PHUBBING

TitlePHUBBING
BrandMACQUARIE DICTIONARY
Product / ServiceDICTIONARY
CategoryA06. Use of Social in a Direct Campaign
EntrantMcCANN MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA
Entrant Company McCANN MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA
Advertising Agency McCANN MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA
Production Company AIRBAG PRODUCTIONS Melbourne, AUSTRALIA

Credits

Name Company Position
John Mescall Mccann Melbourne Executive Creative Director
Pat Baron Mccann Melbourne Creative Director
John Mescall Mccann Melbourne Copywriter
Natasha Wood Mccann Melbourne Copywriter
Pat Baron Mccann Melbourne Art Director
Matthew Stoddart Mccann Melbourne Art Director
Dave Budd Mccann Melbourne Designer
Nath Mallon Mccann Melbourne Senior Editor
Adrian Mills Mccann Melbourne Group Account Manager
Alec Hussain Mccann Melbourne Account Director
Alex Haigh Mccann Melbourne Account Executive
John Mescall Mccann Melbourne Strategy
Adrian Mills Mccann Melbourne Strategy
Pauline Mcmillan Mccann Melbourne Digital Producer
Chelsea Nieper Mccann Melbourne Agency Producer

The Brief

In the age of Google, dictionaries are at risk of becoming obsolete. Ultimately, for Macquarie to remain relevant in the long-term, we needed to inspire people to want to engage with them, not because they needed a dictionary, but because they wanted one. Our key objective was to generate social discussion both online and offline around the launch of the 6th edition of the Macquarie Dictionary. Awareness of dictionaries is universal. Relevance was severely lacking. Our challenge was to get language lovers, people interested in words, and mainstream/specialist media talking about something they thought was a thing of the past.

Creative Execution

The entire campaign was a microcosm of the way language is created, spread and ultimately chronicled. Phubbing became, not a fake ‘forced’ marketing word, but an genuine part of modern language. And as such, ‘Phubbing: A Word is Born’ was a living, breathing demonstration of the power, beauty and importance of words. Dictionaries appeal to people who love language, and this campaign was tailor-made to appeal directly to the these people.

Describe the creative solution to the brief/objective.

We looked at recent entries to all major English-language dictionaries, a notable portion of which were tech-orientated. It was evident that to tap into contemporary culture, we needed to arm ourselves with not just a word, but also a movement. We created ‘Phubbing: ignoring the person in front of you in favour of your smartphone.’ We launched the word and sparked a social movement. And then with media and public discussion of Phubbing at its peak, we revealed through media and pr the origin of the word, to launch the 6th edition of the Macquarie Dictionary.

Results

The campaign received global coverage and critically, 3.6 million Australians could link the word to its definition. Additionally, the campaign: • Was discussed in 180 countries via social media and covered by 750+ news outlets in 50 countries • Earned 435 million PR impressions • Attracted over 27,000 fans on Facebook • The campaign received unbelievable traction. Hundreds of news outlets such as the USA’s ABC network, Time magazine, the BBC, China Daily, Grazia, and every major Australian media outlet covered the campaign. The editor of the dictionary even spent 10 minutes on breakfast television.