Category: Best use or integration of gaming
Advertiser: CANON CANADA
Product/Service: POWERSHOT CAMERAS
Agency: MEDIACOM
Agency: CANON CANADA
Account Director: Andrea Flaming (Mediacom Canada)
Planning Supervisor: Will Mulqueeney (Mediacom Canada)
Manager/Advertising/Internet: Brett Gaskell (Canon Canada)
Senior Manager/Marketing/Product Planning: Andrew J Blackwell (Canon Canada)
Media placement: Cinema - Cinema Pre-Roll - November 2011
Media placement: One-Sheet Posters - Billboards - November 2011
Campaign Description
Canada is a relatively unique market when it comes to branded content. Most branded content initiatives created in Canada for the Canadian market involve advertisers sharing voice with content producers. Canada is not a market that has seen a deluge of 100% advertiser-funded branded entertainment. Independent content producers in Canada rely heavily on tax credits from the federal and provincial governments to fund productions. Because advertising and promotional works are ineligible for these tax credits, producers risk losing their credits if the Canadian Audio-Visual Certification Office (CAVCO) deems a piece of content to feature promotional (ie. advertiser-funded) messaging too prominently. With this unique context in mind, subtlety is key.
Effectiveness
Canon faced a unique challenge. The pre-holiday season is a key sales period for all electronics. However, it’s also an incredibly hectic time for consumers, and Canon cameras like the PowerShot S100 point-and-shoot model tend to be research-heavy purchases. We had to find a way to sneak into people’s schedules during the busy pre-holiday season. We unearthed 2 key insights. Leading up to the holidays, one thing people do make time for is reconnecting with family and friends through activities like seeing movies. Additionally, we found that moviegoers would welcome something fun to do while they wait for their film to begin. In fact, movie attendance spikes by 20% heading into the holidays. We decided to demonstrate the PowerShot S100’s unique features during these movie outings.
We knew that Canada’s biggest theatre chain, Cineplex, was developing an interactive game called TimePlay that enabled moviegoers to interact with the big screen using their phones before the movie starts. This was a first for the Canadian marketplace. We leveraged this unique opportunity by developing a mobile app that would showcase PowerShot S100 features within a TimePlay game. For instance, when the game began, consumers saw a darkened image on the big screen that they were invited to correct by throwing virtual light balls at with their phones. The resulting bright and clear image simulated how the photo would have looked had it been taken with Canon's PowerShot HS System. Upon completion of the game, participants received various coupons and discounts.
Implementation
We promoted our TimePlay app across all Cineplex channels including print, movie pre-rolls and billboards. Once they were in-theatre, audiences couldn’t miss our TimePlay game, which appeared on the big screen just before the movie was about to begin. Before the game began, in-theatre teaser ads encouraged moviegoers to download our Canon TimePlay app on their phones so they could play along.
Outcome
Within a week, the TimePlay application became one of the most downloaded apps on Canadian iTunes and is now featured in the ‘What's Hot’ section of the store. Over 40,000+ applications were downloaded, and Canon achieved the pre-holiday sales increase it was hoping for.