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Opinion | Features
How bosses can build trust by baring themselves to staff
In this guest post, Simon Rutherford, CEO of Slingshot Media, argues that bosses should be vulnerable in front of their staff.
Winston Churchill once said: “Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.”
Fake it til you make it...as a radio newsreader
In a piece that first appeared in Encore, Emily Hoskins from ARN tells us how to do her job.
What does a radio newsreader actually do?
A radio newsreader has to be switched on from the moment they sit at their desk. At the Australian Radio Network each journalist writes, researches, edits and reads their own news bulletins under tight deadlines – every 30 minutes during the breakfast shift and every hour after 9am.
Keith Reinhard on freedom to fail, winning back Maccas and how agencies can survive
In an exclusive interview in Cannes today, advertising icon Keith Reinhard, one of the founding fathers of what is now DDB Worldwide, talked to Mumbrella’s Robin Hicks about freedom from fear, his favourite ads of all time, winning back McDonald’s and why the most important thing in advertising is passion.Savage counsel - little white lies
In a piece that first featured in Encore, Chris Savage tackles your career and agency dilemmas. This week, he talks about when it’s okay to lie to clients.
Hi Chris,
I often find myself telling little white lies at work – I tell people on the phone that I don’t want to speak to I’m about to duck into meetings. I told my colleague her new haircut was great when really it wasn’t and I praised someone’s work when actually it was kind of shit. After each of these occasions, I felt pretty terrible and wonder if you could tell me how can I speak with candour in the future – for my sake and others.
How to build a culture
How important is a company’s culture and how do you ensure you are breeding a good one? Matt Smith investigates, in a piece that first appeared in Encore.When production companies Cordell Jigsaw and Zapruder’s Other Films merged early last year, bringing the staff together within the walls of the Zapruder building proved to be something of a challenge. While the two companies weren’t strangers to each other due to six months of talks and negotiations, working together on a full-time basis was a different story.
Q&A Damian Keogh
In a piece that first featured in Encore, Val Morgan CEO Damian Keogh reveals his potential alternate career.
Who is the most powerful person in Australian media and why?
I’d say Kerry Stokes, slightly ahead of Harold Mitchell and Kim Williams. He controls the entity with the largest revenue across free-to-air, online, magazines and newspapers. On pure size alone, his influence and leverage over advertisers, media agencies and consumers is unmatched. Harold is still the king in media, slightly ahead of John Steedman, but Henry Tajer and Leigh Terry are the heirs apparent. Kim Williams controls News and that’s a big base to work from.
If a violent game is okay, then so is using a violent ad to promote it
An ad for video game Dead Island Riptide was banned by the ad watchdog. James Whitehead of online entertainment publisher IGN argues that it was the wrong call.A fortnight ago, it emerged that the Ad Standards Board had banned a television commercial for the video game Dead Island: Riptide, due to its depiction of violence – specifically suicide.
Why content makers are leaving our shores
In a piece that first featured in Encore, Craig Anderson says there simply isn’t enough opportunity for content makers in Australia, especially for those making comedy.Last year I had multiple meetings with production companies in Australia and discovered that apart from the odd commercial campaign, there’s no proliferation of paying platforms for comedy. From my own experience there’s iView, which will buy content once it’s already been made (though I live in hope that it will one day be granted the financial power to commission content). I’ve also had the odd informal commission from the SMH iPad consisting of two narrative series and a comical review show. But none of these endeavours were financially viable.
Managing your management style
In an article that first appeared in Encore, Stephanie Brown says the advertising industry often leaves people ill-equipped when it comes to managing staff, especially when they’re promoted into management roles.Managing people is hard. In fact, I actually think it’s the hardest job in the world. With no disrespect intended, I often joke that if my job didn’t involve other people to manage, it would be a walk in the park. I could get about my day’s work in a nice, linear fashion, happily checking off my to-do list as I go. I’m a process-orientated person. I get a kick out of getting things done.
Why the Facebook chase is making brands treat consumers like morons
You know how we look back at quaintly patronising ads from the 1950s and wonder what on earth the advertisers were thinking?
I’ve got a feeling that in a few years time, we’ll be looking at the behaviour of big brands on Facebook the same way.
An entire generation of marketers – or at least a sizeable proportion of them – have lost their minds.
So many have become so obsessed with generating user interactions at all costs, that all thoughts about overall brand perceptions or long term marketing goals have vanished. All that counts now, is generating likes and comments at all costs.
