How to harness starpower

Ever since the day a certain soft-drink manufacturer accidentally set Michael Jackson on fire, all-star collaborations have been a little fraught. Sometimes you capture the magic; sometimes not so much. Adding to that challenge, audiences are no longer swayed by celebrity endorsements alone – it takes a lot more than star power in ads. But for the brands that dare to completely re-imagine the collab formula comes great rewards: the ability to spark new demo fandom.

When OLG’s Lotto Max wanted to age down a demo, they knew they needed to try something completely different to command attention. With only 14% of its players under the age of 35, Lotto Max and partners FCB and MediaCom took note that younger consumers like to spend their money on fashion and worthy causes. And that was the genesis of the AToMiC Grand Prix-winning “Dream Drop,” a partnership with Toronto fashion line Mr. Saturday – the first clothing line in history that doubled as a wearable lottery ticket. Each item in the collab fashion drop featured a scannable barcode good for a year’s worth of lottery tickets, encouraging those who wore them to play for a chance to win $70 million.

“Our purpose is to contribute to a better Ontario by being a proud supporter of local arts and entertainment,” says Rochelle Menezes, OLG’s marketing communication manager. “It was a natural fit to partner with a rising star in the Ontario fashion community, who also happens to create clothing that our players already love.”

The campaign rolled out social posts, OLV, bumpers, banners, influencers, PR and a partnership with Toronto Raptor Gary Trent Jr. (who modelled the clothing), and with Mr. Saturday spreading the word on its own channels. Consumers could also crack a code on a giant vault to win apparel or a $1,000 gift card. After selling out, a digital vault launched, giving people a final chance to score a hoodie. OLG also teased future Dream Drops, and donated all proceeds to Black HXOUSE, a charity supporting Black creators.

The results? Hoodies sold out in 11 minutes. Ninety percent of the collection sold within 24 hours, and 100% of it sold out within a week. OLG experienced a 200% lift in ticket sales in the first three weeks, and the campaign led to a 194% increase in account registrations, an indicator of the intent to make future purchases.

And the Ontario-based lottery wasn’t the only one reacting to a demo crunch. Despite being a national institution and a ritual for many Canadians, Tim Hortons suffered from the same reputation as Lotto Max – it was for older people.

So (as one does in such situations) it turned to Justin Bieber, one of the best-selling musical artists of all time, to capitalize on his personal fondness for Tim Hortons – something clearly evident on his social media feed. The partners collabed to develop three new flavours of Timbits and turn them into limited edition “Timbiebs.”

“It was a magical moment when we realized there is this amazing entertainer who is Canadian and who loves our brand – there’s authenticity working with that as the starting point,” says Solange Bernard, senior director of marketing communications for Tim Hortons. “The fact that Justin was personally invested in every step of the way –from the name and product creation, to the campaign and merchandise – was the strength of the campaign.” after Atwood shared it with her two million Twitter followers, yielding organic social reach of over 3.5 billion impressions, with an advertising equivalent of $35 million in earned media. Quite the best-seller.

Also on the cause front, YWCA Metro Vancouver recruited key sports figures to help start a cultural conversation about gender inequity in sport. The campaign, also by Rethink, questioned why men’s sports default to just “sports” while women’s sports are referenced as “women’s sports.” This led to the “Add the M” campaign concept, a redesign of the most iconic men's sports league logos by simply… adding an “M.”

The campaign was designed to give the sports world a highly visual

THE WINS Tim Hortons

“Timbiebs” by Gut Advertising Gold Collaboration; Gold Transmedia

THE WINS

Created by GUT, the fully-integrated English and French campaign launched across TV, OOH, radio, social, in-store and digital. It included a contest to win signed merch and tickets to one of Bieber’s concerts, along with a full takeover of Yonge and Dundas Square during launch week. The campaign also included lifestyle products: a limited-edition toque, fanny pack and tote bag.

Sales exceeded forecast and contributed to stronger than expected Q4 results. And, in an unexpected twist, the campaign inspired singer Michael Bublé and actress Shay Mitchell to jokingly publicly ask for their own partnerships. The campaign yielded over 2.1 billion earned impressions, became number three on Global trending Twitter and number one on Canada.

If those sorts of results were possible for two of Canada’s most iconic institutions, could they also be possible for the doyenne of drama? Yes. Yes, they could.

YWCA Metro Vancouver

“Add the M” by Rethink Gold Public Service Idea; Silver Public Service Social; Bronze Public Service Best Digital Engagement

THE WINS Penguin Random House

“The Unburnable Book” by Rethink Gold Design; Gold Idea; Gold Cause & Action; Silver IP; Silver ROI; Silver Global

When it set out to make a bold statement against censorship, Penguin Random House turned to iconic author Margaret Atwood and The Handmaid’s Tale, one of the most banned books of all time, to drive home its message.

The publisher and agency Rethink created a one-of-a-kind fireproof edition of The Handmaid’s Tale to serve as a physical metaphor: powerful ideas can’t be extinguished. “The Unburnable Book” expressed the urgency and importance of freedom of expression at a politically-fraught time, when book-banning in U.S. libraries and schools over themes of racism, gender and sexual orientation reached unprecedented levels.

The launch video featured the powerful image of Atwood using a flamethrower to test a prototype. A single copy of the book was produced to sell at auction, with the USD$130,000 proceeds going to PEN America, an organization dedicated to freedom of expression. Both the book and video launched on the same day: on social media in Canada and at the PEN America Literary Gala in New York. The video went viral way to engage and champion the issue. Early support from figures who have been vocal about gender equity – including legendary soccer player Christine Sinclair and sports media personalities Blake Murphy, Jennifer Hedger, Tara Slone and Donovan Bennett – lent the campaign credibility and helped expand social media reach.

The effort was launched across YWCA social channels along with a series of videos, and included real-world sweaters and stickers, as well as free downloadable badges and digital “M” stickers that allowed people to hack logos on Instagram, all tied together with the hashtag #addtheM.

It made headlines in over 170 publications around the world, achieving a reach of over 102 million impressions. Without any paid media, it achieved an earned media value of over 46,000% above its investment and it inspired people around the world to “add the M” to other league logos, as the Women’s Football Fan Collective did to the English Premier League.

We really hate to bring up the pandemic (again) but the fact of the matter is, it inspired a lot of employees’ get-up-and-go to get up and leave. At the time, it was enough to navigate how the way we worked was changing, and decidedly, being a force for change in a chosen industry felt like a very tall order. But as we emerge and embrace the changes this global shift handed us, we begin to again watch leaders rise up in the form of budding talent. This year’s New Establishment made us do a double-take. These junior- to mid-level staff lead thought-provoking creative in their workplaces, but their strategies for success don’t end there. These change-makers identified issues and altered the system from the inside out, with momentum, tenacity and fearlessness aplenty. Each is on an unrelenting mission to make their industry a better place.

BY CHELSEA CLARKE