The Sound of Excitement is the translation of the audible joy, the screaming, children express when opening a present. The screaming was measured in decibels and put on a tag on each pack and in all online executions and on pack. With these numbers, people were certain what level of excitement they bought for their loved ones. We targeted gifters, not being mom and dad, and reached them on a direct personal level on a.o. Amazon and Google shopping, YT Trueview and Instagram Stories. The tag was also a QR code, showing a video of screaming kids unwrapping Mattel presents.

Every year at Christmas we struggle to choose the perfect present for the children we love as an aunt, uncle, grandparent or family friend. Even if we go through all sorts of brochures, the doubt remains. We wanted to help people nail the perfect gift by showing them the excitement Mattel toys provoked in kids. Because there is a way of knowing when a kid loves a gift: they scream. The louder the happier. We went to a sound studio and measured the decibels of kids’ screams when unpacking a Mattel toy. We turned the decibel numbers into excitement levels and placed them on each Mattel toy packaging.

In an oversaturated market we had to make Mattel products stand out and the preferred choice for adults looking for a gift.

Objectives:

• Build preference for Mattel toys and its sub-brands

• Drive traffic to our products on retailer sites

The happier, the louder. When it comes to unpacking a gift, the sound kids make is a strong indicator of their happiness. We used this insight to measure up all the top line products of Mattel and awarded them with the decibels children shouted when unwrapping the present.

We invited some kids to the studio. Here they were put in a room and received a present. Their reaction, both visual as auditive was recorded and became part of the excitement levels. We measured the screams of excitement from kids when they opened Mattel toys and transformed it into a new unit of measurement in the form of a "offer label": the tag. Each Mattel product got its own tag with its own decibel level number, making the excitement contained immediately visible for gifters. And on every pack a QR code gave access to the unwrapping-video of the kids.

If you give a present, you expect a certain result. Joy, or thankfulness. But there’s more to it: you secretly want your present to be the best. We created a way of knowing what present is best received. We simply let the kids be the judges of it. Not by asking them, but by giving them a present and measure their enthusiasm. Their screams during the unpacking, their sound of excitement in decibel became the completely new measuring scale which we also used on the product. People learned that Barbie was good for 86dB, while Hot Wheels reached a nice 92dB. That makes choosing the perfect gift a lot easier, doesn’t it?

The campaign ran in the run up to the Christmas gift buying period: October 22nd (pay day) until the 1st week of Jan. We used paid social media promotions via Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn, and updating the Mattel website. We created 6 x 15" hero films that show about 24 Mattel products in total.

Our audience loved the translation of the childrens’ excitement. The campaign generated sales of over 2 million toys. We got over 200 million impressions. We generated 1,1 million clicks on online retail sites. Amazon orders grew with 64%.

It is seen by Mattel as a very successful campaign, especially as this was the first time they targeted on family and friends, not the parents.