Fiona Galea Debono
Publicity agency explains rationale behind campus stunt
The brief for the advertising agency entrusted with Vodafone’s controversial campaign, which ruffled feathers at the University’s Freshers’ Week for offering condoms on campus, was to “stand out among 50 odd different exhibitors” and it stuck to it faithfully.
It was also tasked with reversing the trend of “unappealing and unsuitable” offers, said Redorange in a blog on graphic design.
It was certain its promotional stunt would stir up some controversy, describing it as successful and daring, with post-campaign results showing the agency achieved its aims, generating debates in the media.
In fact, the idea attracted much criticism but the campaign’s creative director explained the rationale behind it on the blog Redwhite, aimed at creating a forum of discussion on Malta’s digital art, branding and graphic design sectors.
According to a recent student survey conducted by Vodafone, students felt its offers were not appealing enough or were unsuitable for them, so Redorange was tasked with creating a package name, identity and concept that would deliver results, according to creative director Lara Parker.
“During our brainstorming session, we came up with several ideas, some good... and others outright wacky.”
In the end, it opted for four colour-coded student packages, each relating to a coloured condom. Students could either choose to Play Now, Daily, Weekly, or Monthly, projecting the mobile telephony company as “daring and innovative”, she said.
Not everyone saw it that way though and letters to The Times described it as “vulgar and unfunny”.
The JustPlay campaign may not have been intended to promote sex among youths, as Vodafone justified, but some considered it to be an “appalling” strategy that backfired and could not comprehend the possible link between mobile telephony and contraception.
In retaliation, Vodafone sold it as promoting communication, rather than sex on campus.
Redorange said it was also inspired by the endless debates on whether the University should have a condom-vending machine on campus. It decided to take things a step further, asking students, who were given a condom attached to the promotional flyer, to think of a creative alternative use for it, unrelated to sex, to participate in a competition.
For under-18-year-old students attending Junior College and the Malta College of Arts, Science and Technology, the campaign was given a twist by replacing the condoms with coloured lollipops.
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Stefan Kottmann
Oct 31st 2009, 18:48
Unfortunately, Redorange's face turned red orange when asked to explain its campaign. It was a stunt. Well...had they be more intelligent, they would have told us that Vodafone is not only a communications company, but a company that believes in helping us live the moment and enjoy every second. The fact that it is mainly a communications company should not deflect from this phiosophy. Condoms fit Vodafone perfectly because Life Is Now! Naturally, this flies in the face of all those witches and wizards who want to have a ball AFTER they die...
Chris Finch
Oct 29th 2009, 18:05
In the article immediately after this one, 'The number of Europeans living with HIV and AIDS has increased at a worrying rate, from 1.5 million in 2001 to 2.2 million in 2007. About 730,000 of these live within the EU, with about 3,000 deaths reported each year.'
So Congratualtions to vodafone and Redorange. Maybe they should include a free condom with every top up voucher. It would certainly increase my mobile usage.
Paul Barrett
Oct 29th 2009, 17:29
As an advertising campaign there is no doubt that Vodafone achieved there aim - publicity.
My own thoughts on condoms are that everyone should carry one with them - be prepared - wasn't that a Scouts motto.
As for a competition on what to do with the free gift - I can think of many things you can do none sexually with a condom but sadly not a lot you can do with a lollipop other than eat it.
C. Borg
Oct 29th 2009, 16:42
@J Micallef
Mr/Ms Micallef, i think you have hit the nail on the head. Think about it, if the marketing campaign was not a successful one, it surely would have been swept under the carpet and unnoticed. The truth is, it wasnt, and we are all still commenting! All i can say is, well done to red orange for their daring and innovative campaign, it worked. But hats off to Vodafone for finally being so daring as to "move with the times". Something that is certainly not an easy thing to do on this island!
The truth is our young ones are having sex, whether we choose to face it or not. I am thus pleased that they have an opportunity to it safely. If we can hand out syringes to drug addicts to practice drug using safely, is handing out condoms not the same thing? are we not trying to save lives here?
