The Rugby Pass Hall Of Fame Welcomes: The Dominator Range Of Garage Doors

In one of the smartest marketing moves in rugby history, All Blacks coach Steve Hansen has been endorsed by a range of garage doors.

In a bid to make the Steve Hansen brand more appealing to the new home purchaser, his new commercial features a starring role by a range of still photographs of garage doors, each of which beautifully and smoothly approve of the coach’s qualities.

The message is a subtle one, but there is no doubt the creative team and the production team have created a special advertisement, one in which Hansen is quite happy to be upstaged by his co-stars, reinforcing his commitment to humility – a key component of the All Blacks and the coach’s success.

One branding expert spoken to about the sensational partnership says the Steve Hansen brand team have found the perfect fit in Dominator.

“Whenever a brand is looking for an endorsement, it is important that the endorser fits with the personality and the qualities of that brand.

“When you think of Steve Hansen, you immediately think of a functional and hard-wearing building product – one that can be open or closed, depending on the circumstances.”

Hansen is not the first member of the All Blacks to be endorsed by parts of buildings, or entire buildings, for that matter. Former All Blacks captain Richie McCaw was recently endorsed by a range of middle-of-the-road suburban brick and tile homes, which perfectly encapsulated his everyman values.

Current All Blacks captain Kieran Read sought and received endorsement from a plumbing wholesaler, with a star turn coming from a porcelain toilet, which sources close to the commercial shoot say ad-libbed a scene in which it was cradled in Read’s manly arms.

Neither of those endorsements, however, delivered the power of the Dominator Garage Doors commercial. Although Steve Hansen has the only speaking part, it is the doors – all smooth lines, and perfectly blended colour matches – that elevate this from a standard “I’m with him” spot to a unique “You’re not even listening to what he’s saying, but he’s looking good by association” 30-second epic.

And Hansen himself knows that a good endorsement only works if you are willing to let the endorser take centre stage. His own performance is an object lesson in restraint. Dressed all in black, hands on hips, his sombre recital of his own brand qualities (tough, reliable, good looking) are echoed by the garage doors, each of which remained closed, inviting you to guess what the hell is going on behind them.

There is no better image to capture the essence of the Steve Hansen brand. All perfect lines and smooth finishes on the outside, but the promise of a whole bunch of chaos and mess on the inside.

One renowned New Zealand sales and marketing expert, who did not want to be named in this story, says she expects sales of Steve Hansen to increase thanks to the work of the Dominator doors.

“There is no doubt more people will buy Steve Hansen now,” she says.

“An automatic garage door speaks to peoples’ need for security, protection, and peace of mind. Thanks to their endorsement of Steve Hansen, his brand, which already tested well in each of those categories, can be assured of a massive boost.

Endorsing sporting stars can be a fraught business for brands, but in this instance there is no doubt, Dominator have got in spot on. It is a partnership that, like the coach they have backed, will surely pass the test of time. We welcome this stunning range of garage doors to our Rugby Pass Hall of Fame.