that SA advertising is among the best in the world.
Ad of the Week, published on MarkLives every Wednesday, is penned by Oresti Patricios (@orestaki), the CEO of Ornico, a Brand Intelligence® firm that focuses on media, reputation and brand research. If you are involved in making advertising that is smart, funny and/or engaging, please let Oresti know about it at clientservice@ornicogroup.co.za.
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by Erna George (@edgeo23) Marketers (and other professions) are realising the importance of branding but not, perhaps, of how every action builds or interferes with brand perceptions. In this age of labels, expectations and the personal brand, it all means a more-considered approach to how you are viewed, perceived and experienced.
Every occupation or profession comes with a set of expectations or stereotypes: accountants are assumed to be human calculators while HR is expected to be people-people, boisterous and creating connections constantly. In reality, the norm doesn’t look like this and success comes in many shapes and sizes.
For marketers, being vibrant, dynamic and having the gift of the gab are expected but I guarantee (if you haven’t yet) that you’ll meet the opposite persona. Understated, measured characters, who have an innate understanding of consumer and brand, will be successful, irrespective of their fitting the perceived ‘personality type’.
Expectations
You don’t have to live up to expectations that conflict with whom you are. Doing so will sap energy reserves and negatively impact on your ability to give your all in your role. Over time discouragement, sets in and, more importantly, the day your façade dissolves your colleagues will be disconcerted. Play to your strengths and channel your energy to being a strong marketer. A level of consistency in how you rock up and display your thinking is far more important; disparate behaviour affects brands and people. Consistency is tough because you’ll have good and bad days in terms of mood and being on top of your game but, the crazy thing is, you’ll set a pattern and rhythm that will be recognisable as your signature. This pattern helps people assess and trust you, and helps you stand out.
Your signature is developed over all your interactions and other deliverables. Whether presenting, participating in a meeting or over a quick coffee catch-up, you do need to be thinking of the context, whom you are talking to and, subsequently, what you are saying. Having a point of view backed by consumer, competitor and markets facts will showcase capabilities. To get your point across takes some skill and you need to be cognisant that your approach has to work within the context of the broader business. Your approach — be it with a touch of pizazz or being profound — in conjunction with your message focus helps land your message, and both of these must be considered, and possibly altered, based on how you read the room.
It’s not about what you want to focus on but about what is important to your audience (your target market). For board presentations, support your style and message with a focus on business growth; for the operations team, the impact on production efficiency is vital. You may need to dial your style up or down, depending on the recipients. A completely drama-licious approach that keeps agency teams at the edge of their seats may seem too radical and over the top for some investors or engineers, while being laid back instead of being viewed as in control and confident could come across as not committed or engaged.
It’s like putting the emphasis on the wrong syllable in a word; misinterpretation or uncertainty is the result. Your marketing view, told through only your lens and style without showcasing an appreciation for how this leaves your audience feeling, reduces influence. Your target audience needs are more important. Always craft your message and manner and then deliver it with the emphasis in the right areas.
Brand custodianship
Your approach to brand custodianship is another way you are judged. You have to show passion and commitment to the brand and its story, but the myth needs to be dispelled that you must love the product to market it. Think about the gluten-intolerant cereals brand manager or the male brand manager who works on feminine hygiene products. Understanding consumer needs and how your brand must leave people feeling are more important than your living the brand week in and week out. I guarantee you the brand team on Tena adult nappies aren’t incontinent or 80-years-old!
You can’t lose impetus or enthusiasm if you’re moved to a smaller or less sexy brand. Your resilience and flexibility or scope for working will be questioned if you do so, limiting your career.
Agencies don’t always get the chance to choose the brands they work on but they get excited at the possibilities of the vision, the activities and messaging (good work) beyond it being a great car or a beige plaster.
If you behave as if your brand is more important than the company or brand you manage, your commitment will be under question. Each brand will go through stages of big launch excitement or broad maintenance and how you keep engaged, no matter the brand or where it is in the life cycle, shows your substance and the breadth of your abilities.
Brand You
As you set your signature and approach, consider how you continue your growth. Extend your skills or stretch connections to keep relevant and grow impact. Your signature will be discussed at talent-pool meetings internally and, if you’re keen, you can build a footprint to be top of mind in broader circles. Whether it be guest-writing for industry media, keeping a blog, joining the right association or extending studies and networking with a broader business community, there are multiple options. But it’s clear building your profile is important, whether it be strengthened within or beyond the workplace. You want ‘Brand You’ to be clear and compelling.
To craft a well-articulated Brand You:
You don’t have to be a stereotype — determine a signature and style that are true to you, and be consistent
Your internal audience is the target market for Brand You, so dial your style up or down for optimal impact with them
Display commitment and engagement beyond the product and the brand life cycle to showcase gravitas and your staying power
Brand You is within your control. Actively constructing your brand helps build a successful career.
After starting at Unilever in a classical marketing role, Erna George (@edgeo23) explored the agency side of life, first as a partner at Fountainhead Design, followed by the manic and inspiring world of consultancy at Added Value. She has returned to client-side, leading the marketing team in the Cereals, Accompaniments & Baking Division at Pioneer Foods. Her monthly “Fair Exchange” column on MarkLives concerns business relationships and partnerships in marketing and brandland.
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by Mark Tungate (@MarkTungate) For an unusual agency, Marvelous in Russia had an appropriately unconventional beginning. Its founder, Artem Sinyavskiy, was a typical student — in other words, more interested in partying than studying — when he saw something that changed his life.
