Project Convey stems from a challenge that not all companies are willing to face - proving that they really live their brand purpose. We were tasked with finding a way to show that a regional cable provider can do more than create digital connections, but instead create real meaningful connections in people's lives.

Our strategy had to go beyond relevant ways for people to see Cox as a possible cable provider. Instead, we looked to find ways in which people lacked meaningful connections in their lives, and how Cox could step in and make a difference.

Cox’s brand purpose is to help people have more meaningful connections. But to many of its customers, Cox is just the regional cable and internet provider they’re stuck with – a utility bill at best – not a brand that shares their values. We wanted to change that.

The objective: To strengthen Cox's relationship with its customers by improving overall brand sentiment and trust in a highly commoditized and negatively perceived space.

The challenge: Show people that Cox is not just a number you call when internet connection is down, but a brand you can count on when human connection is down.

The brief: Create a bold, real-world solution that brings Cox’s brand purpose to life by providing real, human connection wherever it’s needed.

In the highly commoditized and negatively perceived telecom industry, Cox wanted to take on the challenge of elevating their brand from functional product offerings to playing a more meaningful role in people’s lives. The desired outcome for the clients is for customers and non-customers alike to see that Cox is not just talking the talk but walking the walk when it comes to living their brand purpose of creating more real and meaningful connections for people, and along the way earn more positive sentiment and brand affinity.

The breakthrough moment came at the intersection of two key pieces of data found in desktop research:

-Video call usage rose to an all-time high during the Pandemic. 81% of Americans have used video calling/conferencing during the pandemic.

-But for those on the autism spectrum (that’s 1 in 44 of us), having a meaningful connection on a video chat can be difficult.

We then consulted experts within the field, and held focus groups with people on the spectrum where we specifically looked for insights regarding these struggles, and how we could best solve this.

Insight: Non-verbal cues, like reading facial expressions, are key to connecting with others. But some people on the spectrum have a hard time reading these cues; an issue amplified when there’s a screen between us. And during a time when DEI mostly focuses on race, we wanted to show that there is more to the category.

Every day, millions of people connect through video chat. But for people on the spectrum, this connection is impossible, because many can’t read non-verbal cues, like facial expressions, which are key to connecting on a deeper level.

In response, Cox created Project Convey, a video chat prototype that helps people on the spectrum connect better with the person on the other side of the screen. Using AI, the prototype analyzes three inputs: facial expressions, speech, and tone, and in real-time, translates the emotion into an emoji. Cox worked with members of the autism community to design the tool, from UX and UI, to color, sound, and the emojis themselves. Those who trialed our prototype experienced more engaging and meaningful video calls than they had on other video chat platforms. The experience was not just improved for the person with ASD, the technology created a better experience for both parties.

In response to Project Convey, the autism community showed tremendous support for the prototype, expressing their happiness for this unique experience and talking about the exciting possibility of a future where people with autism can better connect with their loved ones on video chat. The client's interaction with this project and the resulting films have inspired them to possibly find a way to integrate this technology into their products and services in the future, in order to better include those with diverse abilities.

In addition, this is the highest viewed campaign at launch for Cox Communications. Within the first two weeks of the campaign we received:

3,570,343 video views

1,308,289 social engagements

4,520,432 impressions