Lawrence Creative Strategy

Australian Labor Party

The 2007 Federal Election Campaign

A political election campaign is one of the great challenges in modern communications.

2007 was regarded as the first digital election campaign, with Labor establishing its dominance of the use of internet media such as the Kevin07 website, YouTube, Facebook and MySpace.

Combined with the '24 hour news cycle,' the volume of work was larger and turn-around times shorter than any election campaign before it.

Ultimately, there were four factors unpinning our success:

•    A rigorously-considered communication strategy.
•    The ability to work at a high level with the ALP Leadership Team to consistently deliver a highly focused message.
•    The courage to be pre-emptive at important moments.
•    The discipline to stay on that strategy while still being responsive to events as they unfolded.

Queensland Labor Party

2009 Queensland State Election

Anna Bligh faced several obstacles in her bid to be Australia’s first directly-elected female Premier.

Against a background of the Global Financial Crisis, Queensland Labor had been in power for 11 years and was facing its first serious opposition in the face of a newly-united and on-message Liberal National Party.

Rather than focusing on the past and Labor's track record, our strategy was to hammer home Anna Bligh's positive plan to protect jobs and keep Queensland strong in uncertain economic times.

Advertising was used effectively to contrast Anna Bligh's strength with Opposition Leader Lawrence Springborg's inability to recognise that Queenslanders were affected by the global recession.

With a web and social networking strategy reinforcing these messages, the advertising campaign finished strongly by highlighting the risk Lawrence Springborg and his inexperienced team posed the people of Queensland.

Anna Bligh created history and defied opinion polls to win the Queensland election and earn the Labor Party a fifth consecutive term.

The Australian Coal Association

NewGenCoal Communications Initiative

How do we get the energy we need, while reducing global greenhouse emissions?

Coal is Australia's principal energy source, providing 40% of our energy and 81% of all our electricity. In 2008-2009, export revenue from coal was a record $54.7 billion, vital income to support services we need like hospitals, roads and schools, and to help cushion Australian against the global financial crisis.

The Australian coal industry plays a vital role in our energy security, economy and community, and will for decades to come. The flipside is its negative environmental impact. Coal is a major source of Australia's greenhouse gas emissions, up to 37% of total emissions at last count.

Lawrence Creative Strategy advised the Australian Coal Association from 2008 - 2010, conceiving the NewGenCoal communications initiative. Launched with a national press campaign, the NewGenCoal website showcases the ACA's acknowledgement of the science of climate change, and its well-funded commitment to accelerating carbon capture and storage as one part of a climate change solution alongside renewables like wind and solar.

To interact with the public and help spread understanding about the problems of climate change and energy security, the website features a fully-resourced social media strategy including a daily-updated blog, Twitter feed and YouTube channel.

BHP Billiton

Resourcing the Future

Australia's biggest company, BHP Billiton had not engaged in communications to the general public for many years when they approached Lawrence Creative Strategy for communications advice.

At the time, Marius Kloppers had been appointed CEO, the rapid growth of China had led to growing demand for resources, and BHP Billiton was the 'Official Diversified Minerals and Medals Sponsor' of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. It was time to refine BHP Billtion's branding to communicate who they are and - globally - what they do.

LCS developed the company's new positioning statement, "Resourcing the Future," launching it with a creative campaign to communicate the BHP Billiton story. Devising the strategy required a thorough understanding of specialised groups from Europe, China, Australia and America which ranged from investment bankers, Government Committees, unions, environmental groups and 'Mum and Dad' investors. The campaign included an internal launch, website enhancements, and an extensive print and online advertising campaign in Australia and China to communicate BHP Billiton's sponsorship role in the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.

Football Federation of Australia

Australia’s bid to host the World Cup 2018/2022

To launch the Football Federation of Australia's bid for the FIFA World Cup, the world's first sporting social network-driven grassroots movement was created to showcase our national enthusiasm for hosting the World Cup in 2018 or 2022.

