Tim Tam time

Good on you Qantas.

You've been kicking some big goals with your marketing efforts of late.

And this Tim Tam effort is just a perfect little touch on Australia Day.

And even though I've been demoted to Bronze Frequent Flyer from Silver recently (I'm not bitter, I'm really not), I still think you're ace.

Keep playing the patriotic card, it's speaking to me.

On the box

It's no surprise that Christmas is my favourite time of the year. 

Great food, great spirit, great excuse for celebrations.

And as soon as the Adelaide Christmas Pageant has been and gone, I'm ready to kick off the shenanigans (even in Melbourne!). 

Christmas marketing campaigns always grab my attention and two of my faves so far are below. They're both heavyweights in the retail world (UK and Australia) but do these ads speak to you?

John Lewis

David Jones

Yes, they do to me.

AFL done good

Sport is such an important cultural force that can unite people from all over.

It has its haters, but you can't deny the role that sport plays in bridging gaps and building teams. 

I love that sport is a language in itself - everyone can speak it. Whether it's dressing up for a day at the races (and not even seeing a horse run!) or sipping Pimms with your friends at on the banks of the Thames during the Boat Race - you could be standing next to someone who doesn't speak a word of English, yet still communicate with them through sport.

I LOVE what the AFL has done with its multicultural round ads for this year.

They're a bit tongue in cheek, they're fun and they're warm. I applaud the light hearted nature in which the topic of multiculturalism has been tackled. So often we tiptoe around these issues and try to make political statements out of them, but at the end of the day, it's just a game of footy.

Check them out below . . .

SA Grateful

I might have caved to social pressures and packed my bags for the big lights of Melbourne, but I will always be a fiercely proud South Aussie at heart.

So much makes this SA Great (oh how I wish they'd kept that brand instead of Advantage SA) and food and wine tops the list for me.

Menz is a firm favourite of mine and I especially love their commitment to the community and local charities. So I was especially chuffed to see them up in lights amongst some serious national heavy hitters today when I received my regular marketing industry newsletter this afternoon.

Menz has created what is believed to be Australia's largest mural made entirely of lollies.

Read about it here.

Doesn't it look great!? I'm yet to identify all the iconic SA landmarks hidden throughout the thousands of sweets but so far have spotted the Malls Balls . . . anyone have any other ideas?!

Then this morning, my parochial fires were burning for Kochie's South Australian food segment on Sunrise. Farmers Union Iced Coffee, Haighs, Maggie Beer, Penfolds wine . . . so so so good!

Check it out here . . .

hard to find but easy to read

I love a new online magazine find!

Hats off to the team at hard to find - their marketing is fabulous and they have certainly got my attention.

If it's not the beautifully presented catalogues that come in my monthly mag, then it's the daily email updates I get that brighten my day.

Their styling is awesome and their offerings so fresh. 

So it was no surprise that their latest venture is so spot on the mark.

htf. magazine is truly beautiful. And clever. Sure, there's lots of product placement but they've done it so intelligently. It's not all 'look at us, we're so great', it's more subtle and classy and I'm impressed.

Click here to read their launch issue.

An open letter

Working in marketing and with a love of the written word, I take a great interest in creative and innovative marketing campaigns. 

The recent open letter from the Mayor of Christchurch struck a chord with me. I love it when people can have a bit of a laugh and not take themselves too seriously.

Good work Bob Parker!

It even generated a story on Channel Seven News!

In all seriousness though, go and visit Christchurch! Let's get their tourism industry back on track!

I'm off to NZ in December and am very excited to experience some kiwi hospitality. Although I won't be enjoying the beauty of the South Island this time, I have been to Christchurch before and had a very very big night out with the girls.

It's a pretty city - sister city to Adelaide in fact!

Snaps to the creative agency that came up with this campaign, it certainly got my attention.

See the campaign website here