Jenni van der Merwe, Careers24 business manager at Media24 Digital, says, "The competition was designed to increase brand awareness and its success is evidenced by the significant spike in traffic to the site for the duration the promotion. It also highlights an interesting pattern in consumer media consumption in that online can work hand-in-hand with other mediums such as radio to enhance the consumer's experience of brand, product or service."
In a promotion which ran from 27 February to 3 March 2006, Careers24 invited 5FM listeners to swap their jobs for what they assumed would be a more attractive alternative on Marc Gillman's 6am to 9am morning drive time slot. Listeners followed the lucky winners through their first day jitters as a prison warden, restaurant cleaner, garbage collector, aquarium worker and taxi "gatjie" (the person who operates the door in mini-bus taxi), respectively.
But candidates had a hurdle or two to overcome as Gillman took it upon himself - to hysterical effect - to teach these frustrated job seekers a lesson in gratitude as they traded in their existing jobs for a day in hell.
