Title	EXPERIMENT ALONE: BOB DYLAN
Brand	PAF.COM
Product/Service	ONLINE GAMBLING/CASINO
Category	A07. Celebrity Endorsement
Entrant Company	DOE BLOMBERG GOTTBERG Stockholm, SWEDEN
Advertising Agency	DOE BLOMBERG GOTTBERG Stockholm, SWEDEN
Production Company	THELMA & LOUISE Stockholm, SWEDEN

Name	Company	Position
Doe Blomberg Gottberg	Doe Blomberg Gottberg

The Campaign

How could we get picky online gamblers and sceptical journalists to talk about the small gambling company Paf? We needed to give them an alibi, a context free from betting and gambling but where Paf could be relevant and talk about its values. In online TV series Experiment Alone we put Paf's philosophy – ”It’s more fun together” – to the test. What would it feel like to be all alone experiencing something that you normally do together with others? Using behavioral science and psychologists we once and for all sought the answer to the question – "Is it really more fun together?". By this we managed to create awareness and interest for the brand in a context of emotional values, instead of sign up bonuses and jackpots. In the first five episodes the answer turned out to be: Yes – it is more fun together. At the same time we were building up for the Grand Finale. For the final episode we decided to take the question to the extreme. We approached one of history’s greatest artists, a man who rarely even do interviews. With a strong idea we managed to get his attention and interest. In the audience we put one of his biggest fans – all alone. We created interesting content about a universally engaging question and the campaign was soon talked and written about all over the world. A practically unknown company found its way into the world's mass Media. Media reach: +1.6 billion. Swedish articles mentioning Paf increased by 392%.

The Brief

We wanted to greatly increase the awareness of Paf and their philosophy by using earned media to challenge the industry's outspending strategy. We wanted to increase the number of articles mentioning Paf and their philosophy to increase liking towards the brand.

Execution

In online TV series Experiment Alone we investigated the role of togetherness by putting Paf's philosophy ('it's more fun together') through six social experiments evaluated by a professional psychologist. What would it feel like to be all alone experiencing something that you normally do together with others? The episodes were released on YouTube, promoted with local PR, building up for The first five experiments confirmed the philosophy – it is more fun together. For the final episode we decided to take the question to the extreme, the ultimate test. We approached one of history’s greatest artists, a man who rarely even do interviews. With a strong idea we managed to get his attention and interest. In the audience we put one of his biggest fans – all alone. The campaign was soon talked and written about all over the world. A practically unknown company found its way into the world's mass Media.

The PR surrounding the series resulted in over 1 000 articles in 100 countries generating a media reach in excess of 1.6 billion, and in Sweden (the campaign's core market) the number of articles mentioning Paf increased by 392%. The episodes have been viewed over 3 000 000 times, and Paf's target group awareness has increased from 10% to 45%. For business goals, please see confidential information below.

The Strategy

Paf's corporate strategy is built on values and their philosophy 'it's more fun together'. This is how they try to distinguish themselves in an over-established industry characterized by macho attitude and aggressive marketing. To build awareness and liking for Paf we needed to make people aware of their philosophy. But in an extremely competitive market and with only a fraction of the competitors' budget it would be near impossible for Paf to gain awareness through bought media. Therefore we hade to rely on PR to put Paf on the agenda. Our product however, is difficult to get picked up by the media so we had to build a strategy to give journalists a reason (alibi even) to like, support, and write about Paf.