We Kiwis like to think we've got it sorted, living as we do in our little slice of '100% Pure' paradise. But we have plenty of demons and the truth is that New Zealand is "one of the worst-ranking OECD nations in terms of the percentage of the population that works 'very long hours'". So Westpac and DDB have dramatised that fact with another entertaining ad as part of its 'Start Asking' campaign that shows the pitfalls of owning your own business.
According to the Herald, an OECD report from last year found 13 percent of New Zealanders (20 percent of men and seven percent of women) worked more than 50 hours a week, compared with an average of nine percent for all other countries. We're also far less productive (France is at the opposite end of the spectrum, with low working hours and high productivity). And, as the 30 second product ad that follows on in the same vein as Flatties and Hand Outs, that's obviously something Wayne from Wayne's Weld is struggling with (semi-related fact that will make you feel old: it was the 20th anniversary of Wayne's World recently).
“One of the long standing truths of owning your own small business is that half the time it feels like the business owns you," says Michael Healy, Westpac’s portfolio director of brand and marketing. "While Westpac can’t help you with another weekend at the beach, we can help you make your business banking a bit easier.”
Andy Fackrell, executive creative director from DDB, says Wayne has already garnered a huge following in just one week. "quite simply because his plight resonates with so many of us who long for a better work/life balance".
Credits
Category: Business equipment and services
Agency: DDB New Zealand
Client: Westpac
Production: Prodigy Films
Director: Tim Bullock
Executive Creative Director: Andy Fackrell
Creative Director: Shane Bradnick
Copywriter: Jay Hunt / Pete Gosselin
Art Director: Jay Hunt / Pete Gosselin
Producer: Nikki Walker
Production Company: Prodigy
Executive Producer: Judy Thompson
Agency Producer: Rosie Grayson
DOP: Germain McMiking
Editor: Adam Willis
Sound: Jon Cooper
Post production: Toybox
Planner: Rupert Price
Account Director: Jenny Travers
Group Account Director: Zoe Alden
Client Credits:
Callum Wilson: GM Strategy and CE
Sharon van Gulik: Head of Brand and Marketing Communications
Michael Healy: Portfolio Director – Brand and Marketing Strategy and Customer Experience
Michal Petrus: Senior Marketing and Planning Manager of SME Marketing and Customer Experience
Marianne Falconer: Portfolio Manager, Business Marketing