Spinach Blog

1. What is your favourite advertising commercial?

 

Geek references and Dogs - how could you go wrong?

The especially clever part this advertising campaign is realising that both those things appeal to niche sets of internet users, which meant it's share-ability (we don't use the word viral) is very high.

2. What do you love about Melbourne?

I moved to Melbourne from Sydney last year so I love lots of things about it as the novelty is still very strong. The experience of eating out in Melbourne, from a casual coffee and pastry to a full five-course dinner is by far and away my favourite part of living here - both service and food is always amazing. Trams are a very close second.

3. What's the most creative thing you've ever done?

I started, grew and eventually sold a digital agency in Sydney. It was the hardest thing I've ever done but it required that I be constantly creative. It also reaped a lot of rewards and taught me most of what I know about marketing digital services to businesses.

4. Sum up your career in 10 words:

1. Computers
2. Web
3. Internet
4. Hospitals*
5. Digital
6. Business
7. Advertising
8. Strategy
9. Creative
10. Geek

*A true child of the internet age, I was made redundant in the UK after the dot crash and worked as a medical secretary for the rest of my time there, which at least means I can type fast.

5. What does digital mean to you?

I eat, breathe and sleep digital marketing, but unlike a lot of my counterparts I see it as evolution not a revolution - not to say we're not seeing some fundamental paradigm shifts in the advertising/marketing industry and business as a whole.

I do believe social media will change the way big brands think about their customers. Consumers will start to actively seek out brands that listen to what they have to say. Those that refuse to listen and respond will find themselves at a competitive disadvantage very quickly.

The Father Bob Maguire Foundation needs help to feed St Kilda’s homeless, so we thought we’d do our bit by creating this eye–catching poster.  If you’d like to make a donation please visit fatherbob.org.au.

It's good news for the advertising industry and not bad news for retail in this piece outlining a sector-by-sector forecast for 2012.

And despite the well-publicised blues in retail, Willee notes that the sector – the largest advertiser of all – reduced its advertising by just 2% in the year to September, and the next biggest categories of banking and finance, and automotive are also healthy.

Read the entire article here

Melbourne creative outfit Spinach Advertising has hired renowned channel planning specialist Ben Willee in what will be a new position within the agency.

Beginning in January, Willee will utilise his broad media agency experience across the areas of General Management, Business Development and Channel Planning within the creative agency, working closely with founders Craig Flanders and Frank Morabito.

Flanders said Willee’s strong strategic skills and business management experience would help drive a new skill set at Spinach, focussing on driving investment effectiveness for clients.

“Ben has an incredible track record in the area of consumer insights, ROI analytics, revenue growth and sticky client relationships, skills that will be well utilised by Spinach as we move to the next phase of our company’s development,” Flanders said.

“We’re excited to have someone with Ben’s business experience join the team and integrate with our creative talents as we have a strong focus on growth into 2012.”

Most recently the Managing Partner of Ikon in Melbourne, Willee also honed his management and strategic skills at Initiative, working out of both its London and Melbourne offices.  

Willee said he was excited at the prospect of joining a creative agency and putting his business skills to use while gaining exposure to new specialist skills.

“When I started my career in media, it operated very separately to the creative process.  And while I’ve had exposure to working with some outstanding creative agencies on successful campaigns over the years, joining Spinach and working side by side with its creative team will provide me with an opportunity to add value in a totally new way. I can’t wait to get started. “

Spinach has created an iPhone application titled Real Estate Rumble, for long-term client, First National Real Estate.

The object of the game is to build your dream home. However, an evil nemesis seeks to destroy the fruits of your labour and will stop at nothing until your lovely new home has toppled into rack and ruin. You have a diverse range of materials to build with while trying to defend your precious structure against a ruthless backyard onslaught!

 

The game was developed to support a national competition campaign where entrant can win one of five, $5000 Bunnings vouchers.

