Starcom Australia has launched the ‘Open Brief’ initiative.
This is a new type of brief created by the agency’s Strategy & Experience Design (XD) team that gives media partners a unique opportunity to solve a live client business challenge – culminating in a live ‘open pitch’ event in front of client judges, agency staff and each other.
Jack Daniel’s has been the first Starcom client to sign up for the opportunity, with an ‘Open Brief’ to drive a trial of its new RTD Seltzer product which launched in the Australian market last year.
Buzzfeed, Paramount, SBS, SCA and Yahoo were the shortlisted finalists to make it to the open pitch, a live ‘Shark Tank’-style event held in Sydney.
The ‘Open Brief’ for Jack Daniel’s Seltzer was awarded to Yahoo.
The judging panel said: “Yahoo delivered a contemporary idea which was anchored in insights, and the behaviour of our core audience. It was unique and aligned with the bold future ambitions for Jack Daniel’s, and the human experiences we need to create for a next generation of drinkers. We were all blown away!”
Jo Scott, Starcom’s national head of experience design, said over the past six months, the agency has worked with media partners from every single channel to push the boundaries of what would otherwise be impossible with typical briefs, to create innovative ideas.
“What makes the ‘Open Brief’ approach different is the way in which media partners are briefed in much earlier in the process, giving them a longer lead time to tackle a challenge, and in a collaborative manner where we are providing ongoing constructive builds on how their thinking and initial ideas could grow and evolve – rather than leaving them to crack the brief on their own.
“In working this way, it creates a unique opportunity in market to drive collaborative problem-solving for the collective growth of our talent, media partners, and clients.
“Open Brief brings to life our ‘People Powered Growth’ agency positioning by creating new ways of thinking, encouraging more bravery, and most of all giving the time and energy to nurture ideas together with our partners.
“We’d like to thank Jack Daniel’s for taking this leap with us to deliver the first ‘Open Brief’ and thank you to our media partners for the exceptional ideas they each put forward,” Scott added.
Yahoo Open Brief winners: Julia Edwards (left), and Giorgia Tavella (right)
Alejandra Alvarez, senior brand manager – Jack Daniel’s RTD, said: “Going through the Open Brief process with Starcom has been a great experience, and it has helped unlock some brilliant ideas from the five media partner finalists.
“I’d like to thank everyone involved, and I look forward to bringing our exciting new campaign to life and growing our share in the ready-to-drink category with our latest product innovation,” she added.
Zoe Cocker, head of brand and innovation, Yahoo ANZ, said: “The Open Brief process has enabled us to reconnect in person – something we have all missed, as well as enabling us to be more upstream with both agency and client.
“By prioritising insights, the team at Starcom unlocked our true potential, allowing us to generate an idea that was big, brave and immersive, tapping into next-gen culture to bring Jack Daniel’s into the ‘Seltzaverse’. A huge thank you to the Starcom and Jack Daniel’s teams for trusting us with this exciting new chapter of consumer connection,” she added.
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Top image: Alejandra Alvarez, Jack Daniels (left), and Andrew Vaughan, Starcom (right)