“Il Messaggero”, Italian newspaper founded in 1878 by Luigi Cesana (at the age of 27) and Baldassarre Avanzini.
It has always gathered the most prominent journalists (in the past Benedetto Croce, and more recently Giovanni Spadolini) and the most prestigious editorial directors (from Luigi Cesana himself to Giampaolo Pansa, Giulio Anselmi, Pietro Calabrese, till today’s Roberto Napoletano).
Milestones:
- 1960s: “Il Messaggero” becomes the third national newspaper after “Corriere della Sera” and “La Stampa”.
- 1980s: strategic forerunner in the progressive development of locally customised print.
- 1990s: circulation of “Il Messaggero” reaches 300,000.
- Today “Il Messaggero” has 14 different editorial editions: National, Rome, Metropoli, Ostia Litorale, Viterbo, Civitavecchia, Frosinone, Latina, Rieti, Pesaro, Ancona, Marche, Abruzzo, Umbria.
Authoritativeness and credibility are the key points of National papers. Local coasts validate its unique relationship with the territory and specifically with Rome where, in time, it has always been the leader both in terms of circulation and as an unquestioned point of reference of printed information.
WHAT IS IT ?
In this step you will find information about the Brand Builder, who is asking you to propose a Solution for the challenge. He introduces himself (as a Brand of course :) The more you understand about the Brand, the more chances you have to create what is wanted.
IMPORTANT: There is a possibility that the Brand Builder prefers not to disclose who he is, usually for confidentiality reasons. Such Briefs will be published in an anonymous way. In this case the Brand Builder will say as much as he feels comfortable saying.
Here are two EXAMPLES
In case there is no problem with disclosing the identity (VISIBLE):
“NMN -No More Nicotine- is a Brand that promises to counteract the damages to the skin that can be caused by smoking. NMN is distributed in pharmacies and drugstores and its price positioning is middle-high; it is mainly promoted through professional endorsement and is not massively advertised.”
In case the Brand doesn’t want to disclose his identity (ANONYMOUS):
“Brand counteracting the damages to skin caused by smoking. Its products are distributed in pharmacies and drugstores with a middle-high price positioning; they are mainly promoted through professional endorsement and are not massively advertised.”
In summary: Who is your client (in a visible or “anonymous” way :)
We want to develop a multi-subject campaign – radio and billboard – with the following objectives:
- Reassert that the leadership of the territory doesn’t satisfy us but makes us want to do more, for Rome and for the Romans.
- Introduce ourselves to potential new readers as the Rome newspaper, generous like traditional Romans and modern like today’s Roman youth.
WHAT IS IT ?
This is the task the Brand Builder asks you to accomplish. If you don’t understand it, you are completely out of luck !
EXAMPLE
“We ask the Creators to develop a print advertising campaign in order to increase Brand’s visibility. It will be used in national magazines this spring.”
In summary: It’s the objective of the client, therefore your objective too !
WHAT IS IT?
People that the Brand Builder wants you to entertain and persuade to think, feel or do something using your creation. Usually you will read about their age, sex, social level and behaviors. You should always keep that information in mind while creating, as the target audience is the final recipient of what you create.
EXAMPLE
“Smoking girls and women who would like to quit smoking but can’t. Usually health-conscious adults who care about their looks. They feel guilty about smoking because they know it is harmful. They read books about it. This is a real problem for them: it’s like “My brain wants something, but my body acts of its own accord”. They don’t relate to my brand, they are just waiting for a trustworthy “helping hand”.
In summary: Get under their skin !
WHAT IS IT?
The thing that the Brand Builder wants to make the target audience think/feel/do because of your creation.
Here are some very concrete examples:
∞ Some things people can think/feel:
- There is a new Brand (or product or idea or...) out there
- This Brand is better than the alternatives or than it used to be
- This Brand is worth paying more for
∞ Some things people can do:
- Start buying the Brand’s products
- Buy the Brand more often
- Stock more products of the Brand in their outlets
The above written examples are very concrete whilst often the proposition of the Brief is emotional. That’s even better as it can be more inspiring!
EXAMPLE
“We’d like to encourage smokers to use NMN in order to minimize the damage to their health while they are keeping giving up smoking (especially if they’ve already tried and failed before).”
In summary: Get inside their brain !
Why read “Il Messaggero”:
- It’s Rome’s historical newspaper
- It’s true: the only one made in Rome for Rome
- Its information is complete and exact, with columns and reportages really close to the city
- It has always listened to its readers and raised their individual voices on the problems of the community
WHAT IS IT?
This is the key to achieving the objective. It is what supports the proposition and makes it believable. Usually it is a rational statement.
EXAMPLE
“Every cigarette you smoke is causing damage to your appearance. A recent study took several pairs of identical twins where one twin was a lifelong smoker and the other had never smoked. The smokers’ skin was a quarter thinner than that of non-smokers, and in some cases there were differences of up to 40%. NMN contains thinning-blocking anti-oxidants which counteract the effect of nicotine on the skin.”
In summary: You are looking for arguments? You’ll find them here!
Reliable – because it observes attentively and it describes the happenings of your own city
Authoritative – because its history has no comparison
Complete – because it doesn’t neglect anything that Romans care for
True – because it speaks your language
Innovative – because it adopts the most modern technologies and communication evolutions
Unique – as unique is its “audience” of reference
WHAT IS IT?
It’s who the Brand is. Yes... who!
Treat the Brand as a human being, as it has its own personality. To know the personality of the “client” is fundamental in order to provide a tailor-made job. So, read carefully the listed adjectives...
EXAMPLE
“Scientific, trustworthy, result-oriented, ‘a party’ to achieve your goals.”
In summary: Imagine the live person !
Media:
- Billboard: work both on landscape/horizontal layouts (e.g. 4x3) and on portrait/vertical ones (e.g. 100x140)
- Radio: 30” and 15”
- Possible adaptation of the billboard campaign to print (adding headline and visual/body copy)
WHAT IS IT?
A list of places (or media, or things) where the target audience will see the outcome of your creation. In this step sometimes the Brand will also acknowledge you how much he plans to invest into production. This information will give you an insight whether to create a BIG project or make it small... :)
EXAMPLE
“This campaign is going to appear in lifestyle- and health-focused women magazines of New Zealand, during the spring of 2009. We plan to invest 500,000 USD, which means approximately buying 100 single pages.”
In summary: Consider the medium !
- We accept the following formats: PPT, PDF and JPG
- The winner will be asked for billboard/print finalized print-ready formats and definitive radio scripts
If the Brand has preferences or technical requirements that your Solution has to match, you will find them here.
Here are some items that you may find in this section:
∞ Guidelines or mandatory inclusions (do’s and/or don’ts)
∞ Business objectives
∞ Market and competitors overview
∞ Good and bad samples
Depending on the Brief, you may also find some files attached with a logo, pictures of product(s), a template that you should use in order to submit your ideas, or any other file that the Brand wants to share with you. So, study the attachments before starting creating.
In summary: Anything else you need to know (not written in the 7 steps before) !
