2degrees is a challenger brand, on a mission to ‘Fight for Fair’ since taking on New Zealand’s Telco duopoly. Like any Telco, they started out to connect people. But with every innovation people get further apart, struggling to find balance. It’s effecting our mental wellbeing. Increased screen time during several lockdowns has New Zealand acutely aware of the addictive alure of these devices.

2degrees is on a mission to Fight for Fair, always looking for things that we could help put right. It’s very Kiwi.

We started up as a telco to connect people, to bring them closer. But with the evolution of all things digital – every innovation seems to push us further apart.

The brief was simple: what can we do to make finding balance in the digital world a little more fair? And in doing so secure our place as the fairest telco?

Real Mode is a simple app that uses some of the same behavioural science that social media uses, but rather than to hook us in, it’s designed to help us switch off our phones and switch on to each other.

Switching to Real Mode in itself snaps the user from the automatic to the conscious brain

Exiting requires counter-intuitive switches, engaging the brain

Prompts and reminders slow decisions

And good behaviour is reinforced and rewarded in the real world

2degrees, New Zealand’s fairest Telco decided to help fight phone addiction by rewarding people for switching off their phones. That’s right. A telco helping people hang up their phones. At least for a bit.

2degrees is a challenger brand, on a mission to ‘Fight for Fair’ since taking on New Zealand’s Telco duopoly. Like any Telco, they started out to connect people. But with every innovation people get further apart. It’s effecting our mental wellbeing. Increased screen time during several lockdowns has New Zealand acutely aware of the addictive alure of these devices.

Finding balance in a digital world is increasingly difficult. Billions of dollars are spent making sure every ‘ping’ is as alluring and addictive as possible. We are all suffering unprecedented levels of anxiety and stress as we never get the chance to switch off. That hardly seems fair.

So whilst every other telco is out pushing even more data 2degrees decided to go the other way, helping Kiwis switch off from time to time to connect for real.

Real Mode was planned as a 10 week activation, encouraging people to try some time away from their phones and start a conversation about balance. The nationwide campaign was started with a conversation in film and with a front page takeover of the New Zealand Herald. We encouraged downloads through Out of Home, digital, social and EDM. And announced the real-world rewards in online film and short form. We targeted our competitors’ customers online too giving them permission to download and try Real Mode, even though they were not with 2degrees.

Although there have always been things like Do Not Disturb or Airplane Mode we offered something more. This was about accepting the power our phones have over us and using the tricks employed by the companies that keep us glued to our phones to help us make the conscious decision to take back control. There is clearly a desire to find more balance.

In the first eight weeks, New Zealanders spend a massive 12.5 years in Real Mode, swapping social media for being social for real. With an average session time of 3.3 hours.

What’s more, brand consideration went up by 30% cementing our position as the fairest telco.