Mar 04 2012
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Digital Production

Observations on the We are Bonds Birthday Project

birthday project screen grab

Two brands went into self destruct mode this weekend. The first was the Australian Labor Party and the second was Bonds. The Birthday Project went viral pretty quickly throughout the ad industry and then got some priceless publicity on TV. Mumbrella said it was campaign of the year and the Bonds PR machine was working over drive. The campaign was then derailed by a bunch of technical glitches and poor UX. Brand advocates/people wanting free stuff quickly became brand skeptics/rejectors. Here are some observations

1. Above the line agencies aren’t always best placed to do big digital executions.

2. When your campaign has a four minute call to action on Australia’s most popular tabloid show - Today Tonight – expect your servers will get slammed. Load balancing should be a budget line.

3. If your campaign has a strong social element – don’t build your site entirely in Flash. A whole bunch of people access their social networks whilst on the go and a whole bunch of people have iPhones and iPads.

4. Include moderation caveats for photos before submission and not three days after via an ambiguous email.

Moderation email for We Are Bonds Birthday Project

5. People want free stuff and Bonds giving away t-shirts to their users is a great way to incentivise brand engagement.

6. Mumbrella is fast to congratulate but also slam down new campaigns (articles below).

7. Despite a clever idea, the poor execution will leave many disheartened and with a reason NOT to buy Bonds which is a real shame as ideas like these should be successful. Bonds is the type of lovable Australian brand that doesn’t need to take risks but through complete negligence it has let its fans, consumers and users down.

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Feb 26 2012
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What type of Creative Director would Kevin Rudd be?

LABOR PARTY CAMPAIGN LAUNCH

It looks like, come Monday, Kevin Rudd will be out of a job. Whilst he will likely move into a UN post after quitting Australian politics let us ponder what he might achieve as a creative director of an agency.

Ever since he resigned from his position of Foreign Minister, ‘insider‘ stories have emerged of how bad a leader Kevin Rudd was. Adland KRudd would run a tyrannical ship. He would have the final say on every piece of work that went out the door – from the smallest localised print ad in the local street magazine read by 4 grandmothers to halftime Superbowl spots watched by billions. He would force staff to stay back even if they were not really needed. He would stand by his staunch beliefs and rarely seek council. He would employ a lot of prodigious young creatives and not value the opinions of more experienced ‘greybeards’. Rudd would sometimes treat staff with rudeness and contempt. In summary, he probably wouldn’t be a very good CD to work for.

Rudd would, however, be great in a pitch. A seasoned campaigner, he would be able to sell an idea to the punters. Following through on the idea and delivering would be the hard part. Despite a talented support team of creatives, strategists and producers, the end result wouldn’t be the award winning work originally sold in.

Despite a tough economy Rudd would be able to guide his agency through a GFC by encouraging close ties to Asian markets and investing in staff training and a decent health package. Nevertheless, a lack of support from inside the business and a failure to deliver would have him on the agency nose.

The axe would be out and unlike politics where you can just migrate to the backbench, Rudd would be out the door, trolling Mumbrella and Adnews hungry to pull down his old agency.

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Feb 23 2012
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Digital Production

Why Digital Producers shouldn’t learn to code

I used to think that improving my knowledge of coding would be worthwhile.

- I would be able to estimate better. Clients would ask me how long it would take to build a particular website or app and I would be able to instantly give them an answer.

- I could interrogate development estimates better – ‘It won’t take 10 days!’,

- I could support the tech team by offering technical solutions – ‘How about you just back-port the revision onto the previous prod release?’

- I’d be able to sign up to Codeyear and update my social networks with messages like ‘This year I’m learning how to code’

- I’d be able to diversify my skillet and be even more valuable to my employer.

- I wouldn’t have to work with developers

I’ve recently changed my mind.

I now think Producers should stick to Producing and focus their efforts on improving their strengths rather than their weaknesses. For small operations a swiss army knife who can build as well as manage projects is a valuable asset but off shoring development is becoming increasingly popular.  Well trained and briefed cheap labour overseas is often a more attractive business solution.

It’s also fun collaborating with developers who are often geeks that are extremely passionate about their craft.

Finally, The Project Triangle is often a Project Polygon and Producers/Project Managers have enough to do.

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Feb 13 2012
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Digital Production

Great Branded Content: Air New Zealand’s ‘Kiwi Sceptics’

Air New Zealand has launched a fantastic series of online videos that tell the stories of four Australians who are tricked into visiting New Zealand. Titled ‘Kiwi Sceptics’ the videos present an eclectic mix of protagonists who are buddied up with like minded New Zealanders.

Air New Zealand’s biggest campaign in ten years is an excellent example of how branded content can entertain and engage. After watching one video on Facebook I quickly checked out the remaining three clips on Air New Zealand’s YouTube channel. The voiceover by Rhys Darby (from Flight of the Concords) is surprisingly amusing. I’m a big fan of New Zealand but I could completely relate to the participant’s reservations and revelations.

Additional content lives on Facebook and a NineMSN microsite that includes profiles, itineraries and Q&As. You can also snag a cheap flight across the ditch.

This campaign is going to be big. Expect awards and, hopefully, a second series where the participants return to New Zealand with their friends and family.

Kudos to Host, Candid Films and PHD for putting this together and Air New Zealand for taking a risk.

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