Title | THE ALT BLACKS |
Brand | STEINLAGER - LION |
Product / Service | STEINLAGER |
Category | F01. Integrated Campaign led by Brand Experience & Activation |
Entrant | DDB NEW ZEALAND Auckland, NEW ZEALAND |
Idea Creation | DDB NEW ZEALAND Auckland, NEW ZEALAND |
Media Placement | MEDIACOM NEW ZEALAND Auckland, NEW ZEALAND |
PR | MANGO COMMUNICATIONS Auckland, NEW ZEALAND |
Production | DDB NEW ZEALAND Auckland, NEW ZEALAND |
Production 2 | FLYING FISH Auckland, NEW ZEALAND |
Post Production | DDB NEW ZEALAND Auckland, NEW ZEALAND |
Name | Company | Position |
---|---|---|
Josep Jover | DDB New Zealand/Aotearoa | Art Director |
Jacob Newton | DDB New Zealand/Aotearoa | Copywriter |
Gary Steele | DDB New Zealand/Aotearoa | CCO |
Sean Brown | Mango Communications Aotearoa NZ | General Manager |
Melissa Ching | DDB Group Aotearoa New Zealand | Agency Integrated Producer |
James Conner | DDB Aotearoa/New Zealand | Creative Director |
Christie Cooper | DDB Aotearoa/New Zealand | Creative Director |
Johannes Gertz | DDB Group Aotearoa New Zealand | Head of Digital Delivery |
Trent Hall | DDB Group Aotearoa New Zealand | Content Creator |
Kathryn Hollis | DDB Group Aotearoa New Zealand | Mac Designer |
Musonda Katongo | DDB Group Aotearoa New Zealand | Senior Designer |
Kristina Lindsay | DDB Group Aotearoa New Zealand | Account Director |
Gordon Moir | DDB Group Aotearoa New Zealand | Retoucher |
Emmanuel Odorisio | DDB Group Aotearoa New Zealand | Senior Full Stack Developer |
Dean Pomfrett | DDB Group Aotearoa New Zealand | Head of Digital Design |
Lucinda Sherborne | DDB Group Aotearoa New Zealand | Planning Director |
Jenny Travers | DDB Group Aotearoa New Zealand | Group Account Director |
Mark Tretheway | DDB Group Aotearoa New Zealand | Head of Motion Design |
Milon Williams | DOP & Editor | Audio Engineer |
Margot Rudolphe | DDB Group New Zealand | Account Manager |
Natassja Cox | DDB Group New Zealand | Planner |
Julz Lane | DDB Group New Zealand | Print Producer |
Kelsey Watson | DDB Group New Zealand | Digital Designer |
Marcin Sulewski | DDB Group New Zealand | Motion Designer & Art Director |
Ethan Wilson | DDB Group New Zealand | Motion Designer |
Mike Hammond | DDB Group New Zealand | Senior Editor |
James Moore | Flying Fish | Executive Producer |
James Solomon | Flying Fish | Director |
Drew McGeorge | Flying Fish | DOP |
Malcolm Campbell | Flying Fish | Stills Photography |
. . | Wicked Witch | Game Developers |
Kat Day | Mango Communications Aotearoa NZ | Group Business Director |
Max Burt | Mango Communications Aotearoa NZ | Senior Account Director |
Jessica Morris | Mango Communications Aotearoa NZ | Account Manager |
Jade Kaukau | Mango Communications Aotearoa NZ | Digital Director |
Stephen Larsen | MediaCom | Business Director |
Alice Franklin | MediaCom | Group Account Director |
Amy McKinnon | MediaCom | Senior Account Manager |
George Coslett | MediaCom | Senior Digital Account Manager |
Jeremy Meech | Steinlager | Brand Director – Beer |
Jeremy Meech | Steinlager | Brand Director – Beer |
Kerry McKenzie | Steinlager | Senior Brand Manager |
Kate Butler | Steinlager | Digital Brand Manager |
Matt Monk | Steinlager | Digital Marketing Manager |
With the Alt Blacks, Steinlager not only gave fans the chance to live the dream of wearing a black jersey, but we also created our very own live-streamed eSports test match, an activation that saw our team of 23 regular Kiwis play against world champions, South Africa, in a live game streamed to an audience of over 4 million fans. We turned the fans into the heroes, and got Steinlager in front of a whole new generation of fans.
Steinlager has always appealed to an older, mostly male audience of loyalists, but has never really broken through to an audience beyond that, in particular the 18–34-year-old audience, and female audiences. Steinlager also sponsors the world-famous All Blacks – a team that Kiwis of all ages, genders, and backgrounds dream of playing for. So, we created the Alt Blacks: a new team that gave regular Kiwis the chance to play a test match in a black jersey for the first time ever, regardless of age, gender, or complete lack of sporting ability. This was the moment every Kiwi has dreamed of.
The black jersey. It’s every Kiwi’s dream. A dream that most of us will never live. So, we gave regular Kiwis the chance to play in a black jersey for the first time ever by creating a new team: the Alt Blacks. With the developers of the popular video game, Rugby Challenge, Steinlager went into the gaming world. In this world, we could turn anyone into the rugby hero of their dreams, so they could play in a test match versus world champions, South Africa, in front of millions of fans – something that could never happen in the real world.
The dream of playing for the All Blacks and pulling on the famous black jersey is a dream that every Kiwi grows up with. A dream that no one could pass up if given the chance. This was the perfect opportunity to use Steinlager’s sponsorship of the All Blacks to appeal to every New Zealander – regardless of age, gender, or complete lack of sporting ability. A new audience far greater than Steinlager’s typical audience. We used a familiar face to Kiwis, All Blacks coaching legend, Sir Graham Henry, to put out a call from entries and select a squad of 23 regular Kiwis to play for the Alt Blacks. A call that thousands of Kiwis answered, and millions tuned in to watch around the world.
We used social media to invite Kiwis to put their hands up for selection in the Alt Blacks. Thousands jumped at the opportunity, sharing videos of the unique skills they could bring to our black jersey, providing us with amazing user-generated content. Then we got All Blacks coaching legend, Sir Graham Henry, to select a squad of 23. Each player was recreated as a full-detail, virtual rugby hero for the video game, Rugby Challenge, along with our very own Alt Blacks jersey. Our team quickly became heroes around the country, appearing on billboards, social media, and in the media – our very own team of influencers. Then, in the ultimate test of our team’s stardom, we played our own game on the same day as the All Blacks game versus South Africa. Our game streamed to an audience of over 4 million fans – more than the All Blacks game.
Our live eSports match went head-to-head with the All Blacks game – the ultimate test of our team's newfound stardom. The All Blacks are famously hard to beat, but our game streamed to an audience of over 4 million fans – more than the All Blacks game. As a whole, our campaign reached 3x the population of New Zealand and achieved our ultimate goal of bringing Steinlager to a new audience, as we achieved our highest awareness with people aged 18-34 in the past decade. In the end, we didn’t just make a team that lived the dream. We made a team that beat the All Blacks.