With the primary goal of educating South Africa's tavern owners about the impact of alcohol abuse, and their power to make a positive impact, Mann Made Media developed compelling, real-world characters to illustrate the pivotal role that taverners play in the every day lives of their customers. These colourful characters were the centrepiece of the SAB Responsible Trader Mass Education Programme, which embraced the use of industrial theatre to spread its message. Examples of characters were S'bu (the 'main man') a popular and aspirational character with business savvy, and Ma Miriam - his friendly competitor from around the corner. These personalities were already familiar to SAB audiences, as they had been successfully used in previous communications - providing a solid foundation from which to enhance engagement.
"The aim of this roadshow was to help SAB lead the fight against alcohol abuse and create awareness about the harm caused by alcohol abuse and the role of the trader in changing community behaviours," explains Mic Mann, executive producer at Mann Made Media.
"By using a contemporary theatrical style of storytelling, we were able to simultaneously entertain and educate influential community leaders across the country and foster more responsible attitudes towards alcohol use," adds Nick Warren, creative director at Mann Made Media.
"Every aspect of the roadshow was tailored to reflect the atmosphere and social dynamics of local taverns and included a series of highly interactive game show sessions that rewarded traders for their participation," he adds.
The innovative programme proved to be hugely popular, engaging audiences and reaching around 16,500 SAB customer partners during the campaign.
"This programme has been an important aspect in the journey towards the sustainable development of our customer base. The industrial theatre format was the best way to communicate such emotive subject matter. We were ecstatic that our customers realised the power they have through this programme. They can be a positive force in our communities. We have been excited at how it has impacted their day to day actions," added Hepsy Mkhungo - head of enterprise development and community partnerships at SAB.
The team also created a vivid documentary that combined all the creative elements, and told the story of the SAB Responsible Trader campaign in a series of edits of varying lengths. The video incorporated emotive video inserts shot in high quality documentary style - which gave voice to the experiences, the attitudes, and the aspirations of real taverners and their customers.
In order to keep the message fresh and top of mind following the campaign, Mann Made Media created a series of posters and a comic book that featured the main characters and outlined the key story elements of the theatre. The print campaign also included valuable hints and tips on how to practice responsible trading, and contact details of organisations that support and promote responsible drinking and trading.
"The SAB Responsible Trader campaign has proven to be a great example of how creative storytelling can have a truly transformational and long-lasting impact on communities," adds Mann.
