Don’t Fake It: Sometimes Authenticity Means Taking a Step Back

Connect with your audience. It’s one of the fundamental principles of marketing. How many times have you, as a consumer, cursed “the algorithm” for a targeted ad that actually piques your interest? But as a company, how do you engage with people Out Of Home, when you can’t tap into each consumers’ screens individually?

How do you roll out a successful national campaign that connects with each unique community, without spreading your entire marketing team around the country to live locally for a year? Ask Hendrick’s Gin.

For their latest campaign, Hendrick’s has been commissioning local artists throughout the country to design and paint custom murals that incorporate their own local flavour into the concept. The result is each mural being a truly authentic representation of the community, while also supporting local artists and garnering local pride. And, of course, Hendrick’s is connecting with their audience.

Hot air balloons flying over Melbourne at sunrise

Our most recent wall for Hendrick’s is in the heart of Fitzroy - known for its bustling vegetarian cafes and arts scene. Naturally our design included an artist, a coffee mug, and a focus on Hendrick’s favourite vegie - the cucumber.

On clear mornings in Fitzroy, you can often see hot air balloons peppering the sky at sunrise. Hot air balloons make up a prominent part of our design, while also being on point with the Hendrick’s branding.

The shared Hendrick’s branding assets with Fitzroy culture, however, are just a convenient coincidence, accentuated by us. How does Hendrick’s connect with the youth of today when their overall branding theme is from the early 1900’s?

In the time of social media - where everyday kids can become influencers overnight - people can spot inauthenticity easier than ever. The cool kids don’t like ads, and definitely don’t like mainstream media. To connect with people today, brands like Hendrick’s need to understand what makes their audience tick. Consumers in Fitzroy live there for a reason - and it’s not to see a vanilla ad. They want something unusual, artistic, and genuine.

Fitzroy is where the rise of street art culture began in Melbourne, dating all the way back to Keith Haring in the 80’s (and before). One of Haring’s original murals can still be seen along the same street as our Hendrick’s ad. It was produced during a three week visit to Australia, and is one of only 31 surviving murals worldwide by Haring. It is now Victorian Heritage listed and protected by Creative Victoria.

Artists like Rone continued the tradition with large scale portraiture murals throughout Fitzroy in the 2000’s. The very wall that our Hendrick’s ad is on used to be where Juddy Roller studios was located, where many OG street artists got their start.

Original Keith Haring mural on Johnston St

Street art by Phibs, next door to Hendrick’s mural

Juddy Roller is arguably the most well respected street art agency in Australia, representing artists such as Adnate, and pioneering many projects on the Silo Art Trail.

Contemporary artist collective, Everfresh Studios, is located right down the street from the Hendrick’s site. Some of Melbourne’s most prolific street artists, including Rone, Meggs, and Makatron, have had studios there.

There is a mural by Phibs on the building next door to the Hendrick’s wall. Phibs is one of the most respected and currently active graffiti writers in Australia. His distinctive symmetrical style can be seen all over the country.

Some peeling paint on our wall revealed a George Rose from many moons ago. Rose is one of the most sought after contemporary muralists in Australia, with her beautiful gradients, and graphic, nature-themed murals.

There are fantastic murals by prominent street artists Smug, Jason Parker, and Creature Creature on the wall directly opposite the Hendrick’s site.

Smug is known for his large scale, playful, photorealistic (and sometimes controversial) portraits, and is considered one of the best of his kind in Australia. His portraits are instantly recognisable due to their high contrast lighting, cheekiness, and of course technical skill.

Top: Smug, Bottom: Jason Parker and Creature Creature, across from Hendrick’s mural

Salvador Dali portrait detail

For our Hendrick’s wall opposite, the inclusion of a quirky, photorealistic portrait felt appropriate. Salvador Dali rose to prominence during the era of Hendrick’s branding. His old-fashioned, eccentric style also fit well within the campaign. After all, the Hendrick’s tagline is “Stay Unusual”!

People come to this area in Fitzroy looking for street art portraits to photograph. And photograph they did!

All of this rich Fitzroy history could never be known by a marketing team sitting in an office in Sydney, and that’s okay. Sometimes the best way to connect with your audience is to engage the people who are a part of the culture you’re trying to reach.

As an artist-run agency, Pounce Murals knows the street-level culture of the walls we paint. Just like other media agencies, we can compute foot traffic and impressions. But we understand the deeper picture. Real engagement doesn’t come from the amount of eyes on your ad - it comes from how many people really see it. We know what works from the street up.

We know the street art scene because we are a part of that culture. We see people we know during every outdoor installation, which gives our brands credibility within the community.

Over a week out and this Hendrick’s ad hasn’t been tagged, in one of the most active graffiti hotspots in Melbourne. That says something.

Hendrick’s trusted us and other artists throughout the country to do our thing, and the result has been an extraordinarily authentic and engaging campaign that has leveled up the OOH game.

Artists on this project: Amanda Newman and Clare Brady

All photographs are original