Winner with a mobile DNA

Present on all formats and channels: Equipe AG's heartbeat campaign for the Samsung Galaxy A.Compared to traditional communications agencies, the representatives of the Next Generation are still newcomers. The field of digital communication that they work in is only slightly older, but is developing rapidly. To keep pace, digital must be in the agency's genes, and Equipe AG and Notch Interactive AG are proving that they have mobile DNA, and not just at the SDV Award. When it comes to awards for their work, both creative forges have already collected a lot of precious metal before. Right from the start, they impressed with innovative dialog marketing campaigns. Their victories at the SDV Award are therefore not surprising. What is more astonishing is the flexibility with which they forge their work in order to successfully implement complex packages of measures in a short space of time. Both scored points with the jurors of the Swiss Dialog Marketing Association (SDV) with intelligent projects on the subject of "mobile apps".Gold for "Heartbeat"The campaign for the new Samsung Galaxy A, which Samsung Electronics Switzerland launched in February 2015, stands out with its entertainment character. It also fits perfectly with this year's leitmotif of the SDV Awards "The motto of the future is entertainment". Which in no way explains why Equipe's "Heartbeat" project won gold in the "Craft: Art Direction" category, the noblest of metals. "The Samsung Galaxy A with integrated GIF generator was presented interactively and in a target group-oriented way," said Peter van der Touw from Notch Interactive on behalf of the jury. The task of making young smartphone users aware of the new Galaxy A with photo features such as the GIF generator, wide selfie and five-megapixel front camera was not an easy one, admits the Equipe team, who were "allowed to complete the job quite quickly", emphasizes project manager Tanja Birrer. Apart from the Christmas vacations, just one and a half months were available for the realization of the first interactive music video in GIF style. A masterstroke, considering the challenges behind the sophisticated engine and the microsite.Invitation to join inThe Equipe team's idea of asking users to create their own remix of the hit "Heart keeps Dancing" proved to be a hype factor. At the heart of the campaign is the interactive music video featuring James Gruntz, a perfect fit for the young target group. He and his band recorded 25 different song elements - from vocals to bass, guitar, drums and synthesizer to shaker - each with associated clips in the colourful GIF visual language. Users can switch these audio tracks on and off, with the look of the video changing with each click.For each remix version, the engine cuts a unique video from over 50 video tracks, integrates it on the campaign homepage and uploads it to YouTube. "A lot of work went into this," emphasizes Art Director Film, Luca Zurfluh. After filming, around 24 hours of footage had to be processed. On the other hand, the question of how to set up the engine so that the mixing of the tracks worked smoothly was quite complicated and time-consuming, but the effort was worth it: over 25,000 user-generated music videos are now online, 240,000 users have visited the website, and the high average length of stay of three and a half minutes speaks for itself.For the selfie generationThe "Your Heartbeat" project follows the demands that the selfie generation places on contemporary advertising. It is aimed at potential first-time buyers who will later remain loyal to the brand, but also at young adults who do not follow the mainstream, but instead follow their preference for stylish design and good value for money. However, they need to be made aware of the interactive offer. "A microsite on the Internet is nice," says Claude Eberhard, Executive Creative Director of Equipe, "but it's even nicer when lots of users come to it." In addition to addressing the target group accurately, the product features, which are very much geared towards the social aspect, had to be brought to the fore. The idea of organizing a music competition proved to be a driving force for advertising, with the ten best participants being rewarded with a new Samsung Galaxy A and the chance for their version to be voted the official James Gruntz remix on the Blick am Abend website. The advertising mix focused on popular social media channels, and the media cooperation, display ads and Facebook ads contributed to awareness and reach. "Of course, we don't act the same way for every client, but as an agency we already see digital as an entertainment channel," says Claude Eberhard and explains: "Our creative concepts are entertaining because content simply has to be consumed." Entertainment is a good way to reach people, and "if the product and brand resonate positively, they are easy to anchor in people's minds".The best of both worldsWith the successful "Campaign for UBS Paymit", Notch Interactive AG secured not only the new individual prize in the "Campaigns for Financial Service Providers" category but also silver in the "Digital: Mobile Marketing incl. Apps" category.The successful communication certainly had a positive effect on the negotiations in which SIX, UBS and ZKB as Paymit creators and other Paymit partners such as Swisscom, Raiffeisen and others agreed on a joint Swiss mobile payment system with PostFinance as the publisher of the competing shopping app Twint. The quick decision was necessary as digital heavyweights such as Apple and Google are pushing into the market with their own systems. "This gives the Swiss the best of both worlds," confirms Peter van der Touw, founder and CEO of Notch Interactive, and explains the differences: "Twint's approach was to establish the app with retailers as quickly as possible, while we wanted to build and develop the user community first with our solution." The merger of the two has resulted in a strong national solution with clear advantages over the international competition in terms of security and legal aspects - even if the Paymit Twint name has to make way.Exceeding the targetThe time pressure was high. After the pitch in December 2014 and the award of the contract at the end of January 2015, the project team had until the fall to convince 120,000 users of the Paymit benefits. But with 148,000 users, the ambitious target was far exceeded, and the viral effect ensured that their number has risen to over 200,000 to date.After the launch press conference in March, the blogger scene was initially involved as opinion leaders and multipliers, as the beta version was already usable. The campaign was created with use cases where mobile payments were needed, and the campaign was displayed on social media channels where it was most relevant in terms of target group, context and timing. Based on the findings of the social media campaign, the best use cases were then implemented in a poster campaign at selected locations with the highest relevance. A competition also acted as a trigger: "Users who recommended Paymit to five people had the chance to win CHF 10,000," says the Notch CEO, explaining the strategic approach that directly increased the community via the app."Value-oriented communication, which we do for our customers, means that you have to adapt the message to the user's context and package it accordingly," says van der Touw. However, for it to be credible and sustainable, the company, brand or product must address a topic that fits. "Clever strategies work according to the onion principle: from the core of the brand to the lifestyle."The digital DNA"Digital services, especially in the app sector, always have to do with convenience," says Peter van der Touw. If you can make something easier and more convenient for the target group in their everyday lives, you will quickly gain a high level of acceptance. This strategy ensures virality as well as entertainment. "Sending and receiving money is as easy as texting" is the slogan. "It may sound banal, but simplicity is the key to genius." Reducing messages to their core is a fine art. Challenging Existing Standards" is Notch Interactive's claim, which applies to every single work step, but above all to the standard itself. The education required for this applies in general: "We are in the middle of a digital transformation that not everyone has understood yet," says van der Touw, "if you want to be successful, you have to understand digital". Switzerland is at the beginning here, "but we are also learning every day." Nick Baer, Head of Communications at Equipe, also addresses the digital transformation: "We don't even have to talk about it, it just happens". This is why Equipe AG's claim reflects neither the past nor the future: "It's happening" provides snapshots of the challenges that the digital natives at both agencies face with a passion for mobile topics, a high degree of flexibility and a strong team spirit. These are projects that they fully support. "We take clients who are open to digital change by the hand and conquer the digital age with them," says Claude Eberhard. And Tanja Birrer emphasizes "the familiar, good relationship with the imaginative Samsung team", with whom they have won two further SDV Awards in bronze. van der Touw also praises the collaboration: "Working with a company like UBS is a real highlight." The team is extremely professional and constructive. In addition to its winning project, Notch Interactive also has a PostLogistics project to showcase, which also earned its team gold and silver. To be this successful, you not only have to be at the cutting edge, but also one step ahead.