New Zealand is in the middle of a critical housing shortage, as well as a shortage of tradespeople to build these houses. As New Zealand’s largest provider of trade apprenticeships, BCITO needed to convince more young people to enter the industry.
To maximise return on investment, we created a bespoke data solution to guide our campaign. The “Hammer & Nail” index, created by our friends at DOT, enabled BCITO to focus on school leavers who were open to apprenticeships, but historically more likely to choose universities. Further research with these communities revealed that the core challenge was to address the fact that most parents still believed going to university was the best option for their kids.
in apprentices from 2018-2020
Lift in parents open to trade careers
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Excellence in Long-Term Marketing Strategy
To position the trades as a clever career choice for young Kiwis, we needed to target the parents of school leavers and tackle the prejudices they had against a career in the trades.
This three year campaign followed Michael, an aspiring Kiwi tradie, and his accountant father who struggled to accept his son’s career choice.
Across TV, outdoor, and social, we used humour to reflect the outdated views of parents back at them, while at the same time highlighting the various benefits of a career in the trades.
This campaign not only helped thousands of young New Zealanders find careers, but changed the perception of an entire industry. More people than ever now view the trades as a favourable career move.
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