Hunter Valley refreshes brand
The Hunter Valley has undergone a brand refresh with a campaign that aims to position the wine-making region as a contemporary premier wine destination. The campaign was created by Sydney-based Strategy Design & Advertising.
Hunter Valley Wine Country Tourism executive manager, Dean Gorddard said in a press release: “The Hunter Valley is a sophisticated, exciting and authentic place with ‘real’ people characterised by a special tenacity, passion and wisdom that comes from a rich history. The rebrand aims to demonstrate that the Hunter Valley is in touch with contemporary lifestyle.”
It’s pretty and all, but a bit like Melbourne’s work, minus colour.
It also does’t mention “digging deep” when you go to the Tourist Trail destinations such as McGuigan’s.
The first two I find a little hackneyed but I like the third one.
a bit of a lost opportunity with the ‘colour’ scheme methinks. Especially for such a beautiful place… but Ad Grunt may be right, if it had been colourful it may have looked ‘borrowed’ from Melbourne.
If I’m brutally honest, I thought a new conference / wedding venue called “Hunter Valley” had this as a launch campaign, as the images look like they’re from that ilk.
On the other hand, with the personalities involved in regional tourism campaigns and this region in particular, its current passable form is likely a minor miracle.
I hope these are used in long dwell media as the copy is that little bit too long and the typography that little bit wah to drop the punch in my irrelevant opinion.
This is woeful and I feel sorry for the businesses in the Hunter who are expecting it to do anything for them. I know the Hunter well and I can say with confidence that this crap neither reflects the place or the people that go there. It is devoid of a reason to go there, and you could put any destination in the advertisements. Strategy Advertising and Design who pasted this up are a New Zealand shop, and without speaking ill of my former countrymen I can’t help but wonder if they are hoping the travellers who fail to go to the Hunter might go to NZ instead. In fact, now that I think of it the campaign could be for Waiheke, Martinborough, Marlborough, Otago or anywhere else where there are vines and fresh air..No wonder the press release didn’t mention the agency.
Mr Gorddard, when you hide, and hide from this you must, leave an address where a decent agency can find you to rescue what’s left of your budget.
Nice to see that they omitted the ad in Tuesday’s Good Living which is offensive and patronising, and also manages to mispell ‘palate’ as ‘palette’.
Further, the image used has a pretty girl pretending to sip from a glass which is patently empty, and is perfectly clean.
Misjudged, and sorely underestimating the audience. I am glad I now know which agency came up with this.
I think it’s always a bit tough to blame an Agency, when there’s also a Client involved who briefs, approves and pays for this.
Terrible way to promote the Hunter.This is another nail in the coffin for this ailing industry.Whoever was in charge of this project should be sacked.
AdGrunt you’re right of course. Producing advertising is always joint effort between client and agency and in this case thats probably particularly relevant. Both are to blame but it is still mindless, amateur, misdirected crap.And it will still let down all the other ‘clients’ – the small businesses in the Hunter who deserve better whoever is to blame.
Certainly am not purely laying fault at the feet of the agency, and have had words already with those on the client side, but this campaign shows a lack of comprehension of the target audience, and the requirements of the wine industry.
I hope that those behind it take this in the spirit it is meant – not as purely an attack, but as a wish to see a less narrow approach to advertising.