The buzz around a new smartphone release intensifies during the announcement phase. In fact 49% of new product searches take place during this time. Consumers love to get a ‘sneak peek’. The only thing better is getting their hands on it before everyone else. This got us thinking….

Millennials are characterised by their interest in new experiences; and their lives as digital natives. Indeed, 62.2% of German Millennials say experiences are an essential part of their life. They love to feel part of something and seek out launch events to express their brand loyalty in a community of like-minded people. As digital natives, they are driven by an urge to get exposure; and to share their experiences through social networks.

So, we created the Samsung S7 Live Escape Challenge - a pre-launch experience to excite and actively engage young consumers; and leverage their early interest in the Galaxy S7.

In the middle of Frankfurt, we set up a ‘Live Escape Cube’. Seven lucky candidates who qualified during a teaser phase were given 7 minutes to solve clues, break out and score a Samsung GalaxyS7 - one day before sales started.

The campaign consisted of 3 key phases to drive momentum, engagement and maximise our reach:

1.Pre-event announcement: A teaser and trailer were spread via Facebook, Instagram and leading a TV channel to announce the challenges prior to the live events.

2.Event phase: German TV Star and campaign ambassador, Funda Vanroy hosted the live events. Reporting directly from the cube via Facebook Live Videos, she revved-up the crowds and excitement – capturing it all on the S7.

3.Post-event: Using the challenge videos, we created 30 second TV spot the same day to further broaden the reach; encouraging the audience to watch the full challenges at Samsung’s Microsite.

The campaign delivered an incredible 31 million TV contacts against our target audience. And the online challenge videos attracted more than 500,000 views; including 165,000 live video views on Facebook which is extraordinary in Germany.

Google Trends data showed interest in the Samsung Galaxy S7 soared during the campaign period, showcasing the high awareness and buzz it generated.

The creative live experiences successfully differentiated Samsung’s S7 launch from its competitors, with 42% of our target audience rating the Live Challenges as innovative.

Our integrated experiential OOH stunt, influencer marketing, digital and mass media approach catapulted the Galaxy S7 to the strongest sales start of an S-Series phone. And it showed the world that when it comes to Smartphones, Samsung is anything but ordinary!