‘Fresh in our memories’: Why it’s best to keep your brand away from Anzac Day
Tomorrow is Anzac Day, and even from our offices here in North Sydney, we can hear hundreds of ill-advised corporate ‘tributes’ being prepared across the nation. If you’re beginning to second guess just how respectful your corporately-endorsed Anzac Day content is, here’s some cautionary tales we’ve dug up from Anzac Days past to help tip you over the line.
EXAMPLE #1: IN WHICH ZOO WEEKLY PAYS SOLEMN, SEXY TRIBUTE TO THE DIGGERS
This is Erin Pash. She is an Australian model who was interviewed in a special ten-page commemorative Anzac Day edition of Zoo Weekly that came out in 2015, because her great grandfather was in the army.
Across a double-page feature interview, Pash explains she doesn’t bother getting up for the dawn service, because April 25 is a “rare day off for me”, but she’ll often “relax with friends, watch some of the Anzac Day march on TV and then watch the football”.
Appearing alongside other tasteful tributes such as ‘100 things every Aussie should know about the Anzacs’, Pash reveals another reason why she was the perfect choice to star in an ANZAC tribute.
“Yeah, I do like guys in uniform,” she revealed. “They’re bad arses, they have guns and they’re really fit and well built.”
EXAMPLE #2: IN WHICH WOOLIES MINE YOUR MEMORIES FOR MEMES
Look at the below soldier. Heroic, steel-eyed, far too young to have seen what he did, and an unwilling shill for the Woolworths corporation.
In 2015, Woolworths decided an online meme generator was the most tasteful way of marking one hundred years of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corp.
“We encourage you to share a memory of someone you know who has been affected or lost to war, by changing your profile picture on social media to that person,” Woolworths wrote, pointing shoppers to a fun pop-up site.
Of course, the eagle eyed among us noticed the subtle Woolworths branding that accompanied these respectful tributes, as well as the similarities between ‘Fresh In Our Memories’ and Woolies’ own slogan, in which they tout ‘freshness’ as their virtue.
“Our small logo on the site is in line with other corporately sponsored centenary of Anzac activity,” Woolies insisted, instead of just apologising for the crass logo slap.
“Fresh in our Memories’ is not a marketing campaign,” Woolworths continued. “As one of Australia’s largest employers, Woolworths has spent months collecting stories from our staff for the site.”
The morality of sourcing personal excavations from staff aside, this defence suggests this wasn’t even a rushed mistake but a carefully planned months-in-the-making PR blunder.
There were also those old-fashioned, respectful types who felt uneasy about turning sepia imagery of war heroes lost too young into Internet memes.
As well as those who waited for the inevitable trolling that would occur.
EXAMPLE #3: IN WHICH WE RAISE A COLD, HARD-EARNED GLASS OF VB TO THE ANZACS
Beer and mateship and Aussie-ness go hand-in-hand-in-hand, so raising a glass to those diggers who served our country seems – on paper – to be an easy ANZAC win.
However, despite lasting seven years and raising more than $7 million for the RSL and Legacy over that time, the Raise A Glass appeal was seen by many as being commercial and crass, breaching the federal laws in place to protect the ANZAC name from being exploited by corporations, and tying any goodwill directly to sales – with Carlton United Breweries generously donating $1 from the sale of each case of VB, plus tying other donations to proceeds made from VB kegs delivered to pubs playing along.
In addition, the messaging “encouraging Australians to raise a glass on ANZAC Day and pay tribute to a fallen mate” (a direct quote from Ogilvy PR, which launched the campaign in 2009) quickly drew the ire of Drinkwise and similar bodies, who didn’t love the idea of yet another Australian public holiday being linked to excess drinking.
Even the goodwill of General Peter Cosgrove wasn’t enough to save the Raise A Glass initiative.
After scrapping the campaign in 2016, CUB continued to donate directly to the two organisations for the next two years, “with no ‘above the line’ campaign”, they told Mumbrella at the time.
EXAMPLE #4: IN WHICH WESTS TIGERS COMMEMORATE AMERICAN SOLDIERS ON ANZAC DAY
Each year, the AFL and NRL host an Anzac Round, in which each participating club dons a specially designed jersey to mark the solemn day.
Last year, the West Tigers collaborated with Holsworthy Army Barracks on their jersey, which featured stock imagery of soldiers. The final design was approved by NRL licensing, which was only the last of half a dozen people who signed off on the jersey, not realising it featured images of American soldiers.
Wests Tigers quickly pulled the jersey and issued the following terse statement: “The Commemorative Jersey to be worn by our players for this match has been criticised because an image on the jersey does not accurately depict Australian or New Zealand troops.
“As a club, Wests Tigers is deeply sorry if the use of this image has in any way offended anyone. This was never our intention, and we are taking steps to rectify this.”
EXAMPLE #5: IN WHICH WE SHALL NOT FORGET TOKO’S OPENING HOURS
In 2018, Sydney restaurant Toko decided to use the word ‘Anzac’, the Southern Cross, and the words Lest We Forget to alert its customers that it would not be observing the traditional day of restricted trade and would instead welcome all diners on the day.
If you thought such branding was disrespectful, the restaurant’s general manager gently explained to news.com.au that it wasn’t actually offensive at all – because they didn’t try to flog any Anzac specials.
“You will see from our flyer that we certainly do not offer ‘promotions, nor promote our venue other than by letting our customers know that we are open,” Paul Birtwistle patiently explained.
“Should you visit our restaurant, you will not see Anzac related posters or advertising,” he added, helpfully. “Every year in the lead-up to Anzac Day, we receive multiple inquiries from our patrons asking whether or not we are open for dinner on Anzac Day. To assist our guests, we send an email to our database prior, to let them know that we are open for dinner only.”
A FINAL WORD
If the above examples aren’t enough to make you rethink your ANZAC-GRADE ENERGY DRINK promotion, consider that the Protection of Word ‘Anzac’ Act 1920 has been in place for a lazy 104 years to protect such exploitation legally; specifically, the “use of the word “Anzac” or any word resembling the word “Anzac” in connection with any trade, business, calling or profession or in connection with any entertainment or any lottery or art union or as the name or part of the name of a private residence, boat, vehicle, charitable or other institution, or any building in connection…”
So, it’s not just bad taste; it’s the law!
Linkedin
Sorry, I missed the same commentary on the ‘Yes’ campaign
User ID not verified.
I think VB gets a pass, sort of. The beer was there in Egypt with the troops in WW1.
User ID not verified.
Now we have an e-safety commissioner, we can be confident all this stuff will be shut down.
User ID not verified.
ACM honors our brave ANZACs!
User ID not verified.
Have your say