Whybin\TBWA set to launch ‘Get Real. Get Outside’ brand campaign for STIHL tonight
Whybin\TBWA Sydney and Melbourne will launch a new campaign for STIHL Australia, the world’s leading brand of chainsaws and market leader in outdoor power equipment, tonight, Sunday 2nd October.
The 60 second commercial illustrates how our lives have become consumed by computers and television, spending far too much time indoors doing the things we used to do outdoors.


The backyard is the institution, it’s where we undertake favorite past times and create memories that last a lifetime. This became our motivation to target the domestic market and the chance to reclaim the Aussie backyard. After all, the backyard is the living heart of the Aussie home.
With this in mind STIHL and Whybin\TBWA have designed an entire advertising campaign around encouraging families and friends to start spending more time in their backyards again. And this campaign, together with the new company theme of “STIHL – Making It Easy”, marks a new chapter for the STIHL brand.
The commercial takes an ironic, dry, humorous look at these inside scenarios by placing them outside in the backyard. And the inside activities have been represented as a digital ‘pixilated’ version of the real thing in an effort to show how silly things have become. A digital dog, a digital vegetable garden, and digital speech bubbles all depict the things people spend hours doing online every single day.
The commercial ends with the message – Get Real. Get Outside.
Director Hamish Rothwell was immediately drawn to the concept and helped to bring this idea to life by collaborating closely with the agency and the post production company FIN Design.
An integrated campaign rolls out across TV, print and digital following its launch this Sunday 2nd October.
Client – STIHL Australia
Agency – Whybin\TBWA Sydney and Melbourne
Matty Burton – Executive Creative Director
Dave Bowman – Executive Creative Director
Paul Reardon – Executive Creative Director
Russ Tucker – Digital Creative Director
Dean Hamilton – Senior Copywriter
Hannes Ciatti – Senior Art Director
Margot Ger – Producer
Jo Allach – Producer
Production
Production Company – GoodOil
Hamish Rothwell – Director
Sam Long – Producer
Russell Boyd – D.O.P.
Post Production – Fin Design & Effects
Sound
Elliot Wheeler – Turning Studios
Emma Hoy – Producer
Laurelle Esse – Account Director
Jeremy Smart – Digital Account Director
Alana Cobbledick – Account Director
James Needham – Strategic Planner

55 Comments
should have shot it on a canon
Terrible, awful post too….surprised that Fin were involved. It’s not even that original, Canon did it so much better a few years back.
wow, great execution
cause if you don’t trim and prune, you stay inside?
did i get that right?
Brilliant, loved it
It’s like this ad. Only not as good.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VndRdVjOjRU
wtf?…. thanks for the explanation in the blurb….but the whole idea was missed on me and 19 million other Aussies
I’m glad there was an explanation because I couldn’t work it out.
WTF?
love the art directing. fucking boring idea.
4 CDs and 3 ADs and a planner for this….
whybin kennedy? more like shite day.
its all a bit digital,STIHL should have cut it off at the legs.
Terrible. Says absolutely nothing about Stihl. Builds not at all on their brilliant brand heritage. What a massive fail.
Get real. Get outside. Cut shit down.
WTF? It’s bad, confusing and poorly executed.
I’ll take the online movies, gaming and chat anytime over a BBQ with my extended family.
So Persil meets Canon in an ad for Stihl. Blatant, not to mention a terrible ad for Stihl. Must have been a brilliant bit of pulling the wool over the clients eyes to get this up.
If everything you see on your computer is as pixelated as the things in this ad, it’s time to get a new computer.
Lego and crack clearly do go together.
because flame throwing red necks that buy stihl will connect with this,
I think the faggots who use electric power tools to collect leaves from their pussy flowers in their driveway is who this ad hits
Any regrets yet Reardo?
Stihl waiting for TBWA, filled with talent, to make great work. This isn’t it.
“Yes, that’s right Mr Client. if you don’t cut your bushes or clean up your yard, you won’t go outside, so you’ll probably stay inside, and when you’re inside you’ll probably play more computer games and text your mates rather than have BBQs with them – that’s what people do indoors these days. Sad isn’t it? So, that’s where Stihl power tools come in. They cut your bushes and stuff don’t they? so the truth is that they actually make the world a better place. The other strategy we have is where we can demonstrate how Stihl power tools make you richer and more attractive”
Nice and simple.
For fucks sake this is generic crap, not just generic for power tools but for the outdoors in general. It says nothing and makes me feel nothing. Classic case of too many CDs spoil the broth.
When I started in advertising (in 1967), I was in awe of great writers and thinkers of the time. Through hard work, observation and a search for a truth in every product I ever worked on, I made some great ads. It’s now time for me to walk away (to my winery in Tuscany) and hand the crown over to the creators of this breathtakingly intelligent Stihl campaign. The truth they found? If you use power tools (specifically Stihl power tools) ummm, your friends will come around and umm have a barby and your ummm husband won’t spend so much time on Facebook and the tomato patch (in the middle of the backyard) will turn to Lego and all that… I’m off to buy a chainsaw. Stihl of course. After such a compelling argument why would I buy any other brand?
