-
Opinion | Features
Can sport save Ten?
First there was the Grand Prix. Next came the reported $500m bid for cricket rights, then Ten secured the 2014 winter Olympics. So, can sport save the ailing network? In a feature that first appeared in Encore, Nic Christensen investigates.The television sports rights bidding process is a bit like a game of poker.
Check, fold or bet. Those were the options for the Ten Network last week when it had to finalise its bid for the cricket rights.
Andy Lark: good for the marketing of marketing
I can still remember the first story I wrote about Andy Lark, when it emerged that he was to be the new chief marketing officer of CommBank.
It was immediately clear that Australia was about to meet an interesting marketer, one who blogged and tweeted and thanks to his time at Dell in the US was digitally savvy. Even two years ago, that was a big deal. The fact that he also had a stint in public relations gave him an absolutely intriguing background before he even arrived.
Storming the media barricades - advice for young journalists
This week Mumbrella’s Nic Christensen, who began his career four years ago, gave the keynote address to would-be journalists at the Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance’s Student Day. This is an edited version of his speech.Good afternoon, I can remember distinctly the last time I was in this room.
It was 2009 and I was sitting where you are. I’d come to this event, a friend and myself — from memory we sat up the back — and I can remember at the time wondering if I’d ever get a job as a journalist.
It was only four years ago and then as now getting a job was ultra competitive but I’m not sure there was quite as much media ‘doom and gloom’ as there is now…
Paywalls will help fund campaigning journalism
In this guest post, News Limited’s group editorial director Campbell Reid responds to the views of ninemsn’s Hal Crawford that the company’s push into metered paywalls is about data rather than dollars.Hal Crawford is both right and wrong in his article which argued that our digital subscription plans are all about the data.
Fake it 'til you make it... as a features editor
Cosmo’s Kate Leaver tells us how to bluff it in her job in a feature that first appeared in Encore.What do you do, as a features editor?
Really, play with words and ideas all day. At any one time, we’re working across three issues of the mag – getting one on its way to the printers, pooling all the words together for another, and planning the issue after that. It’s busy but it’s a pretty magnificent process.
Savage counsel - JFDI
Hi Chris,I run a medium-sized agency that is doing pretty well. As the leader, I am finding my workload just seems to go up and up. I am struggling to stay motivated and particularly to tackle the bigger and tougher challenges I have to face every day. How do I keep up the energy when there just seems so much to do? How do you do it?
Productive, successful executives are those able to consistently tackle difficult and big challenges. It’s a constant struggle for me so I know how you feel. How do the successful leaders do it?
Q&A with Brett Clegg
Brett Clegg, group director – business media, Fairfax Media, in a Q&A that first appeared in Encore, on the journo who refuses to work with him – his wife.Who is the most powerful person in Australian media and why?
Hard to go past Rupert Murdoch. He controls the single largest and most diverse portfolio and is intent on leveraging its scale (and, of course, influence). He’s an innovator and his will to win is obvious to all.
The experiential experience
Anyone can throw up a tent in a high-traffic area and harass the general public, but what does it take to pull off an effective experiential event? In a piece that first appeared in Encore, Matt Smith investigates.A television commercial can easily be muted and ignored, but try ignoring a purring, squirming cat in your arms. That was the experience awaiting passers by in Sydney’s Martin Place in October last year when Mars Petcare built Whiskas Kitten Palace.
The News Limited paywall isn't about revenue. It's about data
In this guest post, ninemsn’s editor in chief Hal Crawford argues Fairfax Media and News Limited’s new paywalls won’t draw much revenue, but will generate data. And they’re late to the data party.When I first learned that ninemsn’s major digital competitors Fairfax and News Ltd were going to introduce paywalls across their mainstream properties, I was excited.
Every obstacle thrown in the way of their audiences is an opportunity. People hate friction and anything that makes life difficult on a rival site is a chance to get them on yours.
Is this the worst time to be a journalist?
With scores of redundancies in 2012 and a mass exodus of experienced journos, is this the worst time to be a journalist? In a feature that first appeared in Encore, Nic Christensen asks the question.In June last year a tsunami of redundancies began to sweep across Australia’s media landscape. They came in a series of waves and in the 12 months that followed, an estimated 1,200 journalists departed the mainstream media.
Are you a conscious leader?
As the advertising and marketing industry struggles to address the issue of rocketing rates of staff churn in their businesses, Slingshot CEO Simon Rutherford argues that today’s ‘conscious leaders’ should be more focussed on creating ‘staff wellness’ in order to deliver high performing teams and healthy profits.
