2013 Winners & Shortlists

THE OPINIONATED BANNER

BrandKHALEEJ TIMES
Product/ServiceNEWSPAPER
EntrantTBWA\RAAD UAE Dubai, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
CategoryDIRECT RESPONSE DIGITAL MEDIA
Entrant Company TBWA\RAAD UAE Dubai, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
Advertising Agency TBWA\RAAD UAE Dubai, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

The Brief

As one of the region’s oldest sources for news in the Middle East, Khaleej Times needed to stay relevant with their existing audience and attract a new generation of readers. Today, people often get their news on blogs, Twitter and Facebook feeds. Our strategy was to prove that depending on social media for news... isn't always foolproof.

Creative Execution

The Opinionated Banner reminds people that while social media CAN be a source of citizen journalism, it is more often than not a petri dish of clowning, fortune-cookie wisdom and dubious advice. It reminds people to trust Khaleej Times for the facts.

Describe the creative solution to the brief/objective.

First, we established social sites where young people spend their time. Next, we teamed up with four newspaper staffers to produce a banner that automatically creates headlines inspired by the opinions shared on social media everyday. Users are invited to share an image, and the Opinionated Banner responds back in seconds – with an opinion you’d find on the blogosphere, Twittersphere and any other social sphere... but would NEVER read on the pages of Khaleej Times.

Results

The banner received extremely high engagement rates and a click-through rate of about 2.8%. It was also shared via groups and blogs. But most important, the banner with an opinion on everything made one message abundantly clear - that an EDUCATED opinion is based on FACT.

Credits

Name Company Role
Major Steadman Tbwa\raad Head Of Digital
Melanie Clancy Tbwa\raad Head Of Content
Felipe Sona Tbwa\raad Art Director
Sarabjeet Singh Tbwa\raad Sr. Flash Developer
Ian Carvalho Tbwa\raad Account Director
Felipe Galiano Tbwa\raad Art Director
Rafael Guida Tbwa\raad Associate Creative Director
Verity Mace Omd Director Planning
Sarita Menon Khaleej Times Marketing Manager
Saghir Ahmed Khan Khaleej Times Sr. Vice President Finance/Operations
Ramzi Abboud Omd Executive/Investments
Alain Eid TBWA\RAAD Project Manager
Bushair Muhammadunni OmnicomMediaGroup MENA Manager - Group Digital Investments