CRICKET BEACH

TitleCRICKET BEACH
BrandCRICKET AUSTRALIA
Product / ServiceCRICKET BEACH
CategoryA05. Best Use of Ambient Media: Large Scale
EntrantGEORGE PATTERSON Y&R Melbourne, AUSTRALIA
Entrant Company GEORGE PATTERSON Y&R Melbourne, AUSTRALIA
Advertising Agency GEORGE PATTERSON Y&R Melbourne, AUSTRALIA

Credits

Name Company Position
Romanca Jasinski Gpy/R Melbourne Agency Producer
Tom Marley Gpy/R Melbourne Editor
Evan Roberts Gpy/R Melbourne Copywriter
Ben Coulson Gpy/R Melbourne Executive Creative Director

Results and Effectiveness

Cricket Beach soon took on a life of its own, gaining international attention through the broadcast and in the news. This is typified by the $4,000,000 earned media it gained in the first match alone and the fact it was seen by millions of people across 9 countries.

Creative Execution

The campaign launched with traditional media of TV, print and on pack advertising encouraging people to win themselves a spot on the sand. While that was happening, builders and engineers busying themselves at the SCG creating beach complete with a pool, 70 tonnes of sand, life guards, a BBQ and a bar. The Cricket Beach was unveiled to the media a week before the first match was scheduled to begin. Interviews and press releases were filmed pool side at the stadium and built the hype. Once the game began on Jan 3, broadcast and social media took over as the Cricket Beach featured heavily in-game and on all social media platforms. This ensured the PR campaign would remain a hot topic for the rest of the summer.

Insights, Strategy and the Idea

In summer, the biggest problem Australians face is deciding whether to spend the day at the beach or at our favourite National sport, Cricket. Unfortunately for Cricket, the current team hasn't been very successful in recent times, which has resulted in a steady decline in match attendance. All the while, the Australian public continues to have a great time frolicking in the waves on our beautiful coast. This required a big behavioural change. So we turned our biggest competitor into our ally and created Cricket Beach. This summer-long campaign combined 70 tonnes of sand, a few gigolitres of crystal clear water and a select group of beach-slash-cricket fans at our most prestigious sporting stadium, the Sydney Cricket Ground. Brought to life by Cricket Australia and their major sponsor Coke, fans could win a day at the beach, at the cricket, by simply buying any specially marked Coke.