Title	REEBOK TO GO
Brand	REEBOK
Product/Service	REEBOK SNEAKERS
Category	G05. Cultural Insight
Entrant	M&C SAATCHI Stockholm, SWEDEN
Idea Creation	M&C SAATCHI Stockholm, SWEDEN
PR	PART PROJECTS Stockholm, SWEDEN
Production	THE FIRM STUDIO Stockholm, SWEDEN
Production 2	OLIVER MARTIN HENRIQUEZ Stockholm, SWEDEN
Post Production	OLIVER MARTIN HENRIQUEZ Stockholm, SWEDEN
Additional Company	REEBOK NORDICS Solna, SWEDEN
Additional Company 2	STREAM NORDIC Stokholm, SWEDEN

Name	Company	Position
Kristina Annehed	M&C Saatchi Stockholm	Account Director
Linus Larsson	M&C Saatchi Stockholm	Account Manager
Klara Eide	M&C Saatchi Stockholm	Executive Strategy Director
Linda Elers	M&C Saatchi Stockholm	Creative Director
Henrik Almqvist	M&C Saatchi Stockholm	Creative Director
Yrla Persson	M&C Saatchi Stockholm	Social Media Manager
Alexander Hedström	M&C Saatchi Stockholm	Graphic Designer
Anton Hååg	M&C Saatchi Stockholm	Graphic Designer
Alex Zachrisson	Reebok Nordics	Nordic Brand Communication Manager
Nicolas Nath	Reebok Nordics	Brand Director
Cristoffer Övergaard	The Firm	Web Developer/Programming
Oliver Martin Henriquez	Oliver Martin Henriquez	Filming/Editing/Post production
Joanna Sundström	Part Projects	PR
Hedda Nyström	Part Projects	PR
Jonas Edholm	Stream Nordic	Factor
John Müllersdorf	Stream Nordic	Factor

Why is this work relevant for Direct?

We focused on one very distinct target group: journalists/media, who we approached with a film and press material to get them to act and write about it. Our main goal was to reach a wider audience, namely people living in and around Stockholm, through earned media. Our plan worked. With literally zero media investment we had a media reach of over 4 million and received attention and acknowledgement globally – all thanks to persistent PR work, a highly debated and current topic, PR material that was easy to use and spread – and, of course, an engaging and fun idea.

Background

Reebok’s universal brand truth is the belief that people can be their very best selves – physically, mentally and socially – by leading an active life. And Reebok as a brand has an unexpected, witty and even a bit provoking and cheeky personality. So when the World Health Organization released statistics showing that 25 % of all Swedes are so physically inactive it is actually harmful, Reebok had to address the issue. With zero media budget, we needed to do something interesting and bold enough to generate media coverage and press by itself. In that same period, Stockholm (along with other cities around the world) was practically invaded by a new phenomenon: rentable electrical scooters. They were highly debated and stirred up emotions – some people loved them while others hated them. They were the perfect antagonist for Reebok and could represent the passive lifestyle Reebok is working against.

Describe the creative idea (30% of vote)

How could we use the debate around scooters to take a stand for physical movement? Say hello to “Reebok to Go”, an idea equally bizarre and brilliant. In order to make people see the stupidity in riding scooters instead of getting their well needed exercise when going places, we decided to start "competing” with the rentable scooters. We equipped a fleet of walking friendly Reeboks with soles with an integrated GPS leading to a site where the shoes could be tracked in real time. The shoes were placed in the center of Stockholm and could be borrowed by anyone with a mobile phone. We wanted to find the perfect balance tonality wise, so that people would understand that the service in itself wasn't a serious business extension for Reebok since it obviously wouldn't work - but make it serious enough to get the message behind everything shine through.

Describe the strategy (20% of vote)

Our strategy was to tap into a current phenomenon that had been debated in the news and most people had an opinion about, to increase the chance of getting buzz. We approached journalists (one of our target groups) with a PR kit (press release, images and film) in order to get them to act and report about our campaign. Our main goal was to reach our larger, primary target group (early adopting, active Stockholmers) through earned media. Our objective was to create brand heat and make people like and engage with the brand, not primarily to increase sales. We obviously knew the service wouldn't "work" and that the shoes would disappear and never be seen ever again, but we saw it as a creative give away/sampling that helps us get lots of attention and liking. We approached news, health, fashion and tech journalists in Sweden, but it spread organically globally.

Describe the execution (20% of vote)

We equipped a fleet of walking friendly unisex Reeboks (in sizes ranging from EU 36-45) with soles with an integrated GPS and a QR code leading to a site where the shoes could be tracked in real time on a map. The shoes were placed and spread out in the center of Stockholm, where lots of people pass and where scooters exist in abundance, and could be borrowed by anyone with a mobile phone by scanning the QR code. Besides the outdoor guerrilla marketing in the form of sneakers, we also produced a PR film explaining the idea, and press material for journalists. The service was launched in the autumn of 2019. (The sneakers disappeared fast, but the campaign kept spreading.)

List the results (30% of vote)

With zero media spend, we managed to get a media reach of over 4 million. The guerrilla stunt and the film was spread socially. All the shoes were gone within a few hours, and we received engagement from all over the world. We even had one of the top politicians in Stockholm tweeting about the stunt as part of the debate around physical health and the existence of electrical scooters in the city environment.

Please tell us about the cultural insight that inspired the work

Our strategy/idea was based on two current phenomena in Sweden: A heated debate around electrical scooters - they had literally invaded Stockholm and were everywhere. Some people loved them and the convenience they brought, others hated that they were everywhere, cruising between cars in heavy traffic and thrown on sidewalks. The fact that people were becoming less active was also contributing to the criticism. Another topic discussed in society was physical movement, specifically in the context of well-being and health. One of the most best-selling books in Sweden in 2019 was "Hjärnstark", by the well-known M.D. Anders Hansen who has done research on the correlation between physical movement and mental health. Also, a report from WHO showed that over 25 % of Swedes are so physically inactive it is harmful. Both WHO and Anders Hansen emphasized the importance of everyday movement and walks, instead of going to the gym.