Journalism and Media Research Centre

Journalism and Media Research Centre

Course Outline

MDIA5021 – Advertising & Creativity

Semester Two, 2012

Course outline may have minor revisions until the beginning of semester

UOC: 6

Course convenor, lecturer and tutor:Dr Bem Le Hunte

Dr Bem Le Hunte has worked for over twenty-three years as a Creative Director, Brand Consultant and Copywriter, both in the UK, Australia and India. She has written for over 500 clients across a wide range of industries, creating everything from integrated campaignsto television and press ads, corporate videos, direct mail, electronic direct mail, websites,brochures and guerrilla campaigns.

Trained as an Anthropologist with a Doctorate in Creative Writing, Bem has a research interest in cross-media innovation as well as the social, cultural and political impacts of media consumption in Australia. She has also written novels and short stories that have been published internationally to critical acclaim.

Contact time and availability:

For consultations please contact Bem Le

Appointment times: Mondays 2 – 5pm

Tutor: Hugh Kronenberg

Hugh Kronenberg has worked for over twenty years as a Creative Director and runs his own communications consultancy, working on brand and strategy development, consumer advertising and healthcare communications. He is also an experienced advertising lecturer who has developed and taught advertising courses in Australia.

Contact time and availability:

For consultations please contact Hugh Kronenbergduring tutorials.

Course Summary

This course has been designed as a ‘portfolio clinic’ for students interested in exploring the opportunities, processes and constraints at work in top creative departments around the world.

Students will be encouraged to see advertising as one of the major ‘languages’ of our culture and taught critical methodologies to deliver ‘creative content’ for a broad range of clients across a number of different mediums – from print, TV and radio through to direct mail, eDMs, new media and guerrilla campaigns.

This course will be of interest to anyone who wants to enter either the strategic or creative side of the advertising and communications industry. You’ll gain important insights into the key output of the advertising industry – the creative work that embodies strategic thinking. If you work hard on your weekly assignments, by the end of this course you should have a diverse and interesting portfolio of concepts and campaign thinking to help you break into this industry.

Course Aims

This course will teach you to:

1 - Develop a critical understanding of advertising as a languagefor consumer culture.

2 –Understand how creativity functions in general, and apply creative thinking in an advertising context.

3 – Understand the objectives of an advertising brief and execute this brief to create communication material across a wide range of media and for a broad range of clients.

3 –Creatively convey messages and deliver consumer and brand insights that are original, persuasive, insightful, ethical and on brief.

Student Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this subject you should be able to:

1 – Apply creative strategies across a broad range of advertising media,

2– Develop a critical understanding of advertising objectives,

4 – Critique and revise theirwork,

5 – Work effectively with feedback and present yourideas with confidence.

Graduate Attributes

In this course you should develop the following graduate attributes:

1 –An in-depth engagement with the language of advertising and the strategy that goes into creating it,

2 –The capacity to problem-solve and think creatively in the advertising context and beyond,

3 –Collaboration skills, initiative and entrepreneurial talent,

4 – Effective, persuasive communication skills.

Teaching Strategies

Lectures will be conducted in a large lecture theatre to ensure consistent delivery of the core curriculum and equal exposure to industry guest speakers.

Smaller tutorials have been designed to simulate the agency experience, with time spent briefing students on weekly assignments and assessing the effectiveness of creative responses. These smaller groups give tutors time for feedback and you time to reflect on the issues raised by weekly lectures.

This course offers continual practical engagement with the ideas that help to inform and construct world-class advertising today. Prepare to make inspirational discoveries about the creative mind at work – and put yours to work in a way that will reap benefits no matter which industry you find yourself in.

To get the most out of this course you are encouraged to collect as many ads/pieces of communication that you find (from a diverse range of sources) and bring them along to your tutorials.

Resources for students

Required textbook:

Altstiel, Tom & Grow, Jean, 2010. Advertising Creative: Strategy, Copy, and Design 2nd edition, Los Angeles, CA: Sage Publications.

(Please note: Mandatory textbook is available from the UNSW Bookshop)

Recommended texts

Sullivan, L. (2008). Hey, Whipple, Squeeze This: A Guide to Creating Great Advertising, 3rd Edition. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

(Please note: This recommended text should be available inthe UNSW Bookshop)

Additional resources

Mahon, N. (2008). Basics Advertising: Art Direction. Switzerland, Ava Publishing

Bowdery, R. (2008). Basics Advertising: Copywriting. Switzerland, Ava Publishing

(Please note: These optional texts are available from the UNSW Bookshop)

BLACKBOARD

Your creative work for Assessments 1, 2 and 3 should be submitted to the class BLACKBOARD.

BLACKBOARD is also where you will find:

- A variety of extra briefs that you may wish to tackle,

- Lecture summary slides (the day after your lectures),

- Extra course readings, and

- Assignment coversheets.

