Colenso BBDO

Client: NZ Government
Product: Public Service Announcement
Title: The Public Service Banger
Media: Music Video
Country: New Zealand
Date Of Campaign: December 2020

Background: The NZ Government's response to Covid-19 was so successful that the country was heading into summer virus-free– with large gatherings such as music festivals going ahead. However, too many Kiwis were adopting a complacent attitude towards health & safety.Our objective was to target the most complacent NZers; young people attending large music festivals and encourage them to wash & sanitise their hands, scan QR codes at events, and turn on their bluetooth enabled NZ Covid tracer app. The problem was, our audience was there for a good time, not for a boring government announcement. That’s why the solution had to be more than a message, but a memorable festival moment which showed the government truly cared about their health, but also, their fun.

Idea: The Public Service Banger - the world's most unconventional Covid-19 PSA. We collaborated with local DJ, MACSEN, to produce a dubstep Covid-19 Public Service Announcement & music video that played at NZ’s biggest festivals. The track features ‘national treasure’ NZ Director-General of Health, Dr. Ashley Bloomfield, telling festival-goers to wash & sanitise their hands, and use their bluetooth enabled NZ Covid-Tracer app. Delivering a serious message of national safety in the most unconventional way possible. The experience was so engaging the entire crowd sang, danced and shared it.

Results: The PSA helped us cut through the complacent attitude held by thousands of young NZ festival-goers, and delivered a message of safety in an unforgettable way. Since the PSA first aired at festivals, there has been a 30% growth in QR codes scanned and a 195% increase in use of Bluetooth Covid-19 tracing. Organic PR generated off the back of the PSA had 2,300,000 views, created 47,000,000 organic impressions, and was heralded on the New York Times, as well as the Guardian as an example of New Zealand’s world-leading Covid-19 communication response. The NZ Government invested $40,000 NZD into the campaign, their ROI was 0.12c for every kiwi who danced, 0.02c for every view and 0.08c for every opportunity to see. 1 in 4 Kiwi millennials danced to an ad, from a government, encouraging young people to wash their hands.