Award Show Hack

Inlaws Audio teamed up with creative agency BBR Toronto to hack the judging process of advertising award shows with musical business pitches (disguised as radio spots) to put a spotlight on the talents of the nimble and hungry custom music house.

The Inlaws Audio House was looking for new clients. Their problem? The majority of ad creatives would rather stick with what they’re comfortable and familiar with than take a perceived risk and try something new. With ad creatives unaware of the expertise and talents of Inlaws Audio, the small Toronto challenger brand had to find a creative way to capture their attention.

Spencer Hall, Creative Director and Co-Founder at Inlaws Audio adds, “We could’ve spent money the more traditional way; wining and dining potential new clients, gifting sporting event tickets and organizing sushi lunch n’ learns (not that there’s anything wrong with that). But this year, we wanted to do something different. Something that would truly differentiate us from the competition, get our name out there and showcase our in-house musical talents. Thanks to BBR’s creative and strategic help, we found a playful and crafty way to do just that.”

Instead of treating potential clients to a steak dinner, Inlaws Audio created a strategic B2B self-promotion, disrupting the Atomics, Clios and Marketing Awards shows with hyper-targeted musical business pitches aimed at the ears of relevant creative decision makers: award show judges.
In the words of Brandon Tralman-Baker, Creative Director/Writer at BBR, “We had to act fast since awards deadlines quickly follow jury panel announcements. So, we did a bit of research to uncover jury members’ names, their claims to fame and other fun tidbits about them, then collaboratively wrote the songs in an attempt to convince fellow creatives to consider Inlaws Audio for their next commercial production.”
Bruce Harris, Creative Director/Art Director at BBR, adds. “Like most sales pitches, these too came with just the right amount of butt kissing, flattery and voice modulation.”

To get through the cracks of the award show entry regulations, and to be mindful of a relatively small budget, the team aired each spot once on radio stations with favourably-priced, late-night time slots, namely The Hog: Saskatchewan’s Country Music Station, Natural Healing Radio: The World’s only 24/7 Healing Station and Amherst Island Radio in Stella, Ontario.

While The Hog, Natural Healing Radio, and Amherst Island station listeners might not have appreciated the interruption to their regular programming, Inlaws Audio is betting on their target seeing things differently. Ad creatives are invited to visit InLaws.ca to book a session today, and experience just how great InLaws Audio is for themselves.