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Opinion | Features
Liars, cheats and thieves
Is our industry full of cheats and liars or do people of honour who stand by their word still exist in business? In an exclusive that first appeared in Encore, Cameron Boon investigates. The recent court case involving Paul Fishlock suing his former employer The Campaign Palace brought into focus more than just the struggle of one man. It highlighted that there are some in adland whose word cannot always be relied upon.
Q&A with Adshel's Rob Atkinson
Online trading is the next big thing says Rob Atkinson in a piece that first appeared in Encore. Who is the most powerful person in Australian media and why?
Harold Mitchell because of his influence and the footprint he has left. He’s built a huge brand in Mitchells, offloaded it into Aegis, Aegis has obviously done extremely well to be then sold on to Dentsu. So if you think about it, he is very much a father figure of the industry.
Making it overseas
Is the best way of being successful in Australia not be here at all? In a feature that first appeared in Encore, Lee Zachariah speaks to Aussies making it big abroad.I always wanted to work in New York,” says Julian Cole. “I thought it was the number one place to work in advertising; a lot of the best campaigns were coming out of there. So I moved over and was lucky enough to have a couple of interviews in the first couple of weeks.”
Cole’s story is indicative of the somewhat contentious idea that the best way to be successful in Australia is to not be in Australia any more.
Got a book in you?
From journos to ad execs and PRs, these days everyone seems to have a book in them. But what does it take to get published and will you actually make any money? In a feature that first appeared in Encore, Brooke Hemphill finds out.Attention wannabe authors. Forget big fat advance cheques and living off royalties. The reality of having a book published today is another story altogether. There are only two reasons you should even consider sitting down at your computer to bash out a manuscript – passion or profile.
Savage counsel
In an article that first appeared in Encore, Chris Savage tackles your career and agency dilemmas in his weekly advice column.Hi Chris,
My clients seem to be demanding more and more from us. At the same time, it seems many of the younger people in our industry simply don’t have the client servicing skills my generation grew up with. How do we instill in our executives some of the good old-fashioned behaviours that would keep a client happy and loyal?
Fake it til' you make it... as an ad agency receptionist
From dressing the part to playing the gatekeeper, Leo Burnett Sydney’s Susie Henry tells us how to make it as the face of adland in a piece that first appeared in Encore.What does a receptionist in an ad agency actually do?
Well, there’s the frantic every-day, all-day stuff of deliveries, courier bookings, doing expenses for directors – always challenging – plus arranging all the travel. But one of my main jobs is counselling the account service people. I also keep up with all sports information to discuss with our sports-loving clients – because who wants to be bored while they’re waiting? And I know how they like their coffee. You need to know everyone – from accounting to HR. I’m also the go-to for all catering and sending flowers.
Whose views skew the news? Media chiefs ready to vote out Labor, while reporters lean left
Most journalists lean left-of-centre, says Folker Hanusch of the University of the Sunshine Coast, in a post first published on The Conversation.Most Australian journalists describe themselves as left-wing, yet amongst those who wield the real power in the country’s newsrooms, the Coalition holds a winning lead.
But while the media’s political leanings will no doubt be debated in the lead-up to September’s federal election, our study has also found other largely unscrutinised biases remain – particularly whose views disproportionately shape the news.
It's time for a new New Wave in the film world
Government funding bodies are lazy and decadent, says industry veteran Michael Thornhill but in a piece that first appeared in Encore, Ed Gibbs begs to differ.I vividly remember the time I first saw Animal Kingdom, David Michod’s breathtaking labour-of-love feature debut. The press screening was half empty, despite the film winning the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance just months earlier, in 2010. Yet its superb performances, stylistic flourishes and overall polish left me speechless. Could this really be a feature debut, an Australian one at that, I wondered, almost out loud? It seemed too good to be true.
Going cold turkey on an agency addiction
Life is sweet for freelance writer Max Kitchen, but in a feature that first appeared in Encore, he admits his struggle against returning to the agency fold.I’ve never taken heroin. But I suspect if I had, the temptation to try it again would not be too dissimilar to the lure of returning to agency life.
