Title	FIRST CONCERT
Brand	VODAFONE
Product/Service	VODAFONE FIRSTS
Category	A06. EVENTS & EXPERIENTIAL (INCL. STUNTS)
Entrant Company	BLYDE Amsterdam, THE NETHERLANDS
Advertising Agency	BLYDE Amsterdam, THE NETHERLANDS

Name	Company	Position
Camiel Overgaauw	Blyde	Pr Director
Vera Möhrlein	Blyde	Pr Co/Ordinator
Laura Miller	Blyde	Pr Co/Ordinator
Omar Kbiri	Blyde	General Creative Director
Viola Welling	Blyde	Production Manager
ACHTUNG!		Additional company

The Campaign

The Vodafone #Firsts campaign challenges people to experience something amazing for the first time with the help of technology. Our challenge was to create maximum visibility for the Vodafone #Firsts platform in the Netherlands and to increase the emotional engagement with the brand. To achieve this, we came up with a story everyone can relate to: hearing music for the first time. The hero of this story is 19-year-old Vera, deaf since birth but recently able to hear again thanks to a cochlear implant. We asked musical genius Kyteman to make her dream come true: experiencing a concert for the first time that was composed especially for her. PR Objectives: 1. Activate people to send in their ‘first song’ for Vera 2. Activate people to post their own firsts 3. Maximum visibility/reach: €1 million media value 4. Sold-out concert: 700 guests 5. One national television item PR Strategy: An integrated PR approach, implementing social media, paid media, an event and video content. We rolled out the campaign in three phases: 1. Pre-launch: building momentum, engaging audience 2. Launch: concert and sharing the experience 3. Post-launch: in-depth storytelling of entire journey Challenges: - Finding an artist who matched the brand values and had enough (musical) intelligence to compose a concert for Vera. - Engaging the target group before the concert - Credibility: Ensuring the campaign didn’t become too commercially branded Outcomes: - People in six countries were touched by campaign - Total reach: 110 million impressions - Media value: €1.7 million

The Brief

The criteria for success for this campaign were based on various objectives: - Media value of €1 million - Widespread coverage and (social) reach - One item on primetime television - Sold-out concert - Improved emotional engagement towards Vodafone - Activate target group to post their #firsts The target audience for this campaign was Dutch consumers. It was highly important that the campaign reached a generic audience, instead of solely engaging niche groups. The goals were set by the client. We conduced research into which media would be interested in an exclusive partnership to examine how to achieve the goals.

Results

We outperformed all set objectives. A highlight was an interview with Vera and Kyteman in the extremely popular television talk show ‘RTL Late Night’ (1.3 million viewers). It created extensive social media buzz, especially when Vera stated that experiencing the concert was like being born for the first time. Results: - Total media value: €1.7 million - 3 national TV items (primetime), 7 radio items and over 270 publications (including The Daily Mail with a reach of 55.2 million) - Total reach: over 110 million impressions - Sold out concert - Social media reach: 7.2 million - Thousands of song suggestions via social media - 99% positive engagement - Trending topic on Twitter (twice) and Instagram - Documentary: 900,000 views / 5,000 interactions - Highest number of submissions on the Vodafone #firsts platform (outnumbering the UK, France and Germany) - Survey result: Concert improved online brand sentiment (12% to 36%).

Execution

After a one month concept period, the campaign commenced on August 6th. The concert took place in the iconic pop temple Paradiso in Amsterdam on the 25th of August. Per phase, we implemented multiple assets: Pre-launch: - Introductory video (shared with press) - Exclusive interview with Vera in largest national newspaper - Song submissions via Facebook and Twitter (#firstconcert) - Dutch artists covered a song and shared it on social media - Updates by Kyteman on social media Launch: - Concert - Inviting journalists and influencers to concert Post launch: - Television interview - Documentary (shared with press; seeding on online channels) - Video registration of song (shared with press) - Documentary trailer aired at various cinemas throughout the country For the concert, we faced two challenges: securing a renowned location on a specific date and making it suitable for the concert we were organising (podium arrangement, tickets, interior, etc.)

The Situation

Vodafone #Firsts connects people with technology to empower them to experience amazing things for the first time. On a global platform, consumers were asked to submit what they wanted to experience for the first time. These stories are all proof of Vodafone’s brand promise: Power to you. This campaign was set up to create maximum visibility for the Vodafone #Firsts platform in the Netherlands, to improve the emotional engagement with the brand and to activate the target group to post their own #firsts.

The Strategy

The concert plays a fundamental role in the PR strategy for this campaign. Quality and authenticity were the fundamental values that we upheld. Based on these values, we chose the location of the concert, the artist and various media partners. We also wanted to ensure that there was a connection between Vera and the artist and that the story wouldn’t be focused on Vera’s impairment but rather on her strengths. Just as Vera put it: “If you can do it, so can I” and this is something we wanted to convey throughout the campaign. The main goal for the production of the event was for it to radiate quality. Not only to give Vera an extraordinary first concert, but also for it to augment the message we were sharing. We therefore chose Paradiso as the location, as it is a prominent pop temple and is famed for its programming.