Fairness First News South Africa

#FairnessFirst: Soweto Derby and Grey's Anatomy fight to end women abuse

Last week, the world marked International Women's Day in a number of ways. Two SA brands notably planned ahead with messaging that tied in on an extremely large-scale - Carling Black Label did so at the televised Soweto Derby, while 1st for Women made their move during a suitably themed episode of Grey's Anatomy. Here's why the nation took note.

Most of us watch TV as a way to unwind – to switch off from real-world problems and lose yourself in sport or drama that’s different to what you face in your everyday life.

But the Carling Black Label Premier Soccer League #NoExcuse and 1st For Women Grey’s Anatomy ticker-tape takeover campaigns that took place before International Women’s Day, now celebrated on 8 March 2018, took a different take. One was targeted at males, the other at females – both with high visibility and impact.

#NoExcuse with Carling Black Label at the Soweto Derby

Over 85,000 people – mainly men – were watching the Soweto Derby biggie between Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates on the first Saturday of March when a single female stood up and was joined by the #NoExcuse female choir, singing the well-known Asambe Nono.

The tune may be familiar, but the words certainly weren’t, having been changed to reflect the tale of a South African woman being abused by her partner who comes home intoxicated after his team loses a soccer match.

This was then broadcast live on both the FNB Stadium big screen and televised for home viewers at both ends of the spectrum, on SABC and SuperSport alike, with commentators ready to roll and explain this latest element of the campaign.

Hard-hitting and well-executed by lead agency Ogilvy, comments on social media have been overwhelmingly positive, with many appreciating the fact that many cases of femicide are the result of ‘reckless drinking’, so props to Carling Black Label for being brave and bringing this to the forefront in such a public way.

We’re looking forward to seeing what’s next from the #NoExcuse campaign.

1st For Women fights women abuse on female favourite Grey’s Anatomy

It doesn’t get more mainstream than the Monday evening ideal for most women: loving nothing better than kicking up their feet with a glass of their favourite drink and losing themselves in the fictionalised scenes of Grey’s Anatomy. Unfortunately, while we don’t all have a McDreamy love-interest or honest-to-a-fault Christina BFF, most women do face untold horrors in our daily lives that they tend to keep under wraps, as they simply don’t know where to turn for help.

1st for Women chose to run TV ad spots and a ticker-tape message prompting viewers to log onto their For Women website and social platforms to follow the social media conversation as well as for advice and resources, which matched the episode’s content of women’s abuse as acted by actress Camilla Luddington as Jo Wilson and ex-husband Paul (played by Matthew Morrison) in the most recently aired episode.

Even better? Originally titled ‘Four Seasons in One Day’, as is their sing-inspired tradition, producers of the show also took a turn for the new by changing the title of episode 9 of season 14 in the US to the number for the National Domestic Violence Hotline in America. That’s true determination to raise awareness, as the show title pops up in that PVR or download list, so further amplifies the message that help is just a phone call away.

Each episode is viewed by millions, and this is most definitely a global issue, so well done to 1st for Women for finding a way to localise the issue.

That’s one way to get a message to sink in…

About Leigh Andrews

Leigh Andrews AKA the #MilkshakeQueen, is former Editor-in-Chief: Marketing & Media at Bizcommunity.com, with a passion for issues of diversity, inclusion and equality, and of course, gourmet food and drinks! She can be reached on Twitter at @Leigh_Andrews.
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