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?
Unbranded ads featuring a frog on a goat unveiled as new Trading Post campaign
An unbranded outdoor teaser campaign featuring a frog and a goat which dominated several Australian cities last week has been unveiled as a repositioning of Telstra’s classified brand Trading Post.
A new TV ad went to air last night to support the launch of a new logo across tradingpost.com and Trading Post Mobile late last year. It also follows Telstra’s decision to scrap its printed edition.
Justin Milne, Telstra’s group managing director, PSTN, Fixed Broadband, BigPond and Media, said: “With a long history as the trusted place for Australians to buy and sell, it was important the new creative approach for the Trading Post brand engaged our traditional customers, while appealing to a new group of buyers and sellers.”
The campaign for the first time introduces the two animals and a new catch phrase – with the goat saying “Bargain” and the frog saying “Reckon” whenever they see the Trading Post.
The campaign, created by BWM, also includes cinema, radio, outdoor, online and mobile, with media booked by OMD.
A ‘Bargain! Reckon!’ dance track, mixed by Sydney DJ Peewee Ferris, also formed part of the teaser campaign and is available on the Trading Post website as a ringtone and callertone for Telstra Next G customers with compatible mobile phones.
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Comments
18 Jan 10
11:21 am
I think the goat came up with the campaign.
18 Jan 10
11:40 am
What a waste of some great artwork.
18 Jan 10
11:49 am
Seeing this ad around town has been bugging me not knowing what it was for. Now I feel a little let down
18 Jan 10
11:49 am
Heh.. a ‘teaser’ campaign.. isn’t this what you do when you can’t get the final ad ready in time for the media plan? Or vice versa?
By the way – this campaign really smells. It would do a better job selling soap in Poland than making me want to use Trading Post.
18 Jan 10
11:52 am
GABBO GABBO GABBO
18 Jan 10
12:21 pm
A load of MEH!
18 Jan 10
12:49 pm
A teaser is only as good as the reveal which follows. Sure, it got my interest… just enough to be disappointed in it.
Yes, tt’s got people talking about it. Tick off ‘buzz’, ‘social media engagement’ etc on the list, but leave ‘useful, meaningful brand communication’ unchecked.
18 Jan 10
2:19 pm
Just had the H&K ‘social media policies’ cross my in-box – so before I voice an opinion I need to let you all know about them at http://www.hillandknowlton.com/principles.
And to avoid any confusion – these are my personal opinions:
1. – Seems like the media buyers did well out of this one!
2. – Given the campaign culminated in a TVC, should the creative of the TVC not be so compelling that it cuts through on its own? (rather than needing a costly build up of teasers)
3. – Given Trading Post is now only on-line – should the ‘promotion’ not target the on-line community exclusively?
4. – ROI on advertising…. can’t see this one doing the sector any favours – hope I’ll be proven wrong though.
5. – The goat saying “Bargain” and the frog saying “Reckon” – was the coffee machine broken when that idea was tabled? What else was broken when that idea was approved?
I’m always learning so keen to be informed if I’m unnecessarily cynical.
18 Jan 10
3:27 pm
Great. Unfortunately though, another example of marketing that only marketers are vaguely interested in…..consumers? Couldn’t give a croak or a bleet I’d imagine.
18 Jan 10
3:28 pm
One of the worst adverts of all time…how could Telstra/Sensis pay one cent let alone tens/hundreds of thousands of dollars for this pile of goat drippings?
18 Jan 10
3:31 pm
Maybe we’ll get lucky and the goat will eat the toad and the whole campaign will die…
18 Jan 10
3:32 pm
It is kinda sad to see an icon brand go out this way. This as well as their past campaigns remind me of the scene where Homer Simpson falls off the cliff
18 Jan 10
3:34 pm
“Ribbet”
18 Jan 10
3:38 pm
Really? Seriously? Did the intern come up with this tripe?
