Poetry in emotion reveals brand loyalties

An advertisement from insurance company AAMI caused consumer concerns over the brand’s use of Dorothea Mackellar’s iconic poem, My Country. Viewers, however, were wrong. Suncorp’s chief marketing officer Mim Haysom explained what the reaction taught the company about its brand.

A still from AAMI's advertising campaing that featured a reading of Dorothea Mackellar's iconic poem, My Country

A recent TV advertisement for Suncorp-owned insurance company AAMI saw some viewers ­become fact-checkers, after the company started to receive emails and phone calls with a correction to the brand’s use of Dorothea Mackellar’s iconic poem My Country.

AAMI, however, was correct, but the situation has provided the brand with fresh insights about the early efficacy of its campaign.

Viewers said AAMI had incorrectly used a word in Mackellar’s poem in the advertisement, and the supposed error provoked strong reactions.

The My Country verse in question was “I love a sunburnt country, a land of sweeping plains, of ragged mountain ranges, of droughts and flooding rains”. Viewers said the correct word was “rugged”.

The worries of the advertisement’s fact-checking viewers, however, were quickly allayed. AAMI had, in fact, done its research and included the correct word in the verse, “ragged”.

While the majority of viewers said they enjoyed the advertisement, Suncorp’s executive general manager of marketing Mim Haysom told The Growth Agenda that some viewers were so passionate, in their response to the advertisement they expressed concern that AAMI might “teach a new generation the poem the wrong way”.

The video came through AAMI’s creative advertising ­agency partner, Ogilvy, and juxtaposed Mackellar’s verse with quintessentially Australian scenes, infusing the tone of the commercial with humour.

The line “I love a sunburnt country”, for example, was paired with visuals of a young couple seeking shelter from a massive hailstorm.

The advertisement was the first campaign to be released as part of a new brand platform for AAMI which aired in March. It has retained its “Lucky you’re with AAMI” tagline, but the campaign marked a new creative direction.

Fact-checking kerfuffle aside, Ms Haysom said the campaign offered fresh – and surprising – insights into how AAMI’s customers and viewers of the advertisement felt about the brand.

“The overt, outpouring of emotional connections surprised me. But it does make you realise that when you’ve spent many, many years building a consistent brand that connects with people, you’ve got a very big responsibility when you think about how you’re going to change the positioning or go to market with something different,” Ms Haysom said.

“Because when you’ve got those big, iconic national brands, our customers are attached to them.”

Brands have long used art forms, like Mackellar’s poem, for commercial purposes. This approach can also open brands up to highly emotive responses from fans, both positive and negative.

Ms Haysom said when brands link themselves to culture, tact and testing is required. This campaign was also tested before airing on screens. “It’s got to be done very respectfully when you’re using such an iconic piece of art, which that poem is,” Ms Haysom said.

Mim Haysom is executive general manager of marketing at Suncorp Group

“Australians tell you when you get it wrong, but what I love about this, is they also tell you when you get it really, really right. And Australians still love good ads.”

Even as advertisements must now traverse multiple media channels in an increasingly fragmented landscape, Ms Haysom said advertising has an enduring role to play on and off screens.

“What it shows is that people do still engage with brands who are good storytellers. It’s still entertainment for them. And it still is very influential on how people think about your brand in the ­context of the category.”