Smokers encouraged to ‘Quit Your Way in May’ in new animated campaign via Showpony Adelaide

To encourage more smokers to give quitting a go, the South Australian Government has designated May 2021 as a quitting month. To launch the State-wide event, Showpony Adelaide has developed a new campaign, ‘Quit Your Way in May’.

Says Kirsty Mudge, senior project officer, Drug and Alcohol Services South Australia: “Quitting smoking is hard, but smokers learn something new from every attempt. We wanted to create an opportunity for people to try quitting as part of a supportive, communal event.”

Says Laura Tregloan, account director, Showpony Adelaide: “Research shows that when it comes to quitting, there’s no one right way to do it – different things work for different people. We wanted to reflect this truth, with a bold, welcoming campaign that invites and encourages people to find what works for them.”

While many anti-smoking campaigns confront people with negative ads highlighting health risks, to cut through in an unexpected way, ‘Quit Your Way in May’ takes a different approach, with bright colours, quirky characters and a stick-in-you-head jingle.

Says Rory Kennett-Lister, creative director, Showpony Adelaide: “Inspired by some of the great public health campaigns of the past, like ‘Life. Be in it’ and ‘Slip. Slop. Slap.’, ‘Quit Your Way in May’ is positive, inclusive and light-hearted, empowering quitters by instilling them with confidence.”

To bring the creative to life, the team worked with renowned illustrator Timba Smits, who has collaborated with some of the biggest brands in the world, including Apple, AirBnB, Canon and Disney.

Says Chris Kim, senior art director, Showpony Adelaide: “Working with Timba was a delight. From the moment we pitched the idea to him he was excited about the possibilities. His illustrations really captured the positive, inclusive spirit we were trying to bring to life.”

The campaign has launched across, TV, digital, social, press and radio, with the event running throughout May.

Showpony is a creative agency with 30 staff across offices in Adelaide and Melbourne.