A conscious leader believes the business has a greater responsibility towards the community it operates in. To ensure sustainable long-term profits, people must come first. Awareness, trust, authenticity, transparency, 100% responsibility, connection, compassion, and love: these are the tools of the conscious leader.
Suits: less popular than pest controllers
Advertising suits have a thankless job that is currently being eroded by the changing industry says Naren Sanghrajka in a piece that first appeared in Encore.Not in my wildest, craziest nightmares would I ever have thought I’d say this. But I’m going to. Being a bean counter is far more appealing than starting as a suit in advertising. There it is. I said it. I actually said those words.
Yes, it’s incredibly depressing. But it’s true.
An answer for Adam: What's the future for creatives?
Each fortnight, Adam Ferrier poses a question to the industry. This week, he asks about the future of the creative.
Who or what is a creative? It’s an old thought, but as I continue on my merry journey in advertising I wonder if there is a role for a ‘creative’ and if there is, what that role is?
In the world of film and TV there is not a ‘creative’. There is a director, a writer, a producer, a DOP and so on. From this mix the creativity happens. But no-one is charged with being ‘the creative’.
Australian films stand on their own merit
The argument that Australian audiences only embrace local films once they’ve picked up a gong at an international festival is inherently flawed says Lee Zachariah in a piece that first appeared in Encore.As much as we like to pretend that we collectively fulfil the world’s need for a country comprised entirely of laid-back, mellow beach dwellers, we do seem to get disproportionately excited when someone else mentions us. Our cool exterior drops away as our local news bulletins breathlessly report that CNN or the BBC or really anyone in one of the ‘real countries’ acknowledged our existence.
We feel detached from the world, and therefore crave its validation.
The vindication of Paul Fishlock
Wow.You may have noticed that not much went up on Mumbrella over the last couple of hours.
That’s because I’ve been reading the judge’s findings in Paul Fishlock’s case against The Campaign Palace.
I’d always known that agencyland can be a brutal place. But the picture of the cynical, ego-driven, unsentimental world that comes through in the findings of Justice John Sacker is something else. I recommend you take the time to read it yourself.
The reputation of Young & Rubicam’s global creative director Tony Granger certainly takes a battering in my view. The word “bully” is a hard one to come back from.
And former Campaign Palace CEO Mark Mackay comes across as someone you might think twice about either hiring or working for, based on the evidence presented. The judge calls him contemptuous of both Granger and Fishlock.
Bavarian Bier Cafe – now with less thigh slapping
The Bavarian Bier Cafe chain is reposition its brand in a bid to move itself away from its thigh-slapping associations.
A new campaign, masterminded by Step Change Marketing, will aim to position staff as “artisans” delivering high quality products.
Step Change Marketing strategist Ashton Bishop said: “We naively thought we were heading to a novelty or themed restaurant but it was far from it. We were greeted by contemporary decor, a great crowd, amazing food and, frankly, the best bier in the country – all the best bits of Bavaria without any of thigh-slapping antics that happen at the novelty venues. We knew if we just distilled the story of the ‘in-café’ experience the brand would accelerate its success”
The chain, owned by Bavarian Hospitality Group, currently has seven restaurants in Sydney, with another set to open in Brisbane.
Nicola Ekas, brand manager for Bavarian Bier Cafés, said: “We’re focusing in on what makes us unique. It’s not enough just to be Bavarian, you have to be true to what that means today – that’s passionate staff and first-class food and beverages, prepared to the very highest standards. Our new campaign communicates this brand promise in a meaningful way, highlighting everything we constantly deliver on in each venue.”
Media strategy – based on mobile scooter billboards – was developed by Slingshot. Beck Hamilton, communications director at Slingshot Media Ventures, said: “The major challenge for media was addressing seven separate locations and their local media nuances. MediaV scooters provided the strongest solution by offering the strength of an outdoor campaign, the efficiency of mobility and the consistency of message across multiple destinations.”
-
-
Email Newsletter
Latest Jobs- Senior Account Director | BTL, Shopper, Trade | $130k inc
- Business Director: To $140k package
- Freelance Account Managers / Senior Account Managers – iknowho
- Business Director: To $140k package
- Agency Business Director: To $140k package
- Senior Account Director | BTL, Shopper, Trade | $130k inc
- Offline Account Manager: Leading media agency : Great salary
- Account Manager – Design and Branding agency
- Offline Planner/Buyer: Fantastic and highly desirable client
- Sale Manager – Outdoor – Fitness Product
-
RSS
Comments
2 Nov 10
2:26 pm
“We knew if we just distilled the story of the ‘in-café’ experience the brand would accelerate its success”
What a load of s**t, their old ads were heaps better.