J. Micallef
Oct 29th 2009, 14:19
When this news item first hit the papers a month ago, I found most of the debates and discussions which it promoted healthy and interesting. I found even the most stubbornly opinionated and conservative letters and writings about the matter to be, at worst, an entertaining read. The success of this marketing campaign, in getting people talking about it, certainly transpired beyond a shadow of doubt through any related discussions. The entire matter would have deserved follow up had it led to (as some have suggested it should have) to a couple of arrests and witch trials at the Inquisitor’s Palace. Given the circumstances, however, I find this to be a piece of news with ‘blown out of proportion’ (pun intended) written all over it. Moreover, as someone else has pointed out below, promoting the use of condoms is not such a scandalous matter as to deserve angst, boycott, and other weapons of mass immaculacy. Whilst (as the pro-condom use strategy revealed by Brussels today demonstrates) the rest of the Western world is moving with the times, we should perhaps start thinking about doing so too.
Ramon Casha
Oct 29th 2009, 13:31
@J Farrugia: Check out the article immediately after this ("Brussels promotes condoms and clean needles to fight AIDS"). I hope you have a lot of paper for your boycott list.
J Farrugia
Oct 29th 2009, 13:18
And I will also add redorange to my boycott list.
Franco Farrugia
Oct 29th 2009, 12:46
@ Mr Flynn - You have missed my point completely, in your sheer quest to show how funny you are.
William P Flynn
Oct 29th 2009, 11:55
@Franco Farrugia
I think sexual intercourse is a game, is entertaining, is play (you never heard of foreplay?)
Love's a game. People should chill out.
Sex experts are falling over each other (sorry) trying to make couples treat sexual intercourse as a game to keep it vibrant (sorry again), interesting and good fun.
A lot of sex starts with a phone call; a lot of sex won't happen without a condom; nor should it.
Sex is the beginning and end of almost every young human's activity.
The connection (oops!) between a mobile phone, a condom and sex wouldn’t have been wasted with the target audience.
TBriffa
Oct 29th 2009, 11:21
I can't believe we still make such a big fuss about condoms for youths in Malta. Keep on believing our young people are abstaining, that's the way to make sure we keep on having to deal with teenage pregnancies and disease. It's inevitable that they will start to experiment at a certain age. Better to be open and teach them care and respect of their own bodies and others'.
Ramon Casha
Oct 29th 2009, 11:18
Well done to Redorange and Vodafone.
Chris Finch
Oct 29th 2009, 11:08
Only in Malta (and possibly other secular regimes such as Iran) would handing out condoms to students be considered controversial and kick up such a fuss.
Ownership of a condom does not promote casual sex or increase the chances of the owner to be able to engage in it.
What is does promote is safe sex. Russia is now the country with the fastest growing spread of the HIV virus. If more people used condoms there then maybe it wouldn't be so bad.
R Peresso
Oct 29th 2009, 10:36
It's obvious that this campaign had nothing to do with promoting sexual activity. So any comments in this respect are out of point. But i feel I cannot not comment on this off-tangent-discussion:
If anything, giving out free condoms promotes SAFE sex (although students were in reality asked to come up with an alternative use!). Please note that all this is a development of a "story" that is not over yet: The ongoing debate/saga whether a condom machine is to be allowed at Campus; the Medical Student Association distributing free condoms for the past few years; and --CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG-- The participation of the Maltese Jesuits (who gave out free cocktails, though non-alcoholic, to students this year) in a campaign that promoted the use of condoms some years ago.
Something about what this campaign was all about: I think it was a BRAVE marketing exercise that pushed the limits, and most importantly it talked the student's language -- over 70% of University students are in favour of the use of condoms.
If this campaign increased the incidence of safe sex, while increasing sales of mobile telephony, than that's a win-win situation for everyone involved.
ABORG
Oct 29th 2009, 09:29
Let's not play the fools by providing ridiculous excuses for a poor campaign which has been dubbed vulgar and unfunny. Furthermoe, the fact that "students, who were given a condom attached to the promotional flyer, to think of a creative alternative use for it, unrelated to sex, to participate in a competition" makes it shallow - is this the creative side ? hahaha
Franco Farrugia
Oct 29th 2009, 09:07
Originally, I never commented about this matter that took place at Uni, further than stating that it was a very silly thing to do.
However, with this 'explanation', I simply cannot accept the idea of portraying sexual intercourse as a game, as a way of entertaining oneself, as 'play'. The whole idea is indeed 'whacky' and should not have been adopted by Vodafone. So, a condom is a 'play pack', right? What further harm can we continue inflicting on our students?
Parker claims that they wanted to portray Vodafone as 'daring and innovative'. Hmm... I rather think that Vodafone has been led a dance and it is portrayed as vulgar, unseemly ... and silly. If not totally ridiculous.
J Farrugia
Oct 29th 2009, 08:56
Thank God vodaphone is out of my vocabulary. They will never have any business of mine.