03 Jun 2013 “If it’s in a pack, it’s probably Nampak”
This press release from Nampak:
As Africa’s largest packaging company, Nampak offers the market the most comprehensive range of innovative packaging solutions, in metal, glass, paper and plastics. Nampak’s packaging is literally found in every home, business and public facility in the country, yet the brand remains largely “invisible” to the consumer.
“Packaging touches the lives of South African consumers every day, yet it is unlikely that they realise that the pack is manufactured by Nampak,” says Kirsten Tyler, Nampak Marketing Manager (Africa).
“As a market leading brand, we felt that the correct communications strategy was to entertain and inform the audience, rather than communicate a ‘hard-sell’ message,” says Amanda Yong, Nampak Marketing Communications Manager.
Up to now Nampak’s advertising has focused on its direct customer base (B2B) and relied on the company’s proven brand attributes of ‘packaging excellence’, ‘innovation’, ‘diversity of packaging’ and ‘ecologically-friendly manufacturing principles’.
As a non-consumer brand, it was agreed that the new television commercial should share the Nampak brand personality and character with the broader consumer market.
The brief to the advertising agency was to develop a concept which spoke to the diversity of packaging produced by the company, while leaving the viewer in no doubt as the culture of responsibility which Nampak owes to the environment.
“We hope that the commercial will inspire the market to understand that packaging is an inherently important feature of all products, in terms of image, form and function. At the same time, there is no reason why packaging cannot also offer benefits in terms of sustainability and the environment,” says Tyler.
It is fair to say that packaging is a low-interest product to most people, that they take its functionality for granted. The television commercial had to achieve a creative means of “showing” packaging. The creative solution was to direct the audience to the packaging by making it invisible.
“The agency’s creative concept was innovative and novel and used an attention-grabbing device of showing something that wasn’t there,” comments Yong.
The concept relied on extremely complex technical planning, both pre- and post-production. The agency consulted with top 3D CG studios in London before deciding that the effects could be achieved in South Africa. Using a combination of a series of models and complex post production CG techniques, the team was able to highlight various scenes of daily use of Nampak packaging in a highly innovative and arresting way.
The tone and visual and aural treatment is entertaining and light and the commercial is likely to be viewed multiple times because the special effects will intrigue the viewer. The television commercial raises the Nampak brand above the consumer horizon line and brings the brand into millions of homes for the first time.
Flighting commences on 27 May 2013 on SABC 1, 2, and 3 and selected Dstv channels and programmes.
To view the television commercial and its making, click here.