Course Outline

UNSW
CALENDAR WEEK / LECTURE DATE
PROPOSED CONTENT / TUTORIAL
PROPOSED CONTENT / ASSESSMENT INFORMATION / READINGS
WEEK 1:
CREATIVE THINKING / Lecture 1: 16 July
Introduction
Overview of Creative thinking
Creative thinking in advertising
Course expectations
Assessment tasks
explained / NO TUTORIAL FIRST WEEK / ALTSTIEL &
GROW
CHPT 1-2
Week 2:
Responding to
A Brief / Lecture 2: 23 July
Understanding strategy
Understanding your audience
Questioning a brief
How to present a creative rationale / Tutorial 1:24 July
Student introductions
Exercises to unlock creativity
Hands-on analysis of a creative brief
How to write your own brief / PORTFOLIO TASK
Create an advertisement for a cause or for corporate citizenship
(Sample briefs enclosed in Blackboard folder) / ALTSTIEL &
GROW
CHPT 4-5
Week 3:
De-constructing Creative approaches / Lecture 3: 30 July
Advertising as language
Styles and categories of communication and messages
Giving form to ideas / Tutorial 2: 31 July
Critique submissions for portfolio taskon cause advertising
Discuss issues and
examples around this
week’s lecture.
Brief next week’s portfolio
task / DUE:
PORTFOLIO TASK
ON CAUSE ADVERTISING
BRIEF:
PORTFOLIO TASK
Create an advertisement for the National Broadband Service, Connected Health, Connected Learning or an IT product of your choice
(Sample briefs enclosed in Blackboard folder) / ALTSTIEL &
GROW
CHPT 5-6
Week 4:
BRAINSTorming
techniques / Lecture 4: 6 Aug
Unpacking creative tools
Analyzing creative thinking
in world class advertising
Tailoring your creativity
to your brief / Tutorial 3: 7 Aug
Critique submissions for portfolio taskon an IT
brief
Discuss issues and
examples around this
week’s lecture.
Brief assessment 1 – the MYSTERY BRIEF
This week you will receive
a mystery brief – a brief
that you know nothing
about until today. You’ll
have one week to work on it
this assessment before presenting it during your next tutorial – this is an individual assignment –
you will not work in pairs / DUE:
PORTFOLIO TASK
ON ADVERTISING IT
BRIEF:
ASSESSMENT 1 –
MYSTERY BRIEF
(Briefed today, due next tutorial) / ALTSTIEL &
GROW
CHPT 6
Week 5:
Conceptual thinking and mainstream advertising / Lecture 5: 13 Aug
Brands and mainstream advertising
How to think conceptually
How and why good concepts work
Working on headlines
The importance of brevity
Developing the right tone for your audience / Tutorial 4: 14 Aug
Critique assessment 1 – responses to the MYSTERY BRIEF during the tutorial
Discuss issues and
examples around this
week’s lecture.
Brief next week’s portfolio
task / DUE:
ASSESSMENT 1 –
MYSTERY BRIEF
BRIEF:
PORTFOLIO TASK
Create a tourism advertisement for a country of your choice – or a means of travel
(Sample briefs enclosed in Blackboard folder) / ALTSTIEL &
GROW
CHPT 7-9
Week 6:
Guest Lecture / Lecture 6: 20 Aug
> Guest lecturer<
Creative Director
(subject to availability)
(ALTERNATIVELY)
Creative brainstorming demonstrated live with two industry professionals and audience participation! / Tutorial 5: 21 Aug
Critique submissions for portfolio task on travel advertising
Discuss issues and
examples around this
week’s lecture.
Brief next week’s portfolio task / DUE:
PORTFOLIO TASK
ON TOURISM ADVERTISING
BRIEF:
PORTFOLIO TASK
Create an advertisement for an FMCG or ‘me too’ product
(Sample briefs enclosed in Blackboard folder) / ALTSTIEL &
GROW
CHPT 7-9
Week 7:
Creativity in direct marketing and new media / Lecture 7: 27 Aug
Creative concepts that use the ‘direct’ medium effectively
How to create a longer, persuasive argument through direct communication
Using your creativity to increase response / Tutorial 6: 28 Aug
Critique submissions for portfolio taskon an FMCG
or ‘me too’ product
Discuss issues and
examples around this
week’s lecture.
Brief next portfolio
task (due tutorial 7) / BRIEF:
PORTFOLIO TASK
Create a loyalty pack or a welcome pack.
(Sample briefs enclosed in Blackboard folder) / ALTSTIEL &
GROW
CHPT 12-15
Reading Week:
Mid-semester break / NO Lecture: 3 Sep / NO Tutorial: 4 Sep
Week 8:
Post graduate reading break / NO Lecture: 10 Sep / No Tutorial: 11 Sep
Week 9:
The campaign / Lecture 8: 17 Sep
Creating ‘the big idea’
Working with taglines
Creating versatile themes that ‘have legs’
Communicating a message
across many mediums
Making the most creative use of every medium / Tutorial 7: 18 Sep
Critique submissions for direct mail portfolio task
Discuss campaign thinking and examples around this
week’s lecture.
Start work towards assessment 2 – the CAMPAIGN / DUE:
PORTFOLIO TASK
ON WELCOME OR
LOYALTY PACK
DUE:
ASSESSMENT 2 – YOUR FIVE TOP ADS (by Friday 21 September)
BRIEF:
ASSESSMENT 3 –
THE CAMPAIGN
Create some radio, direct, social media or guerrilla concepts around a mainstream idea you’ve developed, (or a new idea) using the same campaign theme / ALTSTIEL &
GROW
CHPT 3
CHPT 8
Week 10:
Principles of
good copywriting
(phase 1) / Lecture 9: 24 Sep
Working with longer texts
Working with support
points
Audience empathy
The art of brevity
Benefits vs. features
Principles of persuasion / Tutorial 8: 25 Sep
Continue working on Assessment 3 – the CAMPAIGN
Discuss issues and
examples around this
week’s lecture.
Discuss presentation protocols for the next two weeks / ALTSTIEL &
GROW
CHPT 10
Week 11: / NO LECTURE
1 Oct
National holiday –
no lecture / Tutorial 9: 2 Oct
Assessment 3 –
CAMPAIGN presentations / DUE:
ASSESSMENT 3 – PRESENTATIONS of THE CAMPAIGN
(in pairs) / ALTSTIEL &
GROW
CHPT 15-16
Week 12:
THE Creative’s checklist / Lecture 10: 8 Oct
Creating a portfolio
Getting into the industry
Professional practice / Tutorial 10: 9 Oct
Assessment 3 –
CAMPAIGN presentations / DUE:
ASSESSMENT 3 – PRESENTATIONS of THE CAMPAIGN
(in pairs) / ALTSTIEL &
GROW
CHPT 17

