Mondays at 7DKS

So this was yesterday at 7DKS headquarters...

Tropika’s Easter video marries online and mobile

Over the Easter weekend, thousands of South Africans were treated to a surprise video sent to their phones, wishing them a happy holiday from Tropika. This charming and funny animated clip featured a play on the word “Easter”, and showed viewers a little peek at the Easter Island statues.

These famous head statues (known as ‘moai’) were given a breath of life as the stars of the video. They wake up after thousands of years of silence, and suddenly break into song, Acapello style. In walk a group of tourists and catch the statues in the act, and what ensues is a hilarious combination of bright camera flashes, a rabbit and a cameo from a very famous international playboy and his bunny-eared female companions. Neil Clarence, Creative Director at 7Dffrnt Knds of Smke (the ad agency responsible for this campaign), explains, “Tropika wanted to wish consumers a happy Easter, so with that in mind, we wanted to create something a bit different, with a play on the word ‘Easter’ and a tropical island look and feel.”

Not only was the video sent to consumers, but it was also uploaded to Youtube on a newly-launched and specially designed Tropika Easter Island Youtube channel.

Comments were endlessly positive, with viewers expressing their genuine love for the video and quoting the words from the song. Mobile and online met seamlessly to deliver a truly engaging campaign.

Ryan van Jaarsveld, Managing Director of 7Dffrnt Knds of Smke explains, “Since the first TV ad aired in 1955, brands have spent millions on producing their little piece of Hollywood and engaging audiences while glued to the box. A picture speaks a thousand words and it screams a thousand more when it moves. The Internet has changed the way consumers communicate, interact and share information forever. When print evolved into TV back in the 50s, brands had the opportunity to capture the imaginations of their target audience like never before. However, the cost of getting people to see the ad was and always will be expensive. There are over 5,000,000 Youtube users in South Africa. Everyone has a mobile phone. This gives brands the opportunity to engage a much wider audience for a fraction of the cost.”

7Dffrnt Knds of Smke recognised the value of Youtube and jumped on the opportunity to share this video with South Africans via this online medium. It was well received – not only with high views (it was awarded Youtube Honours for being one of the most viewed videos of the month in South Africa) but also by the consumers themselves. The proof is in the comments, such as “Addicted to this ad… lol good job guys.” The video was also pushed to specific targets using Youtube media. Ryan explains the process, “Youtube media was used to target consumers matching the Tropika demographic in South Africa. We targeted people based on their interests, what type of videos they watch and linked everything to the kinds of keywords one would expect users to enter (Easter, holidays, funny, rabbit, etc). We then set the maximum amount we were willing to pay per view and made sure that the Tropika video would be shown before other brands during the campaign. Anyone matching these targeting criteria would see the video.”

Not only were people commenting on the Youtube channel itself, but bloggers even embedded the video onto their websites. This is a huge honour: it means that these bloggers wanted to show their own audience the content. These bloggers had a lot of love for the video: “Listen to the lyrics carefully – they’ll have you in stitches!” 

Another blogger quoted the lyrics to the song in her blog post. The video was even found embedded on a blog from Korea. Ryan continues, “Online social networks like Youtube allow us to engage these audiences from wherever they are, whenever they go online and everything is integrated with platforms like Facebook, Twitter and mobile. A recent survey asked consumers between the age of 18 and 35 which item they could go without, their TV or mobile phone. 95 per cent said they would rather lose their TV than their phone. We were very pleased with the results. Within four days the Tropika Easter video became the 24^th most viewed video in South Africa with a total of 48, 519 views at an average of R2.06 cost per view.”

Figure 1: Youtube video views over Easter weekend

Not only did consumers get to see the ad online, but it was also placed into the palms of their hands with an MMS sent to them over the Easter holiday weekend.  This was a shortened and compressed version of the video, which ended with a link to the Youtube version. “The MMS was also a great success. 15 per cent of recipients clicked on the link and watched the full video on Youtube. The average industry click through rate from SMS or MMS is between one and 2.5 per cent,” says Ryan.

Users could also access the video using a QR code scanner on their phones. QR codes are square designs that contain certain bits of information. When scanned, they open that information, be it a link to a website or contact details. 7Dffrnt Knds of Smke created a sticker with a specially-designed QR code using the Tropika colours and logo. When scanned, it took the user straight to the mobile version of the Youtube video.