Stewart Bunn, First National’s communications manager said:

‘Real Estate Rumble is just for fun. You don’t have to play the game for a chance to win one of the five competition prizes but, like building up a real estate portfolio, the game is addictive’.

The game was designed with a long-view in mind. It’s free to download and the branding is subtly incorporated into the game play. It’s simple enough for everyone to enjoy but complex enough to keep gamers coming back time and time again. The end result is that Real Estate Rumble is a classic commuter game that will live on users’ home screens for years and not days.

Spinach Digital Director Zoe Freeman said:

‘Smart brands like First National have recognized that gaming is one of the new frontiers in customer engagement. Nothing bad ever came from giving consumers a fun place to play minus the conditional hard sell’.

Customers can download their free game from Apple’s iTunes Store or the App Store; just search ‘Real Estate Rumble’.

To enter the competition, participants should visit www.firstnational.com.au or the website of their nearest First National office and follow the prompts to register.

Over the past few years airline advertising has been all too predictable.  Smiling cabin crew, various takes on in-flight service, and the mandatory ‘beauty’ shots of flying metal.
 
Qantas has continued to back a winner with variations of “I Still Call Australia Home” (and why not), but hasn’t taken the campaign anywhere new.   Certainly it’s hard think of any advertising comparable to British Airway’s iconic ‘Face’ and ‘Island’ TVCs of some twenty years ago.
 
So it’s inspiring to see Air France’s new global commercial which aired for the first time last weekend in France.
Called  ‘Soaring’ (‘L’envol’ in French), the spot according to Air France’s corporate PR was directed by French choreographer Angelin Preljocaj, who based it on an extract from his ballet “Le Parc” to deliver a poetic metaphor of flight.
 
The  commercial was shot by award-winning cinematographer Stéphane Fontaine in February in the Moroccan desert, in a single sequence, with no special effects, on a 400 square metre mirror, which only reflected the sky and the dancers.  The choreography is accompanied by the adagio from Piano Concerto No. 23 by Mozart performed by the Symphony Orchestra "Les Siècles" with pianist Vanessa Wagner and directed by the conductor François-Xavier Roth.
 

The tagline loosely translates as “Make the sky the best place on earth”.   Very nice.

GM

At Spinach we love great coffee and great examples of brand success in tough times so this story caught our eye. The iconic Moka Express coffee maker can be found in 9 out of 10 Italian households but it was launched during The Great Depression. Find out where it came from and the secret to it’s success.

In 1933, when Alfonso Bialetti introduced the Moka Express, Italy’s economy wasn’t doing much better than it is today. The Great Depression was in full swing, major banks were failing, unemployment was rampant and Italians were forced to curtail their spending. Like those of us who have limited our trips to Starbucks since the start of the current recession, the Italians of the early 1930s were easing up on their trips to the cafe. The Moka Express, a stovetop espresso machine that was meant for the home, provided both an affordable espresso and a beautiful object to make it in.

Read the entire article here...

FM

Condom brand Ansell has slipped on Spinach Advertising for size, appointing the STW-owned agency to handle its creative account.

Spinach will work across Ansell's sexual health and wellbeing brands on strategic and creative campaigns. The agency was appointed without a pitch and there was no rostered incumbent on the brand.

Read the entire AdNews article here

You’d expect an ad for workboots to feature big blokes in factories and construction sites. But this ad for Oliver workboots takes you to an entirely different place. Created to promote the way Oliver workboots massage your feet as you walk, this ad features a completely unexpected twist.

The big news on Twitter this week is, believe it or not, the 2011 Census.

Showing that data doesn't have to be boring, the Twitter admins for the 2011 census have been using their wealth of information to have bit of fun with the facts and figures.

Follow what they are up to here

My personal favourite:

#AusCensus data reveals 98 per cent of @2011Census Twitter followers are awesome.

Twitter is the ideal space to be doing this sort of thing. After all, brevity is the soul of wit.

ZF