MAKE LAMB NOT WALLS

TitleMAKE LAMB NOT WALLS
BrandMEAT AND LIVESTOCK AUSTRALIA
Product / ServiceAUSTRALIAN LAMB
CategoryB02. Use of Ambient Media: Large Scale
EntrantUM Sydney, AUSTRALIA
Idea Creation UM Sydney, AUSTRALIA

Credits

Name Company Position
Matthew Furlong UM Strategist
Elena Giannini UM Client Advice

Why is this work relevant for Brand Experience & Activation?

Lamb is the meal that brings Aussies together. But in 2020/21, Australia went further than any other democracy, restricting its citizens’ from coming together over a good lamb chop. Something had to be done! Through the clever, unconventional activation of satirical, grassroots out of home ambient formats, we spoke to Aussies better than any other media could. Lamb travelled state borders and iconic landmarks making ourselves heard by Aussies the nation-over. Thanks to our non-traditional approach, we made Lamb synonymous with the shared moments we were all craving (and gave state premiers a good grilling while we were at it).

Background

Before the pandemic, Lamb sales had been in sharp decline and in 2020, we were eating about 50% less Lamb than 20 years ago. Lamb was once the meat that brought Aussies together but when COVID hit, Lamb was effectively off the table. Border lockdown policies started changing as frequently as the weather - we could no longer come together over Lamb and frankly, Australians had had a gutful. COVID-19 had "broken Australian society down into states in a way that [we] never thought would happen again". We needed to reinvigorate Australians’ love for Lamb and love for getting together. BUSINESS OBJECTIVES: RETURN LAMB BACK TO GROWTH • Volume uplift 4% from 6.9m kg • +5% value uplift from $113,733,000 • Increase consumer willingness to pay more: +1% COMMS OBJECTIVES: UNFAIR SHARE OF ATTENTION • Increase awareness by 2% of ‘Share the Lamb’ • 1,100+ earned-media pieces

Describe the creative idea (20% of vote)

COVID-19 had made Australia a global beacon of division. And it wasn’t on. If we were going to be the brand that stands for bringing people together, we couldn’t let this political fighting continue to divide our great nation. To unite the country, we had to break down the borders that were dividing us all. We had to show the unifying power of a good Lamb chop! Our creative platform explored a not-so-distant dystopian future where state powers had gone too far. Everyday life had been divided by a giant Berlin-style wall separating the states from each other. A biting, satirical perspective on political point-scoring, media conference grandstanding and trigger-happy border closures. And Lamb was the catalyst for our nation to once again be united. Introducing… Make Lamb, Not Walls. Breaking down borders to bring Australians back together around the BBQ.

Describe the strategy (20% of vote)

With an effective target audience of ‘all Australians’, our approach used media to subvert the ridiculousness of divisive border parochialism and celebrate how Aussies are better together, united by Lamb. We used media to give this proposition the fame it deserved - by becoming the un-politician… unapologetically honest and raw. We would behave in ways that were completely antithetical to political campaigns – leveraging media in fun and unpredictable ways, using it to uplift Aussies in moments they were feeling most disconnected. We tapped into what was inherently genuine and quintessentially Australian: using gritty and ‘honest’ formats that showed we weren’t in it for the votes, we were in it for bringing Aussies together. By connecting Lamb with an authentically local and tangibly relevant message, we positioned it as the meat that reflected true Aussie values and what’s most important to them. “Make Lamb, Not Walls” was born.

Describe the execution (30% of vote)

In the lead up to Australia Day, we did the opposite of what a politician would do – launching a hilariously provocative and unmissable out of home strategy using grassroots formats, designed to move with populations and make a statement while we were at it. Large format OOH mobile billboards satirically depicting feuding state premiers uniting over a succulent lamb cutlet, were designed by renown illustrator Nigel Buchanan. We then mapped key areas with high Lamb consumption, iconic state landmarks and parliament buildings, and deployed. We even took our cause to the borders themselves. Our murals served as a reactive political commentary, strategically placing them at car-lined state borders, where advertising was typically non-existent. Impatient Aussies crossing state lines were greeted with our comms, bringing the border community closer together with a smile. For those who couldn’t be there, we captured content and amplified across social and a radio parntership.

List the results (30% of vote)

BUSINESS OBJECTIVES: RETURN LAMB BACK TO GROWTH. Volume: • Sales increased by +13% YoY • Reversed a 3-year trend which saw -17% annualised volume declines • Penetration grew +3.7%, volume per occasion grew +5.6% and purchase frequency +2.6% Value: Achieved more than double our target - 16.1% value uplift over 2020 figures, generating $18,337,800 incremental uplift. Price Premium: Willingness to pay more increased by +2% COMMS OBJECTIVES: UNFAIR SHARE OF ATTENTION Earned Media: 1,421 pieces of earned media • Over 513M OTS, 53% above target Salience: Awareness increased +9%, 350% higher than target