18 Jan 10
3:39 pm
Oh dear…sorry, but there’s a little bit of me that just really enjoyed this. It’s very single minded, beautifully executed (casting, script etc.), and I believe has the potential to raise Trading Post brand awareness …maybe not to top of mind, but certainly back onto the agenda.
I will make a gross unfounded assumption that there’s a large audience out there who will have had little or no exposure to the Trading Post product or brand as they have only ever used ebay when shopping for 2nd hand stuff. So to generate awareness, to get it typed into a search engine or as a direct URL, TP has selected irreverence over rational to reach this younger target. There’s not a necessity to build a brand here per se – there is a necessity to get a generation of online shoppers used to typing in tradingpost.com.au.
That said, the whole unbranded teaser thing is dangerous way to spend money. Popping a URL on there would have made it no less unusual.
18 Jan 10
3:39 pm
chk chk boom.
18 Jan 10
3:44 pm
I’ll be honest, this non-branded teaser campaign caught my attention over the weekend and created some curious ‘car discussion’ with my flatmate. We then awaited the arrival of the full-blown branded campaign with eager anticipation. By 10pm that night my flatmate run into my room almost in tears. Her anticipation had quickly turned into bitter disappointment (and utter confusion).
I think she felt rather cheated in the end and so did I? What the blahhhhhddy hell is that all about???!!!
18 Jan 10
4:04 pm
I wonder if the disappointment about finding out the brand misses the point a little.
Remember – the starting point for the agency is the brand. They can’t ask the client to work with something more interesting instead please.
I reckon BWM deserve a fair bit of credit for creating anticipation with a campaign that clearly cut through.
I was never a fan, for instance, of their work for Telstra NextG with (shudder) Brad & Emma. But I think this one may have some legs.
Cheers,
Tim – Mumbrella
18 Jan 10
4:05 pm
Online ads are here also. Pee Wee Ferris remix song! Should have been Dj Bobo
http://www.bannerblog.com.au/n.....ad_ads.php
18 Jan 10
4:09 pm
Agree with Ed and parts of Lee. Let’s not get too artsie fartsie about it all. While I don’t believe in teaser campaigns unless it is for a once in a blue moon type of product to purchase, this will work to raise the profile of the Trading Post. It’s random, but I think they need to be to get some discussion good or indifferent. We’re not talking iSnack bad here.
Take a chill pill people.
18 Jan 10
4:13 pm
They must be dreamin!!! Sorry but it misses for me
18 Jan 10
4:25 pm
Unbelievably, Sensis (Telstra) paid more than 600 million dollars for the Trading Post. a few years ago.
Now that they have junked the classified newspaper, all they have left is a very ordinary website that could have been built for less than fifty grand.
i guess they must have a bottomless barrel of money somewhere, if they can waste it on a Frog & Goat ad.
18 Jan 10
4:27 pm
BWM did well with the teasers. The best thing about the reveal is that it is Trading Post, as it made me remember them. So much so I had a conversation about how much i uesd to wait for thursday mornings (or was it tuesdays) for the paper to come out.
However get a new director for the TVC’s. It was so much like watching a regular Telstra ad that I was bored half way through. My mum told me she got a quick laugh though she had no idea what the ad was for.
Trading-post isnt telstra, people have forgotten it. If they showed what trading post was good for in the TVC it would have done much more for the client.. look at ebays ads and tell me which works better for the product.
18 Jan 10
4:29 pm
What a load of rubbish. It should have been a lizard on the goat, not a frog. Didn’t they put this into research first? Every creative worth their salt knows that you only ever put lizards on goats.
18 Jan 10
4:32 pm
I’m not saying it was the brand that was a disappointment (I’ve marketed some pretty ‘yawn-worthy’ brands myself over the years). No, it was the ‘scratch your head’ confusion that caused the disappointment.
As marketers we can sometimes think that these campaigns are single-minded and attention grabbing – but the reality is that my friend is now confused why a father bought his daughter a goat and a frog. Maybe she will get it the 2nd time round.
