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Opinion | Features
Woz not great
In this guest post Tony Prysten argues that the thousand dollar price of seeing out-of-touch Apple co-founder Steve Wozniack on his Australian tour was a waste of money.
This week, for the cost of two iPads (yep, two) I went to the Woz Live conference in Melbourne. I was not impressed.
What the hell is transmedia?
From advertising campaigns to online video series, the term ‘transmedia’ gets quite the work out. But what does it actually mean? Cathie McGinn trawls the media landscape for a definitive definition.
Transmedia, all media and multiplatform are terms often used interchangeably when referencing modern storytelling techniques. Yet, depending who you speak to, there are distinct differences between them.
According to industry experts Encore spoke to, the key elements that define transmedia can be summarised as follows: platform, time, audience, adaptation, and creative collaboration.
Innovation is the remedy for the ailing magazine industry
With magazine circulations plummeting, FHM closing and rumours rife on future ownership of ACP Magazines, Paul Merrill says the only way forward is launching new titles.Eight years ago in the UK, nearly a quarter of all magazine sales came from magazines that were less than four years old. In Australia, the figure was slightly lower, but still significant. Today, the situation is very different. For a start there are so few new magazines. Yes, Masterchef briefly flared, and Top Gear made an initial impact. But Grazia and Alpha fizzled, and now ACP has shelved their plans to launch Elle.
More than a game: broadcasting the Olympics
The 2012 London Olympics will be the biggest televised sporting event of our time. Brooke Hemphill discovers the logistical challenges and technical requirements of producing the event.
From July 27 to August 12, the Australian media will go sport crazy as the Games of the XXX Olympiad, aka the 2012 London Summer Olympics, unfold. The games will be the most televised sporting event of our time as broadcasters look to master every manner of technology at their disposal.
The Voice - Australia's best example yet of social TV
In this guest post, Sputnik’s Rodd Messent has a theory on why audiences have taken to The Voice .I am an addict of Channel Nine’s hit show The Voice. Such is the extent of my addiction I seriously think my housemate might kick me out of our apartment for the semi-frenzied yelling and tweeting that ensues in our lounge room each time the show airs.It’s the first time in almost three years that such disagreement has resulted in less than civil behaviour towards one another, and it’s made me think it might be a microcosm of the large volume of online debate about the show and, correspondingly, an explanation for its success as a social TV experience.Why brands are the US Army - and culture jammers are the Viet Cong
In this guest posting, Dave Burgess, who painted ‘No War’ on the Sydney Opera House, claims that ‘amoral’ advertisers have copied his idea.
Culture jamming is a 28-year-old term coined by the San Francisco-based band Negativland, who declared that the ‘Studio for the cultural jammer is the world at large’.
Branded content is dead. Long live branded content
In this guest posting, Anthony Freedman argues why branded content is making a comeback.
A few short years ago, probably concurrent with the advent of the PVR, a new term emerged within the marketing communications industry; branded content. This was really synonymous with advertiser funded TV shows where programming was created by brands and deals struck with networks to broadcast them.
There were varying degrees of success with this model.
Shock advertising: 30 ads that would give Australia's ad watchdog a coronary
Is shock an underused weapon in Australian advertising, asks Robin HicksToday, Sydney agency The Cabana Boys used an image of a mouth sewn together to shock people with the idea that problem gamblers lie to conceal their habit. Is it the most disturbing image ever? No. Will it get banned by the Advertising Standards Bureau? No. But it did make me wonder why shock is not used more often in Australia – and not just by charities and government bodies. (WARNING: NSFW)
The making of ratings blockbuster The Voice
Jason Mountney goes on the set of Channel Nine’s talent search series, The Voice, to see how the format, based on an international franchise, has come together. What ingredients have gone into making this certified hit that’s rated more than two million viewers on three consecutive nights?
Mike Goldman has one of the toughest jobs on the set of the Nine network’s new talent show, The Voice. He not only has to narrate the show, but also keep the audience from losing their enthusiasm as they realise shooting TV programs takes a lot longer than the one-hour bursts they see in their lounge rooms. A lot longer.
Nine problems stopping The Global Mail from getting an audience
While it’s a shame The Global Mail has failed to make an impact on the media landscape, the signs have been there for some time.I love the concept of a well resourced, philanthropically-funded independent news site. Anywhere in the world, that’s a rare and wonderful thing. In Australia even more so. So I hope that Grame Wood gets to see his investment make a difference.
