BITE VOL1

HUMANISING TECHNOLOGY

Issue 18 | January 2016

MARKETING TRENDS AND AGENCY INTELLIGENCE

2-4 Reframe your Offer: The Economist lures the open-minded

with ‘cat poo coffee’ and buy a BMW while you wait for the train.

5-7 Virtual Reality: The New York Times use VR to highlight the plight of refugees

and The Salvador Dali Museum let visitors dive into his surreal world.

8-10 Commitment vs Loyalty: Equinox use public breastfeeding to illustrate

commitment and Aviva’s app stirs up family competition.

TO GET YOU THINKING

11 Fuel your Imagination: Try the $100 gold dusted donut, watch actor

Alan Rickman in ‘Dramatic Time’ and learn how money shouldn’t matter.

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Photograph by Lynsey Addario for the New York Times

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What looks like crisps, tastes like crisps, but will enable you to fly to Barcelona? Well it’s a Transavia France plane ticket of course. Last year the budget airline set-out to reframe how customers purchased air travel, cutting out the hours of deliberation and turning it into an impulse buy. There are no images of dreamy cities or exotic beaches, just the promise that this packet of crisps has the power to transport you far away from the mundane supermarket.

One way for brands to stand out in often crowded sectors is to talk about their offer from a new perspective, moving away from the traditional purchase cycle to engage with customers in new and surprising ways.

Another French brand Pimkie, has been turning hotel wardrobes into fashion minibars. Just like a regular minibar women can purchase a selection of clothes and accessories chosen to compliment the weather and location of the place they are staying. The brand has looked at their fashion conscious customer (who always forgets to pack something) and found an unexpected, yet useful, space in which to play.

Recently we’ve also seen some innovative pop-up ideas from charities. The First World Problem Store sells a range of pills for ailments including ‘Under-performing Wi-Fi’ and ‘Hearing the TV whilst eating crisps’. Money from the pills (which are actually peppermint placebos), goes to the Dutch AIDS Foundation. Whilst Crack+Cider appeared on the London high-street during the Christmas period, the shop sold useful items for homeless people, like backpacks and umbrellas, that could be purchased during a festive shopping trip.

Reframing an offer will give brands a unique voice and help engage customers at times they least expect. Try not to focus on what your competitors are doing, look at where your customers are and find new ways to pleasantly surprise them.

Read on for examples…

RE-FRAME YO

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REFRAME YOUR OFFERDisrupt the traditional purchase cycle

By Kara Melchers

300%decrease in cost per subscription

400% increase in daily subscription average

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THE ECONOMIST LURES THE OPEN-MINDED WITH ‘CAT POO COFFEE’

The Economist were looking for a subscription-driving technique that would reach liberal thinkers, leave a lasting impression and result in daily sign-ups.

The publication, known for its authoritative insight and opinion on international news, is a challenging read and needed a campaign to reflect this.

Discomfort Food on the surface is a simple coffee cart, dispensing free cups and giving staff the opportunity to sell subscriptions. The twist came when customers discovered the coffee was in fact the infamous Kopi Luwak blend, also known as ‘cat poo coffee’, made only from beans that have been eaten and ‘passed’ by a civet.

Customers willing to try this coffee were considered broad-minded, aligning them with the profile of an Economist reader. By giving potential subscribers this status, The Economist saw a noticeable increase in daily sign-ups.

Following on from this initial activation, the campaign has trialled insect ice cream and this year will see the incorporation of virtual reality for the ultimate discomfort experience.

Agency: Sense Marketing, London

BUY A BMW WHILE YOU WAIT FOR THE TRAINLondon King’s Cross station is not exactly where you would expect to go

car shopping. However, a temporary installation from BMW has made this possible. A large wall erected in the concourse displays images of different

car models, each with a unique Shazam watermark. By scanning a car’s image with a smartphone, potential customers will be sent to the relevant

page of the BMW website to complete a purchase. For time-poor customers the activation takes advantage

of the micro-moments spent waiting for a train. Agency: FCB Inferno, London

AMAZON’S THOUGHT IT. BOUGHT IT APPTo position themselves as the go-to retailer, anytime, Amazon have tapped

into the fundamental truth that we are often reminded of what we need to buy in the most unlikely places. The campaign illustrates the simplicity of the

Amazon app, disrupting the traditional purchase cycle by making shopping an anytime/anywhere activity. This idea is brought to life with a series of ads

that highlight the ridiculous situations that can trigger our memory – a girl’s hoop earrings make a waitress think of curtain hoops and a chubby

man in a yoga class reminds a fellow student to buy a meat thermometer.Agency: Lucky Generals, London

CLARO CREATE THE BILL PEOPLE LOVE TO RECEIVEClaro, Columbia’s biggest TV network provider, wanted to encourage their

existing subscribers to use the pay-per-view service, which includes all the latest movie premiers. They converted a universally hated thing – a bill,

into something they will love to receive – the Yummy Bill. This new Yummy Bill included a code for a free movie and once put in the microwave

transformed into a pack of popcorn. Following the campaign Claro video subscribers increased by 89%.Agency: Geometry Global, London

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VIRTUAL REALITY

2016 will be the first billion dollar year for virtual reality, according to a report by Deloitte Global. On 6th January the long-awaited pre-order list for Oculus Rift was released, timed to coincide with CES in Las Vegas. Samsung Gear is already on the market and Sony launched their Playstation VR last week. The technology is out there.