18 Jan 10
4:55 pm
I wonder if the negative sentiment of the comments on here are for the actual campaign or rather ad peoples dislike of Telstra as a whole?
18 Jan 10
4:59 pm
Surely it should be a sheep saying ‘BAAArgain’ not a Goat. Jeez. Do I have to do everything myself?
18 Jan 10
5:00 pm
Lets get a goat and a frog in here to provide clarity
18 Jan 10
5:13 pm
I have to say i thought it was an extension of the ANZ ad it was next on the panel I saw it on. The colours matched exactly. It worked better as part of the ANZ ad.
18 Jan 10
5:16 pm
I was going to trade the frog in for something else, but I was tied to a post and got hungry, so eat the frog! I hope it isnt poisonous!?!I I just ‘Googled’ “2nd hand fridge freezers” and couldnt see the Trading Post anywhere..? I might eat my leg next!
18 Jan 10
5:37 pm
Crimany Anonymous Goat. That’s a really good point…a spot of SEO expenditure to support the ATL would be sensible.
18 Jan 10
5:38 pm
i’m thinking this is just the introduction of the goat and frog and the story will continue?
if so, then i like it – i think the JCdecaux panels worked well in a “GABBO GABBO GABBO” kind of strategy (to quote mr Vandelay). it could be a nice way to build “BAAAAARGIAN” and ‘reckon’ into the vanacular for trading 2nd hand goods (a bit like michael katon in ‘The Castle’).
but if this tvc is the extent of the campaign then its not so good…
18 Jan 10
5:58 pm
I invested all my time trying to find out what this campaign meant. When I found out it was the trading post i felt so cheated that I launched a missile into space with nanobots. These nanobots will at some point attach to all the satellites spinning around our globe and download a virus into their central computer systems that will transmit a signal to everyone’s tv to show the X Factor 24 hours a day.
That’s what you all deserve.
18 Jan 10
5:58 pm
@tbone,
I ‘reckon’ you’re spot on… if there’s more, it could turn out to be a good campaign. If not, then it’s crap.
18 Jan 10
7:14 pm
I think the great Darryl Kerrigan would say it best. “They paid some wankers millions of dollars to come up with a frog sitting on a goat? And they call that advertising? Tell ‘em they’re dreamin’!”
18 Jan 10
7:41 pm
I work for TPOL, go you good thing!!
18 Jan 10
8:03 pm
Who came up with the actual idea?
18 Jan 10
8:05 pm
Also I agree with JACK above – creating cut thru for cut thru,s sake is not advertising even if it gets noticed. However will wait to see if there is more!
18 Jan 10
9:28 pm
A teaser campaign!?!!
Wow what a step forward for the new decade!!
18 Jan 10
9:29 pm
Hmmmmm. There’s a lot of jealous people making comments here. As an old creative (now retired) it’s all too familiar young creatives and infant marketers jumping online slamming other people’s work. Jealousy is a very ugly thing! We’ve all done it but hey grow up kids.
Whoever created this deserves a lot of credit. It’s certainly very different to most of the stuff that is out there. Half the online stuff doesn’t manage to get more than a few thousand people interested. I like the campaign. It’s fully integrated. Good use of a teaser (it worked!!). I’d like to see where it goes.
18 Jan 10
9:32 pm
I have been wondering what this ad is for for days. Not as mysterious as I thought…. or as funny.
18 Jan 10
9:34 pm
Creative Critic — love your comment about the lizard! Definitely need more lizards in ads.
18 Jan 10
10:38 pm
The only way this idea has a chance of working is through high frequency of TV reveal ad via a $3-$5m media buy.
Will this deliver a reasonable ROI to Trading Post online?
Unlikely.
19 Jan 10
9:50 am
When I saw the outdoor ads I thought/hoped it might be some play on an aesop fable … nope, not that clever.
19 Jan 10
10:24 am
Awesome posts everyone,
Not having seen OMD’s media schedule, I would hope they went to town on digital media planning as well as all the nice expensive outdoor and TV.