Anyone remember Canon rodeo from a few years back?
I’ve looked at this again and I’m afraid there is just no solution.
Full marks to the suit for selling this rubbish to the client. Stihl should put their business up for pitch again.
Sadly I think DDB NZ did a better job… Just saying.
So off the mark.
Should have taken to the idea with a chainsaw before it got made.
“Gimmie my Makita back Mac!”
Well I love it even if u sadly twisted souls dont. Well done!!
I like too, well done
OMFG what is this sorry excuse for an ad? Lego what the? soft music like a life insurance ad what the? cricket ball what the? the strategy is way off the mark here and the CD’s should have piped up. Matty is awesome but the shit the agency are chucking out is feels like pulling teeth for me.
For a chain saw I dont want soft music and lego, I want macho power and ACDC, hacking the fuck out of chain mail.
Clients generally get the work they want (and deserve). For better or worse. And I doubt in this case there’s any exception.
This is a bit stupid.
Pixelated or not, the people seem to be enjoying themselves outside to begin with anyway?
Totally perplexed as to why the client allowed the agency to make this on their behalf. Irrelevant, pretentious and boring.
I just don’t get why you guys get off being SO over critical SO rudely SO ignorant. What is the point, where does it get anybody and WHY do you get kicks out of it???? What must that say about the person you are?
The add may not be to everyones taste but in my opinion, it is different, attracts attention despite the somewhat subtle concept, beautifully executed and has taken a team time effort and love to create.
Back off on the ‘over the top’ negative comments. Make an intelligent constructive comment for sure.
C’mon come on, it’s not a good ad, so what does say about you and your judgement. It’s a confusing piece of work , not original and frankly the execution is poor. If you’re willing to put your work on the blog, you are inviting people to judge it. There are a lot of positive comments for other work,this just doesn’t deserve it.
The question the client should ask themselves is ‘did we have to explain the idea to our staff when we did the internal presentation? Was the work presented with a ten minute preamble or was the idea clear enough to be understood without a word of explanation?’
This is an embarrassing example of what happens when we as an industry don’t visit the real world often enough.
wrong on so many levels. over-thought, patronising and childish. how about ‘don’t tell me what to do with my life’ and make a good chainsaw for when i need one… please.
I believe the idea could have worked if it had better Direction, you kind of get what it was saying – we spend to much time indoors…
A strong director would have saved it – rather than shooting slow motion gimmicks, bad performances and hoping the post will makeit all come together.
But instead we have a muddy – poorly directed ad. The only clear vision is the watered down directors references which seems to happen allot in this country.
Quite amazing that Agency’s and clients don’t spend more consideration choosing the right director – they really are quite important for the idea to make sense.
come on 7.48am… are you serious? this is utter dog sauce and has no relevance to the brand. I think you must be the planner at whybin’s.
Oh also you referred to us as guys, then as person (should be people)
Looks like the graphics from LeisureSuit Larry.
The idea is alright as an idea; the text based conversation around the picnic table was a nice insight, for example. But it’s completely wrong for power tools. Expecially when you consider who you’re selling power tools to. Men. Guys with wide hands and hairy necks. Men like this are not staying up late discussing our modern existential crisis. They’re outside, cutting back the roses. All your ad’s supposed to do is get them to use your brand instead of another one. That’s it. It’s just a backyard, after all. Not the Matrix.
I think 7:48’s spelling of the word ‘ad’ should probably have alerted us that they’re not the sharpest crayola in the box.
Similar?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5F7Q-g5laM
This is utter rubbish. Perhaps Whybins would be better off with some more experienced ECDs at the helm. Because I ain’t seen noth’n yet!
I’m not sure about more experienced ECD’s – the last one was perhaps the most experienced and it has moved along way forward since then.
Maybe it’s just me but I actually quite like this.
When you say it’s moved forward, I take it you’re not referring to the work.
I did mean the work actually.
I like the NRMA stuff, well two things to be exact not all of it. Apparently juries did also. Don’t mind this. I liked the Pedigree stuff. So did juries. I liked Rabo. I think juries did on that too?
Recently it seems they are consistently winning Cannes, Caxtons, Spikes, LIA’s and business.
If my memory serves me right Whybin haven’t scored anything at Cannes in the last five years. (Not including NZ they are fairly consistent and tend to score big.)
So yeah, I am referring to the work.
What can you remember from Whybin that you are referring to in particular? Am I wrong in this?
Yes Me, you are wrong. Given the creative fire power there, they only seem to fire blanks. It’s always been a problem there and as for Cannes, we’re only talking bronze aren’t we? They’ve invested some serious money into creatives with plenty of Lions under their belts, the problem is a lack of great suits and planners.It always has been.
Hamish had a few giggles to himself making this.
Awful. States practically nothing regarding Stihl. Develops certainly not on the excellent brand name traditions. Such a enormous fall short.