Assessment Details

Assessment 1 / Individual
Title / Mystery Brief
Expectations / Advertising and Creativity is run as a ‘portfolio clinic.’ During most weekly tutorials you’ll be set a brief and be asked to present your work next tutorial for feedback.
On week 4 you’ll be given a mystery brief – your first official assessment, which you’ll have to present for your tutorial on week 5. This is an individual assessment – you won’t be working in pairs. You’ll receive individual written feedback and suggestions that should help you fine-tune your thinking for your final portfolio presentation.
You will not be assessed on visual execution – this will be explained in your tutorial – but you will be assessed on how well you’ve been able to convert strategic thinking into creative ideas, integrating all the advice you have received so far.
Every week extra optional briefs will be enclosed in the class BLACKBOARD folder. If you get a chance to do some of these you’ll have more experience before you tackleassessment 1.
Assessment criteria / You will be assessed on your response to the brief, your creativity, originality, effectiveness, relevance, ability to understand and interpret the brief and your ability to understand the medium.
Length / Your submission should include at least two concepts in response to the brief. These should be presented in class and the same concepts should be put up on BLACKBOARD the day of your presentation. No more than 5 slides (not including cover sheet).
Weighting / 20% total (10% each piece).
Due date / Slides must be submitted to BLACKBOARD by August 14 – the same day you present your work for assessment 1.
BLACKBOARD submission requirements / - Please submit your work as a PowerPoint converted to a PDF
- A coversheet IS required
- Do not attach your coversheet as a separate file
- Only one copy of the assignment is to be submitted per team
- The submitted file must be named as follows:
5021_ ASSIGNMENT#_TUTORIAL#_STUDENTID
i.e.: 5021_1_8066_z3222227
Additional details: / Please use the cover page information included on page 15 of this document.
Late submissions / Your final assignment grade will be deducted 2% per day for every day (including Saturday and Sunday) your team is late submitting your assignment.

