2022 Winner

BronzeBest Integrated Campaign - Budget Over $250,000

Adidas
"OZWORLD"
MediaCom
Through their research, it learned that streetwear buyers are in a well-defined category – most notably Gen Zs with an average retail spend of $250+ per year – and, from this information, it built its target audience for the campaign that had a scale of approximately 2.5 million.

Of course, it sought to better understand that audience. What it found was that Gen Z has multiple personas that are actualized in the real and digital/virtual worlds. One third actually said that their online identity was their most authentic self. So, the major insight was that to be authentic with Gen Z, it needed to reach all versions of the self, including in the digital/virtual world.

The question then became: how does it achieve scale in the digital/virtual world? VR was quickly nixed as it found only 7% of Canadians had the headsets to accommodate that type of activation. Where it landed was in gaming because of two key factors. First, the audience is engaging with gaming – in fact, nearly 60% of the target audience had interacted with gaming content in the last 30 days. Second, the gaming space was where Gen Z could express their authentic online selves for the world to see.

This is where OzWorld was born – a platform for Gen Zs to express themselves.

The global media campaign, which was activated with innovative media executions in Canada, centered on taking over the virtual and physical worlds to engage the Gen Z audience. To do so, it attempted to blur the proverbial line between online and offline, centering the campaign around a number of tactics.

This included in-game placements in the top ranked mobile gaming partners (such as Rovio and EA Games) for this age demo (A 18-34). This was both achieved through placements that feel part of the game, as well as rewards given to the players throughout. There was an exclusively designed Fortnite map with fun and rewarding games (three mini games). It amplified the integration on key social streaming channel (Twitch) with livestream with Fortnite gamers (Chica and Sommerset) to encourage map downloads and plays, as well as paid media around gamers sites.

Strong community management allowed it to interact on social media through stories, posts, and feeds with gaming enthusiast audiences on key channels such as Snapchat, TikTok, Reddit and FB/IG. It designed a Try-On Snapchat lens to enter virtual Ozworld and see firsthand how the shoe looks and fits their style. Videos were highlighted across OLVsites such as YouTube to deliver engaging videos.

It brought the virtual world to physical through strategically placed hologram OOH walls, complete with Snapcode wall stickers around Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal. This was done to encourage the audience to enter the 3D world via the custom-designed Snapchat lens. A remarkable takeover of digital billboards in Yonge and Dundas square with Ozworld messaging encouraged
people to enter Ozworld.

Ultimately, the goal of the campaign was to blur the line between the physical and virtual world – something that hadn’t been done in their category to date. Therefore, every aspect of the activation was built with integration in mind, and to ensure the audience could seamlessly transition
between the two.

Again, while many of the tactics have been implemented individually (i.e. Fortnite maps, VR/AR and Snapchat lenses), the OzWorld campaign truly drove consumers into a virtual world, while still converting in the physical.

Credits

adidas:
Ranzel Gonzales – Manager, Brand Media and Digital
Francesco Ferrara – Assistant Manager, Performance Digital Marketing
Nicolette Elliott-Gill – Coordinator, Brand Communications Originals Category
Ariel Villamayor – Brand Marketing Intern
Christian Domingo – Manager, Brand Communications Originals, Hype and Communities

MediaCom:
Rui Viera - SVP, Business Director
Mansi Shah- Account Director
Nikhil James- Senior Media Planner
Saashiram Sivakumar- Assistant Media Executive
Cooper Young - Strategist
Noyan Hilmi - Associate Director, Partnerships

Oliver:
Samanta Briceño – Account Manager at Oliver Agency (creative)