As an antidote to the way most advertising is created within the telecommunications sector we decided it was time to break the mold.

We needed to position Optus as an enabler of entertainment in the Australian market. To do this we knew that we needed to create content that was actually entertaining.

We developed a content piece designed to connect with “millennial” audiences in the digital spaces where they engage and interact - social media platforms.

We had to trust the audience. We knew that if we delivered something unique and on their level, then they would subsequently spread the message that Optus was an entertainment provider, to a wider audience outside of Optus’ existing social fans or subscribers.

Our creative approach was to let one of the world’s great comedians interpret the message in his own distinct way, by setting minimum script parameters.

The anti-advert led. The aim here was to deliver something Australian consumers had never seen before - especially from an industry as conservative as Telecommunications. By trusting in our digital audience’s ability to understand and get the joke, we were able to take a bold, ironic and intelligent approach that we believed would resonate with the often cynical and ‘seen it all’ audiences.

We launched the content using Facebook, YouTube and Twitter. Upon launch the content received immediate global attention through extensive consumer press coverage and Ricky himself, also began to tweet about the content himself.

With paid and owned working hand in hand, a social strategy was put in place including use of short-form versions as pre-roll on YouTube to draw the audience through to the main content.

Before long the social audience were sharing the content, commenting, tagging and helping to spread the virility of the videos.

Over 7.5 million video views with an engagement rate of 1.85%.

Broke the Facebook record for the fastest branded video to hit 4 Million views in Australian Facebook history (from a population of 23 Million).

The most successful piece of branded content Google have ever seen in Australia – the 2nd most watched ad on YouTube in 2015 and formed the 2015 Google ‘Think’ Global Digital Case Study.

Interest level in the anti-ad was 6x higher than any TV campaign Optus had previously run, it resulted in 165% lift in searches for Optus.

The anti-ad had a full playout & discussion on The Ellen Show globally and locally on The Gruen Transfer (over 1 million viewers weekly) and Sunrise (over 1 million viewers daily). Also featured in the top 5 global ads on Adweek and Faster CoCreate.

97% positive sentiment across social platforms.

Over 150 pieces of PR generated globally.