Beacon & Howe Auckland Launches World’s First Sensory-Rich Billboard Using Actual Grass Clippings and Mild Panic
In a bold step forward for tactile trauma-based marketing, Beacon & Howe Auckland has unveiled what it's calling a ‘sensorial media breakthrough’: a fully interactive billboard made entirely from compressed suburban lawn clippings, borrowed wheelie bins, and the unsettling smell of forgotten Saturdays.
The campaign, titled Feel Something (It Might Be an Allergy), aims to ‘disrupt urban ennui’ by triggering minor flashbacks to wet weekend chores and passive-aggressive neighbour drama. Strategically placed in an unsuspecting Grey Lynn car park, the installation invites passers-by to touch, sniff, and question their life choices in real time.
“This isn’t about the product,” said Senior Creative Strategist Liam Withers, who wore a wide-brimmed hat and said ‘space’ instead of ‘place’ three times during the briefing. “It’s about the emotional temperature of leisure. Lawn work is the last unbranded ritual. We’re here to claim it.”
Sources confirm the client is still unclear on what's being advertised. Initial concepts referenced a range of industries, including insurance, ice blocks, and possibly propane. Currently, the billboard directs viewers to a landing page that simply loops a 47-second video of a man looking at a wheelie bin, then quietly walking away.
“That's the point,” said Withers. “It’s layered.”
No plans have yet been announced to expand the campaign. Although Beacon & Howe has locked a trademark for ‘Ambient Mown Realism’ and quietly booked the entire Te Awamutu Bunnings team for an undisclosed weekend in March.
The campaign, titled Feel Something (It Might Be an Allergy), aims to ‘disrupt urban ennui’ by triggering minor flashbacks to wet weekend chores and passive-aggressive neighbour drama. Strategically placed in an unsuspecting Grey Lynn car park, the installation invites passers-by to touch, sniff, and question their life choices in real time.
“This isn’t about the product,” said Senior Creative Strategist Liam Withers, who wore a wide-brimmed hat and said ‘space’ instead of ‘place’ three times during the briefing. “It’s about the emotional temperature of leisure. Lawn work is the last unbranded ritual. We’re here to claim it.”
Sources confirm the client is still unclear on what's being advertised. Initial concepts referenced a range of industries, including insurance, ice blocks, and possibly propane. Currently, the billboard directs viewers to a landing page that simply loops a 47-second video of a man looking at a wheelie bin, then quietly walking away.
“That's the point,” said Withers. “It’s layered.”
No plans have yet been announced to expand the campaign. Although Beacon & Howe has locked a trademark for ‘Ambient Mown Realism’ and quietly booked the entire Te Awamutu Bunnings team for an undisclosed weekend in March.