Given they need to change the behaviour of people who are looking for second hand goods and wanting to sell, and they have ditched the printed version, it will need more than TV to achieve.
The Goat and Frog is memorable, for the right or wrong reasons, (as debated in the posts here) i am just wondering if this will translate to recall that drives a change in behaviour.
I also hope the display media BWM have created arent just about how to talk like a goat, and substantiate why listing or purchasing from trading post is better than ebay, gumtree or all the others.
With any luck the sales of goat and all things french skyrockets and it will all be worth it.
Robbo
19 Jan 10
1:36 pm
Two things: “Goatize” is way too close to “Goatse” for my liking (NSWF) – http://bit.ly/8qk3Ph – and; the premise of the goat and frog only taking in front of the guy (in the ad) possibly inspired by the Loony Tunes cartoon “One Froggy Evening” – http://bit.ly/8xjqLQ – yeah?
19 Jan 10
5:47 pm
I liked this.
I actually wondered was it was for. I discussed it with friends.
-So yeah. It worked.
Im sure the agency is very upset they did not please a bunch a whining c***t at this blog.
20 Jan 10
2:19 pm
Being in adworld I noticed it.
Entire weekend spent with 3 adults walking and driving around the City and northern beaches. Within a metre of the ad on several occassions.
I prompted a conversation about it and none of them had noticed the image prior to me mentioning it.
21 Jan 10
1:13 pm
I just Googled: “2nd Hand Furniture” – no sign of trading post anywhere… I also completed some traffic comparison tests for tradingpostdotcomdotau v gumtreedotcomdotau on a few traffic comparison tools. Gumtree smoke Trading Post(.)
Fish where there are fish guys. If your product is online – surely you would fish hard online to get people grazing your product first, before backing it up with branding? Why be excessive first?
Oh, sorry this is adland – agencies make far bigger profits out of the production costs from a massive TV campaign than they do a digital keyword campaigns… Doh?!!
24 Jan 10
1:27 am
I worked there for 7 years in print. Unfortunately, when I saw this ad, I really didn’t know what it was for. I know a goiat & frog will be memorable, but does this really include their traditional user base? I think it really says they are confused with their own identity. As for the outdoor, a goat and a big orange T tells me there’s something to do with telstra, but that’s it. Unfortunatley, for me, it’s Ebay all the way. I think this is a last bid attempt to relaunch the bad press of a very bad business decision to ditch print. It seems the print competitors have it nailed now.
24 Jan 10
9:41 am
Have Ebay ever advertised on TV?
Shopping dot com ad’s on TV?
Has anyone ever seen a Gumtree ad on TV?
This Trading Post campaign smells like a typical fail from one of the big powerhouses, rather like how the True Local product has failed. Throw all of the money at marketing when they should be throwing it all at the product(.) This isnt a foul tasting beer – this is an online product that gets USED…
When building a business online, if the product is good it will sell itself (anyone heard of social networking…?) If something flies and is easy to use and wait for it is ‘very useful’ it is valuable and your business will excel. UX is key and if you do not have that down pat – then you can kiss your traffic goodbye.
Hey ho – watch a lot of big companies die a slow and painful death over the next decade. A lot of agencies will also suffer enormously if they continue to reap the rewards from excessive ‘branding’ campaigns on big traditional platforms… Instead of offering smart online solutions and web consultation regarding user experience. We will see.
28 Jan 10
5:10 pm
Saw the teaser ads around town and thought they were brilliiant. Then saw the TVCs and was completley dispointed. They should have left them as is, perhaps with a logo later. Keep ‘em guessing.
29 Jan 10
12:32 am
I dont know what every one is complaining about, The ad gets peoples attention doesnt it? Exactly what it is supposed to do. I do believe people should lighten up a bit and reclaim a sense of humour
8 Feb 10
11:34 pm
Surely its not that bad a campaign – its a unique answer to a very hard challenge:
Getting people to use trading post to shop will be nearly as hard as getting people to use trading post to sell. And unfortunately one requires the other in order to work.
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