The ad ‘Set Fire to Your Hair’, part of the ‘Dumb Ways to Die’ campaign for Metro Trains Melbourne, has won the 2013 Gold Siren for best radio ad of the year.
Written by John Mescall and Pat Baron from agency McCann in Melbourne, it also picked up a Silver Siren in the single category, and the campaign nabbed another in the campaign category.
Though not on hand to accept their treasure trove of awards (instead received by McCann’s Group Account Director, Adrian Mills), the winners were most concerned about competition from Ralph van Dijk and Michael Bates (Eardrum, Sydney), whose ‘Earphone Bully’ campaign claimed the remaining Silver Siren in the craft category.
The awards breakfast, hosted by Mix 106.5’s Tim Ross in Sydney, featured all of the winning Sirens round winners from throughout the year, but the feeling in the room was that there was always going to be a clear winner.
Possibly known more widely by its online viral video (below), which has accumulated over 45 million views, it sets a shining example of how campaigns can succeed across delivery platforms.
Commenting on the campaign for client Metro Trains Melbourne, John Mescall said, “We knew that people didn’t want to hear our message at all. It’s rail safety. Not only do young people not care about safety messages, but we know that they actively tune out these kinds of messages.
“So our idea was to embed our rail safety message into a song: a piece of content so desirable, that our audience would not only willingly listen to it, but if we put it on iTunes, maybe actually pay money to own it. I guess the inspiration was to make a radio ad that was nothing like a radio ad, but a lot more like the content on either side of the ads: the music.
“We tried to make a radio ad that was nothing like a traditional radio ad. It’s a song first and foremost with a subtle but unmistakable message embedded into it. The fact that a lot of radio stations around the world have chosen to play the 3 minute version of our ad for free, as part of their music programming, tells us that we may well have pulled it off.”
The campaign, which also picked up the $5000 cash prize for the ‘Client Award’, contributed to a 30% reduction in ‘near-miss’ accidents in the three months from November to January, according to Metro Trains.
2013 Siren Award winners (winning ads can be heard at www.sirenawards.com.au)
Siren Awards 2013 Overall Category Winner (Gold Siren)
(also winner of 2013 Single Category)
Agency: McCann Melbourne
Creative Team: John Mescall & Pat Baron
Client: Metro Trains Melbourne
Commercial Title: “Set Fire to Your Hair”
Siren Awards 2013 Single Category Winner (Silver Siren)
Agency: McCann Melbourne
Creative Team: John Mescall & Pat Baron
Client: Metro Trains Melbourne
Commercial Title: “Set Fire to Your Hair”
Siren Awards 2013 Campaign Category Winner (Silver Siren)
(also winner of the Client Award – cash prize)
Agency: McCann Melbourne
Creative Team: John Mescall & Pat Baron
Client: Metro Trains Melbourne
Commercial Title: “Dumb Ways to Die” includes ads: “Set Fire to Your Hair”, “Sell Both Your Kidneys”, “Eat a Tube of Superglue”)
Siren Awards 2013 Craft Category Winner (Silver Siren)
Sound Engineers: Ralph van Dijk & Michael Bates
Production Studio: Eardrum, Sydney
Client: Anti-bullying organisations, including Bullying No Way, Project Rockit and Reach Out
Campaign Title: “Earphone Bully”