Stranger Things is a global phenomenon, but was still a niche affair in Thailand. Netflix wanted to expand its base beyond Bangkok and go mass, but being an international streaming platform and relatively distant to most Thais, it had to find ways to bring it closer to home.

What if the whole country could just go stranger? Just like in the show, where a portal opens in the city of Hawkins, all 77 provinces of Thailand got their own customized portals to the upside-down world of Stranger Things.

Netflix needed to build relevancy for the show within its Thai audience (primarily 18-34, movie fans) and expand its subscription base beyond Bangkok. So we set up the campaign to create online buzz and targeted our core fans first, as they would more easily engage and spread the word. But we wanted to go mass so new ‘portals’ would soon open, taking over OOH and local TV channels nationwide.

It all started on 15th June 2019, two weeks before the series launched. One post dared users to open local portals in their own cities across Thailand. Within one hour, people from all 77 provinces had replied and the customized portals appeared real-time. Soon after, they went from social media to real life portals-billboards across the country. The take-over continued on local TV stations and an portal-opening experience at Bangkok’s most iconic theatre.

Within 1 hour, people from all 77 provinces in Thailand had responded. The campaign went on to amass 94 million impressions, with 27 million reach. Half of the new subscribers who joined in that period started with the old seasons, meaning we were effective not just in promoting the new season but on creating fans for the whole franchise.