Lawrence Creative Strategy created a two and a half minute film inviting the world to "ComePlay" and showcasing Australia as the 'world's best playground.'

The film directed people to the official bid website - the centerpiece of the bid campaign - australia2018-2022.com.au. The site encourages the public to join in the movement, take action and help win the bid.

Within 24 hours there were 25,000 visits, 170,000 page views, and people spent on average nearly 7 minutes exploring the site.

The growth of the movement is constantly updated on the site, a visual expression of the Australian public's passion for football and the bid. With FIFA deciding on the host for both the 2018 and 2022 World Cups in 2010, the site will act as a dynamic and compelling argument in favour of our bid.

Partners
STW: Rose Herceg and Jonathan Swan
Film: Director: Mark Toia, Art Director: Adam Whitehead/STW, Production company: Zoom FilmTV,
Music: Song Zu, Editor: Drew Thompson/Guillotine
Digital Agency: David Trewern, Michael Trounce, Adam Morris and team/DTDigital

Read more

Australian Aerospace

New helicopters for the Royal Australian Navy

The future’s built in, not bolted on

With a major factory in Brisbane, and plants all over Australia, Australian Aerospace is at the heart of the growing Australian Aircraft industry.

Part of the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Group, Australian Aerospace already assembles and maintains helicopters and fixed wing aircraft for the Australian Defence Forces, and is part of the Eurocopter Global supply chain.

Recently Lawrence Creative Strategy provided the strategy, advertising and presentation material to help Australian Aerospace become part of the Government tender to supply new helicopters to the Royal Australian Navy.

The campaign emphasised the modernity and product superiority of our client's NH90 NFH and the significant contribution to the economy that would occur with the NH90 NFH being built in Australia, through new skilled jobs, research and technology transfer.

Minerals Council of Australia

Keep Mining Strong

In 2010, the Australian Government announced a new mining tax, the Resources Super Profit Tax (RSPT). With little warning or consultation beforehand the tax, worth billions, caught the industry by surprise.

Lawrence Creative was approached by the MCA to provide a counterpoint, highlighting the flaws in the tax, and illustrating the important role the minerals industry plays in the lives of all Australians. Hurt mining and you hurt Australia. The message: Keep Mining Strong.

Between March 9 and June 24:

• A campaign website, the first iteration of which was built in only 2 days, became an information centre for facts. This grew with the campaign, with 2 major upgrades adding in new tools, information sources and instructions on how to take action.
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• Over 20 different print executions, 8 radio ads and multiple TVC's featuring facts and figures, and stories from Australian's all over the country who would be impacted by this tax.
• Demonstrated the importance of mining, demonstrating the benefits, both direct and indirect, that the industry brings to every Australian.
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• On June 24 a ceasefire was agreed to, calling for a halt in advertisements from both the MCA and the Government. Ultimately, the tax was abandoned in its flawed form and a more acceptable alternative agreed.

Generation One

Address to the nation

Generation One is a movement to bring all Australians together, to end the disparity between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians in one generation. Our generation.

This message needed to be heard, we needed the attention of the nation.

We spoke to media companies all around Australia. We wanted 2 minutes of free air time; not for an ad, but for an address to the nation.

With donated space from Newspaper and online media companies, we announced an address. Through Twitter we monitored the buzz and the speculation. Then on a Sunday night, for the first time ever, a non-political address was broadcast across all free to air channels. Maddy, a 13 year Aboriginal girl spoke to 6 million Australians.

In 24 hours

• 2.4 million hits to the website
• 10,000 watched the address online

In the first week

• 15,000 joined the movement
• 28% increase of awareness for GenerationOne

In total, an estimated $4million of advertising space was donated by a range of media companies. In addition, the address sparked earned media coverage across television, radio and online.

With the attention of 6 million Australians, GenerationOne stopped the nation, and made them listen.