Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)
Wordfees as King James is crowned bo-baas
Kudos for much great work done for Sanlam
WINNING an overseas study trip worth R100 000 is the stuff dreams are made of. This became reality for the King James Group last Friday night, when they were awarded the Pendoring Prestige award for a below-theline campaign for the Sanlam Musiekfees (music festival).
Dominique Swiegers, one of the campaign’s copywriters, says: “We were absolutely over the moon when King James was announced overall winner.
It’s exciting that creative ideas aren’t measured in media silos any more, but rather by the strength of the idea itself. A good idea is a good idea in any medium.”
The Sanlam Woordfees campaign contributed to King James’s spot as the Top Ranking SA Agency, as well as Sanlam’s ranking as top brand for 2015, so winning the Pendoring Prestige Award – further affirmation of the great work King James has been doing with Sanlam over the past year.
Their brief from Sanlam was to advertise the Sanlam Musiekfees and Sanlam’s sponsorship of the event at the Woordfees (word festival) in Stellenbosch through branded collateral on the festival grounds. This followed shortly after Sanlam had relaunched their brand and introduced their new “Wealthsmiths (TM)” pay-off line, and the creative team had to incorporate their new strategic positioning into the work.
Stephné de Villiers, who also worked on the campaign as a copywriter, says: “We are very passionate about Afrikaans and good Afrikaans music. As students we used to watch bands like Heuwels Fantasties perform and we grew up with the music of legends like Laurika Rauch. We were, therefore, inspired to bring their words to life and showcase their artistry in a way that would stand out.
“At the same time, Sanlam’s staff, as masters of the creation of wealth, are also passionate about supporting artists because they appreciate the skill, dedication and hard work that go into mastering one’s craft. So we knew the best way of showing that ‘every word is a masterpiece’, was to do it through something that, in itself, is a work of art.”
Dominique and Stephné brainstormed the idea together with designer Bennett Atkinson. Once they hit the “jackpot” and it was approved and polished by their creative directors, they started developing the idea by going through hundreds of lyrics by the performing artists.
Then they had to decide which areas in Stellenbosch were the most suitable to bring the creative to life on a practical level.
“Our production team was just amazing and played a very important role in making it all happen – they even managed to source someone who was willing to cut a car in half for us,” Stephné says.
“We personally attended the festival to see the installations ‘in action’ and it was great to see how positively the public reacted to them, precisely because they were unexpected in an environment cluttered with loads of posters and banners advertising shows. In addition, they were very entertaining and clearly the classic and familiar lyrics evoked feelings of nostalgia.
“Having a client like Sanlam is equally rewarding. The company is forward-thinking, not only in terms of the products they offer to help people prepare for their future, but in everything they do, so they love innovative thinking. Right from the outset they were just as excited by the concept as we were.”
Besides being awarded the Prestige Award, the winning team also won gold in the category Live Events and Activations and Direct Communications, earning an extra R6 000.
The judging panel sung the winning campaign’s praises.
“It was most pleasing to see an Afrikaans campaign conceptualised and executed in a modern and topical way. It felt thoroughly authentic, was difficult to ignore and not remotely sales-directed. Instead, it evoked a strong inclination to participate,” says Leon Jacobs, jury chairman and executive creative director of Havas Boondoggle, Cape Town.