Why every ad agency needs a Dan Ilic
I must admit, I’m slightly amused that the most talked about ad of the year so far has been created by a non-adman.
The brains behind VicRoads’ controversial “Don’t be a dickhead” road safety campaign is comedian Dan Ilic (I’m even more amused that somewhat harshly, when you type Ilic’s name in Google, the autocomplete helpfully suggests “dickhead”.)
Now admittedly, it’s not universally popular. Not, as might have been anticipated, because of the “Don’t be a dickhead” message. But rather because the two ads featuring gingers.
Although the reason for most of the flack is the legitimate worry that the campaign may fuel bullying of redheads, the row is putting this online-only campaign onto the TV news and into newspapers. The road safety message is being brought along for the ride.
So far, the clips have been viewed on YouTube about 100,000 times. For a couple of days, that’s pretty good, if not quite viral yet. But it’s gained far more of an audience via the news coverage.
Here, for instance, is me pontificating about it on Seven’s Sunrise yesterday:
As I say, the controversy came from slightly unexpected quarters. The dickhead element has almost become a side issue.
(Mind you, the ranga factor is YouTube friendly. “Gingers do have souls!!”, featuring an angry young man of the redheaded persuasion, is approaching 5m views.)
But the unexpected nature of the controversy (I bet the politicians were only scared of the dickheads part of the message) is important. Ilic’s team created a whopping 20 ads and nine were selected. This slightly scattergun approach (and certainly not traditional campaign thinking) worked, because an ad that might not otherwise have made it has fuelled the media coverage.
Which gets me thinking. Derek Robson, gave an intriguing presentation to the APG earlier this year in which he talked about how the great US agency got itself back in gear.
One of the things he mentioned was the company’s hiring policy – to look beyond simply headhunting from rivals. Some of their best hirings were members of a comedy troupe. They thought differently and wrote both fast and prolifically.
I think Ilic has demonstrated that maybe what every ad agency needs is a comedian.
Tim Burrowes
Tim Burrowes founded Mumbrella in 2008. He worked on Mumbrella until 2021. At various points he was editor, content director and editor-at-large.
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Tim Burrowes
You’re right about the need for agencies to get people who think different Tim. But I’d also say that a massive element of this campaign ever seeing the light of day is that client clearly has balls.
Creativity of the videos aside, this is the freshest campaign I’ve seen from Australia in the last 12 months. And it’s not just because they’ve embraced an uncontrived social strategy or a great low-budget scattergun approach to content, but because the client is clearly willing to fail. And that’s a good (and rare) thing to have in a client.
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Dan’s contribution aside, I have to agree with the principle of this.
If we look at the performance arts industry (e.g. theatre, dance, comedy) it becomes pretty clear that they have the sense to respect that ‘creativity’ can’t come from one person. They hire people to tweak scripts to make them more funny and they see comedy as a craft to be perfected over years. In an agency, “creatives” are expected to be amazing at everything – they are meant to be great at writing humour to writing emotional tear jerkers and on top of that, they have to understand business, brands, be good presenters, know budgets and not to mention fricken timesheets (you get my point). It is a lot to expect from one team. Given comedians spend years perfecting the craft of humour, and humour is so important in advertising, I think we should be leveraging the comedy world more.
However, we have to be willing to pay for them. And not treat them as people who are so desperate to be famous that they will do things for free (the lower calibre of comedians might – but you get what you pay for). We also have to stop being so egotistical to think that we are the best people when it comes to all things ‘creative’.
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The guy above speaks a lot of sense.
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I like the logic but Goodby would never stoop to such lazy nor mean-spirited humour.
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And Dan charges about one tenth the price the big agencies charge
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what’s a Ginger?
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love the way Tim opens with a reminder that Mumbrella ran the ads the day before the 7 network…!
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I agree with concept of hiring outside of your rivals, especially when you look to people with comedic backgrounds. It reminds of an early episode of Seinfeld when Jerry’s mother, dismayed by what she believes is Jerry’s lack of success, suggests he should work in advertising.
Whether the ads worked is a totally different matter, and can only be judged on whether it stops young people driving in a reckless manner, not simply on exposure. Let’s remember, the guy who recorded himself being electrocuted has over a couple of million views.
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Agree Tim. Ad agencies are in the dark ages when it comes to hiring. David Ogilvy was 38, unemployed and had dropped out of college when he got a job in advertising. He had been a cook, a salesman and a farmer .
He knew nothing about marketing and had never written any copy. He was interested in advertising as a career and ready to work for a low wage.
He got a job and three years later became the most famous copywriter in the world, and in due course built one of the biggest agencies in the world.
Do you think an agecny in Australia would hire someone like Ogilvy today?
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ok – watched the 3min “Gingers do have souls” piece- and get what a Ginger is (I actually knew – but thought it must have been something new to be grabbing attention in this execution).
I agree with risk taking, but i guess the key question is whether this creative changes behaviour. For the writers above who praise risk taking in creative, let’s check the ramifications of getting this wrong. you further popularise bad driving behaviours potentially? or it’s just ignored?
I’d love to know what the actual testing results are and later I hope we hear about the real-life impact.
I’m guessing as well that the target is the younger audience – but how many ‘older’ dickheads are out there texting etc whilst driving?
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On the Ginger a.k.a. Ranger tip, I recently witnessed “The Gathering of the Rangers” a weird phenom where all the red headed punters at the Golden Plains music festival gathered around a pink tree at sunset and then cheered & sang songs together. While all the non-Rangers clapped and filmed them on their iPhones, it was surreal. Red is the new Black?