“It was a film about a guy who organised parties for other students and made money out of it,” he recalls. “I said to my friend, ‘Why don’t we do the same?’ That was our first business, and it blew up. By the end, we were organising parties for two thousand people.” After his studies, Sinyavskiy continued working in the nightlife scene, devising the show schedule for two prominent Moscow nightclubs. “It was a fun life, working with dancers and performers and so on but, as I got older, I realised I needed to do something a bit more serious.”
A couple of his friends were about to get married, so he had an idea for an events agency focused on weddings. He teamed up with his old friend from university, Andrey Korotykin, who had a little experience in the agency world but was at that point, bizarrely, the owner of a butcher’s shop. “In the end, we didn’t do a single wedding.” Instead they pitched for an Audi launch presentation in tandem with another agency — and won. “Our strategy at that point was to find unusual performers around the world and sell them to clients as part of an experience through other agencies.”
Their first direct client was Hasbro, the toy company, which hired them to work on its Nerf blasters. “By then, we were more confident of our positioning as an experience and entertainment agency, and they believed in us.”
Game-changer
From just two people, Marvelous had now grown to six. But the real game-changer came in 2013 when Hasbro asked the agency to pitch for eight of its major brands. “We took it seriously and worked hard, right down to sleeping in the office.” Sinyavskiy says he’ll never forget the day — 18 February — when he received eight calls from eight different brand managers, all telling him he’d got the job. “We were shocked. We were still only six people; there was no way we could manage all this work.”
The agency quickly grew to 12 and then 20 people. Today, it’s 70-strong. One of the factors behind its growth was a project in 2015 that was deliberately designed to attract attention.
“I realised that we needed to bring in some additional clients, because 90% of our work came from Hasbro. So, when we had an opportunity to do something different, we thought of something that became a major success.”
The project was Like From Leo, which ostensibly aimed to raise awareness of the importance of recycling in the pretty town of Ostashkov, on the shores of Lake Seliger. To get people talking about recycling, Marvelous decide to recruit none other than superstar climate-change advocate, Leonardo Dicaprio. The agency created a Facebook page for the Ostashkov campaign and encouraged the actor to “Like” it — by erecting a giant billboard in his home town of Hollywood.
The quirky campaign attracted a lot of buzz. “Everyone was talking about it, all over the world,” says Sinyavskiy. “But, at the same time, we got a bit of a negative reaction from the local creative community. They thought it was some kind of one-off stunt.”
Overcoming obstacles
It wasn’t. Since then, Marvelous has proved adept at creating unusual, attention-grabbing experiences. Perhaps top of the list is the Guilty Clothes project, which has particular resonance right now, when the subject of sexual assault is front and centre in the media.
“We were talking to a friend of ours and she wanted to draw attention to the problem of ‘victim blaming’ — when people imply that sexual assault victims are to blame because of the way they dress.”
Initial ideas included a charity run in short skirts to raise awareness of the issue; but soon something far more ambitious emerged: a fake “sexy” fashion show which actually featured the clothes worn by women when they were assaulted. Everyone would see that the clothes were perfectly normal and not remotely seductive.
According to Sinyavskiy, it took a year to make the project happen. Nobody in Russia was interested, and an attempt to stage the event in the Netherlands fell through. “Finally, I said, ‘Let’s do this in London during fashion week, otherwise we’ll never do it.’ We had two women producers who interviewed around 200 victims of sexual assault, about eight of whom agreed to appear in the film. That was the hardest part, as you can imagine.”
Thanks to a PR campaign that promised a “provocative” new brand and a central location in Oxford Circus, a good crowd of fashion spectators arrived to watch the show. Then the big reveal commenced. “The reactions you see are genuine. It was very nerve-wracking because, if we didn’t get the right reactions, we didn’t have a film. A year-and-a-half’s work depended on a seven-minute fashion show.”
Marvelous hit similar obstacles when mobile internet provider, Skylink, wanted to target users in remote, low-speed areas. To reach them, the agency created “the lightest advertising campaign in history”: a digital campaign that took up only 1MB, allowing any low-speed internet user to download all the materials. Target customers were identified using data and algorithms.
“Just before the launch, the client told us they weren’t convinced by the idea, so we launched it using our own money. It broke the client’s call centre. So, eventually, we got our money back!”
The agency had another victory — literally — for the Russian airline, S7. To mark Victory Day on 9 May, users of a dedicated website could name a Russian plane after a war-hero relative. On board each aircraft, the hero’s name was read out by the pilot, and their story told by one of the cabin crew. In the end, 2050 S7 flights were named and more than 2 000 stories of heroism were told in the skies.
Unconventional
From organising parties to celebrating war heroes, Marvelous is all grown up now, even if its work remains, fortunately, unconventional.
Mark Tungate (@MarkTungate) is the editorial director of the Epica Awards (@EpicaAwards), the only global creative prize judged by the specialist press. A British journalist based in Paris, Tungate is also the author of seven books about branding and advertising, including Adland: A Global History of Advertising and, most recently, The Escape Industry, a journey through the business of travel. Over his 30-year career, he has has written for leading newspapers and magazines in the UK, France and the US.
This “Global Headline Makers” column, which profiles creative stars making headlines in their home markets, is syndicated monthly from Epica.
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Charles Lee Mathews (@CharlesLeeZA) is the founder of TheWriters.co.za, a boutique strategy and content shop that helps brands better connect — and engage with — the people who matter most. When not writing, or thinking about human behaviour, Charlie creates The Marketing Mice exclusively for MarkLives.
