The creative idea was to take the most used cliché photos creative professionals love to hate and put them in a fashion context.

By taking advantage of the biggest perceived weakness among stock photos – i.e the cliché photos creative professionals love to hate, we created a clothing collection – Adobe Stock Apparel SS16 where we put the cliché photos in a fashion context. This resulted in a PR-campaign where clothing items and lookbooks were sent to our target group - Creative Directors as well as selected journalists and influencers to spark the interest for the campaign in creative forums.

Campaing images were also spread through social media and in Adobe´s own channels.

Implementation

Our PR-tools were the items from the collection packaged in a designed cardboard box, the collection lookbook and separate campaign images.

We sent items of the clothing collection along with the look book to relevant journalists, influencers and creative directors. The images were spread through social media and in Adobe’s own channels. We started the campaign by approaching Adweek, as one of the most important target media. Thereafter we reached out to other relevant media.

Scale

The campaign was first implemented in the Nordics and then carried out in EMEA and finally it went global

Platform

We created a website where we displayed the lookbook with strong copy, as well as introducing Adobe Stock and the benefits the service include.

Timeline

2016-05-15 – 2016-09-30

Sales objectives: Achieve a conversion rate (booked meetings) of 10%.

Result: Conversion (booked sales meetings in relation to companies contacted) totaled 42%. Sales target exceeded by 320%.

PR objectives reach: 10 000 000 gross range globally

Result: Total gross range amounted to 720,000,000. Target exceeded by 7100%.

PR objectives insertions: 30 editorial articles in 10 countries

Result: Number of editorial articles: 131 in 33 countries. Target exceeded by 336% respective 230%.

Social media objectives: 5 000 000 impressions

Result: 81,000,000 impressions. Target exceeded by 1520%.

The total PR value or the campaign amounted to 9,9 million USD

The creative strategy behind Adobe Stock Apparel was to design an idea where target group engagement was the key to create a conversation starter. By tapping into a fashion context with Adobe Stock, a brand normally not associated with fashion we created a PR-tool and triggered engagement to set the wheels in motion for organic spread.

The strategy was to utilize the biggest perceived weaknesses of stock photo agencies and use them to our advantage. We combined two extremes in order to act unconventional in the stock photo agency category.

The target audience was the community of creative professionals and the target media was creative online magazines and portals such as Adweek, Creativity Online, Mashable etc. but also to reach fashion oriented plattforms and magazines. We identified journalists and influencers relevant for the community to whom we sent items of the clothing collection as well as the lookbook and campaign images.

To make sure that Adobe as a brand and the benefits of Adobe Stock would come across in all contexts we named the collection: Adobe Stock Apparel SS16, and made sure that the practical arguments for using Adobes Stock was integrated in to the clothes by putting them on the washing labels.

The task was to launch Adobe Stock, a new service within the stock photo market - which is dominated by a few very strong and well-known global competitors. The challenge was to differentiate Adobe Stock from the competitors and function as a conversation starter for the Adobe sales team.