Our research found this generation without a firm view on what constituted Australia’s national identity. We knew that Australian’s have often sought and found their national identity through sport; from elite levels down to ‘grass roots’. We’re taught everyone has a role to play early on – every kid has won the ‘Player of the Day’ award for their contribution at some point. We used this sporting parallel to ground the awards and make them feel accessible – everyday people, everyday stories, in everyday connection points.

Idea:

Australian of the Day – An epic journey to find the everyday people making Australia extraordinary.

We sent photojournalists to Australia’s eight states and territories for a month to find people who have gone unrecognised outside their community and capture the essence of Australia. Their journey discovered stories and images that created a unique national portrait of the faces of Australia in 2015.

The project execution was tiered to reflect its epic nature. Our channel selection provided consistent touch points for our audience to follow our photojournalists, but the content was generated to reflect their level of engagement with those channels

• Snapshots: Daily updates on CommBank’s Instagram, dedicated campaign microsite and Pedestrian’s homepage

• Stories: Monthly highlights through CBA’s Facebook page and Pedestrian Video stories

• The Annual: A culmination piece told through 30”, 60” YouTube placements and a 23min documentary by legendary Australian Director Gillian Anderson. The biggest UGC film of its kind in the country.

An epic project with outstanding results:

- We increased Commonwealth Bank’s brand association with the Australian of the Year awards by 14% to 27% (target of 4% increase)

- ‘Supports & Sponsors good causes in the community’: Increased from 34% for those who hadn’t seen the campaign, to 47% for those who had seen it. (+13% uplift)

- ‘A bank I’m proud to associate with’ increased from 37% for Customers who hadn’t seen the campaign, to 59% for those who had seen it. (+22% uplift)

But the success story we’re most proud of is that Australian’s of the Day, Nic Marchesi and Lucas Patchett, went on to receive the Young Australian of the Year Award from the Prime Minister on Australian Day for their mobile laundry service for the homeless. Well done lads.