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Mumbrella – how can you be amused by and give column inches to a campaign that perpetuates attacks on people because of their physical appearance. And then suggest every agency needs a charcter like Ilic.
Shame on you.
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The previous comment needs to separate the person i.e. Illic from the campaign strategy.
This was a multi-pronged approach to make
people laugh, outrage others, and make people talk. That is the perfect mix to make something viral on the Internet.
I say let’s not limit such genius to advertising. Let’s look at politics as well! I am sure Kevin Rudd and Tony Abbott could only benefit from the broad demographic such a potently mixed campaign could do for them politically… Oops too late Get up party already pinched Illic.
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It looks like everyone is complimenting the Emperor on his new clothes. This really is crap of he highest order. If I wasn’t a raging alcoholic sitting in a hotel room in Brizzy with nothing better to do than comment on this crappola, I might be a little less honest. But to say the client is brave? I think the client is an simplistic orangutan.
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I like his old stuff ….
who can forget the inspired parody of the Australian Tourism Campaign. A fast turn around low budget smashing of the big budget BIG idea.
http://theinspirationroom.com/.....lia-spoof/
Every agency & Australian Television network needs an every ad agency needs an @danIlic
skip
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How serious is Mel on Sunrise – aren’t we indeed becoming America – FoxNews v The Daily Show. I can’t help but think Mel would have been giggling at these in the green room.
The ads are great come on people. Some of us are short, some of us are fat, some people are bad asian drivers, some are emos, some are queer, some are Christian, some people do smelly farts – not making fun of any of this would be a very boring and humorless world. As for those tall, good looking, intelligent, law abiding, good driving and completely balanced people, maybe they wish one day they could see an ad poking fun at them and laugh at themselves too 🙂
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And to ‘huh’ – the ads are clever because they will enter the discourse of young drivers, and give passengers a fun excuse ie “you know some gingas will &%$@ together if you don’t stop that” or “another emo is born” -the ads bring light to a serious issue, and give some ammo to those who want to speak up in the car. I’ve been driving and texting and my mate in the passenger seat said “you want me to drive mate while you do that” – he was right of course but it was a bit ‘heavy’ and some people don’t like to do it. Once people have seen these ads, they might take off to be used as pointers for people on a serious issue. Not everything enters common parlance, but these are bang on in their approach and delivery.
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Mike I guess we’ll need to see the stats to gauge effectiveness. Let’s hope it has been a successfful strategy because if not the pact isn’t just a shortfall in sales of some blah blah crap product but peoples lives.
Discussing with some young drivers yesterday 2/3 didn’t know What an emo is and all thought Ginger were cool- I.e not a procreative concern. All thought the ad meaningless. I guess you might over intellectualize this and claim that it’s raised the safe driving issue for discussion. More likely it’s like water off a ducks back-minimal impact.
Being a texting driver yourself what’s more effective? Your mate saying he’ll drive while you text (a bit heavy? You poor thing), or if he had of said ‘shit mike a Ginger is bumping uglies’?… Personally I’d hope your mate gets a bit heavier and smacks you on the head next time you put others at risk like that
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Mike I guess we’ll need to see the stats to gauge effectiveness. Let’s hope it has been a successfful strategy because if not the pact isn’t just a shortfall in sales of some blah blah crap product but peoples lives.
Discussing with some young drivers yesterday 2/3 didn’t know What an emo is and all thought Ginger were cool- I.e not a procreative concern. All thought the ad meaningless. I guess you might over intellectualize this and claim that it’s raised the safe driving issue for discussion. More likely it’s like water off a ducks back-minimal impact.
Being a texting driver yourself what’s more effective? Your mate offering to drive while you text (‘a bit heavy’? You poor thing), or saying ‘shit mike you’ve just made a Ginger bump uglies’? Personally I hope your mate would slap you over the head next time you out other peoples lives at risk
Being a texting driver yourself what’s more effective? Your mate saying he’ll drive while you text (a bit heavy? You poor thing), or if he had of said ‘shit mike a Ginger is bumping uglies’?… Personally I’d hope your mate gets a bit heavier and smacks you on the head next time you put others at risk like that
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Thanks Tim, I should point out that it was a team effort in creating those web spots. We create web content on TV sized budgets as opposed to Ad World sized. This allows you to try many ideas out, and push the boundaries for the client… I’m a firm believer that there is a large section of young people who cannot be reached through traditional media, and traditional campaigns. It’s amazing that this client has been so willing to allow us to play with their brand in such a subversive way. This campaign while driven by unexpected outrage, drives home a serious message….
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Guys in Advertising have great imagination, they:
Imagine they are manifestly creative
Imagine they are innovative
Imagine they have above average intellect
Imagine that somehow they are socially aware
Imagine they comprehend universal humour and
Imagine they have the ability to truly communicate
Having spent some time in traditional media around most of Australia’s major markets I find it really is, all in their imagination. To those in “Advertising”, look up the common definition of talent and stop being mediocre, inbred and isolated “Di**heads”.
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I don’t think many good comedians would lower themselves to work in advertising.
You’d have to throw a lot of money at them. Hmmm should I go and do a corporate gig for a few grand to make some quick cash or spend time in an office with a bunch of people who actually call themselves “creatives”.
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I raised these web spots with a year 11 media class. None were aware of these ads. After viewing (emo and ginger ones), opinions were pretty uniform. Majority thought that the ads were aimed at the lower socio economic peeps (aka bogans) and pretty old school in their outlook ( possibly a reflection of the clients workforce). Most indicated that the client of these clips deserve the same respect that they are promoting. Interesting to say the least.
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