Creative Agency – SHA

In mid December 2019, local advertisement agency SHA visited our Graphic Communication department to ask students their invaluable input on their development of a current advertising campaign for 2020 student recruitment to Newcastle College.

Originally named StarkHartleyAtkinson, after its founders, SHA refers to itself as a “boutique marketing communications agency”. The agency welcomes graduate students and has recruited graduates over the past 5 years. Be aware, SHA’s policy to those employees who leave for ‘greener pastures’ is that they may never return. If may seem harsh, but they’re keeping their workplace clear of poor working-relationships and emotional baggage.

Still from a video for an academic research video by SHA, commissioned by Newcastle University

Part of SHA’s visit was dedicated to sharing information about themselves. It was explained in detail how their process ‘Brainwave’ works. SHA’s development of a campaign starts with understanding the emotional barriers to a service or product, and the emotional stimuli that can be used to address the barriers. On their website, Brainwave is mentioned:

We believe that real emotional insights allow for the creation of Intelligent Ideas that Get Results, so we dedicate ourselves to identifying the emotional barriers that contribute to our clients’ commercial problems. This approach helps the agency to identify the emotional stimuli through our planning process called Brainwave, ultimately delivering the Intelligent Idea that can overcome the problems a brand faces and deliver a very real positive commercial result.

SHA is always keenly aware of the competitors of the particular service or product they are providing advertisement for. SHA has turned away clients with ambition and goals that did not reflect SHA’s. SHA would rather keep a reputation for solid advertisement that performed well than bend to the wishes of a client who’s ideals and vision would lead to a campaign’s failure and the frustration of wasted time, effort, and money.

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As for the ‘2020 student recruitment campaign’, I wasn’t the target audience – school leavers were the audience – so I can’t say that I was the most useful member of the focus group. I don’t find the same elements of campus life exiting as younger students do. I’m not into the social element of friendships and clubs as deeply as I am focused on the acquiring of skills and knowledge to build a portfolio. (I always figured one makes friends along the way, and I have less time to socialise in student societies than many fellow students, unfortunately.)

Even though I’m not part of a student society, I enjoy the company of like-minded peers in the studio and I think the advertisements that showed photographs of real students working together and enjoying their education to be the most sincere and appealing personally. Students closer to the target audience found the colourful stock images of students having fun off campus the most preferable. I honestly think the social element to be worthwhile – you’ll find in further and higher education that you’ll make good friends with those who are like-minded.

Within the poster advertisements some of them focused on the aspect of being the next big name in the culinary world or part of an art movement. I didn’t give it much thought at the time – and maybe high school leavers want to the the ‘next big something’ – but I think about that angle and I’m nonplussed. Less weary and battered students must find the notion thrilling.

Really, the preferred advertisements among the focus group were wholly subjective. Different angles appeal to different individuals, and I felt that I could only give input on the layout, typography, and colour choices, given my position as a not-target!

N.B. If a local agency happens to approach your campus and states just how readily they take on design graduates, it’s not something to be overlooked!

Controversy – free exposure!

We previously looked at the advertisement agency Mother; now let’s look at a “banned” advert that they produced; Iceland‘s “no palm oil Christmas” television advert. It did not comply with the Broadcast Committee of Advertising Practice (BCAP) code that Clearcast requires an advertisement to do, in order to be approved for airing on television.

The advertisement is not “holiday-themed”; it’s Iceland’s statement of intent to remove palm oil from their own products. It highlights the impact of palm oil on the environment, and was deemed “too political” (due to it’s roots as a Greenpeace video).

In spite of – or rather, because of – the television ban, it quickly gained awareness and support over social media (Facebook) and by word of mouth. The controversy surrounding the ban was covered in several newspapers, such as Metro, The Guardian and The Independent, further promoting Iceland’s stance on palm oil, and the store’s image itself. Clearcast became an easy mark for negative thoughts on the whole ordeal.

Iceland’s official video even flaunts the word “Banned” in the title.

But, surely, Iceland knew – before submitting the commercial – that it would not pass Clearcast’s standards? Why then, use a retooled Greenpeace campaign video, knowing it would be deemed unfit to air? Because Iceland’s executives also knew it couldn’t be outright forbidden from public sight, and they knew that it would thrive online. It certainly propelled Iceland into the minds of the public unlike ever before. Iceland’s public image and stance on palm oil became a heated discourse thanks to this piece of media. It was a carefully calculated move.

Still, it should be noted that advertisements do have the power and potential to change the target’s mindsets and behaviour. They don’t simply have to market something, but can be used as campaigns. Iceland’s bold, environmentally-conscious move here puts them ahead of their competitors in the minds of many who realise that their everyday consumerist choices do have an impact, and also wish to take environmental conservation and sustainability seriously.

Advertisement – Creative Agencies

It’s time to look at the state of todays’ advertising industry. This is new territory to me. Across the next few entries, I’m going to look at different creative agencies; regional, national, and international, in order to better understand the function and importance of these agencies.

Advertising itself encompasses many channels (a system used to communicate or distribute information) such as radio, posters, television, online banners, online video, and so on. Some channels (videos) are more intrusive than others (bus stand posters).

So, what exactly are creative (or advertisement) agencies? A creative agency is a business dedicated solely to the planning, creating, and handling of advertisements of a client’s property. If you’ve something you want to sell but don’t specialise in marketing, then an advertisement agency is where you’ll want to take your service or product. An agency may be external and operate independent of the client, but an agency can also be an internal department of a company!

A regional advertisement agency that I want to mention is Mother. Originally founded in 1996, it is the UK’s largest independent advertising agency. The agency’s philosophy is “To make great work, have fun and make a living. Always in that order.”

Of Mother’s large portfolio, I’ve been most exposed to their PG Tips television commercials, utilising the characters Al and Monkey (who were previously used to promote the discontinued television company, ITV Digital). The commercials are typical of British humour. Mother knows their target audience, and embraces it. Yes, a number of these ads run with typical British dead-pan humour, light teasing, or satire.

Their PG Tips advertisements appeal to different social classes as they embrace the every-day (or just the mundane) that unite the nation, with narratives such as returning home from grocery shopping, or visiting a relative, to which everyone then enjoys a well-deserved cup of tea. There’s always a silly tilt to the narrative, and typical banter that resonates with the target market. (Target market meaning the consumer of a product or service.)

Now, as funny as I may find Mother’s PG Tips’ adverts, I do wonder how overseas viewers see them. Especially because the humour is tailored to the UK market; I expect the humour to fall flat to those outside of it.