B&T: Malibu offers another dream job

B&T Jan 20 2009

Consumers will possibly be struck with a sense of déjà-vu when The Hallway launches its Malibu campaign next month, inviting people to apply for the job of executive product taster.

In an uncanny coincidence, Cummins Nitro Brisbane launched an almost identical “Best job in the world” campaign for Tourism Queensland last week which involved placing dream job ads in countries all over the world for a six-month job on Hamilton Island. Having watched his idea unravel and generate copious amounts of PR globally before his eyes, Jules Hall, managing director of the strategic communications agency The Hallway, has remained surprisingly positive.

“The publicity that has been generated is a great endorsement of our idea and it highlights the trend towards benevolent marketing,” he said.

The original concept for the Malibu campaign, the agency’s first piece of work for the brand since landing the account late last year, was an opportunity for people to escape their boring jobs and relocate to the Caribbean island of Barbados to be an Executive Product Taster. The campaign was to accentuate Malibu’s global brand positioning of “Get Your Island On”. The idea has since been tweaked, albeit slightly, to focus solely on the role.

Jo Haynes, brand manager for Malibu explained: “Originally we were promoting this as the Best Job in the World. We are now focussing on the role itself: Executive Product Taster for Malibu, a genuine once in a lifetime experience for our target audience of 18 – 24 year olds.”

Like the Queensland Tourism gig, interested candidates will need to submit an application from which suitable applicants will be shortlisted and interviewed. The candidate will appoint two assistants who will travel with them to Barbados as well as New York, Sydney and the Barossa region in South Australia.

The campaign, due to launch next month, will include online advertising, social media, print, radio, mobile and PR components.

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