Maidens can bowl

Maidens can bowl

To celebrate the Cricket World Cup, Lay’s and 5FM invited women only to put their cricket knowledge to the test on DJ Fresh’s Drive Time show to win a once-in-a-lifetime trip to the ICC Cricket World Cup in the Caribbean.

Says Malose Matshegka, brand manager for Lay’s, “We know that men are always in the forefront to support cricket and to give our campaign a new twist, we only invited women to participate in the competition. The radio station fielded endless calls when the competition lines opened, and the ladies who triumphed proved their knowledge and understanding of cricket was as good as the guys.”

For those who were bowled out for a duck, and not as lucky to experience the cricket first hand, Lay’s has created a limited edition Caribbean Onion and Balsamic Vinegar flavour to bring a taste of the ICC Cricket World Cup home, with a Caribbean-themed interactive website (www.lays.co.za) to support the campaign.

Flying sales

Net#work BBDO claims that sales at Chicken Licken fly through the roof every time a new television commercial is flighted, a pattern that has been forming since the agency first took on the brand in 2002. By 2006 the turnover, at the largest fried chicken franchise outside of the US, had doubled, reports Net#work.

The latest big burst of Chicken Licken advertising has three completely different commercials, flighting across four different television channels, all targeting a different segment of the market, with another one launching soon.

“[Chicken Licken founder and MD George Sombonos]’ brief, this year, was a bit different,” says Graeme Jenner, creative director at Net#work.

“He is opening up his target market to encompass pretty much everyone. This meant the ads are far more product-specific than they have been in the past. So it’s not a classic ‘campaign’. They don’t have a line or character holding them together but rather share a humorous South African flavour.”

Possibly the funniest ad in the bunch, currently on SABC3, is “Shayne Graham: Street Magic”. Much like David Blaine, only Graham’s brand of magic is, as Shane Durrant who scripted the ads puts it, “Pretty crap. He doesn’t do tricks per se he just distracts people with cards and steals their ‘Love Me Tender Deluxe’ chicken burger – a new offering from Chicken Licken.”

Cape Town like you’ve never seen it

The approach taken by Young and Rubicam and Mars Productions for Spur’s new campaign has resulted in a series of TV and cinema ads which is hoped will capture the imagination of their target market, in the same way Harry Potter and the Lord of the Rings have done.

The brief was to create a campaign based on the popular kid’s club Spur Secret Tribe. The ads see a group of young adults following a quest to retrieve a sacred crystal and return it to the firmament. Along the way they face dangerous obstacles and travel through mind-blowing epic vistas.

“We have created a fantasy world where the kids go on an extra-ordinary adventure where nothing is what it seems and anything is possible. This is in line with Spur’s focus on family fun and healthy imagination - elements that are core to the brand,” says Allen Ambor, executive chairman of Spur.

All filming was done in Cape Town, with computer-generated landscapes and effects patched in. Despite the challenge of acting in front of a plain green screen, the cast benefited from being able to view each shot on set a few minutes after filming, getting them into the spirit of each imaginary scene before commencing work on the next shot.

Cape Town’s Rhodes Memorial was turned, by night, into the interior of a magic castle using computer graphics. A waterfall in Newlands forest provided an enchanting setting, and the swirling sand dunes of Atlantis did excellent service as a desert once all the 4X4 tracks had been painstakingly swept away using computer-graphic technology.

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Up close and personal

The Letter Corporation (TLC)’s two month campaign for Aspen aims to create awareness for its Close Up toothpaste and to communicate that two new Citi Golf’s that can be won by consumers frequenting various bars, restaurants and nightclubs throughout the country.

Running for a period of two months, the creative plays on the nightlife scene, asking “Looking for a new squeeze?” The campaign is running in Johannesburg, Cape Town, Pretoria and Durban.

Larger than life

Chivas Regal has taken a larger than life approach to promote awareness of its 18-year old product. To accentuate the message, over 100m² coverage was used to target affluent consumers and lovers of whiskey who work, live and play in the Sandton CBD.

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“Making a big impression fitted with Pernod Ricard’s requirements,” says Wideopen CEO Caryn Cohen. The Sandton Isle site was carefully scouted and the advertising placed in close proximity to Aston Martin and BMW dealerships and upmarket club The Palms to further demonstrate the quality and aspirational value of Chivas.

The five-month Johannesburg campaign runs until the end of April 2007. Production company Media Foundry erected both sites using high print quality Digital Mesh Media.