‘It was an impossible dream’: Meet the team that helped bring the Bunnings rave to life
A campaign for Bunnings to host a massive rave party has not only been given the green light, but set social media on fire. Meet the team behind the magic.
Digital-first media company, Totem, was first brought into the fold when it was introduced to the rave headliners and Aussie favourites Peking Duk, via TikTok Australia’s director of music, Ollie Wards, who put them in touch with the duo’s manager.
Known for working with media, brands and creators to create new content models – including building the #1 factual entertainment brand on social media in the world (Bondi Rescue), the #1 food and drink brand on Facebook in the world (Sticky Lollies), and the #1 First Nations creator brand in Australia (Black As) – Totem was tasked with auditing Peking Duk’s business from understanding how social media works for them to how the channels are managed at the beginning of June, which turned out to be perfect timing as 19-year-old music producer Kaila had already started the Bunnings rave movement and advocated for Peking Duk and What So Not to headline the proposed event.
“It was absolutely not a foregone conclusion [the rave would happen] in any way,” Totem CEO Steve Crombie told Mumbrella.
“It was an impossible dream that we felt was worthwhile chasing to see if we can make this a reality. And if it didn’t turn out at the very least, it made a lot of noise.”
Totem’s work on Peking Duk’s channels to create hype around the petition led to huge brands such as Spotify and Domino’s coming on board, with some of the content they produced calling for Bunnings to take on the gig attracting over one million views on TikTok.
Crombie said they managed to create so much hype online that even the Bunnings social media team commented they hadn’t seen this much engagement on the hardware and garden centre chain’s socials in years.
“This is all with no paid media, by the way,” Crombie added.
“This is all studying the algorithm and understanding what’s going on. How it operates and getting on the right trends to get the right reactions to target the right audience.”
Once the event was locked in for 31 August in the Bunnings carpark in Preston, Melbourne, the event sold out within one minute. Given how many major events have been forced to cancel this year alone – including Splendour in the Grass, Spilt Milk and Harvest Rock – Crombie said there is a lesson to be learned about the power of connecting talent, fans and brands on social media.
“Know what your audiences want and listen to them,” Crombie said.
Steve Crombie
“Don’t treat social media as a one way street. I know that sounds really corny, but the more you engage and participate with this community, they engage with you.
“I think the hardest thing for a brand is to communicate like a creator. I think they’re getting better and better in that, but definitely having that relatable voice and tone is important… if you want to connect directly with your consumers, with your audience, social media is the number one way to do that.
“Traditional media is great, radio is great, TV is great… but if you can drive engagement with these audiences and also encourage them to participate with you, that makes a big difference.”
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Can someone tell me what does a rave have to do with Bunnings?
Is this going to sell more paint?
Is this going to sell more timber?
Is this going to sell more cleaning products?
Is this going to sell more plants?
Is this going to sell more compost?
Is this going to sell more screwdrivers?
Is this going to sell more nails?
What’s the point of a rave at Bunnings?
Looks more like the party people at the advertising agency just want to have fun!