bY DOUG ROBERTSON
28mar06
The SANFL is "Keeping it Real" with a new television commercial said to hit the mark between the league's traditions and an exciting future, the league says.
But the SANFL says it's prepared to dump the high-tech marketing tool if it does not translate into increased numbers attending SANFL games this season.
"Absolutely," chief executive Leigh Whicker said of his willingness to change tact if necessary.
The commercial, viewed exclusively by The Advertiser yesterday and to be aired this week, has re-introduced action highlights from live SANFL matches.
The advert also shows fans getting close up to the action, kids having a kick on the oval and underlines all that comes for just $8 entry a game for adults.
The television ad will be updated each week of the season with each round of matches tagged at the end of the weekly commercial to keep it relevant.
The cost of air time and an associated press and radio campaign was estimated at $200,000 annually which is in line with the usual marketing budget.
The league says the TV commercial aims at the SANFL's "key attraction" - things that cannot be done at an AFL game.
It's again headed by leading television salesman Tim Shaw - from "wait there's more" fame - from Sydney which has upset some clubs. They say Shaw has no relevance to the 129-year history of the SANFL.
Devised by public relations company KWP, the commercial replaced last season's "Local Footy" advert which also attracted criticism from some general managers.
They said it was "out of touch" with SANFL traditions and the "Local Footy" tag sold short the standard of the "league" competition.
SANFL marketing and corporate affairs manager Paul Anderson said he listened to the criticism. He said the new advert was sensitive to the SANFL culture but with a foot in the future.
"We wanted to reflect the key features of the SANFL which are value for money, fun and accessibility," he said. "We wanted to highlight the man-on-man football, the real action that characterises SANFL football but we're also trying to capture the interest of the general public.
"This (commercial) shows the big marks, letting kids on the oval and how close spectators can get to the action all for $8 a game."
The SANFL had no attendance growth last year for the first time in five seasons while ABC-TV match telecasts attracted about two million viewers or a 17 per cent rise.
"The television figures show the interest is still very high in the SANFL but we've got to get people through the gates," Whicker said.
The SANFL launched its 2006 season yesterday on the banks of the River Torrens attended by captains and coaches of each club.
West Adelaide skipper David Piasente and coach Wayne Weidemann out-pedalled the opposition in a keenly-contested