They had a bit of charm to them, this looks like it was a first thought, created by suits.
That Stein glass isn’t even in focus and looks like it was shot on an iPhone.
2 Nov 10
3:59 pm
Nice move away from those cheesy adverts, it was a step away from opening up a Romanian cafe with vampires serving bottles of true blood. It’s a sorry state of affairs when “agencies” flex their expertise and come up with the thigh slapping and placing the brand within “Inspector Clouseau Ocktoberfest” style stereotypes.
As for dear Mr Schnitz, the fake name tells us all we need to know about the conviction behind your remarks. By the way, maybe the glass isn’t out of focus, maybe it was painted? It was the brushes that gave it away for me…
2 Nov 10
5:01 pm
Ashton Bishop said: “We naively thought we were heading to a novelty or themed restaurant but it was far from it.”
Has he even seen the staff? Lovely people, but “artisans”? Clearly your level of strategic thought needs to involve a visit to a real brewery.
This “strategist” should focus on learning the definition of irony
2 Nov 10
5:19 pm
I love the new direction – it’s much more appealing to females and now that it’s moved away from the cheesier image of the past I’ll be much, much more likely to suggest it for social outings and work functions. Bavarian is perfect for a larger group that doesn’t want to have to sacrifice on a nice experience due to large numbers that most of Sydney’s finer establishments snub – and now it’s moved in a direction my friends and boss’s will more easily slot into.
Obviously this place is doing something right – every time I go it’s packed to the brim!
2 Nov 10
5:21 pm
Mr Schnitz, it’s meant to be a painting, not a state of the art photograph.
I like the idea for a new campaign, something a bit less cheesy and makes me more inclined to go and visit this venue. Looks far more interesting now than it did before, and I’m glad their not interested in thing slapping.. so tacky.
2 Nov 10
5:30 pm
I quite like it.
2 Nov 10
5:55 pm
“We were greeted by contemporary decor, a great crowd, amazing food and, frankly, the best bier in the country…”
What is it with brands trying to change the English language to fit their corporate identities? If it’s not Jalna going on about having the best “yoghourt”, it’s these guys going on about the best “bier”.
What next? “We found it very kwik to kopy things…” ” It was so ezy to rent a video…” “We couldn’t believe how krispy and kremy those donuts were..”
/endcopywriterrant
2 Nov 10
6:14 pm
There’s more to making something look like a painting than just shooting it out of focus. Surely it should have brushstrokes like the background then…
Also, why are the bricks out of focus while the picture frame remains sharp? The shadow suggests that they are in close proximity.
I’m sorry but it’s a hack job, and very forgettable at that – which is probably a good thing when you think about it.
Their old ads actually stuck in my head because they were a bit different. This looks like any ad I’ve ever seen ever.
2 Nov 10
7:48 pm
the background is out of focus, because standard portrait photography is, that is a professional effect having the background blurred, caused by the depth of field and focal point of the lens chosen. It highlights the focus on the person/object that it is meant to be highlighting. Eg the chick and painting.
There are brush strokes in the background of the painting, in the sky…
2 Nov 10
8:30 pm
There seem to be a lot of people from the agency defending what is essentially a very average campaign here.
2 Nov 10
9:26 pm
I’m not from the agency I can tell you that much. I don’t live in Sydney, live in the country, and work for a government sector – not an ad agency. I’d be pissed if I did, I’d expect more money than what I make!
3 Nov 10
9:13 am
@Anonymous
Hi, I’m from the agency, and this is actually our first post.
It seems there might be a few ‘anon’ people who are dining out of sour grapes for some reason. A dish best washed down with a cold Bier or two! (Geman spelling, not marketing wank)
We hadn’t actually felt the need to defend our work on the forum, and we certainly welcome any comments (positive or constructive) – but we certainly do stand by our work.
Whilst we won’t be entering this in for creative awards, the BBC punters we’ve tested it with love it and it’s really doing a job for our client’s business.
The story of how it was created is true. The bier, food and staff make the experience. We just brought this into ‘focus’.
3 Nov 10
9:22 am
I like the olds ads better. These ads are boring.
I thought the old media placement on taxis and buses was good as well. Scooter ads are ok when they’re on the road, but they’re nowhere near as present as taxis and buses.
