MAXENERGY’s campaign "Look around instead of looking away" addresses a prevalent consumer behavior in Austria amid rising electricity costs: the tendency to ignore high prices rather than seek better energy suppliers. The campaign’s core brand proposition emphasizes awareness and proactive decision-making, positioning MAXENERGY as the sensible alternative for consumers willing to confront and reduce their energy expenses. By highlighting the avoidable consequences of ignoring costly bills, the brand implicitly promises savings and better control over energy costs through informed supplier choices.
Strategically, the campaign leverages a universal human insight: people frequently engage in denial or repression to avoid uncomfortable realities, in this case, the discomfort of reviewing or switching energy providers despite escalating costs. This insight is embodied through a humor-driven, creative approach where all characters cover their eyes, leading to exaggerated mishaps that metaphorically represent the hazards of willful blindness. This absurd visual metaphor effectively captures attention and encourages viewers to reconsider their passive stance on energy costs. By using everyday scenarios—such as a waiter pouring wine or a hairdresser at work—the campaign grounds its message in relatable moments, enhancing engagement and memorability.
Targeting Austrian consumers likely accustomed to inertia in their energy choices, the campaign’s 360° content and film execution amplifies this central message across media channels, aiming to disrupt complacency through humor and vivid storytelling. The choice of humor not only makes the serious subject matter more approachable but also facilitates broader shareability and recall. Overall, the campaign’s creative angle directly addresses psychological avoidance behaviors, urging consumers to “look around” for alternatives rather than “look away” from the issue, aligning brand value with consumer empowerment and cost-saving pragmatism.
FORMAT#3 SYMBOLIZE THE PROBLEM — Uses symbols or analogies to represent the problem instead of showing it literally.
This campaign fits FORMAT#3 because it uses literal, exaggerated symbolism to represent the target audience’s denial about high electricity costs. Instead of directly portraying people ignoring bills, every character covers their eyes and suffers comically absurd mishaps, visually dramatizing the concept of “turning a blind eye.” The mishaps aren’t direct consequences of ignoring electricity costs, but rather a creative analogy highlighting self-inflicted problems from willful ignorance. This symbolic, humorous approach is the campaign’s core device, not a direct problem/solution or narrative arc.
ADVERTISING FORMATS EXPLAINED: https://www.clapboard.com/blog/branding-and-advertising/brand-strategy/12-advertising-creative-formats
1. Verbund – Market Positioning
Austria's leading electricity provider, Verbund positions itself as a sustainable energy champion focusing heavily on hydropower and renewable sources. It emphasizes environmental responsibility, innovation in green technologies, and reliable supply, appealing to eco-conscious consumers and businesses seeking cleaner energy solutions.
2. Energie AG – Market Positioning
Energie AG is positioned as a regional powerhouse offering integrated energy solutions with a focus on customer service and local engagement. Their strategy highlights dependable electricity and gas provision combined with smart energy management services tailored to residential and industrial clients in Austria.
3. Wien Energie – Market Positioning
Wien Energie stands out as Austria’s largest regional energy supplier with strong emphasis on innovation, urban energy solutions, and renewable energy expansion. They focus on digital transformation and smart city initiatives, promoting energy efficiency and customer empowerment through technology.
4. EVN Group – Market Positioning
EVN Group positions itself as a sustainable utility services provider, balancing traditional energy supply with renewable investments. Its strategic angle involves regional infrastructure development, customer-oriented digital solutions, and integrated services extending beyond electricity to environmental and water services.
5. Energie Steiermark – Market Positioning
Energie Steiermark differentiates through strong regional ties in Styria and a commitment to future-ready energy solutions. They emphasize renewable generation, energy efficiency consulting, and localized customer care, aiming to combine traditional reliability with innovation and sustainability.
Q: What is Look around instead of looking away about?
A: Look around instead of looking away is a 2024 campaign created by the agency TANTE EMMA for MAXENERGY, targeting the Austrian market. The campaign addresses the issue of rising electricity costs and the widespread tendency among consumers to ignore high prices rather than seek out better energy suppliers. Through a series of humorous film and content executions, every character is shown covering their eyes and suffering absurd mishaps, visually dramatizing the dangers of willful ignorance. The campaign’s central creative idea is to encourage consumers to confront uncomfortable truths about their energy choices and consider MAXENERGY as a proactive, cost-saving alternative.
Q: What creative device does Look around instead of looking away use?
A: Look around instead of looking away employs FORMAT#3 SYMBOLIZE THE PROBLEM, as classified by Clapboard’s 12-format taxonomy. Instead of depicting people literally ignoring their electricity bills, the campaign uses exaggerated symbolism: all characters cover their eyes, leading to a series of comically disastrous outcomes. This visual metaphor dramatizes the concept of turning a blind eye to problems, making the audience confront the consequences of denial through humor and absurdity. The creative device is not a direct problem-solution narrative but an analogy that highlights the risks of inaction in an engaging, memorable way.
Q: What is the campaign proposition for Look around instead of looking away?
A: The campaign proposition for Look around instead of looking away centers on MAXENERGY’s positioning as the sensible choice for Austrian consumers willing to address rising electricity costs. By spotlighting the avoidable consequences of ignoring expensive bills, the campaign urges viewers to become more aware and proactive in their energy decisions. The strategic message targets consumers’ psychological tendency to avoid uncomfortable realities, especially when it comes to reviewing or switching suppliers. In the context of the Austrian electricity market, this proposition matters because it promises consumers greater control and potential savings, positioning MAXENERGY as an advocate for transparency and cost efficiency.
Q: How does Look around instead of looking away rank in Clapboard's archive?
A: Look around instead of looking away holds a Clapboard Campaign Score of 67/100 in Clapboard’s global ad archive. This score reflects the campaign’s creative ambition, execution quality, and cultural relevance as evaluated by Clapboard’s curatorial team.
Q: Who are the competitors in MAXENERGY's category?
A: In Austria’s energy sector, MAXENERGY competes with several established players. Verbund leads as a champion of sustainable energy, focusing on hydropower and renewables for eco-conscious consumers. Energie AG emphasizes integrated energy solutions and strong local engagement, while Wien Energie stands out for its innovation in urban energy and digital transformation. EVN Group balances traditional supply with renewable investments and broader utility services, and Energie Steiermark leverages regional ties and a commitment to future-ready, efficient energy solutions. Each competitor brings a distinct strategic focus to the evolving Austrian energy market.
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