Blog this!
Paid content, sponsored posts and brand ambassadorships – in theory, today’s blogger can be just as valuable to brands as mainstream media. But does blogger outreach actually work? In an article that first appeared in Encore, Nic Christensen investigates.“I get approaches from PR companies constantly,” says blogger and author Kerri Sackville, with more than a hint of exasperation. “I have never done a sponsored blog, on my own site, but that doesn’t stop them from asking.”
McLennan right man for job
It’s all change at troubled broadcaster Channel Ten with new directions, new executives and a brand new CEO. Managing director of Adstream Peter Miller says Hamish McLennan is the right man for the job, in an article that first appeared in Encore.I am a bit of a schmuck when it comes to movies. I love romantic comedies. My favourite is One Fine Day with Michelle Pfeiffer and George Clooney.
Q&A with Richard Herring
In a piece that first appeared in Encore, CEO of APN Outdoor Richard Herring talks media.Who is the most powerful person in Australian media and why?
I don’t know if there is one person in particular. The fragmentation of traditional media and new entrants has made it a more level playing field with regards to major influencers. As was demonstrated with the recent media reform recommendations, together, the broader media community still has a very influential and powerful voice.
What one medium could you not live without?
Outdoor – clean, entertaining, evocative and informative.
Q&A with screenwriter Craig Pearce
Craig Pearce, screenwriter for The Great Gatsby, spoke to Encore about working with Baz and writing for 3D.
How did you get into script writing?
I always loved stories and acting and dressing up and being anything but myself and I never realised that was not something other people did. After leaving high school, I did a three year acting course at NIDA but always thought I would one day write. Baz was a good friend and he had a theatre company. He wanted to extend a 20 minute version of Strictly Ballroom. We got it to 45 minutes then he was approached by producers to turn it into a feature film. I started helping him out on the film while they were looking for a real writer but eventually Baz had to go to the producers and say, “There’s this guy who’s my best friend and he is a really good writer”. To the producers’ credit, they believed in Baz so we had two weeks to re-write it.
Savage Counsel - winning pitches
Chris Savage tackles your career and agency dilemmas in his weekly Encore advice column.
Hi Chris,
It seems we have to increasingly pitch for everything. Even with existing clients, we’re now expected to pitch ideas, competitively, for every project. We’re winning about two out of five of what we’re pitching for. It’s a huge burden on our time and budgets. What is your secret to winning a pitch presentation? How do we make sure our presentations are a knockout?
Virgin Mobile introduces Doug Pitt, Brad’s bro
The other Pitt
Virgin Mobile has signed up Brad Pitt’s brother Doug as its celebrity endorsement on the grounds that he deserves “a fair go”.
The campaign, masterminded by PR agency One Green Bean and Euro RSCG is the next stage of Virgin Mobile’s “A Fair Go For All” positioning launched last year.
The character of Robin Da Hood, who was created by Mojo and fronted the Fair Go campaign when it launched last year has been dropped.
The campaign will be centred around the Fair Go Bro website. The site will launch with an introductory Doug video asking Aussies to get to know the less famous Pitt and showing them his more ordinary lifestyle.
Virgin Mobile’s marketing director David Scribner said: “With consumer engagement paramount to success, we wanted push the boundaries and develop a campaign that had social and mobile at the heart of it. The first phase of the campaign centres around the website enabling consumers to engage and rally behind the cause before we introduce the TVCs, outdoor and print.”
Media at launch will include online display, pre-roll video,Facebook advertising, Nova radio and commuter press. TV, print, cinema and outdoor will follow later.
Print ad:
Agency credits:
- Concept: Euro RSCG & One Green Bean
- ATL: Euro RSCG
- PR: One Green Bean
- Social Media: One Green Bean
- Digital Design & Development: Future Büro
- Media: Starcom
- Production Company: Revolver
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Comments
2 Jul 12
10:04 am
Sounds like a progressive and original idea.. wonder what Frank Stallone is up to now .. maybe Hamish and Andy have PR careers post TV?
2 Jul 12
10:23 am
One Green Bean are doing some great stuff (hence the Cannes lion I suppose!).
Cool campaign, I love how Branson’s brand cheekiness comes through most of their campaigns, it’s very refreshing to see a brand with a little confidence.
2 Jul 12
10:41 am
Awesome idea
2 Jul 12
10:58 am
Whoever runs OGB is a genius. This is the funniest campaign. Love it.
