Into the Unknown.
Getting clients to see an old product in a new light.
Client
Client Confidential
Studio Expertise
Event Design
Creative Concept & Strategy
Storytelling: name, tagline, messages
Venue Sourcing
Experience Design
Communication & Content
Briefing & Management of all contributors
Event Management & Production from A to Z
Project Partners
Graphic Design - Benoit Clair Leonardo Da Vinci Museum - Milan
In a nutshell
Trade shows are a battleground for attention. This client wanted to use the opportunity to promote a product that their customers thought was old news.
The need was to shift mindsets rather than simply diffuse information. This meant finding a way to access customers’ full and undivided attention for more than a few minutes. No space within the trade show schedule meant anything we did had to take place during delegates’ free time. But who wastes their time going to a presentation on a product they think they know all about?
The solution was to redesign the communication around the product in such a way as to render it totally unknown to delegates. We transformed the standard product presentation into an innovative talk-show spearheaded by leading industry experts. Creating a unique brand universe as well as an enigmatic communication campaign, we provoked curiosity to such an extent that delegates voluntarily gave up their free time to attend. The important result was not just a full house, but a willing audience that had understood there was something more to discover. And this is precisely the message our client wanted to deliver.
5 minutes read
Insight
Perhaps the single biggest obstacle when trying to communicate something new is the belief — I already know. As long as we think we know, there is very little room for listening. And without listening, communication is very difficult.
Contrary to what we might think, effective communication design is one that succeeds in showing us just how little we actually know about things. It moves us from a state of I know to a state where we feel Ah, there might be something new to learn here. It frees us from our preconceptions and allows us to see things anew.
Leonardo da Vinci – illustration for The Divine Proportion.
— Is what you see all there is?
This client needed to deliver a message about a product that everyone thought they knew. So the goal was to move people from the known to the unknown.
Because things that people already know don’t excite them, the key was to create a space for curiosity and generate an authentic buzz and desire to learn something new.
What we did
We started from the principle that every detail of this communication campaign would have to have the quality of never been seen before.
1.
Changing the topic
Because customers considered the product to be old news, we shifted the focus of the event from the product to a celebration of innovation. The trade show was in Italy, so we designed an event inspired by one of the greatest Italian inventors of all time: Leonardo Da Vinci.
2.
From a PPT Presentation to Saturday Night Live in Milan
We created a new type of product presentation in the style of a late night TV talk show which was designed to be as entertaining as it was educational.
To host the show, we brought in four of the leading experts in the industry. Over a period of four months we worked with them on the development of a script for the show. The script adapted the messages into the Saturday Night Live Format, translating didactic information into an interview style that was both entertaining, provocative and educational.
So not only was the content new, but the way it was delivered was unlike anything the company had done before.
3.
An evening to remember
The Leonardo Da Vinci Museum was privatised for the event. We chose it for its link with innovation and excellence, so it mirrored the qualities of the product that was being presented. The atmosphere and grandeur of the location reinforced the sincerity and authenticity behind the messages that were being delivered while giving delegates a memorable and delightful experience they would never forget.
Following the talk show, we organised a networking reception and dinner under the stars which provided a break from the usual trade show scene and allowed delegates to unwind after their long day.
4.
Overcoming Deja Vu
To pierce through any sense of deja vu and ideas such as I already know all about this, we created a unique universe for the communication around the event.
Event tickets used Leonardo Da Vinci's mirror script.
5.
Intrigue Until the End
Right up until the very last minute, there was a real risk that customers wouldn’t attend because they were being pulled in all directions by competing events. Our strategy was to reveal as little as possible. Instead, we hinted that something was going to happen at this event that shouldn’t be missed. Communication was rolled out in carefully timed phases and kept deliberately enigmatic and ambiguous to spark curiosity and generate questions, the answers to which would only be revealed on the night.
Phase 1 consisted of a printed invitation delivered by hand to customers in advance of the trade show. This was followed up by personal phone calls from sales reps to confirm attendance.
Phase 2 was a printed program with additional details that was delivered to the hotel room of each customer on the first day of the trade show week.
Phase 3 took the form of a ticket that was handed to customers as they boarded the buses to the venue. It featured a puzzle generating intrigue on the journey.
Results
The knock-on effect.
Getting bodies on seats is one thing. Getting people to listen is another.
The important result of this campaign was that by the time people arrived at the event, we had already created a sense of curiosity and an opening for new learning. Customers arrived expecting the unexpected which gave our client the opportunity to deliver their message.
Not only did the event succeed in communicating the message to customers, it had a knock-on effect which increased product awareness and knowledge internally among sales reps and marketing teams.
In addition, the project clarified our client’s strategy regarding the product in question. By working on the essence of the issue and addressing difficult questions around how to shift mindsets and change perception, senior management were able to clarify their global business vision and strategy for the product.
On the back of this event we launched a global awareness campaign which was driven by the insights and content that we had identified and developed for the trade show meeting.
Let’s talk! — We’ll look after you.