Ten of Australia’s most well known brands are coming together in support of disability representation with the ‘Unignorable Adbreak’, swapping out key scenes in their advertising to include a person with disability.
The ‘Unignorable Adbreak’ is a campaign by the Shift 20 Initiative, led by the Dylan Alcott Foundation and focused on increasing disability representation, inclusion and accessibility in Australian advertising and media.
During the month of October, AdNews is speaking to marketing leaders at some of the companies taking part in the initiative, finding out why they wanted to get involved, the response to the ads, what the industry needs to do better and more.
Dean Norbiato, General Manager of Marketing at Kia
What made you want to get involved with the Shift 20 Initiative?
Simply put, our motivation was heavily influenced by Dylan Alcott, who has long been a Kia ambassador. He’s a tremendous human and we not only support him directly, but also partner with his Abilityfest music festival in Melbourne, so helping push the Shift 20 Initiative made perfect sense for us.
Were you already working with talent with a disability (either in front of or behind the camera) or was this a first for your brand?
Dylan, who has been in a number of our campaigns, is the real catalyst for us to challenge our representation of people with a disability both in front and behind the camera. It’s no surprise he’s a consummate professional in front of the camera, but also has a keen eye behind it.
How did you decide which of your TVCs to change?
The Kia Seltos small SUV was our latest campaign and also fit creatively well with the integration of more talent and scenes. We also got some help from behind the lens via the team at Bus Stop Films and Special Group, which allowed us to tackle the Shift 20 initiative both in front and behind the camera.
Have you received any feedback from the public in response to the ads?
We are indebted to Dylan for his support, with all the feedback being resoundingly positive from our involvement in the Shift 20 initiative.
What do you hope other CMOs and marketing/advertising leaders take away from this initiative?
It’s never too late to be part of the solution.
What do you think the advertising and marketing industries need to do moving forward to ensure that people with a disability are better represented?
Firstly, its about awareness, which we collectively envisage this campaign will bring. Secondly, it’s about taking that awareness and turning it into action and working with their agency partners to look seriously at the representation of people with a disability both in front and behind the lens on future campaigns.
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