SUPERMARKET ASMR

TitleSUPERMARKET ASMR
BrandLIDL SWEDEN
Product/ServiceRETAIL
Category B02. Use of Audio Platforms
Entrant LIDL SWEDEN Stockholm, SWEDEN
Idea Creation VOLT Stockholm, SWEDEN
Media Placement VOLT Stockholm, SWEDEN
PR VOLT Stockholm, SWEDEN
Production VOLT Stockholm, SWEDEN
Post Production VOLT Stockholm, SWEDEN
Credits
Name Company Position
Christian Jörgensen Volt Stockholm Senior Art Director
Johan Sundberg Volt Stockholm Senior Copywriter
Jonna Liljendahl Volt Stockholm Account Manager
Henrik Stampe Volt Stockholm Senior Strategist / Account Director
Gabriella Goldman Lidl Sweden Marketing Director
Staffan Kjellvestad Volt Stockholm Sound Designer
Jan Sjöberg Volt Stockholm Sound Engineer

Why is this work relevant for Media?

With Lidl Supermarket ASMR we turned people into fans by making them discover Lidl in a completely new way. Not with their eyes, tastebuds or wallets – but with their ears. In times of quarantine and self-isolation this Spotify album with titles like “Blipping Groceries” , “Shopping Cart Right to Left” and “Filling up the Fridge” provided an alternative way of visiting the grocery store with soothing sounds of a very much longed for everyday life.

Background

During the pandemic, quarantine, social distancing and self-isolation affected everything in life. When people started to feel depressed, a question was raised in the Swedish Lidl camp. How can a food chain help relieve the situation other than providing food in a safe way? This became the main challenge in a brief that also wanted this to be done in a PR-friendly way that also appealed to people who aren´t necessarily Lidl customers from start.

Describe the creative idea / insights (30% of vote)

In times of worry and disorder, people look for new ways of finding relief at home. One way of doing so is via listening to ASMR-sounds that provides an often sedative sensation. Popular ASMR-themes are the soothing sounds of rain, windmills and waves. However, in times when everybody are longing for normality and the return of everyday life, soothing sounds can be found in completely different areas. In a Lidl Supermarket, for instance.

Describe the strategy (20% of vote)

With a very wide target audience ("the general public") that resides in the whole of Sweden, we looked for a way of making ASMR-sounds from Lidl available in the most effective way by using a digital channel that a great number of people already use and are familiar with. We also wanted this channel to boost the PR-potential.

Describe the execution (20% of vote)

With a special ASMR stereo microphone we recorded twenty-one tracks of genuine sounds from a Swedish Lidl store and published them as a full album on Spotify. Artist: Lidl. Title: Allt annat är olidligt (meaning “Everything is unbearable” which is a wordplay in Swedish where un-bearable equals o-lidligt, a word that also integrates “Lidl”). The tracks were given extremely descriptive names such as “Blipping Groceries”, “Filling up the Fridge” and “Shopping Cart Right to Left” to deviate from the more common artistic approach and to enhance the feeling of everyday life. The album was then promoted by PR and in Lidl Sweden’s own SoMe-channels during the pandemic year of 2020, until it got picked up by international press. The album has now become viral.

List the results (30% of vote)

The album Lidl “Allt annat är olidligt” became viral and was picked up by a huge number of channels, communities, websites and magazines, not only in Sweden but all over the world. From articles in Dummy Mag and Vice, via reviews on YouTube, to airplay on BBC and ultimately becoming a feature in a German prime time TV-show. The earned media coverage has an estimated value that equals the following: A total reach of 61,5 million people, a PR-value of 4,5 million Euro and an AD-value of 1,5 million Euro.