Fairfax Metro Media launches major new brand campaign for Sydney Morning Herald and The Age via Whybin\TBWA Melbourne and Sydney

The two new brand positionings have been created following some of the most thorough and extensive consumer analysis ever carried out for the mastheads.

Research of The Sydney Morning Herald's audience found readers are strong believers in individuality of thought.

They take pride in feeling they think differently to everyone else, to be able to see things from different perspectives and think beyond what's on the surface. Progress and development are important to them and they are always exploring, and in pursuit of, knowledge to achieve their personal ambitions and to live a fulfilling life.

The new brand proposition speaks directly to this insight. It has been developed to show that the Herald shares its audience's view on the world and like them, knows no boundaries.
The brand proposition "Forever Curious" was derived from the simple insight that readers of The Age are continually looking to better understand the world around them, a view also shared by the masthead.

The campaign itself demonstrates The Age's curiosity with each of the creative executions focusing on real people and stories to demonstrate their view on the world.

Says Robert Whitehead, Fairfax Metro Media head of marketing & communications: "As our business prepares for a number of significant product changes and innovations this year, it was important for us to do a major review of our most trusted mastheads.

"We have done a great deal of work not only to understand the needs of our audiences around news consumption but also to get insight into how we can also best position our mastheads into this exciting and challenging time for media.

"The research findings were the foundations for these new brand campaigns that we are confident will not only resonate with our audiences, but also cement what they love about these two incredibly powerful mastheads."

The Herald campaign launched on Sunday, January 27, while The Age campaign will debut a week later: both campaigns will run throughout the year.

Communications channels include TV, cinema, outdoor, print and digital, as well as cafe and office tower digital screens.

The Age creative executions feature an eclectic mix of stories about people, places and life in Melbourne. These include an immigrant taxi driver who is an accredited blood technician with the World Health Organisation in his home country, and the city's first café, Silo by Joost, that recycles leftovers into fertiliser to give back to the farmers that supply the café's produce.
In an innovative and thought-provoking use of outdoor, the Herald campaign includes a number of large format sites where the surrounding surface of the buildings the sites are mounted on become part of the execution.

These intriguing executions create an illusion of endlessness, showcasing a real example of knowing no boundaries and promoting an ability to delve deeper to see different perspectives.

Says Whitehead: "These campaigns represent a significant investment by Fairfax Metro Media in two of our biggest brands and reflect our commitment to their development and to fulfilling the needs and expectations of our audiences."

Strategy - The Lab Strategy
Agency - Whybin\TBWA Melbourne and Sydney
Ben Saunders - Director for The Age cinema and TVCs