This was published 13 years ago
No need of any worm to see why MasterChef won
By Harold Mitchell
SO, WHAT is it about MasterChef that made it work? It got an audience of nearly 4 million in the capital cities and will be the No. 1 program for the year. The commentary is slowing down a bit now, but it's been a big week for analysis and re-analysis.
And it's difficult to get to the bottom of MasterChef's success because we didn't have the assistance of the worm that was so busy earlier in the evening last Sunday with The Great Debate; by the time MasterChef came on at 7.30pm, the worm had had enough of television and just disappeared.
The debate was like a heavyweight fight as each boxer tried very hard not to get hit. Figuratively dancing and twisting. Louise thinks the thought of dancing and twisting with Tony Abbott has some appeal. She likes fit men with short hair. Charlie, who spent his early life going to the ''fights'' as he calls them, said any self-respecting referee would have called it off halfway through because no real punches were being landed - even thrown. Very clever of the PM, of course; that way she stays the champ.
In the early days of television (we're talking the 1960s) the advertising industry had to teach itself the factors that apply to advertising as well as television programs - rules that not only applied to them but to any connection between humans.
Bowerbird Charlie has kept a record of the five key points that make a program work. Just have a look at these and see if MasterChef fits the bill. We call them the human connectors:
■ Vicarious experience. We all imagine ourselves in satisfying/pleasing/exciting situations.
■ Keyhole value. We are all curious what's on the ''other side''.
■ Self-rating appeal. We all want to beat the contestant - or rate a product according to the use we can make of it.
■ Humour. We all want to smile and laugh.
■ Sadness. For every high there is a low - a tear.
Then there is the three-point selling rule:
■ Tell them you can help them and you have their attention.
■ Show them how and why the product/service is good for them.
■ Prove it.
And, bingo! You've made a sale! MasterChef had all these elements.
Last week we gave all the credit for the MasterChef success to men. However, Louise has rushed in telling me that all the top men are in fact women! And all from the old days of live TV, current affairs and the Logies. So, credit must go to executive producer Margie Bashfield, Co-EP Judy Smart and series producer Caroline Spencer, whose grandfather Norm was the producer of Graham Kennedy's IMT. Take a bow, ladies.
Over the next three weeks we will be bombarded with political ads from all sides of politics. They will all be trying to sway us. But, if they move too far away from ''the rules'', they may as well keep their hard-earned advertising money.
I am looking for more input from Charlie during this election campaign but he seemed distracted by some big overseas deal last week and an announcement I think he's been working on for this morning. We'll just have to wait and see.
Harold Mitchell is executive chairman of Mitchell Communication Group.