Description:

The Immunisation Advisory Centre (IMAC), alongside the Ministry of Health, needed a unique creative campaign to promote their annual flu vaccination programme. The concept had to work across a wide range of media.

The Māori and Asian community aged 65+ have lower rates of annual flu vaccinations than the overall population, so the campaign had to be primarily aimed at these groups. It also needed to be used over several years with the ability to adjust the audience each year.

Along with the client, we took part in community consultations, involving visiting marae and kaumātua groups. We were able to engage with the Māori community, kanohi ki te kanohi (face to face), and understand cultural nuances, whakawhanaungatanga (establishing relationships), and draw upon whakapapa (genealogy). Asian Family Services were also consulted, drawing upon multiple audiences within this, including Chinese, Korean and Indian.

Listening to these groups, one thing that came across consistently throughout all the conversations was that whānau members wanted to make sure their elders were getting their flu shot and vice versa as their family were so precious to them. This insight led to the campaign strategy of everyone treating their whānau like the taonga (treasure) they are, in a reciprocal way – leading with the line ‘Treasure our Whānau’.

This concept of treating whānau as the taonga they are, formed the catalyst of the aesthetic. We based the campaign graphics around beautiful portraiture one may find in a Māori household. Reminiscent of traditional Māori portraiture of the past, these portraits were of real people who are part of the communities we were talking to with this campaign.

The portraits were paired with a versatile and modern design aesthetic across all campaign collateral, including digital ads, print ads and various other collateral. This was brought to life through the portraits, and gave the campaign a uniqueness, creating it’s own warm visual identity. This included using a bold, bright red colour and modern typography, which also had to meet accessibility guidelines – particularly important for the older audience it needed to reach.

With longevity and versatility being important to this campaign, the design can be easily tailored to different audiences in future years by updating the portraits. This may include pregnant women or Pasifika communities.

After the campaign production wrapped, we gifted the participants with their very own framed portrait, for them and their whānau to keep as a taonga, to display proudly in their home.