Welcome to the industry HOT List of 2024, where Mediaweek Marketing & Agency Editor-At-Large and Founder and CEO of TrinityP3 Marketing Management Consultancy, Darren Woolley, highlights and acknowledges the media and creative agencies, the industry bodies and events turning up the heat.
Summer is coming to an end. The kiddies are back at school and the media, advertising and marketing industries are back hard at work. Even with continued economic and global political uncertainty, ideas and innovation are heating up the industry as we look at those making a difference on this month’s Mediaweek Hot List.
Sizzling HOT
Media agencies
The entire country, along with much of the media cycle, has been focused on megastar Taylor Swift as she toured both Melbourne and Sydney. And the hottest welcome for Tay Tay came from Australian icon Vegemite with this cheeky billboard message, as she arrives in Melbourne for the Australian leg of her tour.
The billboard was located enroute into the Melbourne CBD from Melbourne airport along the Tullamarine Freeway, greeting Swift with the message, “From one icon to another, welcome to Australia!” and features a friendship bracelet. Well played Team Thinkerbell.
While the creative welcome is hot, well done also to the media agency Starcom for placement and to the client Bega Foods for their continued support of this topical approach to brand building.
Very Hot
PR agencies
Eleven know that ball kids are essential to tennis tournaments, yet some kids do not have the opportunity to take part. As the tennis world was gearing up for the first and hottest Grand Slam of the year at Melbourne Park, Mastercard unveiled Australia’s first wheelchair ball kid pilot program to demonstrate the potential of wheelchair users to be ball kids in tennis tournaments around the world.
Eleven-year-old wheelchair user and Junior Wheelchair Tennis Champion Sonny Rennison was the inaugural participant. To create the pilot program, Mastercard connected with a creative tech partner, Grand Slam trainers, and current and former world ranked players to support Sonny deliver the role at the high standard required by tennis players at Grand Slam tournaments.
Heath Davidson, Diana Sutterby, Alicia Molik and Sonny Rennison
HOT
Industry Bodies
UnLtd continued the great work they do for homeless youth, with an Industry Trivia Night to raise funds for Youth Off the Streets. Major sponsor Bench saw the fund-raising target easily surpassed and the crowd have a fun time in the process.
It was also the last official function for UnLtd chief Chris Freel, looking hot in his gameshow hosting outfit, who after six years is leaving the industry social purpose organisation in rude health and a hot reputation as he moves to the new role of Group Sales Director Australia at oOh!media.
Also HOT
Creative agencies
From Hobart to Copenhagen via the Slip Inn, BMF and their client Tourism Tasmania, took the opportunity to remind Queen Mary that she had the only decent excuse for ever leaving Tasmania and that is becoming a Queen.
This ad reminds us all that the art of great copywriting has not be lost.
Running in The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, this is also a hot demonstration of how topical advertising can capture the moment and the audience when you have a strong and established brand platform – Come down for the air.
Making a difference? Going above and beyond? We would love to hear from you – send details to [email protected].
Criteria for making the Mediaweek Hot Lists
• Making a difference to clients, staff, the industry, and society at large
• Breakthrough campaign or idea that is a category game changer
• Challenging the status quo to drive innovation.