Campaign Review: Snoop Dogg proves a winner, and the verdict on Optus’ star-studded ‘G-Day a Day’

Brand: Menulog
Campaign: “Did Somebody Say Menulog” gets the Snoop Dogg treatment
Agency: McCann London
The verdict: Fun, colourful celebrity endorsement

Stuart Nightingale, creative director at The Shannon Company, says:

“There seems to be a growing trend when it comes to making ads. Pick a random celebrity, whack them over the head with a brand, give them loads of money and voila, there’s your TVC. Usually this approach fails the BS test, but happily this spot is an exception to the rule. It’s awesome. Let’s simply admire it for what it is. A masterclass performance from Snoop, a brand jingle that’s surprisingly good and the tasty idea of ‘Doggs Diner’.

When you’re playing to a captive audience looking for food and entertainment you don’t need complexity, but you do need cut-through. And since this ad left me smiling on the sofa, slouching and craving something greasy and delicious – then I’d say they’ve got that just right.”

Rating: 9/10

Toby Harrison, chief strategy officer at Ogilvy, says: 

“I don’t think it is fair to publicly critique other people’s work. Firstly, I’ve no idea what the process has been like, or what hurdles may have been in the way. Secondly, there’s no shortage of mean-ness out here on the internet. I won’t add to it. Thirdly, I believe in industry karma.

So, I’ve purposely chosen to only tell you what I like about the ads.

From memory, we’ve had Sophie Monk, Beau Ryan, Toadie from Neighbours and more recently Magda Szubanski and Kim Kardashian-West spruiking for Uber Eats. Now we have Snoop Dogg doing the same for Menulog. Which leads me to believe that the critical component in food-delivery service communications is… celebrity. And why not? Celebrity is something we can’t seem to get enough of. However, beyond Snoop just adding his image to this, I like that he has taken a dusty jingle and Snoopified it.

I think this is fun, colourful and definitely more memorable than pretty much anything else Menulog has done before – because honestly, I can’t remember anything else from Menulog now that I have seen this. Plus, there’s some clever thinking by integrating the items from Snoop’s cookbook into the menu too. Understandably, Snoop must come with a hefty price tag. So clearly the clever folks over at McCann in London have spread the cost by delivering this (see what I did there?) to seven markets. I’m not sure exactly how this has been localised, but in all the excitement, I wonder if anyone might have mentioned that ‘Did someone say’ is already pretty synonymous with KFC in Australia?”

Rating: 7/10

Brand: Hyundai
Campaign: New Routes
Agency: Innocean Australia
The verdict: Lacks a strong brand message

Nightingale says: 

“It’s fair to say that the Australian road trip will be the most popular (and just about only) holiday option for the foreseeable future. So capturing that exciting sense of venturing outdoors once again, and owning the change in our vacation behaviours is a great idea. As is the social part of this campaign. Geo-location based ads you swipe to discover new driving routes are a beautifully engaging way to draw relevance and engagement.

But somewhere along the way it seems the sat-nav sent the print and out-of-home to a slightly different destination. Whilst the ‘at-home’ creative works beautifully in the social environment they were created for, they somehow feel more like real estate floor plans, and not the expression of excitement that finally getting back on the road should bring. And the welcome mat facing outwards feels like a sadly cliched outcome for a campaign that has so much more.”

Rating: 5/10

Harrison says:

“I’m sure everyone has heard ‘During these uncertain times..’ too many blooming times during the COVID lockdown. So it is rather nice to receive a positive invitation to do something enjoyable instead. If you have had the pleasure of trying to be a teacher at any point over the past four months, then the idea of getting in the car and changing up the scenery is going to be pretty appealing. Especially if you can leave the kids behind. Given the timing as the restrictions lifted around the Queen’s Birthday weekend, this one definitely resonated with me.

Whilst I haven’t really learned anything new about Hyundai’s cars, it did give me pause to think about how much I have missed driving recently. Therefore, I think it is rather noble of Hyundai to urge me into the outdoors and to go visit and support the struggling regional communities. Even if I do choose to do it in my beaten up, old Nissan.”

Rating: 7/10

Brand: Optus
Campaign: G’Day a Day
Agency: TBWA Sydney
The verdict: A ray of positivity

Nightingale says: 

“Any campaign which raises the importance of mental health organisations, staying positive and looking out for one another will always get a big thumbs up from me. Changing behaviours and stigmas about such an important issue is exactly where a communications company like Optus should be operating.

But whilst the G’day a Day campaign has shown that a chat to friends, family and loved ones is super important, it has also occasionally highlighted that when it’s not your conversation, video calls can be a little uninspiring to watch.

So it’s nice to see that Optus saved their very best for last, with Julia and Arianna – two truly inspiring individuals, who seemed genuinely happy to be having a chat together. The outcome wasn’t just a watchable conversation, it was a campaign finale filled with inspiration, passion, fun, and optimism all in one video – not even your senior client can ask for much more than that.”

Rating: 8/10

Harrison said: 

“Given that the idea behind this body of work is that a simple G’Day can brighten someone’s day, I find it particularly apt that Julia (a chair of Beyond Blue) is the finale to this content series.

However, I think it is fair to say that Julia and Arianna are a bit of an odd combo. That said, there’s some quite interesting conversational ground covered here. Arianna discloses how she is managing her mental and physical health in lockdown. Plus she gets to spruik her new well-being platform, Thrive. (Clearly, Arianna is always closing the sale). Julia on the other hand discusses how her speech against misogyny has blown up on Tiktok and the importance of mental well-being during the lockdown.

At nearly three minutes long, these videos require a fair bit of self-discipline to watch all the way to the end. Which makes me wonder, given the low number of views that this series has had, whether the choice to showcase people brightening each other’s day, was the right one. However, bravo Optus for doing something positive during a particularly difficult time. Let’s hope this work has inspired Aussies everywhere to make contact with someone who really needs it.”

Rating: 6/10

• As told to Zoe Wilkinson. If you’re a senior creative or strategist who would like to take part in a future Campaign Review, please email zoew@mumbrella.com.au

Zoe Wilkinson

Zoe Wilkinson was a reporter at Mumbrella and the producer of the Mumbrellacast from March 2019 to May 2021.

topics Campaign Review Hyundai Innocean McCann London Menulog Optus Stuart Nightingale TBWA Sydney Toby Harrison

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