And I have no inside info on whether Monica Attard’s sudden departure is linked to the site’s failure to find an audience so far.
Regardless, here are nine areas they can easily start to address:
Journalism’s new model?
Does the launch of philanthropically funded news site The Global Mail signal a new era for journalism or is the model destined to be a passing fad, asks Cathie McGinn in this article first published in Encore magazine.With little fanfare, philanthropically funded news site The Global Mail launched in February this year.
The online-only title received a generous five-year funding commitment from businessman Graeme Wood, founder of accommodation website wotif.com, who donated $15million.
Five things that make a great suit
In this guest posting, Gareth Collins argues that the role of a great account manager is to make the work betterI’m surprised at how many suits I meet who don’t know their role in the advertising business. The question ‘what does an advertising account manager or director do?’ is frequently met with answers such as project manager, relationship manager, plate spinner or go between … and those are the nice ones.
Success is judged on the ability to manage a process, be strong administratively and get stuff done. And while a good suit needs to do all of these things brilliantly, if these are the traits that define a great suit, then I’m in the wrong job.
What the hell is transmedia?
From advertising campaigns to online video series, the term ‘transmedia’ gets quite the work out. But what does it actually mean? Cathie McGinn trawls the media landscape for a definitive definition.
Transmedia, all media and multiplatform are terms often used interchangeably when referencing modern storytelling techniques. Yet, depending who you speak to, there are distinct differences between them.
The top seven...most patronising pieces of communication
Sometimes brands have big ideas. Sometimes marketers get so caught up with a grandiose idea that instead of finding engaging ways to sell breakfast cereal, they start to believe their own rhetoric. And sometimes it’s just lazy marketing. Here are my top seven inadvertently patronising pieces of communication…
1) Last night thousands of women gathered in Sydney’s Centennial Park to take part in She Runs the Night, an event created by Nike.
TV audience measurement – why big isn’t always beautiful
In this guest post, Chris Walton argues that the media industry needs to take a new approach to TV tradingThere has been a significant amount of coverage recently about how successful The Voice has been. Indeed, audience figures of 2.6m+ people are very impressive these days. Based on reports, this is apparently double the size of audience that Nine was hoping for in the lead up to the programme launching.
Nando’s Little Hotties campaign cleared by Ad Standards
Nando’s ‘Little Hotties’ campaign has been reprieved by the Ad Standards Bureau, which threw out complaints that online, radio and outdoor executions were degrading to woman and inappropriately sexual.
The ASB’s verdict comes as a vindication for Nando’s marketing director Kim Russell, who has defended the campaign, calling it “sassy not sexy”.
In the radio ad, a voice over announced: “Tight buns. Great breasts. And oh so saucy! These little hotties have got it all!”, before directing listeners to the Littlehotties.net.au website.
One complaint suggested that it was inappropriate to promote Nando’s “soft porn” microsite on national radio “using language that portrays women as sex objects”.
A complaint made against the microsite read: “To get on to lingerie websites you need to declare that you are over 18. This is a low-level pornographic site and should be restricted as such.”
The advertiser insisted that “Tight buns” and “Great breasts” referred to the contents of its mini-burger.
The ASB ruled that although Nando’s “frequently pushes the boundaries to just within the limits of the code of ethics” in this instance it does not breach the code.
August 16th, 2011 at 11:00 am
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Comments
16 Aug 11
11:22 am
Soft porn? Looks like many people have never been to a soft porn website, which show a lot more skin / a lot less clothes than this website! There’s a lot more “porn” in a Katie Perry video.
16 Aug 11
12:07 pm
I really like what Nando’s marketing team does, they always manage to make me smile, and I’m gonna go to Nando’s for my lunch now
16 Aug 11
2:12 pm
I really hate what Nando’s marketing team does, they always manage to make me spew, and I’m gonna go to Nando’s for my lunch now, so I can spew even more.
16 Aug 11
2:25 pm
Excellent – common sense prevailed!
16 Aug 11
2:26 pm
The stripping mum was loads better.
