VCCP's Jim Capp on #MillionPoundJamie

Love the new Totaljobs campaign? VCCP's creative director Jim Capp talks to shots about creating such a pioneering series, why 25-year-old Jamie Mudle was the right man for the job and imparts his wisdom on Britain's younger generation. 

Was there a brief from Totaljobs and if so, what was it?

The brief was to create some fame and awareness for the brand around a promise that totaljobs ‘work harder than anyone else’ to match you to the right job. 

What inspired the series?

Totaljobs’ competitor's focus on scale: how many jobseekers they have; how many positions; how many recruiters etc. It all felt incredibly impersonal. Which led us to ask ourselves - how are you supposed to get noticed in such a highly competitive and crowded job market? That’s when we thought if we're going to do an ad campaign, it’d better work for a real job seeker.

Why did you feel that a documentary-style series was the right way to promote totaljobs?

When we had the idea about Million Pound Jobseeker, we knew that we wanted someone who represented the average jobseeker; someone who would need a bit of help, a bit of a makeover, as well as some CV and interview advice. It felt right to capture that transformation along the way. It also helped to show the reality that jobseekers face in the UK today.

How long have you been in production with the campaign?

It was a quick turnaround. We pitched the idea in late July. After finding Jamie, I think we only had a couple of weeks to create the posters and the content.

Tell me about the casting process… did you have an idea of who you wanted? And did you know immediately that Jamie was the one to take the campaign forward?

It was definitely not a normal casting process. We started by Totaljobs contacting a proportion of people in their database, as we wanted them to be a genuine totaljobs jobseeker. Then we had a round of written responses, Skype calls and two days of face-to-face interviews. We just knew we wanted someone who represented the typical jobseeker - someone who was relatable, outgoing, up for the challenge but also genuinely engaging and entertaining. I think Jamie got us when he told us the story about working undercover in Greggs. He’s genuinely a lovely chap, intelligent and articulate but we knew he needed a bit of help and guidance for him to land his dream job.

What were the biggest challenges on the job?

Trying to keep the posters a secret from Jamie, as we wanted to get a genuine reaction from him when we took him to see them being put up for real.

What effect, if any, do you hope this campaign will have on the UK’s youth unemployment issue?

I think anything that raises the issue is a good thing. This generation has got it tough; the job market is incredibly competitive, wages don’t seem to be moving in the right direction and house prices are seemingly unattainable. I think what this hopefully shows is that you’ve got to work hard to stand out and get noticed in the market place today. Whether it’s through your CV, how you present yourself or even body language skills, Totaljobs have the tips, technology and experts available to help.