AUCKLAND, Today: Skinny is turning ordinary phone calls into a new media channel, giving customers the chance to win prizes ranging from a ride-on lawn mower to a brand-new hairline through its latest campaign.
The low-cost telco is inviting happy customers to help spread the word about Skinny’s deals by opting in to have short pre-recorded ads placed inside their phone calls. The more calls they make, the more chances they have to win.
The system, developed by the tech teams at Colenso BBDO and Skinny, inserts Skinny ads of up to 10 seconds into calls in real time, creating a new kind of media placement that plays out directly on people’s phones.
“A corporation putting ads in the middle of my phone calls? I’d never allow that. Unless of course a chest freezer of sausages was up for grabs.
“By using our customers’ phone calls as a free media channel, we can get our great offers in the ears of the rest of New Zealand, and for being part of it, our co-conspirators can win things they’ve always wanted, like frosted tips for their family.” says Hadleigh Sinclair, Group Creative Director, Colenso BBDO.
The campaign continues Skinny’s long-running approach of finding unusual, low-cost ways to stay memorable, from casting New Zealanders with famous names instead of expensive celebrities to turning radio scripts into billboards people could record on their phones.
“By using our customers’ phone calls as a free media channel, we can get our great offers in the ears of the rest of New Zealand, and for being part of it, our co-conspirators can win things they’ve always wanted, like frosted tips for their family.” – Hadleigh Sinclair, Group Creative Director, Colenso BBDO
That same approach has helped Skinny be named New Zealand’s most satisfied telco customers for 11 years in a row, and this latest campaign keeps that playful streak going while giving customers a direct role in spreading the message.
To take part, customers text HAPPY to 414, follow a few prompts, and are then connected to the person they want to call. During the conversation, short ad breaks promoting Skinny deals play as part of the experience.
The prize pool is deliberately random in true Skinny style, with rewards including a jetski, a ride-on lawn mower, fresh new hairlines, and even a year’s supply of rotisserie chickens.
“It’s been incredible to help develop an entirely new media channel and leverage innovative placements and partnerships to bring the idea to life. It’s a brilliant showcase of what true collaboration can achieve” – Philippa Allnutt, Creative Integration Lead at PHD.
Rolling out nationwide for four weeks across paid, earned and owned channels, the campaign is designed to show up in plenty of places, but the real novelty sits in the phone call itself.
“This is Skinny at its best; smart, fun, and a little bit unexpected,” said Hannah McLean, Brand Partner at Skinny. “We love the idea that our customers can just pick up the phone, have a laugh with a mate, and maybe walk away with something pretty awesome.”
Text HAPPY to 414, make a call, and see what happens. Worst case, it is a good chat. Best case, it is free chickens for a year.
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