16 Aug 11
2:38 pm
Well the nandos marketing strategy obviously works but at what cost? Shame on you Kim Russell for continuing such a revolting idea. No shit we know sex sells but why not try selling your product in a clever way (or perhaps improve it?!?) and you won’t run the risk of pissing off women
16 Aug 11
3:02 pm
I think it’s really well done. And I’m going to guess that the majority of their customers are men, so naturally target your audience with your advertising. If I was looking for “soft-porn” and declared that I was over 18 (which isn’t even a thing for soft porn websites) then I would be disappointed, as this is an advertising campaign… the fact that so many people complained and it has got all this attention shows it’s having its desired effect, and nandos will be laughing all the way to the bank. Women need to chill out, have a burger
16 Aug 11
10:12 pm
mmmm, seems to be mostly men approving….surprise! wonder what proportion of women think this is ok? And that its ok on national radio….for my kids to hear? And re the comment women should just chill out more…great. thats really helpful. I’ll bear that in mind when somone is next abusive and discriminatory about the fact I am a woman. Sounds a bit like the idea that women should just lie back and think of Queen Victoria.
16 Aug 11
10:21 pm
uhhhhhh this is so completely typical of the media and if you don’t have a problem with it, it’s because society has been completely desensitized to the use of women’s BODIES to sell products, we deserve more!! I am a woman and these women do not represent me.
16 Aug 11
11:20 pm
Women aren’t decoration.
17 Aug 11
10:24 am
I think there is an equal amount of advertising that degrades men and women. Check out the most recent Rio ads. isn’t that equality?
17 Aug 11
2:56 pm
Beat it feminist scum!
18 Aug 11
8:44 am
Uuhh…I’m sorry, am I eating a chicken burger, or a sexy woman? That’s a little awkward to say the least. Ads like this “brand” women as sex objects, whether they realise it or not. As a young, single woman, I don’t want to be called “sexy” or “hot”. I don’t want to see other women dressed in clothes designed for the bedroom. I don’t want to be pursued for my looks, nor told my the media that I SHOULD be pursued for my looks simply because I’m a woman. While some women may pretend or even believe that this is what they want, when they’ve been used for their “sexy” looks and then tossed aside for another “sexier” woman for the sake of lust, they ain’t gonna feel so great about it.
Every woman wants to be pursued by a real man – a real man who loves her for her personality and character. A real man who says she’s beautiful, both in looks and as a person. A real man who cherishes her, protects her at all costs, and stays with her for the rest of their lives.
I know sex sells, but money can’t by happiness.
18 Aug 11
9:16 am
Love it! – Kim’s exactly right, the brand is cheeky, thats all this is meant to be. This is no more sexual than other ad’s floating about, women or men included. As a woman i’m not offended in the slightest – where has our humour gone if we can’t have a laugh over a little cheek?
Once again Nandos have generated a fantastic buzz around an entertaining campaign. Great work!
18 Aug 11
12:08 pm
I’m sick of Australia filtering everything from our advertising to our government policy to our football to Australian families. Ulitmately families are a vocal minority that ruin everything for the sake of their bloody kids!
18 Aug 11
3:01 pm
The filtering is unfortunately necessary, Gen Y, because of the increasing pornogrification of our culture so that this kind of add is seen as perfectly OK for broadcast at all times to all audiences. The boundaries between mainstram and pornography are becoming increasingly blurred – just look at the t-shirts being pushed to young men in stores, showing naked women, bound and gagged. Is this what we want to become the norm in our society? Well, it isn’t what I want and it is not what I want my kids believing is “just normal and everywhere”.
And your comment about Australian families being a “vocal minority” just made be laugh out loud. What? No family, Gen Y? Found under a cabbage leaf were you? Keep up the good work, Collective Shout and everyone who took the time to lodge a complaint.
18 Aug 11
3:54 pm
I whole-heartedly agree with Theremightbegiants.
Bri, the problem here is that what used to be funny as “a little cheek”, is now so “normal” in society that it’s not funny to anyone anymore. So people have pushed it further and further to be more and more sexually explicit, for “a little cheek”. This current jest will soon (if it’s not already) become more and more normal, until even the poeple who find it funny now, need something more shocking to satisfy their taste for “cheeky humour”. How far will we let it go?? Showing a woman’s knees used to be shocking, and now woman lounge around in lingerie on national television and it’s OK? If we let little things like this go on, what we find shocking and over the line today, will eventually be all too “normal” for our future society. The question is, what world would you want your children or the people you love the most, to live in?
30 Aug 11
5:59 pm
Kim is a smart marketer – I am sure she is happy with what she is doing