Australia’s most pessimistic fortune teller fronts MLA’s brand new campaign via BMF and oOh!

Shoppers’ engagement levels with retail advertising has spiked this month as they interact with Meat and Livestock Australia’s ‘Miss Fortune’ palm-reading campaign.

Miss Fortune is the brain child of BMF and oOh! as part of the ongoing ‘You’re Better on Beef’ campaign that promotes the value of Beef in providing protein, iron and zinc.

The digital homage to the famed-old Zoltar machines are tactically positioned in major shopping centres nationally, and use motion sensors to beckon passers-by to have a palm reading done.

Unfortunately the news isn’t all good with the execution featuring over three dozen tongue-in-cheek fortunes ranging from “Unspeakable riches will come your way…from a Nigerian email account” to “The truth hurts my friend. Seek the advice of a pharmacist for a rash cream to soothe what words cannot”.

oOh! Media converted its network of Excite screens into digital ‘fortune tellers’, with more than 40,000 shoppers already placing their palms on-screen to activate a crystal ball reading. As well as a live reading, the unlucky recipients also receive their (mis)fortune by phone or social platforms – with a cheeky reminder that with beef, you’ll be better prepared for what life throws at you.

Says Andrew Howie, group marketing manager: “We place a huge amount of value on long term partnerships. BMF are a long-standing creative partner and oOh! have been a key media partner of ours for several years now.

“These partnerships allow us to utilise first-to-market technology to bring to life innovative and ground-breaking creativity. We want to leave shoppers with a positive, fun-filled brand experience, while drawing attention to the health benefits of beef.”

The execution takes advantage of oOh!’s Excite screen technology that includes sound, touch, and gesture recognition, as well integration with mobile, online and social media. MLA and BMF also receive immediate reporting on how well the campaign is going and how many people are interacting with it.

The Miss Fortune campaign follows MLA’s hugely successful recipe-dispensing campaign where shoppers obtained over a million recipes via oOh! panels in shopping centres.

Says Cam Blackley, executive creative director, BMF: “With MLA we always look for a way to be playful in our comms and these screens certainly played to that. It’s light entertainment at a time folks are probably a bit frazzled…so with any luck they’ll head straight to the meat-counter for their remedy.”

Says Blair Hamilford, commercial director of oOh! Retail: “We love working with clients who aren’t afraid to push the innovation boundaries in an effort to deliver better results.

“By converting oOh!’s Excite panels into digital fortune-teller booths, we’ve definitely delivered a quantum leap in interactivity and engagement on a mass scale.”

The campaign has run for one month on 25 of oOh!’s Excite screens and over 250 classic and dynamic locations in 100+ shopping centres across Australia, seeking to influence thousands of shoppers when they’re close to butchers and supermarkets.

MLA

Sound Production: Rumble Studios