We are only just starting to unlock the possibilities of VR “Virtual reality is really a new communications platform,” said Mark Zuckerberg. “By feeling truly present, you can share unbounded spaces and experiences with the people in your life. Imagine sharing not just moments with your friends online, but entire experiences and adventures.”

It’s debatable if donning a headset and earphones is the best way to share experiences with friends, but it can’t be denied that virtual reality will open up unique and exclusive experiences to the masses. In retail Topshop and Tommy Hilfiger have both used VR to give their fashion-obsessed customers a seat on the front row, while North Face inspired budding explorers by transporting them to Yosemite National Park. The intention is not to replace reality, but to whet the appetite of the customer and to temporarily transport them into the world of the brand they are about to buy into.

Virtual reality will soon be available for everyone. Last year Google teamed-up with GoPro to create Jump, a camera rig that houses 16 cameras shooting 360 degree footage. Used alongside Google’s free footage stitching programme, The Assembler, can convert these separate videos into a 360 degree film.

As we witness a proliferation of amateur and professional 360 films, the challenge will be for brands to commercialise this new communications platform. Watch this [virtual] space.

Read on for examples…

VIRTUAL REALITY Mastering a new communications platformBy Kara Melchers

1.2mfree Google Cardboard viewers

60mpeople currently displaced by war

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VIRTUAL REALITYTHE NEW YORK TIMES USE VR TO HIGHLIGHT THE PLIGHT OF REFUGEES

In November 2015, to coincide with the launch of its new virtual reality app, The New York Times delivered 1.2 million Google Cardboard viewers to their home-delivery subscribers. The headsets were to be used to watch a specially commissioned film called The Displaced. The first in a series of virtual reality films for the magazine, it’s about three refugee children growing up in Lebanon, South Sudan and Ukraine respectively.

“By creating a 360-degree environment that encircles the viewer, virtual reality creates the experience of being present within distant worlds, making it uniquely suited to projects, like this one, that speak to our senses of empathy and community.” said Jake Silverstein, Editor in Chief of The New York Times Magazine. “What better use of the technology could there be than to place our readers within a crisis that calls to us daily with great urgency and yet, because of the incessancy of the call, often fails to rouse us at all?” The films form part of a multimedia documentary project. Following the launch, The New York Times saw some of its highest ever charitable donations.

Agency: In-housePhotographs by Lynsey Addario for the New York Times

DIVE INTO THE SURREAL VR WORLD OF SALVADOR DALI The Salvador Dalí Museum has brought their visitors closer to the art

through virtual reality. An atmospheric film explores the surrealist artist’s famous 1935 painting, Archeological Reminiscence of Millet’s “Angelus”. Using Oculus Rift headsets, visitors can enter the ‘Dreams of Dali’ experience

and discover the enchanted structures and dreamlike animals that live within the artwork. The film will be available to everyone on mobile,

desktop and virtual reality devices like Google Cardboard via the Dreams of Dali website.Agency: Goodby Silverstein & Partners, San Francisco

EXPERIENCE THE 360 SIGHTS AND SOUNDS OF SOUTH AFRICAThe best way to discover South Africa is to experience it. The South African tourism board commissioned a series of 360 degree films to give prospective

travellers a taster of their most famous attractions. By putting on the virtual reality headset, users can abseil down Table Mountain, kite-surf on the coast,

feed elephants and dive with sharks. Filmed entirely on location, the video was shot using a series of cameras in 3D printed mounts to create the full 360 degree effect. A pioneering way to capture 360 degree sound

was also designed for a fully immersive experience.Agency: UM, London and Visualise, London

FIAT USE VR AND DYNAMO TO MAGIC THE POWER OF X To launch the 500 X, Fiat created a virtual reality test-drive experience like

none before. By combining photo-real CGI and live footage, the 360 film takes the viewer though an immersive journey both inside and outside the

car. Who better to front the ultimate car reveal than internationally famous magician, Dynamo? Appearing in the VR film and at live events, he combined

a unique blend of theatre, illusion, technology and dance choreography to conjure up the mysterious Power of X for the audience. Agency: Krow, London

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VIRTUAL REALITY

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Don’t mistake commitment for loyalty. Most brands have very few, if any, loyal customers. Spurred on by the proliferation of mobile and smart devices, UK shoppers will spend £60 bn online in 2016, according to the Centre for Retail Research. With so much choice literally at our fingertips it’s hard to remain loyal.

