Bob Mackintosh: Stop and smell the Rosé

Bob Mackintosh, ECD, at Host Sydney is sitting on the Cyber  Lions jury. Mackintosh, along with many jurors, is reporting exclusively for Campaign Brief.

Lunchtime, day two of Cyber Lions judging. On the menu for the day, poisson du’jour and beef. I went for the latter, purely because it’s fun to say in French (BOOF!)

Also on the menu, Rosé. A fitting accompaniment to the boof and the lunchtime conversation. It’s here in the mess-hall we as a jury regroup (after an intense day or so of judging individually), and reflect on the work we’ve seen. This is the fun part. A chance to slow down, hear a few opinions, and discuss then debate the emerging themes that are presenting themselves…

First up, there’s a body of work we’ve defined as ‘platform hacking’: ideas that exploit functionality within existing platforms in clever ways. In this age of ad-blocking, it’s only natural brands want to find new ways to weasel themselves in front of consumers. Some do with with great results, but there’s a fine line between being engaging and annoying, which will no doubt be discussed as we get to the business end of the week.

Then there’s work perhaps best described as ‘digital prototyping’. You know the ones – ideas that explore the possibilities that new technologies bring, yet don’t have any real world benefit to the consumer. Not yet at least. There’s some great work, and it’ll be interesting to see where we as a jury net out with this type of thinking.

Unsurprisingly, there’s been a tonne of video entries. In an attempt to engage, many opt for emotional story telling. Some with great effect. But in an effort to pull the heartstrings, it seems we’ve lost the art of making people laugh.

Throughout, we’ve been discussing a question that’s been asked since day one of Cyber judging back in 1998: what is Cyber?

For a category so influenced by new technology it’s understandable that this question is asked year on year. But it’s a question made even more complicated to answer thanks to the new kids on the block: Digital Craft Lions, Mobile Lions, and Innovation Lions. They’re cutting Cyber’s lunch. And that makes our job a little trickier.

Ultimately, ‘what’s Cyber’ will be defined by the work that gets awarded this time next week. Safe to say the campaigns that marry platform, idea and execution in exceptional ways, will win some metal.

Overall, the work is very good. And if there’s one overarching observation amongst the jury, it’s that this might just be the year that Cyber comes of age. Make sense. After all, 2016 is the year Cyber turns 18.

I’ll drink to that.