"Faking It Wasn't An Option" For Selleys Liquid Nails Billboard

Selleys Liquid Nails, has proven it is one of Australia’s toughest adhesives by inviting the public to put it to the test.

The brand’s new campaign, created with Howatson+Co, turned product testing into a public spectacle by gluing a mix of everyday (and not-so-everyday) objects  to a giant outdoor billboard: a kayak, an arcade machine, and a 2.8 metre mounted marlin. The challenge was simple: “If you can take it, it’s yours.”

LBB spoke with Ernie Ciaschetti, senior copywriter and Dan Smith, senior art director at Howatson+Co about why this project made them experts in work health and safety. 

LBB> How did you strike the balance between humour and spectacle?

Ernie and Dan> We knew if we got the spectacle right, the humour would follow naturally. To make that happen, we focused on picking the best products and the ideal location. We landed on Newtown for its mix of tradies and pedestrians, giving us the best chance at real, organic foot traffic.

From there, we trusted the humour would come together in the edit. Once we mixed the most colourful attempts with the perfect track, it all clicked. We also worked with a few influencers who helped spread the campaign and added their own sense of humour.

LBB> Can you talk us through the logistics of getting these objects stuck to the billboard? How was it actually done and tested?

Ernie and Dan> Both the Selleys team and us at Howatson+Co didn't want any trickery or gimmicks. The last thing we needed was someone seeing a bolt or anything that could compromise the reputation of Selleys Liquid Nails. Especially because the product really works. So faking it wasn't an option.

Initially, we thought you just Liquid Nail something to a billboard and off you go... but through testing and talking to Selleys' chemical engineers, we quickly learnt it took 14 days to cure.

From there, we began testing on different materials and surfaces to find the strongest possible options. It became clear that anything with a large enough flat surface would hold securely.

Once all the testing was complete and it was time for the real build, we assembled everything in a warehouse space, gluing each piece down and waiting two weeks for it to fully cure. After that, each OOH panel was loaded onto a flatbed truck and taken to Newtown for installation.

LBB> What was the thinking behind the choice of objects?

Ernie and Dan> Choosing the items was probably the most contentious part of the campaign. It came down to two things: what tradies would actually want and what would stand out.

At one point we were going to try to stick a retired NRL player, get him down, and you get to kick the footy with him, but apparently that was an ‘OHS issue’. OHS, that was a whole other thing. We are now experts. Unfortunately.

LBB> There have been ads showing off different objects stuck to billboards before. How did you go about building Selleys as a brand with this campaign, not just the category?

Ernie and Dan> Selleys Liquid Nails isn't like other glues. It’s a construction adhesive that holds up to 400kg per square metre. While other campaigns, like Araldite’s, have stuck cars to billboards, they involved a bit of advertising hyperbole. And unlike ours, they didn’t involve the audience.

Where we set ourselves apart was by doing a real product demonstration -- using nothing but the real holding power of Selleys Liquid nails -- and inviting people to get hands on and test it for themselves. Tradies are a no-nonsense bunch. They don’t want fluffy language, they want a real demonstration that something works. And with the brand line, 'If it's Selleys it works,' the idea felt perfectly in step with the brand.

In addition, our goal was for our billboard to be more than just an OOH installation. We invited multiple tradie influencers to participate, using the billboard to create unique social content (like @havea_676 and @addictedtotools).

In this way, we made sure that while our billboard was experienced by few, it would be seen by many.

LBB> James Dive is well known for his creative installations. What did he bring to the project?


Ernie and Dan> James has an amazing ability to elevate ideas and bring them to life in the perfect way. Though he’s done it all, he plugs in like a creative partner, without ego. He helped workshop the items, find the perfect location, oversaw the testing, installation and directed the film. We couldn’t have done it without him.

LBB> How did you anticipate people would respond to the challenge? Did the crowd’s reaction surprise you at all?

Ernie and Dan> We had extensively tested the product before installation. So, we knew it would hold, but what we couldn't predict was the public’s response.

Fortunately, people were immediately drawn to it. They wanted the products and they genuinely gave it their all. One guy came back multiple times throughout the day, at one point he wanted to tie a rope to his ute and the marlin… he really wanted that thing.

Maybe we can send it to him. Maybe not.