#BehindtheCampaign: How The Courier Guy handles your package

The Courier Guy employees undergo 'training'. Source: Supplied.

In the ad which was released in September, new drivers are enthusiastically trained up by local cash-in-transit driver and hero Leo Prinsloo on how to handle barking dogs and deliver a waybill. It also introduced new ‘self-defense’ tactics such as the “Brakpanhand’ and “a PK”.

South African stereotypes

Released in October, its second television ad takes place once again in their ‘training facility’, but this time shows a softer side of training, with new recruits being taught the correct pronunciation of customer and city names in a classroom-style setting (“the “x” must klap!”) and the ad cleverly playing on quirky South African stereotypes.

Accompanying the tv spots are two radio ads that play on load-shedding woes and hiking petrol prices. The former describes The Courier Guy as “big fans of loadshedding”, remarking that this is something they do every day (“except Sunday”) when they “get rid of the loads in their bakkies and trucks” across the country.

The latter admits that while it is nice to be thanked by customers for “going the extra mile”, in fact, due to the crazy cost of petrol these days, one thing people can be sure of is that drivers only go as far as they really have to, to keep delivery costs as low as possible. It is in this light-hearted, fun and memorable way that the overall campaign message is made clear: that by understanding (and celebrating) what makes South Africans unique, The Courier Guy is suitably trained for local conditions, and thus truly able to “handle your package”, no matter the extenuating circumstances.

Growing the brand

As a proudly South African company, The Courier Guy was deliberate in its choice of creative and media agency partners for the overall campaign, using small, local businesses Bouwer Bosch and Bennie Fourie from Freckle to film the adverts and boutique agency Ivie Media to book and plan their media.

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The brand says social media has spread the popularity of the adverts. There are currently 70,000 views and 1,000 shares on the company’s Facebook, the ad has also received 63,455 impressions on LinkedIn. On YouTube, they have clocked more than 120,000 views for their first advert.

Irina Vlad, managing director at Ivie Media, said: “Speaking to a broad target market, we have assisted with The Courier Guy’s radio and tv advertising to ensure that their brand becomes a national household name and with that, the ‘go-to’ courier company in South Africa. Growing brands is a key agency focus and working with The Courier Guy is the epitome of just that. Apart from the fact that their ads’ creative (both tv and radio) speak wonderfully to the unique South African sense of humour, we look forward to working more together and growing the brand to its full potential.”

TVC Credits

• Client: Courier Guy
• Agency: Freckle Creative
• Head of marketing Client: Simon Hill
• CD: Bennie Fourie, Bouwer Bosch
• Senior art director: Waldemar Coetzee
• Senior copywriter: Bennie Fourie, Bouwer Bosch
• Senior producer: Bouwer Bosch
• Production company: Freckle Creative
• Director: Bennie Fourie
• Production coordinator: Laura-Lee Mostert
• 1st Ad: Pieter Oosthuizen
• DOP: Christian Botha
• Art director: Lare Birk
• Stylist: Marle Coetzee
• Make-up and hair: Nicola Roodt
• Post-production: Freckle Creative
• Assembly Editor: Regardt Visser
• Senior Editor: Bouwer Bosch
• Sound studio: RedNot Studios
• Sound engineer: Ruan van Tonder
• Colour Grading: Jarryd du Toit