Ed Finlay has just completed his apprenticeship and is now a fully qualified auto technician servicing Wollongong and surrounding areas. This means he is qualified to repair or replace damaged vehicle glass from small windscreen chips to big cracks or other broken glass.
Proving what a quick learner he is, just this month he had a crash course in show biz and is the new face in the latest O'Brien® TV ad about windscreen cracks and our Cal-Tech® ADAS Recalibration service.
Ed decided to put himself out of his comfort zone and volunteer to be part of the ads when the marketing team put a call out looking for technicians to be part of the campaign.
“I decided I would send a quick audition video to the marketing team as a bit of a laugh. I wasn’t expecting to hear back but clearly, my hidden talent shone through.”
Ed who describes himself as quite reserved said the experience in front of the camera was a change from his day to day job as a technician. He expressed that he was certainly out of his comfort zone being in front of the camera but that was also the major reason he decided to go for it.
Ed enjoyed his day on set and was incredibly humbled by the experience commenting that he hadn’t given professional actors enough credit in the past as it was a long and tough day.
The marketing team was happy with his genuine, laid back professionalism. “We love casting real technicians in our advertising,” said Vivian Oppl, group marketing head, O'Brien®. “They lend a certain credibility, authenticity and professionalism to what we are trying to convey to our customers about the friendly and expert service they can expect when they bring their car to O'Brien®.”
The new O'Brien® ad is all about educating car owners that when a windscreen cracks in a vehicle that has ADAS technology, like auto-braking and lane detection, they will need to have their front-facing camera recalibrated as well. The O'Brien® Cal-Tech service is state of the art and is performed just after the windscreen replacement so customers can drive away with confidence knowing they can still trust those safety features.
While Ed enjoyed his time on set, he was equally happy to go back to his day job.
“The thing I love most about working for O'Brien® is the independence that being a mobile technician brings and knowing that I’m providing a unique essential service. I enjoy meeting lots of different and interesting characters and seeing their happy expression after a successful windscreen replacement or repair.”
Outside of TV shoots and work, you’ll find Ed enjoying the outdoors.
“When I’m not at work I’m usually on the south coast bushwalking, swimming and eating good pub food, working out or tinkering with my cars.”
If you have a windscreen that needs repairing or replacing, make sure you’re in touch with O'Brien® and it may be Ed (or any one of our famous auto technicians) that responds to the call.
Click below to view our latest Ad featuring Ed!
