| Title | SHADOW POSTERS |
| Brand | MICROSOFT |
| Product/Service | SURFACE PRO 6 MATTE BLACK |
| Category |
A04. Consumer Durables |
|
Entrant
|
McCANN LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM
|
|
Idea Creation
|
McCANN LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM
|
|
Production
|
McCANN LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM
|
Credits
| Rob Doubal |
McCann London |
Co-President and Chief Creative Officer |
| Laurence Thomson |
McCann London |
Co-President and Chief Creative Officer |
| Sanjiv Mistry |
McCann London |
Executive Creative Director |
| Jamie Mietz |
McCann London |
Executive Creative Director |
| Jacob Björdal |
McCann London |
Art Director |
| Jim Nilsson |
McCann London |
Copywriter |
| Sergio Lopez |
Craft/McCann |
Chief Production Officer EMEA |
| Sophie Chapman-Andrews |
Craft/McCann |
Executive Producer |
| Daniel Källberg |
Craft/McCann |
Producer |
| Tom Adamson |
McCann London |
Business Director |
| Nicole Spaude |
McCann London |
Senior Account Director |
| Rohin Lalli |
McCann London |
Senior Account Manager |
| Robert Stockton |
McCann London |
Senior Account Manager |
| Sophie Grierson |
McCann London |
Account Manager |
| Clare Prager |
McCann London |
Project Director |
| Anna Curtis |
McCann London |
Project Manager |
| Matthew Thomas |
McCann London |
Designer |
| Angelika Juszczyk |
McCann London |
Creative Artworker |
| Joshua Smith |
McCann London |
Junior Designer |
| Ellis Faint |
Craft/McCann |
Post-production |
| Adele Hodges |
Craft/McCann |
Post-production |
| Paul Jenkinson, Stefano Scalise and Paul Fitzpatrick |
Craft/McCann |
Post-production |
| John Martin |
Craft/McCann |
Post-production |
| Ben Twiston-Davies |
Craft/McCann |
Self-shooting Director |
| Jeremy Reichman |
Craft/McCann |
Post-production |
| Harvey Winter |
Craft/McCann |
Post-production |
| Brian Hill |
Freelance |
Photographer |
| Ben McIlveen |
Craft/McCann |
Post-production |
| Giselle Hall |
Craft/McCann |
Post-production |
Why is this work relevant for Media?
Shadows appear everywhere outdoors, but are rarely noticed. This overlooked medium was the perfect way to promote a product that is designed to disappear.
By existing purely as shadows, The Shadow Posters didn’t just reinvent the medium of posters. They actually turned shadows into an advertising medium. While they had the same format as other outdoor ads, they were posters like you’ve never seen them before.
For hundreds of years, posters have been designed to grab your attention – and distract you. To launch a device designed to make you more focused, these posters showed what real focus looks like.
Background
Microsoft were launching a new device – the first-ever black Surface Pro. The colour had been carefully chosen to be as muted and discreet as possible, in order to help the user get into their flow. How do you advertise a product that has been designed to not be noticed?
Describe the creative idea/insights
To launch the new device, we used a medium that also blends into the background – just like the product. Shadow Posters were a series of posters that existed only as shadows. Turning shadows into an advertising medium, the posters came to life on walls across London. Every surface became a new artwork – from traditional brick walls to interesting street art murals. This intentionally low-impact medium became an attention-grabbing series of posters.
Describe the strategy
The Surface Pro 6 was a product designed to disappear. So instead of using a conventional media space, we used shadows. This unique way of creating a poster allowed us to make ads that were also designed to disappear. Shadows was a medium that perfectly embodied the idea behind the product we were promoting.
The Surface Pro 6 was aimed at the creative professional. Therefore, the Shadow Posters appeared in the trendy, creative London neighbourhoods of Shoreditch and Peckham. The specific location were decided due to their proximity to creative businesses such as design studios and advertising agencies.
Describe the execution
Because this was a new medium, we had to develop a way to make the posters as strong and impactful as possible. The Shadow Posters were cast using a large-format, suspended stencil. While the technique was new, it was key that the shadows still came across as advertising posters. Therefore, the stencil had the same format as a conventional billboard.
The Shadow Posters appeared across walls in the London areas Shoreditch and Peckham. They existed on a range of different surfaces, each time becoming a new artwork.
They were supported by paid social and PR. Influencers were invited to the reveal of the posters, further spreading the message.
List the results
• ‘9.38M total impressions on social media’
• ‘51% of Surface Pro 6 sales were in matte black (2 x the projection)’