AUNZ Work of the Week: Kitchen Warehouse and Special

Kitchen Warehouse’s ‘Mum-nipulate The Algorithm’ campaign lets mothers secretly influence the ads their families see to ensure they receive the gifts they actually want. Developed with Special Australia, the campaign turns targeted advertising on its head by putting control in the hands of mums, not marketers.

The campaign deploys a suite of covert tactics to hijack family members' devices. The ‘Algorithm Infector’ uses QR codes on in-store posters and digital ads to redirect scanned ads to mums' wishlist items, while ‘Sneaky Share’ leverages retargeting through seemingly innocent pet videos shared in family group chats.

Most strikingly, ‘Microphone Mum-nipulation’ employs digital audio ads on the Nova Network that verbally repeat product names, triggering nearby smartphones to serve targeted ads based on ambient listening.

"Marketers have been using the algorithm to influence people for years," said Nils Eberhardt and Simon Gibson, group creative directors at Special. "We thought it was high time for mums to have access to the same tools."

This campaign brilliantly weaponises the omnipresent adtech that often frustrates, or freaks out, consumers. ‘Sneaky Share’ tactic is particularly inspired, leveraging the trusted "mum sending pet videos" behaviour, making the targeting feel organic rather than invasive.

The campaign's success will require maintaining a delicate balance between clever and creepy (especially for ‘Microphone Mum-nipulation’). If pulled off, it could redefine how brands facilitate gifting, and end the days of dud-gifts.