Even iconic brands like Apple and Nike have very few loyal customers. What they do well is inspire commitment to their next product, event or service. They innovate and entertain to keep our attention for a fraction more time. However, commitment can be hard, particularly for the younger ‘Tinder generation’.

In September Netflix released ‘The Switch’, otherwise known as the ‘Netflix and Chill Button’. One press dims the lights, silences incoming calls, orders takeout, and turns on Netflix. It’s available to all customers….the only catch…you must build and program it yourself. Step-by-step instructions illustrate how to connect the physical button to a Philips Hue light, your TV and phone. Not easy for beginners, the significant commitment required to complete this task will mean only the most worthy Netflix customers will have success and be rewarded with a unique sharable experience.

So don’t sell yourself to the social media floozy with the most followers. Be brave and challenge customers to show their commitment. By doing this you will create a community whose true love for the brand will shout louder than any marketing slogan. Reward them with the status-worthy experiences they can proudly share with friends.

Read on for examples…

COMMITMENT VS LOYALTY Time for brands to challenge their customers

By Kara Melchers

80 clubs around the world

35average age of an Equinox member

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EQUINOX USE PUBLIC BREASTFEEDING TO ILLUSTRATE COMMITMENT

The high-end gym has continued to take an alternative approach to fitness sector marketing, with its new campaign #COMMITTOSOMETHING.

The creative idea addresses an anti-commitment culture, particularly with millennials. Chief Marketing Officer Carlos Becil told AdAge, “We really wanted to change the conversation and storyline. This is really a call for action, asking people to make a commitment. We don’t care what the commitment is, but we’re asking people to step up.”

The images portray eclectic stories of commitment from an award winning male cheerleader, to a mother breastfeeding her twins while dining in a high-end restaurant. Shot by renowned photographer Steven Klein, they take on the guise of a high-end fashion shoot.

For Equinox commitment is a state of mind. The average Equinox member attends four times a week, that’s more than the average gym member attends in a month. To illustrate the customer in the real world, W&K New York captured the first Equinox club member to come into the gym on New Year’s Day. That first member showed up before the gym opened, having just completed a midnight race in Central Park. Now there’s commitment.

Agency: W+K New York

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AVIVA’S APP STIRS UP FAMILY COMPETITIONAviva want to keep their customers safe on the road. Their new ad features

a family from Newport in Wales using the Aviva app to discover who is the safest driver. The aim is not to drive down premiums (although this is

possible), but to help customers become safer drivers. “We don’t want to just be an insurance company, we want to have a bigger social purpose,”

said Lindsay Forster, Marketing Director for UK and Ireland. The app had 50,000 downloads in one week.Agency: adam&eveDDB, London

MICROSOFT CHALLENGE GAMERS TO #HUNTTHETRUTHFollowing on from The Glitch, Microsoft’s Xbox launched their second

interactive experience for hard-core fans ahead of the release of Halo 5: Guardians (one of the biggest game franchises in the world). Clues for

#HuntTheTruth were hidden in TV ads, cinema spots, digital and outdoor media, which and drew gamers into a cross platform puzzle. The ultimate

winner was to be given the ultimate gamer’s reward, to be transformed into a character from Halo.

Agency: McCann, LondonProduction: B-Reel, London

BOOKING.COM TURNS RESOLUTIONS INTO RESERVATIONSThe hotel booking site wants to help make this ‘The Best 2016 Ever’ by

getting customers to commit to their New Year resolutions and turn them into reservations. The specially designed Resolution Translator is an online app where users can type in their goal and it will suggest a suitable holiday

destination. The site is supported by a movie style trailer and results can be shared on social media.Agency: W+K Amsterdam

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FUEL YOUR IMAGINATION: find inspiration beyond marketing

In 2012, David Michalek worked with actor Alan Rickman on a project called Portraits in Dramatic Time. During the seven-minute film Rickman turns drinking a cup of tea into the most epic

thing of all time. http://bit.ly/1OMdhFs

Uber have has created an app to help customers find the right car. A SPOT device can be attached to the car windshield enabling drivers and riders to connect through colour.http://ubr.to/1PhFl55

National Geographic uploaded an inspiring video by Tragedy & Hope Productions, set to the late philosopher Alan Watts’s poignant speech on why money shouldn’t matter when pursuing passion. http://bit.ly/22VKllU

Tokyo architecture firm Kengo Kuma and Associates has created ‘Japanese Lego’, inverted Vs made of Japanese cedar wood that wedge

together like Lego bricks.http://bit.ly/1nl05hl

Studio Brussels registered a new star constellation for David Bowie together with the MIRA observatory.http://bit.ly/1NcSOpa

Manila Social Club chef Björn Delacruz first made the $100 gold dusted donut as a New Year’s gift for his staff. After posting it on Instagram he realised people wanted to buy it.http://bit.ly/1n9hI47

MUSIC

FOOD

FILM

DESIGN

ART

TECHNOLOGY

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