2 Jul 12
11:06 am
Interesting idea; In showing his ‘everyday’ life, I can’t tell if they’re trying to make a joke out of him and highlight why he needs endorsing, or instead just trying to resonate with parents/families.
I’m not sure how many people would look at his lifestyle/surroundings and feel as though he didn’t have a ‘fair go’ already (despite obviously lacking in comparison to Brad Pitt).
It kind of just makes me think Brad Pitts a bit of an arse for not sending a bit of coin his brothers way!
2 Jul 12
11:11 am
Love it!
2 Jul 12
11:16 am
Well done Euro, this is the first genuinely good work I think I’ve seen come out of the place.
2 Jul 12
11:37 am
Brilliant idea, absolutely brilliant! I hope this is a series and we see more ‘overlooked siblings of the famous’!
2 Jul 12
11:39 am
I wondered where my brother Doug had gotten to.
2 Jul 12
12:05 pm
Awesome…loved it.
I got the feeling Doug new the deal here, and was along for the ride. Thought it was very funny, might even post it on my facebook…. That got you excited didn’t it.
2 Jul 12
12:06 pm
He looks happy, he’s doing alright for himself, he may not have the palatial lifestyle of Brad but he’s not exactly wandering the streets begging for change. It’s a funny look at the ‘other Pitt’ but i’m not sure where the ‘fair go’ mantra comes into it?
2 Jul 12
12:31 pm
Very niiiiiiiiiice
2 Jul 12
12:45 pm
gold! great work
2 Jul 12
1:29 pm
How is Doug’s life unfair and how does the “fair go” line actually apply to virgin’s product? The connection seems unexplained at best and absent at worst, in my opinion. The whole thing is mildly amusing but I will be interested to see where Facebook likes for Doug take Virgin mobile…
2 Jul 12
1:33 pm
liked it
2 Jul 12
1:48 pm
This is very funny. Nice one.
2 Jul 12
2:11 pm
I really like this. And it’s a job well done for Euro and OGB…
Mojo is just sliding down that scale isn’t it? Seriously poor creative for the past few years.
2 Jul 12
2:14 pm
Nice one Mr Scirbner – your best work since Findus Rock ‘ n Rolls !
2 Jul 12
2:18 pm
Progressive? Original? Awesome? Funniest? Good work? Brilliant?
So lets just say I am so overcome with a compulsion to visit the website
and ‘like’ him (348 people have done this so far?) …then now what? And only those on Facebook can participate, but maybe that’s saying something else….
….those who don’t update and check their Facebook status continually
and find such purile engagement with a brand aren’t worth engaging?
It only encourages creatives to continue creating such shallow self indulgent campaigns and does bugger all to sell phones.
That’s what we are paid to do isn’t it? Sell stuff?
The last time I looked, clients ‘liked’ that!
2 Jul 12
2:23 pm
You can just see the campaign rolling out. Nice work.
2 Jul 12
2:25 pm
very clever – and he comes across really well.
Far less sanctimonious than his brother.
good work
2 Jul 12
2:27 pm
This is pretty funny. The concept says it all, and the tie-in to the fair go actually works.
Virgin are just great at this kind of stuff, hats off.
2 Jul 12
2:49 pm
He’s hot. And you can see it unfolding, this is going to be great!
Nice job Virgin!
2 Jul 12
3:13 pm
Love this!!
2 Jul 12
3:18 pm
I’m suspicious…
…a few too many one-line “loves” and “awesome” comments?
Or perhaps I’m just cynical and real “readers” genuinely feel that these self indulgent campaigns change consumer opinions? We are continually seeing creative ideas (invariably humor) that are force fit into a brand…and more amazingly bought by the client?
2 minutes worth of a labored irrelevant joke.
Clients need to ask themselves what genuine rate of return this sort of work brings? I suspect a few new Facebook friends won’t change attitudes and I’m lost as to why this idea is relevant to Virgin?
The industry needs to get a grip and get back to selling.
2 Jul 12
3:37 pm
Went to a Virgin Mobile store recently (Marion, SA). They were rude, unaware of their own product range, and condescending. Where does this ‘fair go’ thing apply? To me, they acted like a typical telco. I went elsewhere. And apparently Branson doesn’t own them anymore.
2 Jul 12
3:54 pm
The world would be a much better place if we all just sold shit the boring way.
