| Title | VOTE WITH YOUR HEART |
| Brand | SVT |
| Product/Service | MELODIFESTIVALEN |
| Category |
A17. Innovation in Entertainment |
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Entrant
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PERFECT FOOLS Stockholm, SWEDEN
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Idea Creation
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PERFECT FOOLS Stockholm, SWEDEN
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Credits
| Tony Sajdak |
Perfect Fools |
Technical Director |
| Björn Kummeneje |
Perfect Fools |
Tehnical Director |
| Klas Lusth |
Perfect Fools |
Creative Director |
| Anna Lindequist |
Perfect Fools |
Head of Production |
| Hannah Bradford |
Perfect Fools |
Producer |
| Madeleine Modig |
Perfect Fools |
Producer |
| Kim Korte |
Perfect Fools |
Developer |
| Mikael Palm |
Perfect Fools |
Developer |
| Stefan Lagergren |
Perfect Fools |
Developer |
| Michael Lindfors |
Perfect Fools |
Developer |
| Melissa Nilsson |
Perfect Fools |
Designer |
The Campaign
We created a second screen app that encouraged users to vote in the moment with all their heart. And we mean that literally as well as figuratively. Users voted for their favourite act by pressing the heart symbol whenever they felt inspired to throughout a performance. To differentiate from every other staged, reality-TV show out there, we introduced the ability to ‘heart’ multiple acts more than once, and see the feedback immediately on-screen. An on-screen intensity metre showed how many people were 'hearting' an act, showing how votes were being cast across Sweden. And the heart symbol itself is already in use in social networks (in place of the passive ‘like’) so it felt like a natural fit for a more meaningful method for giving feedback. By moving away from produced reality and towards real-time, genuine interaction with the show, our second-screen app boosted viewer engagement and enthusiasm for Melodifestivalen.
Creative Execution
Our second screen app was designed to maintain user interaction before, during and after each Melodifestivalen show. Considered interaction design connected the audience at home with the emotions in the arena instantaneously.
Voting with the app was modeled on the idea that a good performance should be decided on impulse. Users were encouraged to ‘vote with your heart’, disrupting the typical voting behaviour based on a 5 min recap. Instead, users could cast votes per artist, whenever they felt inspired to do so.
Making predictions with the app maintained interest in the downtime between shows. By ranking the artists in order, you could compare your guesses with the actual results, giving the audience an easy way to compare their viewpoint.
Both voting and prediction functions connected you with friends. This knowledge encouraged users to offset friends votes, or even support an artist they may have been unsure about before.
People voted with the heart! 2016 we collected 36 711 512 votes, in comparison to 3 273 285 year 2014, before the app. It's an increase of 1 021% in engagement. 974 656 people used the app (30% of viewers).
2.925.670 predictions made in the app.
The change in viewer engagement is striking. The app became a national phenomenon ; with viewers taking to 'heart-voting' naturally.
Eurovision is a crucial part of Swedish identity - and Melodifestivalen, the celebration to pick the nation's contestant, is hugely popular countrywide. Yet numbers are dropping. So to ensure viewership and enthusiasm for years to come, it was vital to ensure we provided a mobile experience that kept the audience engaged throughout the show and made them feel truly part of the live event. Voting with the heart on the mobile app and seeing the response on-screen linked everyone at home to the spectacle of the event - creating a new type of interactive digital entertainment for Swedes.
87% of our target group watches Melodifestivalen at the same time as using their smartphones and 66% is willing to express their feelings in digital channels during live events.
Based on these facts our strategy was to bring these people closer to each other, to the festival and to the arena.
During the broadcast, we mirrored on-stage lighting cues within the app, and displayed app user reactions directly in the broadcast. Whatever you did on app was immediately reflected back on-screen.
As the tournament takes 6 weeks to play out, our second priority was to ensure users didn’t drop off or lose interest. Most viewers readily comment and share their opinions freely already, so we created a space for those water-cooler conversations by facilitating post-broadcast discussions. You could share a prediction immediately after a show and see who in your social networks shared your opinion.