VISIT XBOX: THE BIRTH OF GAMING TOURISM
| Title | VISIT XBOX: THE BIRTH OF GAMING TOURISM |
| Brand | MICROSOFT |
| Product/Service | XBOX ONE X ENHANCED |
| Category |
D01. Strategic Transformation |
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Entrant
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McCANN LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM
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Idea Creation
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McCANN LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM
|
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Production
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McCANN LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM
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Production 2
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CRAFT LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM
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Production 3
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FIRE WITHOUT SMOKE London, UNITED KINGDOM
|
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Production 4
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MOMENTUM WORLDWIDE London, UNITED KINGDOM
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Production 5
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CLOCKWORK Johannesburg, SOUTH AFRICA
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Additional Company
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MRM METEORITE London, UNITED KINGDOM
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Additional Company 2
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ATTENTION SEEKERS London, UNITED KINGDOM
|
Credits
| Rob Doubal |
McCann London |
Chief Creative Officer, McCann UK, and Co-President |
| Laurence Thomson |
McCann London |
Chief Creative Officer, McCann UK, and Co-President |
| Sanjiv Mistry |
McCann London |
Executive Creative Director |
| Jamie Mietz |
McCann London |
Executive Creative Director |
| Jim Nilsson |
McCann London |
Copywriter |
| Jacob Björdal |
McCann London |
Art Director |
| Jim Nilsson |
McCann London |
Director |
| Jacob Björdal |
McCann London |
Director |
| Karen Crum |
McCann London |
Head of Strategy |
| James Appleby |
McCann London |
Senior Planner |
| Fanni David |
McCann London |
Senior Planner |
| Thomas Keane |
McCann London |
Planner |
| Dan Howarth |
McCann London |
Head of Art |
| Matthew Thomas |
McCann London |
Designer |
| Nazima Motegheria |
McCann London |
Designer |
| Clare Prager |
McCann London |
Project Director |
| Anna Curtis |
McCann London |
Project Manager |
| Rob Smith |
McCann London |
EVP & CCO, McCann UK |
| Sailesh Jani |
McCann London |
Managing Partner |
| Nicole Robinson-Spaude |
McCann London |
Senior Account Director |
| Lynne Carter |
McCann London |
Account Director |
| Andy Wynn |
McCann London |
Account Director |
| Robert Stockton |
McCann London |
Senior Account Manager |
| Conor Lloyd |
McCann London |
Senior Account Manager |
| Anastasia Imam |
McCann London |
Account Manager |
| Lucy Manning |
McCann London |
Account Manager |
| Eloise Thompson |
McCann London |
Account Executive |
| Sergio Lopez |
Craft/McCann |
Chief Production Officer EMEA |
| Sophie Chapman-Andrews |
Craft/McCann |
Lead Executive Producer |
| Kin-man Ly |
Craft/McCann |
Executive Producer |
| Ellis Faint |
Craft/McCann |
Head of Studio |
| Alex Dougan |
Craft/McCann |
Head of Studio |
| Alex Dougan |
Craft/McCann |
Producer |
| Harvey Winter |
Craft/McCann |
Junior Producer |
| Jeremy Reichman |
Craft/McCann |
Producer |
| Liam White |
Craft/McCann |
Print Producer |
| Angelo Tsolkas |
Craft/McCann |
Producer |
| Pam Oskam |
Craft/McCann |
Art Buyer |
| Julie Hughes |
Craft/McCann |
Art Buyer |
| John Martin |
Craft/McCann |
Studio Imaging Director |
| Rob McDonald |
Craft/McCann |
Senior Retoucher |
| Matt Dollings |
Craft/McCann |
Senior Editor |
| Paul Jenkinson |
Craft/McCann |
Senior Editor |
| Sabina Dallu |
Craft/McCann |
Editor |
| Holly Webster |
Craft/McCann |
Creative Researcher |
| Robbie Maynard |
Craft/McCann |
Print Studio Manager |
| Tai Smith |
Momentum |
Creative Technologist |
| Duncan Harris |
Freelance |
Photography |
| Josh Taylor |
Freelance |
Photography |
Summary
To promote Xbox One X Enhanced games, Xbox faced a tough challenge:
How do you talk about complex tech benefits like 4K, HDR, and 60 FPS, to a new mainstream audience, who didn't resonate with the specs, or even the conventions of videogame advertising like hero characters and weapons?
To justify the purchase of Xbox’s high-spec console and games, we had to get people to appreciate the richness of Xbox's games in a new way, beyond the normal way of promoting games.
So Xbox underwent an unprecedented brand transformation:
a gaming brand became a travel brand.
We began promoting not the gameplay, but the locations available in games.
It changed how people discover, experience, and purchase games. It was no longer about promoting games as things to play – but as destinations to see.
With ‘Visit Xbox’, we spoke to a new audience on an emotional level, giving them a new reason to buy Xbox One X Enhanced games: purely to visit.
The media approach emulates the travel sector - a tourist board-style commercial, a series of DOOH executions, press ads, contextual ads on flight search sites, interactive social formats such as Instagram carousels, application for tourist board accreditation, and livestreamed guided tours.
But the centrepiece of the shift is a partnership with global travel guide publisher Rough Guides. Together, we created the first-ever travel guide to gaming worlds – The Rough Guide to Xbox., a fully functioning travel reference book gamers could use to discover the best sightseeing in Xbox worlds.
Everything led to a .com site that lets people discover and buy games in a new way. Instead of searching by title or genre, customers browse locations sorted by different themes (like cities, beaches, and more). And to further drive sales of consoles and games, Xbox also promoted console bundles as package holidays.
This transformative strategic shift has rolled out in 29 markets across the world so far, with more to come in 2020.