Humph hrumph hrmph hmph.
2 Jul 12
4:44 pm
Dear Number 27.
The skill is in selling stuff in a creative, relevant way that gets consumers to act.
There isn’t any skill in producing creative that has no relevance to the brand and doesn’t impact sales. This is why CFO’s don’t get it.
Those bored with clients who just want to sell, should figure out who pays the agency bills when the client goes broke and the marketing team are made redundant.
This work simply doesn’t give you any relevant reason to engage with the brand. Agencies need to be more accountable for sales rather than Cannes complements.
2 Jul 12
5:15 pm
Tony, maybe Doug should have said – right in the middle of the video actually “Right now you can get a $99 plan with 300 bucks of credit, free voicemail, unlimited text messaging, with the best ever galaxy 2 android smart phone on the new superduper plan 4000 for 2 years – click here now!!!”.
In the boring world you obviously live in, this is how advertising is meant to be done and makes sense. Thank god for a creative idea that leaves people amused and slightly curious… Not every brand is gagging to do a “down down, prices are down” ad or spray prices all over the place like JB Hi-Fi.
3 Jul 12
3:48 am
Some “to be expected” comments here. Fact is Brad is very close to his family and I wouldn’t be surprised him and his brother got a good chuckle over this vid.
3 Jul 12
11:04 am
I don’t see how this is relevant to Virgin at all. It feels like a pre launch idea for ‘A Fair Go For All’. But that brand positioning was launched over a year ago now. Why step backwards?
3 Jul 12
11:58 am
Rowan Dean in his piece in the AFR talks about the demise of the Campaign Palace.
In his tale of agency mismanagement he says…”they did some real work – not the scam ads and gimmicky PR stunts that so many of today’s agencies rely upon to boost their creative credentials…”
Virgin Mobile is an example of irrelevant, gimmicky PR work (not advertising) that is putting the industry to shame. Leaving people “amused” isn’t the role of advertising.
3 Jul 12
2:16 pm
Right you are, Eric Blair. This campaign would have worked better as a load of DM flyers sprayed all over the country. In fact, we should start a governing body to ensure that no people are amused as the result of advertising campaign.
Pfff… Who are you to say what the role of advertising in 2012 is and isn’t? If Virgin Mobile wants to put a giant dildo in the middle of a city and link it to their brand then good on them. For every creative campaign like this, there are a thousand projects where all humor and creativity have been stripped out to adhere to a conservative communications brief. Lighten up buddy…
3 Jul 12
3:51 pm
Are we meant to feel sorry for Doug? He has a nice house, nice car, looks reasonably well off… I have friends who go without food so that they can support their kids. I just can’t relate to a well-to-do American with a famous family member when many Aussies are doing it tough. This doesn’t have any ‘fair go’ element for me. Nice enough guy, but my heart isn’t weeping for Doug. This is almost rubbing our faces in it. With a different tag line this could work well, but there’s no payoff in it for me. Especially after having dealt with Virgin…
3 Jul 12
3:51 pm
Matt, accepting that relevant creativity is the aim of advertising, how is this campaign really supposed to get new consumers? Funny isn’t always better. And humor doesn’t always equal creativity (beyond Surry Hills).
Be interesting to hear how you think it will actually work as you clearly don’t like the more obvious sell?
I don’t think the giant phallic symbol (despite the obvious appeal) is the answer by the way.
3 Jul 12
4:04 pm
I’m with you Eric. This does nothing for mobile phone sales, and the whole ‘fair go’ thing has no real-world application. Maybe someone from Virgin can get on here and explain how they are ‘fairer’ than any other Telco. Just because it is an ‘interesting’ concept does not mean it translates well for the brand. It just seems out of touch to me.
3 Jul 12
4:24 pm
Eric Blair, how is it supposed to get new consumers? Are people talking about the brand or not? Of course humor does not alway equal creativity, but to discount it as a technique is plain ignorance.
How do I know how it works mate? I just really like what they have done as a nice big idea to start it off. So did my friends online it seems.
Who says a giant dildo can’t be used in advertising? What if a brand positioning was “satisfaction” or something… It’s up to the client to buy an idea they like or not.
3 Jul 12
4:58 pm
I agree with Matt, I certainly think humor has a role whether targeting young or old, e.g. Berocca 50+ from The Campaign Palace (RIP), it just seems to have become the default position in the absence of any other relevant creative ideas.
