The Making of 'Make Marketing Great Again' Campaign

The Campaign Brief:

It’s been 18 months since Campaign Del Mar launched the now viral campaign, The Gurus We Deserve, which shone a light on the shady marketing practices of the gurus. Now, many more people are talking about the gurus. But what’s the solution?

The follow-up to Gurus needed to offer a new way forward.

My biggest learning from Gurus, the original campaign, was to make sure I had a portrait version of the video for Instagram and TikTok, so this was a key consideration in the brief. The final assets are a 70-sec film (portrait and landscape) and a 30-second edit (portrait and landscape).

The Campaign Insight:

There is still confusion about what a campaign is and how it’s different from “a launch.”

The Big Idea:

One of Campaign Del Mar’s most successful social media posts draws a parallel between a political campaign and a marketing campaign to illustrate what a campaign is.

I love political campaigns, so running with this idea was aligned with my brand personality. Impersonating a politician rather than a guru was a more positive message and allowed me to present Campaign Del Mar as the solution to the gurus problem. The light to their dark.

The Campaign Message:

I’m no Trump supporter, but his campaign tagline is the most renowned. Make Marketing Great Again rolled off the tongue.

The Creative Process:

We got to work on the campaign in November 2022, and the first step was the creative brief which specified the objective, creative strategy, budget and timeframe.

Getting the idea out of my head and onto a page helped it take even more shape.

Next, we appointed the dream team to bring my vision alive.

We have partnered with the production company Global Headquarters on several northern territory government campaigns over the last seven years, so they were our first choice to bring this campaign to life. They are confirmed legends.

Nyree Slatter was the speechwriter for the campaign. She has also completed Campaign Classroom, my signature program, so having one of my customers, with direct knowledge of my offering, write my script was a no-brainer. Plus, she’s brilliant.

Jena Marie created the artwork for the coreflute signs, and her designs influenced the overall visual identity of the campaign, which have named “stars and stripes” internally.

Last, by no means least, I needed to make a convincing politician, and this meant working with an acting and voice coach to nail my delivery. Jacqui Maloney is in an online community I’m part of, and we struck up a contra arrangement where she helped me run lines and offer some marketing consulting; win/win.

On the day of the shoot, she sent me vocal warmup exercises and a good luck video. I would work with her again in a heartbeat.

The Campaign Budget:

The total cost to create Make Marketing Great Again (MMGA) was $5500.

• The biggest expense was the production company, followed by Emily’s flights to bring her to Darwin.
• Speechwriting, design and printing of the core flutes were under $500 each
• Hair & makeup with touchups throughout the shoot was $300 by Emily Chambers
• My outfit was from Portmans for $180
• I hired a lectern for $80
• The extras generously donated their time

This is ⅓ of the cost of The Gurus We Deserve which was just over $15K.

I now have a bigger audience, so I can afford to spend less. The original was a big production, but that was not required. The idea and messaging could carry the film, not the bells and whistles; since this video would be viewed on digital and social channels, I wanted a result native to those platforms.

Plus, my audience is bootstrapped founders like me, so I wanted to prove to them that creating an attention-grabbing campaign on a shoestring budget was possible.

Sense check:

We cannot be objective about our own marketing, so even though I'm a marketing strategist, I sought input and feedback from three of the best marketers I know. Odette Barry, Melissa Packaham and Lauren Pickering. They helped me see the forest from the trees and build on my ideas. I could not recommend brainstorm buddies enough. 

The Shoot:

MMGA was shot in half a day in Darwin city, with Parliament House in the background. I was dying in a polyester jacket in the 90% humidity.

We didn’t realise this at the time, but our shoot location was close to the Larrakia navy base, and our microphones kept scrambling.

Emily Lambourne, Campaign Del Mar’s Digital Strategist, flew up for the shoot and also stars in it. She is seen in the crowd and at the end.

The Campaign Launch:

MMGA launched Tuesday, January 31 2023. Leading up to the launch, I teased the campaign to build anticipation and excitement.

I staggered posting the videos throughout the day: Instagram and TikTok, then Facebook and LinkedIn. An email went out to our whole list in the morning.

There is a whole campaign strategy beyond just the campaign film, which will follow over the coming weeks, all to build our audience and secure enrolments into Campaign Classroom.

The Feedback:

It’s going off like a frog in a sock.

Here are some of the comments:

The Plug:

Marketing campaigns have a proven track record for building brands and launching beloved products.

New-age launch plans do not.

If you want to capture attention and create marketing that converts, join us in Campaign Classroom, which starts March 6.

I lead from the front, demonstrating the power of marketing campaigns and putting my money where my mouth is.

You can book a virtual coffee chat with me about whether Campaign Classroom is right for you. We take only 20 students, and we sell out each intake.