Assessment Details

Assessment 2 / In pairs
Title / Final portfolio - your five best concepts
Expectations / By the end of the course you shouldhave worked on several creative briefs or ‘portfolio tasks.’Assessment 2 lets you choose your top five individual concepts for your final portfolio presentation. These can include direct marketing, banner ads, radio, TV, outdoors, guerrilla concepts, etc. Make sure you take advantage of the extra briefs available on BLACKBOARD – that way you’ll have more choice when it comes to picking your top five.
You will not be assessed on visual execution – this will be explained in your tutorial – but you will be assessed on how well you’ve been able to convert strategic thinking into creative ideas. If your tutor has given you advice on how you can improve your ideas it’s important to work on your top five pieces of communication early on to maximise your marks.
A concise rationale should also be presented for each piece.
You’ll have the chance to brainstorm and produce your ideas in pairs, just as you would in the creative department of an agency. You’ll present your five best ads on week12 of the course. (You’ll be allocated a pair and a presentation date on week 2 during your first tutorial).
Assessment criteria / You will be assessed on your response to the brief, your creativity, originality, effectiveness, relevance, ability to understand and interpret the brief and ability to understand the medium. Your rationale should be grammatically correct, without spelling errors.
Length / Five ads – can include other pieces of communication (social media, direct mail, guerrilla marketing concepts, etc). These should be presented on no more than 10 slides, not including cover sheet, but including creative rationale (no more than 30 words per concept).
Weighting / 50% total (10% each piece).
Due date / Slides of your top 5 must be submitted to BLACKBOARD in week 9 on Friday 21 September.
BLACKBOARD submission requirements / - Please submit your work as a PowerPoint converted to a PDF
- A coversheet IS required
- Do not attach your coversheet as a separate file
- Only one copy of the assignment is to be submitted per team
- The submitted file must be named as follows:
5021_ ASSIGNMENT#_TUTORIAL#_STUDENTID
i.e.: 5021_2_8066_z3222227
(Only the student ID of the team member submitting the file should be included in the file’s name.)
ALSO – and this is important:
YOU MUST INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING STATEMENT IN YOUR SUBMISSION.
‘The enclosed work is the product of our original thinking. We also agree that the workload for this assignment was distributed fairly between team members and that everyone contributed equally.’
Please put a digital signature on this statement. If you feel that you cannot make this statement, please see your tutor.
Additional details: / Please use the cover page information included on page 15of this document.
Late submissions / It is in your interests to present weekly portfolio work regularly if you wish to make the most of continuous feedback and improve your final mark.
Your final assignment grade will be deducted 2% per day for every day (including Saturday and Sunday) your team is late submitting your assignment.
Assessment 3 / Pairs assessment
Title / One campaign per team, with rationale
Expectations / During the course you’ll have plenty of time for creative responses to a wide variety of briefs. You’ll also be taught how to create campaign ideas that run across a variety of mediums.
During this course you’ll have worked on a wide selection of briefs. You may choose any one of these briefs to develop into a campaign for this assessment.
You will need to create a campaignable idea out of one of your portfolio tasks and demonstrate how it can be carried across at least three different mediums (radio, direct, social media, web, mobile, etc).
Assessment criteria / You’ll be assessed on your ability to think strategically and communicate your ideas creatively across a variety of mediums (at least three mediums). These should include print or TV ads, and either radio, direct mail, new media or any other medium you feel is appropriate.
You’ll be marked on the quality of your thinking and the originality of your response – on your creativity, effectiveness, relevance, your ability to understand and interpret the brief and your understanding of the medium.You’ll be expected to have a ‘big idea’ that’s ‘campaignable’ and to demonstrate interesting use of the various mediums you select to convey your campaign idea. You’ll also be expected to write a short creative rationale.
You’ll be marked on your correct use of language and grammar as well as the quality of your thinking.
You’ll present your campaign on weeks 11 and 12 of the course. (You’ll be allocated a pair and a presentation date on week 2 during your first tutorial). Slides of your campaign must be submitted to BLACKBOARD on the day of your presentation).
Length / No more than 10 slides (not including cover sheet), including up to 300 words of creative rationale (maximum).
Weighting / 30%
Due date / Presentations take place in weeks 11 and 12 during your tutorial. A copy of the slides must be submitted to your tutor immediately before your presentation and formally submitted via Turnitin within 24 hours of your presentation.
BLACKBOARD submission requirements / - Please submit your work as a PowerPoint converted to a PDF
- A coversheet IS required
- Do not attach your coversheet as a separate file
- Only one copy of the assignment is to be submitted per team
- The submitted file must be named as follows:
5021_ ASSIGNMENT#_TUTORIAL#_STUDENTID
i.e.: 5021_3_8066_z3222227
(Only the student ID of the team member submitting the file should be included in the file’s name.)
ALSO – and this is important:
YOU MUST INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING STATEMENT IN YOUR SUBMISSION.
‘The enclosed work is the product of our original thinking. We also agree that the workload for this assignment was distributed fairly between team members and that everyone contributed equally.’
Please put a digital signature on this statement. If you feel that you cannot make this statement, please see your tutor.
Additional details: / Please use the cover page information included on page 15 of this document.
Late submissions / It is in your interests to present weekly portfolio work regularly if you wish to make the most of continuous feedback and improve your final mark.
Your final assignment grade will be deducted 2% per day for every day (including Saturday and Sunday) your team is late submitting your assignment.