Industry professionals are also losing sight of the role of mass market media versus niche social media to affect sales and make great ads. A great TV ad will out-pace any other media in terms of awareness and sales impact in a mass market category like mobile. Even better if social media supports the TV – all 400 Facebook fans can even like each other…
John Hegarty said at Cannes that “the ads simply aren’t good enough…”. He’s right. The industry is pitching and accepting poor creative.
Ultimately the client makes the call. My criticism is of those clients who buy irrelevant ideas like this that don’t affect sales via niche media.
3 Jul 12
11:19 pm
I like the humour of the concept. Rather than pick a homeless man off the street, they’ve chosen the person who probably feels the hardest done by. Brad Pitts brother. The PR value of this campaign is enormous. And the message is clear to me. I think this is a winner, but lets wait until the figures come out before we start slagging it as irrelevant.
All the overseas publications are loving it and the public seem to really like the idea, so regardless of what other individuals on this thread think would be a better campaign (Berocca 50+?), it’s working.
4 Jul 12
11:14 am
How’s about we let this thing run its course before we say it won’t sell phone contracts?
4 Jul 12
12:02 pm
A point on coverage. Particularly when it is mostly in trade titles and overseas (?).
Is PR value measured by column inches or saliency of the product proposition and why Virgin is better? I doubt many get the latter from this campaign. I’ve seen some amateur efforts to justify campaign cost through rate-card equivalent values of column inch coverage. Clients are still buying (at high cost) this naive 1980′s view of PR…
Berocca 50+ isn’t necessarily a “better” campaign, but it does illustrate the use of an amusing creative idea relevant to the product and target from a great agency.
As many have said in the thread, this creative just isn’t relevant. If it had some product relevance it would be a lot more effective and why wouldn’t a client strive for that?
4 Jul 12
12:27 pm
They give everyone a fair go. Including Doug Pitt.
5 Jul 12
9:40 am
Slapping my head too, #42. It’s not a retail ad. It’s not designed to directly shift mobile contracts. It’s about re-inforcing Virgin’s challenger positioning. If the campaign isn’t backed by a bunch or retail ads etc, then I’d agree with some of the comments above. Let’s see how the campaign rolls out.
5 Jul 12
11:22 am
Scratching my head and still feeling it’s all a bit “Emperor’s new clothes” in the PR idea. A bit like people ticking the box in social media, without looking for a return on investment or understanding what it achieves.
But as #43 says, a lot of sense in seeing what’s next in the campaign. CommBank hit hard with some very direct press ads and DM post their Tony Collette “can” poem.
A lost opportunity in my view when brands don’t make ads that sell from the first airing. They’re spending money so why not look for an immediate return?
Isn’t “a fair go” generic?
To argue that this ad builds a generic positioning without selling is counter intuitive. Advertising that sells is great advertising, or maybe (with the greatest respect to Surry Hills) I’m more interested in the bottom line than Facebook likes.
5 Jul 12
11:47 am
I agree, Eric. To a degree. Great advertising indeed sells. And yes, it makes sense to take advantage of every opportunity.
In saying that, bigger brands with bigger budgets can afford a more holistic approach and to keep communications brutally single minded. That is, use once piece of comms to flog the positioning, another to ‘prove’ or ‘validate’ it. E.g. Tell everyone where about a ‘fair go’, hope they listen, then back it up by proving it with a worthy offer. We all know the simpler the message, the more likely it’s retained. That’s not to say a branding job, and a retail job can’t be pulled off in the one execution. It just means we don’t always ‘have’ to squeeze maximum sales from every piece of communication. Rather, we can also allocate funds to building value and equity in perhaps and arguably any company’s biggest asset – their brand.
5 Jul 12
11:50 am
Oh, and while we’re building that equity, we might as well try and prove some sort of ROI by obtaining a few ‘likes’ here and there.
By no means am I putting an argument forward for social media. IMO, it’s over-rated.
7 Jul 12
5:57 am
Haven’t seen the rest of the campaign, but a quick google shows every story, in some pretty hefty titles, talks about Virgin giving Doug Pitt a fair go. Lots also mention celebrity deals at celebrity brother prices (ha!) so I think we’ll see some down and dirty retail to come.
With him set up as the endorser and now everyone’s looking at him, I think he’ll be flogging the crap out of the brand from here on in. They wouldn’t have spent whatever that was just to get a two minute teaser.