Insight
Back to the future, to make Vodafone’s 30th birthday capture the public imagination MEC as part of Team Red knew that it had to contrast the old with the new, framing today’s technology in the style of the eighties when the first call was made. This time travel contrast would be framed in nostalgia for those around in the eighties whilst all the time looking to the future through the years of today’s youth audience.
The agency had to create a conflict, the conflict would be cultural clash, a mash up of the 1980s to the 2010s across platforms. This would create the buzz and encourage engagement across demographics and across markets. It would clash retail outlets with digital channels and blend old with new.
From Michael Harrison and Ernie Wise making the first ever mobile call on a “brick” to a 4G Live Streaming Gig broadcast simultaneously across borders and across YouTube and Facebook - it would showcase change in styles around key mobile phone developments.
Between the historic beginning in Newbury 30 years ago and the present day gig, MEC set out to bring everything that symbolised the eras in between, focusing on every mobile first. These moments would tap into people’s nostalgia bringing back smells, sounds, experiences, stories from across thirty years but all the time linking back to Vodafone’s core pioneering mobile proposition. To do this it would need everything from PR, to social, to experiential and to media all linked by a great big content sandwich.
Strategy
The strategy focused on firsts. By defining the milestones of mobile development the agency could build its content strategy to create a juxtaposition.
Core firsts: the first mobile call, first SMS, first mobile game, first videocall, first music stream etc.
MEC would build a content calendar that matched these milestones with content from the period.
Three core strands linked across social networks:
1. PR Contrast – to kick start the celebrations the flagship Oxford Street store was converted to an 80s throwback, invitations to global PR leads along with Lady Harrison, Widow of the first UK CEO coupled with present CEO. Spoof ads were created for retail and social promoting the first mobile handset and delivered across UK,DE, IT and Nl. This was coupled with a viral video that showed two eight year olds trying to establish what on earth the original mobile phone was and attempting to use it.
2. Social Contrast – the social conversation launched around 30 facts for 30 years; this included spoof ads, competitions, daily interesting facts around device nostalgia and backed up with competitions to drive footfall and experience. The crescendo was a live gig matching the best of the 80s, RUNDMC with the latest hip hop star Rayliegh Ritchie in a private event broadcast across 4G to the markets on Facebook and YouTube. Using unique settings the bespoke app allowed for 360” views of the live gig in app.
3. Experiential Contrast – to showcase the best of 4G the agency created 1984G Street in Covent Garden. The street was inspired by a 1980s façade but inside kitted out with the very latest technology. There was the original Newbury Store, The Spotify Records Store, The Sky NOW TV Rentals, a 4G Gaming Arcade and a Selfie Snaps store. Even Michael Knight and Kit put in a live appearance.
Execution
The press launch in Oxford Street was a great success with a huge press roll call – a giant 80’s wall, 80’s music, launch of the 1985 zone and most successful, the sheer amazement of the now iPad loving kids trying to understand what an 80’s phone was. This was picked up by almost all media outlets.
On 1984G Street the Spotify records store was the big win particularly when RUNDMC dropped in and changed the 80s playlist. Having the Hoff turn up in full Michael Knight gear with Kit also drew the crowds to the Selfie Snap Store.
Social media was a bigger success becoming the glue for all markets and elements. Whether it was YouTube creators from NL relaying the happenings to their followers or people posting their favourite track, softened selfies with 80s haircuts, or favourite tracksuits of the times – social media caught the nostalgic imagination of the audience on the things they love most – their 4G smartphones .
The Gig itself was picked up across radio stations including hip hop legend Tim Westwood but most importantly countdown clocks running concurrently on Facebook and YouTube lead to live streaming on the night itself, supported by exclusive back stage clips available on app or on the channels the week afterwards. Building the unique 1984G app with Mativision technology allowed MEC to drive interactive viewing from cameras placed around the gig – giving the markets a chance to really get up close and personal using 4G whether at event or watching remotely.
Results
• Upwards of 20 million impacts across the markets on the Gig day itself
• 8,142 people came through the 1984G street in 3 days
• 8,205 people watched the live stream gig across Italy and UK (39% above target)
• PR coverage of the campaign broke the record for global outreach surpassing 850 articles across 12 markets
• Vodafone UK social saw the highest ever positive sentiment in social engagement, reaching a record breaking 20% as a direct result of the campaign
• It successfully live streamed 6.37GB of data during the gig with no downtime l over 4G
• The Mobile vs Desktop viewing of the gig ratio was 1.15:1 (compared to average 1:8) which gives Vodafone a very credible role to enable the live stream.
“#30yearsVodafone was one of the most successful campaigns for Vodafone Group. Activated across 2 of its biggest markets (UK and Italy) the campaign celebrated Vodafone’s 30th anniversary with a smart combination of nostalgia and 4G technology. The positive sentiment recorded across both markets as a direct result of the campaign was the highest seen so far surpassing all expectations and initial targets.”