All these elements were combined to bring together a campaign for a video that was seen by thousands of people across South Africa. It was not only seen, but it was loved, cementing Tropika into the hearts and minds of the consumers. This is the perfect example of what happens when fantastic creative, as well as brilliant use of the technology available combine to deliver something that stands out amongst the rest.

Check out the video and the channel here http://www.youtube.com/tropikaeasterisland

We welcome 2 new Padawans to the 7s team

7DKS is always looking out for the most talented peeps to join our ranks. This week we welcomed Jono and Bam, our new Art Director and Copywriter respectively.

QR codes – the little blocks that are taking over

If you’re noticing more than usual that QR codes are popping up everywhere, it’s not your imagination. These little black and white (and sometimes other coloured) block designs are everywhere: on billboards; print ads and even on street art.

Some hugely successful QR code campaign have included MyToys, an online toy retailer in Germany, who made QR code billboards made entirely out of Lego blocks. The boards were colourful, 3D and of course, got people onto the MyToys website with their mobile phones. Each QR code board was unique, and once scanned it revealed some imaginative ideas about they could do with a Lego box.

The campaign inspired consumers to open their minds to the possibilities Lego offers as a toy, and got them buying Lego boxes from the MyToy website.

Turquoise Cottage, a popular bar and venue in New Delhi, India, created the Buddy Stamp, a QR code stamped onto patrons wrists when they entered the door. For one night only, the QR code led to time-sensitive content, with drink specials until 10pm, and then details for cab services from 10pm to 6am. The campaign was a huge success, and got patrons scanning the stamp on their wrists left right and centre.

These are some fantastic ways that companies overseas are implementing QR codes. Locally, they can be found in more and more places, including in restaurants, on menus, on billboards and there are some awesome custom-designed codes coming up in print advertising.

The trick with a QR code is that you’re not forcing someone to see the information behind it, but rather inviting them to find out more. It’s cool and mysterious, and in the instant the QR code is seen, a relationship is established between the viewer and the brand.

So locally, where to from here? If you haven’t got QR code scanner for your smartphone, download one by browsing the Android market, Apple App Store, Blackberry App World, or simply Google for it in your phone’s browser and download it from there. To create a QR code, you can use a URL shortener like Goo.gl or a QR code generator like this one.

Put a bird on it.

We're 7Dffrnt Knds of Smke, and we put birds on things!

It's amazing how much better stuff looks when you put a bird on it. Doors, phones, computers, even people, get a breath of fresh invigoration when a simple bird silhouette is added to its design.

We're 7 Dffrnt Knds of Smke, and we put birds on things!

On phones

On paintings

Project Glass

We're super excited about Google's Project Glass! Google's Android glasses are looking amazing, giving you an augmented reality in real time. See video calls in front of your eyes, get your emails, guide your way with Google maps and more.
Check out the video to see what it's all about.

The latest news from 7DKS

The past month has been a crazy one for 7Dffrnt Knds of Smke! Lots of changes have been happening at our HQ, including a move to a shiny new office as well as an addition to our team. Here's our latest news.

The big move

We went from our humble open-plan office to a new, top floor office over looking Greenside, complete with fake grass, comfy couches and amazing views.
You can now find the whole 7s team at office 202, Greenside Quarter, 10 Gleneagles Rd, Greenside.

Our studio before the 7s moved in with  our Superman posters, Batgirl figurines, and lightsabers.

Our street! 

How to end off a successful moving day? Cocktails at The Office, of course.

Welcome Jenna!

The 7s team welcomes a new addition to our team: Jenna Adkins! We hope Jenna will be very happy here. Jenna will be managing our projects and accounts for us. Today is Jenna's first day and we very much hope we got her coffee order right.

In other news...

- Mobyaffiliates added us to their list of top mobile ad agencies!
- Our very own Neil is in the February/March issue of The Journal of Marketing doing a rather impressive bicep curl with The Annual 2011/2012.

Neil in the Feb/March issue of The Journal of Marketing

- The folks at The Journal of Marketing interviewed Ryan this week. Thanks Sabrina!
- You can catch Ryan speaking at Mobile Marketing Africa which is happening from the 25 - 26 April 2012, at the Hilton Hotel in Sandton.