3 Nov 10
9:27 am
Herzlichen Glückwunsch eine hervorragende neue Richtung. Fantastic das Personal tatsächlich in den Anzeigen geben, zeigt eine klare Verbindung auf die Integrität der Marke. Es bringt die Bayrische Kultur auf Australien in eine echte Möglichkeit mit Leidenschaft, gutes Essen und natürlich hervorragende Bier. Leicht zu kritisch sein, aber ich Fragen, wie viele von Ihnen, die kritisch werden jemals Bayern besucht haben?
Ich möchte ein großes Bier bitte!!
3 Nov 10
9:30 am
I thought as leading marketers we would be commenting on the courage & commitment Bavarian Cafe has taken versus their photography approach.
It’s refreshing to see a Cafe take leadership and stand for something.
It’s simple, you get it. Congrats. Looking forward to trying the place out.
3 Nov 10
9:57 am
Or as Google Translate puts it:
Congratulations on a great new direction. Fantastic give the staff actually in the ads shows a clear link to the integrity of the brand. It brings the Bavarian culture in Australia in a real way with passion, good food and of course excellent beer. Easy to be critical, but I question how many of you who are critical have ever been to Bavaria?
I would like to have a great beer!
3 Nov 10
10:51 am
As a frequent visitor of the Bavarian Bier Cafe, i think the new ads are OK.
A bit cheesy, but they’re reflective of the ‘good times’ i always have there.
3 Nov 10
1:20 pm
Nice job!! I quite like the new concept.
3 Nov 10
3:56 pm
I like it – we don’t really need to be reminded how German the Bavarian Bier Cafe is – we get it. It’s good to be told a bit more about what you can actually get there, and how it will appeal to a wider demographic (including females as stated above).
Everywhere sells beer, and every pub sells schnitzel, so it’s pretty brave (and I think works well) to emphasise that there’s schnitzel, and there’s good schnitzel.
3 Nov 10
5:35 pm
well done guys! Lovely new look. Nice to see you focusing on the core fundamentals of the company which is good food, great staff and even better beer!! keeping it simple with a clear message.
3 Nov 10
6:12 pm
Glad you like it, Dazza. Almost as much as Freddi, who I see shares the same IP address as you.
Cheers,
Tim – Mumbrella
3 Nov 10
9:12 pm
what city are these in? Never heard of them
4 Nov 10
9:02 am
Hey Mark,
Thanks for your interest in the Bavarian Bier Cafés. They have eight locations across Sydney and Brisbane.
Sydney:
Bondi
Chatswood (just opened)
Entertainment Quarter
Manly
O’Connell St (CBD)
York St (CBD)
Parramatta
Plus, a brand new one in Brisbane (just opened)
You can find out more here – http://www.bavarianbiercafe.com/
Enjoy,
Jeff, GM, Step Change Marketing (the BBC’s Creative and Strategic Agency)
4 Nov 10
10:38 am
Looks to me like this is all about the art of a nice cold beer! I like it. Now I need a beer, or should that be bier!?
4 Nov 10
5:29 pm
Bavarian Bier Cafe is the worst excuse for German/Bavarian food. The only thing that makes them fell German was the waiters outfits and Geman Bier they served.
I’ve been their twice thinking that my first poor experience was a one-of fail, but the food was crappy the 2nd time aswell, not to mention the staff have no idea about the beir or food they serve.
That was two outings I could have had Una’s at Surry Hills, Essen at Ultimo or Lowenbrau at the Rocks where the staff know their food and beverages and they haven’t just hired school kids to run the joint.
Sorry I just can’t stand it being called the Bavarian Bier cafe when there is nothing bavarian about it and my experience with them twice was crap.
23 Nov 10
4:50 pm
@ Tom
You do know that Lowenbrau is a part of the Bavarian Hospitality Group – right?
For me as a part of the floor staff I experience firsthand the extensive training when it comes to the food, bier and culture on a regular basis. I can vouch for my personal visits to any of the venues around Sydney, have been a delightful experience.
I would recommend that you take a step back and consider the possibility that perhaps the two times you visited the café, perhaps the staff you were served by were recently employed.
Like any other venue it is hard to offer the whole ‘Bavarian’ experience on every single occasion, if you have been on the job for merely a couple of days – as well as on a very busy day. I can assure you that we always aim to do so, and the company’s success speaks for itself.
Despite what a lot of self-appointed advertising connoisseurs might say, the company seems to blossom. There’s no arguing with that point I’d think, sp they must be doing something right.