There was a point in time when an advertiser would doubt the power of digital advertising, especially when it was compared to print or television which have been around for decades. Over time, brands would dip their toe into digital advertising, but today is a new day, especially for Microsoft Advertising Canada, who recently helped Amway Canada launch a digital-only campaign. Their work has also paid off in the form of the a campaign between Xbox LIVE and Reebok-CCM Hockey which won the “Best Use of Digital” at the 2013 Prix Media last week.
Only a few short years ago, investing in advertising on Xbox LIVE seemed like a niche play. While Xbox has a huge number of users globally and offers engaging ad experiences in completely new ways, focusing 100% of digital spend on this platform was rare.
Tasked with the launching Reebok-CCM Hockey’s new CCM hockey stick infused with TaylorMade technology and raising profile of the brand in hockey-mad markets (Canada, Massachusetts, Michigan and Minnesota) agency Carat partnered with Microsoft Advertising to create a three-phased Xbox ad solution.
The campaign included 3 phases:
- Phase 1 – Kicked off with a BDE on Xbox LIVE fully customized with information on the new Speedblade technology as well as a contest where Xbox users could win RBZ sticks or a trip to the Reebok/CCM Pro Hockey Summit, where NHL players associated to CCM were attending to test the new Reebok-CCM Hockey equipment, including the new RBZ.
- Phase 2 – Involved capturing footage of the winners at the Reebok/CCM Pro Hockey Summit.
- Phase 3 – Included a continuation of the BDE in sync with the launch of the new hockey stick, which coincided with the launch of the NHL 2013 game. A series of videos including footage from the contest winners at the Summit was available. As well, everyone who entered and interacted with the BDE had the opportunity to get a CCM custom TaylorMade virtual hockey stick for their Avatars – a first in Canada. Users’ avatars could win the stick before it was available in store!
Results of the innovative campaign included over 14,000 contest entries, and more than 5.5 million impressions – AND 31,000 downloads of the virtual stick.