SILVER WINNER: Samsung TouchWiz Red Bull Air Race VIP reporter
Client: Samsung and Red Bull
Entrant Company: Starcom Netherlands
Entry Category: A Local Brand or Service in a Local Market with innovative media solutions worthy of international adaptation or of world class standards
Names to be credited with submission:
• Sabine Poort — Digital Planner, Starcom
• Richard van der Wilk — Digital Strategy Director, Starcom
• Baukje Weda — Media Planner, Starcom
• Sander Ejlenberg — Creative Director & Founder, MUSE Amsterdam
• Michael Littaur — Managing Director & Founder, MUSE Amsterdam
• Ralph Cohen — CEO & Founder, IceMobile
• Tim Krengel — COO & Founder, IceMobile
Time Period of Campaign: 2008
Case Study Summary:
Marketing Situation: Two distinct brand challenges for two different clients were originally presented.
The first involved the signature sports event sponsored by the Red Bull energy drink. The objective was to sell 25,000 tickets for the “Red Bull Air Race,” a Championship featuring the worlds’ best pilots in a competition based on speed, precision and skill. (The last “Air Race” in 2005 was free to the public.) The “Red Bull Air Race World Series,” televised since 2004, is considered to be exciting, but consumers are not as connected to this sport as to one that showcases either local heroes or a well-known national team.
The second challenge involved Samsung’s introduction of their first full “touch-screen” phone, the Samsung TouchWiz, with a price of roughly €500. The “Touch” segment was already dominated by the iPhone, and consumers needed to be convinced that the innovative TouchFlo interface of the Samsung TouchWiz was worthy of the cost. An aggressive sales target had been set.
Key Insights: The TouchWiz target is best described as people that needed to always be “on,” or in constant contact with the wider world, and their primary connection is via their mobile device. This segment expected innovation and a superior experience from their phone. Any consideration of a new device would involve touching it, playing with it, and showing it off to their friends.
The Air Race could deliver an innovative user experience for the TouchWiz target, allowing them to participate in a unique event, while experimenting with the phone’s features. Plus, consumers could qualify to win a phone, become an Air Race VIP Reporter in the thick of the action.
Media Strategy: The “Red Bull VIP-reporter campaign” was created using Livecastr technology which broadcast the “Red Bull Air Race” live to the web with a mobile phone.
Prior to the event, a special “Air Race-reporter game” was created and promoted on the internet via seeding and advertising. The concept for the game was simple: while the “Air Race” plane was maneuvering through a course, a player had to keep the action in frame using the TouchWiz as a visor. Core idea: easy to learn, difficult to master.
From the 100,000 gamers, the top 5 high scorers were selected to receive a Samsung TouchWiz and become LiveCastr VIP Reporters. In a special VIP Reporter van, the reporters went to Rotterdam Airport where they mingled backstage with all “Air Race” pilots and planes.
They also were taken to the “Air Race-arena” the viewing of the live race, along with other national and international press and television. The reporters’ material was shown on the web and also in live broadcast on Europe’s biggest public screen at Rembrandt Square, Amsterdam.
Post-race, all footage was gathered on the MSN editorial page where MSN visitors could vote on the best VIP reporter with the best LiveCast of the “Air Race.” Voting was open for two weeks and including giveaways of TouchWiz phones. The best “VIP-reporter” was invited to make a flight in a real Red Bull airplane with one of the Air Race Top Guns.
How Could this be a Template for Other Campaigns or for World Class Standards?
Integrating the consumer need to make, share and show off with brand opportunities linked to newsworthy events is an effective idea, especially for tech-savvy targets. The TouchWiz and LiveCastr technology are now being used around the globe for many Mobile briefs. (LiveCastr now has many devoted clients outside of their native Netherlands.)
Results:
1. Samsung broke in to the Mobile “Touch segment” and exceeded their sales target by 20% while strengthening Samsung Mobile’s overall market-leadership
2. Event awareness was higher than ever before, and the Air Race was sold out.
3. The campaign generated over 16 hours of video content on the web creating massive WOM and Free Publicity on more then 140 websites.
4. The MSN editorial page generated over 180,000 visitors, 100,000 game visitors and 30,000 visits in the voting area.
5. Game replay-rate was over 40% (easy to learn, difficult to master).
6. The idea is currently in discussion around the world as part of the next quarter innovation roll out.
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